Pooja Patel's Posts (48)
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Culture Post #4
Holidays.
India celebrates numerous holidays majority of which have religious affiliations. These holidays are officially recognized by the Indian government and schools are off on these days.
In my earlier post, I mentioned that Hinduism is the largest religion in India. Christianity and Islam are the minority religions in India. However, in a country of over a billion people, a rather large part of the population follow the minority religions.I would like to focus my attention on the conflict between the people who follow the Hindu tradition and the people who follow the Islam tradition.
From my observations, I have learned that people do not pitch the religions against each other. Instead, people put the name of religion on the conflict. It is people fighting one another. Yes both religions have their share of dissimilarities. However, in India, actions of the past still dominate the relationships between people. The political/social history of the conflict is long and rigorous. Therefore, I would like to emphasize my focus on how people seek to find common ground while have differences. Hindi, as a language, play a large role in the conflict because the language is embedded with the cultural respect that is practiced by the Indian society!
In this artifact, I am having a casual conversation about food with my language partner. We discuss our likes and our dislikes!
Culture Post #3
Religions and Relationships.
Indian people highly value relationships both communal and romantic.
In my earlier post, I discussed the importance of religion and respect for one another’s faith in India. Respect is a huge part of the Indian national identity and it is resonated in the Hindi language. I this post I would like to shed light on the interaction between the importance of respect and the firm differences between faiths. I will be focusing on Hinduism and Islam.
Various parts of India still practice the tradition of arrange marriage. For the younger generation, this means that dating is prohibited. However, like any other teenagers, teens in India break the norms and pursue their love interest. These relationships are complicated when one person is of Hindu faith while the other is of Muslim faith.
Hindus respect Islam as a religion and Muslims respect Hinduism. The heart of the issue lies in the people who practice these religions. The conflict between the Hindus and the Muslims of India has been a prevalent issue for years now and it is not one that will be resolved easily.
Culture Post #5
In this post, I would like to describe my vision for the cultural presentation. Over the course of the semester, my language partner and I have had great discussions about the Indian culture and what exactly it means to be an Indian.
We touched on some great topics in our “culture talks”: a woman’s role on a macro-level (the Indian society) and on a micro-level (at home), the difference between the urban Indian and the countryside, and religion.
For my project, I would like to focus my attention on religion and how that plays a role in the larger Indian culture. My presentation will begin with a brief history of Hinduism. Then, I will focus on the role religion plays in today’s modern society. Here, I would like to highlight the conflict between the followers of Hinduism and the followers of Islam.
My plans may change depending on what my research reveals but, for the time being, the purpose of my presentation will be to shed light on the history of Hinduism, the role of religion toady and the religious conflict and whether they are truly religious or simply conflicts between people.
Culture Post #1
Over the course of the last semester, I faced a huge cultural challenge: What is the Indian culture?
India is a vast country with various ethnic groups that have their own unique culture. The nation is composed of 28 states and almost every state is a home to a unique ethnic group that has their own language, different food, and special customs. I come from the state of Gujarat and, therefore, am classified as Gujarati. I know the Gujarati language and I am accustomed to Gujarati food. On the other hand, my language partner is of Sindhi background and she is used to her own special culture.
So with so many states, so many ethnicities, and so many customs, how do the Indian people find a common ground?
Indian people are aware of the differences amongst them. Instead of tearing them apart, these differences bring the Indian population together. Societies in Indian have some to respect each other’s believes and they join forces in order to create the larger Indian community. The Hindi language and the Hindu religion serve as a combining force for people. Hindi is the national language of India and it serves as a means of communication for over 1 billion people. Hindi is a powerful language and, this is one of the reasons for why I wanted to learn the language. The next combining force is religion. Majority of the Indian population is Hindu. This joins people in a spiritual bond.
This semester I would like to dig deeper into the Indian society and how different groups of people play a unique role in it. I would specifically like to focus on gender, socioeconomic status, relationships and religion.
Culture Post #2
Religion and Respect.
Majority of the Indian population is of Hindu faith. Christianity and Islam are the minority religions in India. In this discussion, I will put forth the Hindu perspective.
In one of “culture talk” conversations, my language partner and I discussed the importance of religion and how that affects the larger society. Hinduism is a polytheistic religion that believes in the existence and worshipping of multiple gods and goddesses. While majority of the Indian population is Hindu, different groups of people approach Hinduism in various manners. In this way, Hinduism is like any other major religion of the word were some practitioners are more conservative and traditional in their approach while others are more liberal and modern.
For an average Indian, religion is not crucial in their day to day life. Yet, religion makes up a large part of the Indian identity. The Indian government identifies a various religious holidays based on Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity. This is an act of respect. Respect is a big part of the Indian culture. One does not have to be affiliated with any particular religion in order to appreciate and respect that particular faith.
As an Indian, when I hear the term “religion”, I automatically think of the tiff between Hinduism and Islam. The tensions between the groups that practice each religion trace back to numerous decades. The conflict is extremely overt and visible in the Indian society even today. When people gather to talk about the issue, the religions themselves are not targeted (and this is primarily because of the notion of respect that is engrained in the Indian society.) Instead, the people are opposed to “the other” group of people that practice the religion.
In my next culture post, I would like to pursue this topic further and inspect how religion plays a role in the relationships that people share with one another.
Sixth Bi-weekly Post
- 1. Write a small story in Hindi
- Write a full page in Hindi
- “Culture Talk”
i. Ask questions about Indian culture and have a cultural conversation utilizing basic Hindi words
- 2. Revision/ Culture Project
- “Culture Talk”
i. Ask questions about Indian culture and have a cultural conversation utilizing basic Hindi words
As I approach the end of the semester, I have realized that some of my goals are extremely ambitious.
Overall, I am very pleased with my progress. I have learned how to better understand Hindi and talk more fluently. Now, I can recognize the Hindi alphabet and write with ease. I have been gradually making progress with reading the language as well. I can write basic sentences but I have not reached a point where I can write a short story. I can, however, develop simple sentences describing myself! I am hoping to highlight this during my final evaluation.
Over the course of this semester, Sanya and I have compared and contrasted the different Indian backgrounds that we come from. These “cultural talks” have been extremely useful to me as I have embarked on my journey about gaining an in-depth understanding of what it means to be an Indian. Learning how to read and write Hindi have enabled me to better understand some parts of the broader Indian culture. One of the primary examples of this was the concept of respecting elders in the Indian society. The Hindi language emphasizes the notion of respect by having numerous words designed in a hierarchy. Learning aspects such as this is a validation of a sort for me as I continue to pursue the Hindi language further.
I have made tremendous progress over the course of this semester. I have learned by doing and I have learned from my mistakes. Some of my goals were more realistic than others. Here on out, I know how to approach a language and what method works best for me.
Fifth Bi-weekly Post
- 1. Translation sentences (English to Hindi)
- Sanya will give me sentences in English which I will have to comprehend and then translate them in Hindi
- Learn 10 new words
- “Culture Talk”
i. Ask questions about Indian culture and have a cultural conversation utilizing basic Hindi words
- 2. Write a paragraph in Hindi
- Write a paragraph in Hindi using simple sentences.
- “Culture Talk”
i. Ask questions about Indian culture and have a cultural conversation utilizing basic Hindi words
In the last two meeting, I focused on changing my thinking processing from English to Hindi. As I have dwelled further into the language, I have constantly found myself caught in translation. My brain received the information in Hindi and it translated that in English in order to comprehend. From here, it was processed further as my thoughts developed in English and I translated them to Hindi, thus, communicating with my language partner.
Over the course of last two weeks, I received the information in English. I was asked to write in Hindi. Utilizing this method, my brain was challenged to start thinking in Hindi. Overall, the change occurred a lot faster that Sanya and I had expected. I was starting to grasp the concept and, soon, I was able to write sentences!
During this meeting, my language partner and I discussed how I would like to shape the final evaluation for the Self-Directed program. My monologue will be composed of me describing my academic life at the University of Richmond. The dialogue with my language partner will be composed of chatting about the Indian communal life. This dialogue will primarily revolve around social constructs such as daily lifestyle and holidays. I will read a short story that Sanya will write for me. My language partner will also instruct me and I will be writing words that I have learned over the course of the semester.
Fourth Bi-weekly Post
- 1. Reading a simple short story
- Sanya will assign me a short story on Thursday. I will read this on my own and I should be able to fluently read this story to Sanya during our next meeting
- Learn 10 new words
- “Culture Talk”
i. Ask questions about Indian culture and have a cultural conversation utilizing basic Hindi words
- 2. Reading a short story
- Sanya will assign me a short story on Thursday. I will read this on my own and I should be able to fluently read this story to Sanya during our next meeting
- Learn 10 new words
- “Culture Talk”
i. Ask questions about Indian culture and have a cultural conversation utilizing basic Hindi words
This time around, Sanya and I tackled my second goal for this semester: learning how to read in Hindi! Sanya gave me a short story that we read together. At first, this was a big challenge. Throughout the course of the semester, I have been focusing on writing. I have made considerable progress in that field. However, as far as reading went a story goes, I was a little taken aback. I went in feeling confident about being comfortable with reading. However, a small set back was not going to stop me.
During my session with my language partner, we continued reading even though it was challenging. Sanya advised that I break down the words and use the alphabet pronunciation. Since Hindi is a language based on phonetics, this was extremely useful advice. Separating the words gave me the same familiarity that I had in the beginning stages of the semester. Using this technique, I read the short story multiple times. After a few times, I was able to grasp the overall pattern.
I have been practicing on my own and am hoping to become more fluent over time.
Third Bi-weekly Post
- 1. Half words
- Using the “half” Hindi alphabets
- Learn 20 new words
- “Culture Talk”
i. Ask questions about Indian culture and have a cultural conversation utilizing basic Hindi words
- 2. Simple Sentences
- Put words without matras and with matras together
- Learn 10 new words
- “Culture Talk”
i. Ask questions about Indian culture and have a cultural conversation utilizing basic Hindi words
The last two weeks were challenging and productive as well. Learning the “half” alphabets was a challenge. Sanya and I were not able to fully cover the topic in our meetings. Instead, our attention was diverted into putting the words I had learning into sentences. I was able to write basic sentences utilizing sets of words that Sanya had taught me. Sanya recited the sentences to me. First, I translated the sentence in English in order to ensure that I understood the meaning of what I was writing. Then I proceeded to write the words individually as Sanya kept an eye on my work. Finally, I was able to achieve my goal of writing simple sentences!
After this success, Sanya provided me with another set of words. This set of words included the matras that I was having a little difficulty learning. At first, I practiced these words at my own time. When I met with Sanya, I wrote sentences using the words with matras. Below are the words:
1. दिन - day
2. निशान - mark
3. दीवार - wall
4. चाबी - key
5. अलमारी - cupboard
6. तैयार - ready
7. तैरना - swim
8. खुशबू - fragrance
9. रसोई - kitchen
10. दोपहर - afternoon
11. टोकरी - basket
12. मौसम - weather
13. सुबह - morning
14. औरत - woman
15. खिलौना - toy
16. साबुन - soap
17. रुकावट - obstacle or to stop something
18. सामान - luggage
19. रविवार - sunday
20. मेहमान – guest
This week’s meetings were very productive for me. I learned a lot and I was actually able to measure my progress! As far as cultural conversations go, Sanya and I have been talking a lot about the Indian society and how it functions at a micro and macro level. We were able to uncover some key differences. I will be discussing these conversations in my cultural posts!
Second Bi-weekly Post
- 1. Simple words
- Basic words without matras
- Learn 20 new words
- “Culture Talk”
i. Ask questions about Indian culture and have a cultural conversation utilizing basic Hindi words
- 2. Simple words
- Words with matras
- Learn 20 new words
- “Culture Talk”
i. Ask questions about Indian culture and have a cultural conversation utilizing basic Hindi words
This week, Sanya and I started our meeting with a primary conversation in Hindi. I was surprised by how comfortable I have become with the language. We introduced each other and talked about how our days had been. Sanya and I also discussed what we had done throughout the course of the day.
After this, we jumped right in to the writing portion of our meeting. Usually, when Sanya and I met, I always wrote the Hindi vowels and consonants in order. I proceeded to do the same this meeting as well. However, Sanya stopped me and instead encouraged me to only write the alphabets that she would tell me. In doing so, we broke up the order of the alphabets. In many ways, my brain was used to receiving the new information in one particular format.
After changing the alphabets, Sanya told me that I did fairly well. I only missed 2 out of 45 Hindi alphabets. This was a milestone for me. I finally became fully comfortable with the language I was used to hearing. There on after, Sanya provided me with basic words and I was able to spell them. I spelled the following words:
1. सङक - Road
2. कमर - Back
3. कलम - Pencil/Pen
4. गरम - Hot
5. पकड - Hold
6. नमक - Salt
7. मटर - Peas
8. पवन - Air
9. नरम - Soft
10. असर - Effect
11. समय़ - Time
12. सरल - Easy
13. छत - Terrace
14. शहद - Honey
15. दल - Group/Team
16. बतख - Duck
17. खतम - Finish
18. नकल - Copy
19. पकड - Catch
20. शहर - City
21. तरह - Different
22. चढ़ - Climb
23. भवन - Building
24. जगत - world
25. नल - Tap (Bathroom tap)
26. भर - To fill
27. ख़त - Letter
28. कल - Tomorrow or Yesterday
29. चल - to walk
30. पर - on
Overall, I learned a lot from my interactions with Sanya. I practice the words listed above regularly and the repetition has helped me memorize the words!
First Bi-weekly Post
- 1. Learning Plan
- Work on the learning plan with my language partner
- 2. Alphabet
- Revise the alphabet
- “Culture Talk”
i. Ask questions about Indian culture and have a cultural conversation utilizing basic Hindi words
During my first meeting with my language partner, we developed a learning plan. Last year, I learned how to communicate in Hindi and I was able to grasp the Hindi alphabet. The Hindi alphabet is divided into vowels, consonants and matras. There are a total of 33 consonants and 12 vowels. The matras are the same as the vowels, however, unlike the vowels; they can be combined with the consonants to change the pronunciation. For example, the consonant pa added with the matra sound aa becomes paa.
After our revision of last semester, my language partner and I evaluated my performance. Overall, Sanya was pleased with my growth and level of comfort with Hindi. Here on out, we set out to build a learning plan that would fit my needs in learning Hindi.
This semester, I would like to focus my attention on learning how to write in Hindi. My goal is to start writing basic Hindi words without matras. When I master that, I would like to learn more complex words that use matras. I am hoping to read on a second grade level by the end of this semester. I will be asking my language partner to write/find online short stories for me. As far as writing is concerned, my primary focus is learning how to spell as many words as possible. By the end of the semester, I am hoping to learn how to write short sentences.
As of now, I believe that my goals are realistic and attainable. Therefore, I am excited and look forward to a great semester.
Over the course of the semester, I have been focusing my attention on writing. Overall, I am happy with my progress. However, I was having a tough time with the ई and उ matras. Therefore, I asked my language partner to provide me with words that utilized those matras.
In this artifact, I wrote out the words with ई and उ matras.
For my first artifact, I wanted to review what I had learned in SDLAP 110.
In this artifact, I wrote vowels and consonants in Hindi. I also practiced matras using the consonant क.
In this artifact, I reviewed the Hindi alphabet and wrote words without matras!
I have learned that practicing is a big part of learning Hindi for me. Therefore, in this artifact, I re-write the words numerous times in order to grasp the concept and the spelling.
In this artifact, I am introducing myself and my family members!
I wrote a few vocabulary words in Hindi. Following that, I wrote days of the week in Hindi. I also wrote numbers in Hindi!
Here, my language partner and I are having a conversation!
