By: Fredlove, Nandi, Suchilla ,Alesha and Mishkatul.

Mendoza states in paragraph three she did not “ look and act like everyone else” because she compares herself to everyone and sees that she is different.  She is a brown haired/ brown-eyed girl surrounded by blond-haired/blue-eyed people, the difference was overwhelming. She also had a “z” in her last name and her grandma calls her Mija. In paragraph 2, it says that “ I was a half-breed daughter who was raised in a small town of Seymour, population 2,800”. This quote shows that Mendoza saw herself as a “half-breed”, which shows her deep-rooted insecurities. Adding on,  Mendoza said in paragraph 3, that I felt like I was stuck in the middle of my siblings, stuck in the middle of two cultures, and not accepted in either”. This shows that because she looks different, she doesn’t fit in and that she isn't accepted/welcomed in her culture. This is why she states that she does not “look or act like everyone else”.

By: Fredlove, Suchilla, Mishkatul, Alesha, and Nandi

Mendoza states in paragraph three she did not “ look and act like everyone else” because she compares herself to everyone and sees that she is different.  She is a brown haired/ brown-eyed girl surrounded by blond-haired/blue-eyed people, the difference was overwhelming. She also had a “z” in her last name and her grandma calls her Mija. In paragraph 2, it says that “ I was a half-breed daughter who was raised in a small town of Seymour, population 2,800”. This quote shows that Mendoza saw herself as a “half-breed”, which shows her deep-rooted insecurities. Adding on,  Mendoza said in paragraph 3, that I felt like I was stuck in the middle of my siblings, stuck in the middle of two cultures, and not accepted in either”. This shows that because she looks different, she doesn’t fit in and that she isn't accepted/welcomed in her culture. This is why she states that she does not “look or act like everyone else”.

By: Fredlove, Nandi, Suchilla,Alesha and Mishkatul.

Areebah, Dominique, Emma, Milan and Gem

Mendoza was greatly impacted by the ridicule she faced and she became self-conscious. In the text it states One detail is when Mendoza states “ I felt I was stuck somewhere in the middle of my siblings, stuck in the middle of two cultures, and not accepted by either.” This shows how Mendoza felt like she was trapped in between her classmates and siblings because she felt like she wasn't pretty enough for her classmates because she didn't have blonde hair and blue eyes, fair skin like her little brother, or “sleek, glossy hair, and olive complexion” like her sister. She felt insecure and since they teased her, she took it in and made herself feel bad about it. Furthermore, in the text it states “After an afternoon of teasing and tormenting from my classmates , I asked these questions to my mother, between sobs.” This shows how the teasing made her feel bad about herself and her insecurities. In conclusion, Mendoza became self-conscious because of the teasing she faced.

Mendoza states in paragraph three she did not “ look and act like everyone else” because she compares herself to everyone and sees that she is different.  She is a brown haired/ brown-eyed girl surrounded by blond-haired/blue-eyed people, the difference was overwhelming. She also had a “z” in her last name and her grandma calls her Mija. In paragraph 2, it says that “ I was a half-breed daughter who was raised in a small town of Seymour, population 2,800”. This quote shows that Mendoza saw herself as a “half-breed”, which shows her deep-rooted insecurities. Adding on,  Mendoza said in paragraph 3, that I felt like I was stuck in the middle of my siblings, stuck in the middle of two cultures, and not accepted in either”. This shows that because she looks different, she doesn’t fit in and that she isn't accepted/welcomed in her culture. This is why she states that she does not “look or act like everyone else”.

Group 3

8-1d

Question: Why would Mendoza’s other family members not be able to empathize with her?

 

Mendoza’s other family members  weren’t able to empathize with her. This is because they all fit into one of the categories in their society. For example in the essay it states “My other family members didn't seem to have any trouble fitting in. My father's ethnicity is well respected. He is the only doctor within a fifty-mile radius who can speak Spanish. My sister was the beauty queen of our town—her sleek, glossy hair and olive complexion were the envy of every girl. My little brother received the recessive genes (fair skin, blue eyes), so he looks like everyone else in Seymour. I felt I was stuck somewhere in the middle of my siblings, stuck in the middle of two cultures, and not accepted by either.” Meaning that she looked more alike to her dad since she was "half breed" and her mom was Caucasian, she felt stuck all in her own category. She also states she had "chocolate and espresso" features.In the ending of the essay she got over looking different and accepted that her heritage was not something feel bad about or to feel left out over.

by, Jacob Hinkley, Xavier Gardner,  Victor Akilude, Matthew Deng, and Jaydn Cribb 

Mendoza’s other family members  weren’t able to empathize with her. This is because they all fit into one of the categories in their society. For example in the essay it states “My other family members didn't seem to have any trouble fitting in. My father's ethnicity is well respected. He is the only doctor within a fifty-mile radius who can speak Spanish. My sister was the beauty queen of our town—her sleek, glossy hair and olive complexion were the envy of every girl. My little brother received the recessive genes (fair skin, blue eyes), so he looks like everyone else in Seymour. I felt I was stuck somewhere in the middle of my siblings, stuck in the middle of two cultures, and not accepted by either.” Meaning that she looked more alike to her dad since she was "half breed" and her mom was Caucasian, she felt stuck all in her own category. She also states she had "chocolate and espresso" features.In the ending of the essay she got over looking different and accepted that her heritage was not something feel bad about or to feel left out over.

Mendoza's attitude shifted drastically throughout the text from being insecure to embracing her culture. In the beginning of the text Mendoza was insecure because she looked and acted different compared to everybody else. One example of this would be in paragraph 1, she stated “By the time I was in grade school, the teasing began, and I was hurt and confused.” This proves that she felt insecure because she was different and people teased her about it as well which made her feel even worse. By the end of the story Mendoza eventually embraced the fact that she was Mexican and she wasn’t going to look like everyone else. An example of this would be in paragraph 4 it states “I have embraced my Mexican heritage and have become proud of it.” In paragraph 5 it also states “I absolutely love being different and not walking the same path as everyone else.” This shows that Mendoza was able to be proud of her heritage and what makes her unique. It is clear that Mendoza’s attitude has shifted throughout the text  from insecure to confident

What impact did the teasing have on Mendoza

Mendoza was greatly impacted by the ridicule she faced and she became self-conscious.  In the text it states One detail is when Mendoza states “ I felt I was stuck somewhere in the middle of my siblings, stuck in the middle of two cultures, and not accepted by either.” This shows how Mendoza felt like she was trapped in between her classmates and siblings because she felt like she wasn't pretty enough for her classmates because she didn't have blonde hair and blue eyes, fair skin like her little brother, or “sleek, glossy hair, and olive complexion” like her sister. She felt insecure and since they teased her, she took it in and made herself feel bad about it. Furthermore, in the text it states “After an afternoon of teasing and tormenting from my classmates , I asked these questions to my mother, between sobs.” This shows how the teasing made her feel bad about herself and her insecurities. In conclusion, Mendoza became self-conscious because of the teasing she faced.

Mendoza states in paragraph three she did not “ look and act like everyone else” because she is bi-racial and didn't look like her classmates.  She is a Hispanic, brown-haired/ brown-eyed girl, while her classmates were European, blond-haired/blue-eyed people. In addition, She also had a “z” in her last name and her grandma calls her Mija.  In paragraph 2, it says that “ I was a half-breed daughter who was raised in a small town of Seymour, population 2,800”. This quote shows that Mendoza saw herself as a “half-breed” (an offensive term for someone whose parents are from two different cultures or races), which shows that she only views herself as different. Adding on,  Mendoza said in paragraph 1, “My hair and my eyes instead of being blond and blue...”. This shows that because she looks different and was Hispanic she didn’t fit in and that she isn't accepted/welcomed in her culture. This is why she states that she does not “look or act like everyone else”.