What’s more American than corn flakes?

Posted by Catherine | July 1, 2011 | 11 Comments

In grade school one year we put on a patriotic performance, in which I was one of the lucky girls chosen to be Lady Liberty and in which we sang with gusto the song, “What’s More American.” Anybody remember that one? . . . “What’s more American than corn flakes, the fourth of July, or Uncle Sam? What’s more American than football, T.V., the mighty Superman? What’s more American than saying, I am, I am, I am!” This song resurfaces in my head around every fourth of July as I plan how we will celebrate our country and what it means to be an American.

During my third year of grad school, I was assigned to teach a class I hadn’t taught or heard of before: “The American Experience,” a literature class for non-English majors. Planning the class was both exciting and excruciating because, as we all know, there is no singular “American experience.” Of all the possible American experiences, which should I include in the class? Of course, that was the point of the class in the first place: asking questions about what it means to be an American and what counts as American experience requires engagement with the histories of conquest, expansion, immigration, and nation-building as well as with concepts, like individualism, self-creation, and alienation.

This morning as the “What’s More American” song floated around in my head, I thought about the lyrics—what in my own personal experience represents being American to me and to those around me? Here’s a sampling of my thoughts:

*As a 19-year-old, studying abroad in Austria and away from home for my first fourth of July, I planned a little rooftop dinner and experimented countless times trying to make chocolate chip cookies with no recipe, no chocolate chips, and Austrian ingredients and measuring devices. Chocolate chip cookies represented home to me. They were decidedly American.

* When I was in high school, we had a foreign exchange student from Mexico. She lived with us and my older sister went to Mexico to live with her family. In the short time that she lived with us, my mom carefully planned a trip to Yellowstone. In my mom’s mind, the national parks are what’s American. This girl could not go back to Mexico having been so close to Yellowstone (5 hours) and not have seen it. But our exchange student seemed much more interested in the Madonna cd I had brought for the drive. Madonna. That’s what was American to her.

* My first semester of grad school, I took a course on literacy and orality. For one project, I interviewed different members of my family and my husband’s family to write a kind of family history of literacy practices. When I called my husband’s Italian grandma, I asked her why she does not speak fluent Italian—after all, her parents emigrated from Italy with their children. “Once they got to America,” she told me, “They stopped speaking Italian to us. Only English. They spoke Italian to each other. We were American then,” she said, “we spoke English and changed our name.” They changed the pronunciation of their name from “Pavia” with a soft “a” to “Pavia” with the same “a” sound as in “pave.” In their minds, the long a sound was American.

* After I finished my master’s degree, my best friend and I backpacked around Europe, but we soon learned to steer clear of the other young Americans and to eschew the label of our nationality since almost every other young American we met on trains and in hostels was loud, obnoxious, and concerned more about how much they could drink than about the beauty of the world around them.

Yet to Annie Dillard, awareness of the beauty around us is decidedly “American.” In An American Childhood Annie Dillard writes about her own childhood in Pittsburgh, particularly about her own process of wakening to self-consciousness and consciousness of the world around her. When I first read her book, I wondered why she included “American” in her title—perhaps it was her way of saying that in America, many of us enjoy enough prosperity and plenty of freedom that we should engage in this kind of awareness of the world around us. We have been given a beautiful, varied nation and the opportunity to open our eyes and hearts and see what’s around us. For Dillard, I think, taking the chance to notice and see beauty was crucial to her American childhood.

What about for you? What’s more American for you? What are you celebrating or thinking of this 4th of July weekend?

Category: Daily Special

Comments

11 Responses to “What’s more American than corn flakes?”

Amira
July 1st, 2011 @ 10:40 am

We do very little socializing with Americans, but I do like to hang out with them on the Fourth of July, so we’ll be at a barbecue at the US Embassy. And I know what you mean about the chocolate chip cookies. That’s what we’re taking to share, and it’s not easy to put them together, but they are American. The hot dogs that will be there are the American thing my children are craving, although they’ll miss the fireworks.

I don’t feel American the way I used to though, before I’d lived overseas. I feel more like a citizen of the world than a citizen of the US, and I’d rather live overseas. But there are a handful of places, like Yellowstone and a few others in the western US, that really are home.

I love that there are so many ways to be American. I think that’s my favorite thing about the US.
Sarah in Georgia
July 1st, 2011 @ 11:01 am

To me, good plumbing is America. Toilets that can flush toilet paper and tap water you can drink were two things I realized not to take for granted after my limited trips out of the country. It’s silly, but something I appreciate.
Tay
July 1st, 2011 @ 11:47 am

I am missing childhood memories of celebrating in Taylor, AZ. My cousins live(d) there and I love being with them when I can. They have a pancake breakfast for my cousin’s ward following cannons (I think…) being shot at really early in the morning. I don’t remember a parade, but that wasn’t my family’s thing anyway. And the best part was gathering at the park by the firestation where they shot off the fireworks. It was so cool to lay on the blanket so close to the fireworks, they were right above our heads and gave the ground a good shake. And the Indian fry bread is so good there.

But watching the Stadium of Fire’s show from my cousin’s house is also a fun alternative.
Paul
July 1st, 2011 @ 12:05 pm

I appreciated your July 4 celebration as an exchange student in Austria. When I was in Germany as an exchange student in HS, we did the same thing — we hosted a July 4 “cookout” as best we could, complete with a softball game. Our German host families seemed happy to have a party.

My father warned me before that exchange student experience that I would see a lot of enticing things about Germany that would make me think that was a better place than home, and he urged me to hold judgement til I’d come home. I don’t think he feared I would defect (I depended on him for my support, after all), but he wanted me to see as full a picture as I could. Good advice.

As my wife and I and our children have lived overseas about 10 of our family’s 31 years, my wife particularly has tried to remind our kids of “American-ness” (or, as they said in Venezuela, our “North American-ness”). But for her it was as much in ideas and history as in foods and celebrations.
Catherine
July 1st, 2011 @ 5:42 pm

I appreciate all of your comments.

Paul, I think the older I get the more the ideas and history mean to me, although the foods and celebrations certainly are fun as well.

Amira, it’s wonderful that you feel more like a citizen of the world. I think that’s one of the things I realized when I backpacked Europe and wanted to disassociate myself with the older American backpackers–that my desire to treat others kindly and with respect trumped my nationality.
Rosalyn
July 2nd, 2011 @ 9:22 pm

Catherine–I think you’d like Greg Clark’s book on Rhetorical Landscapes–he has a fascinating chapter on Yellowstone Park (which comes up several times here) and how Yellowstone was rhetorically constructed as an “American” experience, where those who participated in the experience came away affirmed as part of an American community. (I’m sure there’s some interesting rhetoric circulating about the sites and objects that we associate with “America”).
Riss
July 3rd, 2011 @ 10:37 am

I’m actually studying abroad in Austria right now, for me America means “that place where all my family and friends are.” Yeah, i’m a little homesick.
Also, America to me means baby carrots. I’ve been looking for them in grocery stores everywhere here, and couldn’t find them. The other day, when I was missing home especially keenly, I stumbled upon them at the Billa grocery store. It was just to much. I stood in the middle of that skinny little European grocery aisle, hugging my baby carrots and cring. It was like a tiny piece of home had found me.
For the 4th of July tomorrow, we’re going to an amusement park. Because nothing says America like carnival rides and cotton candy, I guess.
Tiffany W.
July 4th, 2011 @ 11:41 am

Thank you so much for this post. The subject is one I’ve reflected on a great deal. Four years ago, we moved back to the U.S. after 5 1/2 years living in Sweden. It was an intense experience. While living in Sweden, we were surrounded by students from every nationality. We also were able to observe the Swedish culture in-depth. I particularly still feel homesickness for Sweden. We are currently preparing for a year-long stay in Saudi Arabia.

My feelings about what is unique about the American experience are definitely informed by my experience living abroad and traveling during that time.

What is American to me?
Having choices and variety–The variety of options and choices available to Americans is simultaneously exhilerating and frightening. After living in Sweden where we had 5 choices of breakfast cereal (max), going to the cereal aisle in a U.S. grocery store was completely overwhelming.
Americans thrive on hard work. I know other countries claim a mentality of hard work and it is a fair claim. But we Americans identify very much by what we do. We put in long hours at work and have a devotion to hard work. I found it difficult to navigate businesses and the health care facilities because people in Sweden didn’t have the devotion to their jobs or the belief in hard work that is very much a characteristic of Americans.
America is about sentimental patriotism. I know plenty of people who feel pride and loyalty to their countries–but it was always the Americans that were the most sentimental in their patriotism.
America is about baking powder. So silly, I know! But something as simple as baking powder can really make a big difference. That was one of the few items I would stow in my suitcase.
I could really go on and on but I won’t. I appreciate the reflections of others.
Sage
July 8th, 2011 @ 3:03 am

Tiffany, Baking powder! Yes. When I was a missionary in Peru I was able to get some and make pancakes. It was a happy taste of home. I remember walking back to our room with the little bag of powder feeling so excited.

And toilet paper! Free at any public restroom! Genius! (Love two ply. Had to carry around my own roll in Peru).

And freedom and individuality and hard work and even country music (not a big fan, but after being away from the States it touches your heart a little bit).

I feel fortunate to have traveled enough to recognize that we have a wonderful country here.

And I was thinking about apple pie and baseball and other American things on the Fourth. And I saw all the good people that generously give to other countries in need in times of disasters, that work to make their communities good places. And I cringed thinking about the view of American’s as fat, selfish, ignorant people that is portrayed in media.

It takes all kinds to make the world and our country is still a melting pot.

Loved your post. Well-written and thought-provoking (and something to think about while I can’t sleep!)
Ana of the Nine Kids
July 8th, 2011 @ 9:16 am

For me it is (a big part anyway) the flag. When I see it waving I feel so grateful to live where I don’t have to worry about so many things so many other people have to worry about. I feel like I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth simply because I was born in America. (Incidentally, I’m not exactly a world traveler–the only other country I’ve been to is Canada and I’ve spent the majority of my time in the Northwestern USA. But I am still so, so, so grateful for my freedom.)
Expatriate Tax Returns
July 28th, 2011 @ 8:45 am

Awesome blog!!! Love it! Looking forward to reading more!