Identity is identity, and I think it’s impossible to fully adopt a new culture. When I was 20 I moved to Brazil, absolutely fascinated by brazilian music and determined to get inside of it. While there, I learned to speak portuguese and sang many, many brazilian songs. One happy effect of singing a lot was that my foreign accent all but disappeared – locals started assuming that I was simply from another part of Brazil and not a foreigner. I got to really blend in for awhile and get to know the real Brazil, but after 1 1/2 years I had to admit that I’m just not brazilian and come back to the states. There’s no place like home – we share so much information with each other through our language. In a conversation with a stranger we’d bond over random references to figures like Dan Rather, Bogart, Chuck D, the Dukes of Hazzard or Tom and Jerry. Other cultures have their own set of references that you can’t penetrate if you didn’t spend your childhood in that country. Since my brazilian adventure I’ve traveled a lot more, but with less pretense at trying to adopt the local accent. I think it shows more respect to admit a cultural divide and to work around it, rather than try and erase it.
- my response to an interesting question regarding foreign accents and identity asked by Derek Sivers.