Summary Of The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down By Anne Fadiman

In Anne Fadiman’s, A Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, there’s a conflicting battle going on between cultures. While it might never be specifically stated, Anne Fadiman attempts to convey a neutral understanding to her readers of the Hmong beliefs and culture alongside of the culture of biomedicine western society is mostly familiar with. While the Hmong beliefs and practices in medicine are taboo to western society, readers gradually see that Hmong medicine is just as equal or more powerful than biomedicine that we’re so familiar with. It’s an important concept to understand in this book is that the doctors are there to treat Lia’s disease, not precisely concerned with Lia as a person. Hmong medicine seems to be more related to in helping

“The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down” by Anna Fadiman tells the story of Lia Lee, a Hmong child with epilepsy, whose life could have been different if only her family was caught up in western medicine. This book reveals the tragic struggles between a doctor and patient because of lack of communication. When Lia was around three months old, her older sister Yer accidentally slammed a door and Lia had suddenly fallen into the floor. This is the first recorded time that Lia was experiencing an epileptic shock.

The Hmong became frustrated with the American medicine as seen when the author says that it was typically Hmong for patients to appear passively obedient only to later ignore everything they had supposedly assented to after they left the hospital. It therefore stressed the doctors who considered the Hmong as the most difficult patients. This was well brought out by a doctor who said that the only easy way to treat the Hmong people was with a bullet in their head known as “high velocity transcortical lead therapy” (63). Lia was equally difficult to the point that nurses would pray she is not admitted any time she fell epileptic. The uncooperative nature of the Lees made Lia be taken away from them

During the Vietnam War several Hmong’s relocated to America as political refugees. There was an enormous culture shock from both the Hmong and Americans and misunderstandings due to language barrier. Struggling to adapt to a new society with different norms the Hmong were highly underestimated. The author’s encounter with the Hmong patients were very heart felt, she grew especially close to the Lee family whose daughter had been diagnosed with a disease with radically different meanings for Western physicians. The Hmong had viewed epilepsy as state of being not necessarily psychological defect or even series of events.

This shows the knowledge of how the human body really works and the lack that they know of. They also don’t believe in autopsies because they feel like it prevents the souls from being reborn. These are the reasons that American doctors frequently are going back-and-forth with Hmong parents and their culture. Being in the medical field you have to take each person’s cultural background and be respectful to their believes even if you don’t agree with them. It’s really hard for some doctors to understand their reasoning or logic behind it.

In the book Panic, Lauren Oliver creates the character Heather Nill whose determination and bravery helps illustrate her strength and faith in herself. Heather and her other friends participate in the competition of their lifetime for the chance to win a large cash prize. Panic is the legendary game that occurs yearly in the small town of Carp, NY. Any graduating seniors are welcome to compete in the dangerous games to win the prize. Those who want to participate in panic must jump of a cliff the day after graduation, then the more challenging games begin.

In most of the novel, Fadiman alternates between the specific story of Lia and her family and the general history of the Hmong. She begins at the very beginning of Lia’s story and she tries her best to date the Hmong as far back in history as possible. In comparison, both elements of the story have three main elements: suffering, struggle, and survival. In particular, intense moments of both mental and physical suffering are observed in these parallel stories. Lia clearly endures physical suffering from her violent seizures and the Hmong who had to flee their home country had to walk for miles at a time in large packs.

The Lee’s were horrified with the side effects of the medications that disrupted her character. Thus leading to the doctors thinking the Lee’s were non-compliant with her medical regime. This, however, was clearly not the issue as the Hmong cherished and loved their children so deeply. They only had diverse beliefs and

North Dakota Road Trip The passage from The Horizontal World by Debra Marquart’s 2006 memoir is all about growing up in North Dakota and knowing the land around it. She is describing one of her memories when she was growing up in North Dakota. She relates to TV news anchors and really anyone who may know some of the geography of North Dakota such as the residents. Talks very highly of North Dakota’s geography and how great it is to live and grow up there, so she is trying to tell everyone why they should live there.

Many immigrants have an extremely difficult time migrating to different parts of the world due to cultural differences, language barriers, and homesickness. Nowadays, there are translators and help available for those that are migrating from different countries. However, what if someone had migrated to the United States and barely had any of that support? The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down is an incredibly touching book speaking of the struggle of the Hmong immigrants and the walls that were built between them and Americans, particularly the American doctors and medical system. The book focuses on a particular child, Lia Lee, and her family - specifically her parents, Foua Yang and Nao Kao Lee.

She faces racism, discrimination, loneliness, and, over time, a growing sense of love for her new home. Ha’s life is turned “inside out and back again”. Before Ha had to flee Saigon, she was headstrong and selfish, but she was also a girl who loved her mother and couldn't wait to grow up. She wanted to be able to do something before her older brothers did it, and do it better. But most of all, Ha wanted to fit in, to be liked.

Makenzie Griffith EDSE 460 Denise Hitchcock 1 March 2018 Midterm: The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down It is a story about a family who shows so much loyalty to their traditions and cultures, but it clashes with the strict American “norm” and creates conflict for their most prized possession, their daughter. Young Lia’s health is at risk when the doctors are trying to treat her epilepsy, but the culture barrier between them and her parents put her at risk. Lia’s parents, Nao Kao and Foua Lee believe that their ancient traditions and healing is what Lia needs in order to get better, but Lia’s doctors prescribe her with many prescriptions to help with the seizures and her parent’s inability to read or speak English to communicate

“Love and Honor and Pity and Pride and Compassion and Sacrifice” Nam Le’s “Love and Honor and Pity and Pride and Compassion and Sacrifice” is categorized in “ethnic story” narrated his Vietnamese life in order to meet an upcoming deadline even though finally he can’t submit his story because his father burns his work. Throughout the story, Nam the narrator talks about “the past” which he experiences when he was young including the recent experience that he has got from his father reunion. Not only does the story tell us about the past which, but it also shows a connection of time between past, present, and future. Likewise, the story shows the relationship between son and father which is the main theme of this story; and shows how the past is important and affect to them differently. Also, the story of the past could lead to the end of the story that can be interpreted like a prediction of the direction of their relationship in the future.

Hmong Culture The Hmong primarily originated from the “mountainous areas of China, Burma, Vietnam, Thailand, and Laos” (Purnell, 2014, pg. 236) and immigrated to the United States in 1975 after the Vietnam War. Primarily refugees from Laos, the Hmong people began immigrating to the United States in large numbers “after communist forces came to power in their native country.” (Bankston, 2014, pg. 332) Mainly settling in California, the Hmong began to be dispersed by American refugee settlement agencies across the country in the 1980s, also settling in Wisconsin and Michigan.

In Anne Fadiman’s book, The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, two cultures clash with each other in the struggle to save Lia Lee, a Hmong child refugee with severe epilepsy. Although Lee and her family live in the United States, and thus receive medical care from Westerners, her family believes that Lee’s condition is sacred and special. The following miscommunications, both culturally and lingually, between the American doctors and the Lee family leave Lia Lee in comatose at the end of the book. However, Lia Lee could have been saved if the Lee’s had a better understanding of the American doctors’ intentions, and the American doctors understood the Hmong culture. Essentially, the tragedy of Lia Lee can be attributed to the clash of American and Hmong cultures at both the surface and sub-surface level.