Lilly Lutz Blog Post #30- God Grew Tired of Us Reflection Questions

What have you learned about Dinka culture? What markers from the film are representative of Dinka culture? Of American culture? What values do the Lost Boys hold? How do those values compare with your own? 
I learned that they were a lot more communal then people are in the United States. People in the United States are a lot more individual then people in Africa and the boys were not used to that. A marker is when they were traveling in large groups and the people in the grocery store were freaked out by it. They boys are very religious, so they did celebrate Christmas, but they didn't know about Santa Claus and Tree. The boys are religious like me, but they don't celebrate Christmas with the tree and Santa Claus.

What questions and fears do the Lost Boys have about life in the U.S.? What questions and fears would you have if you were moving to a new place? What differences do you see between Dinka culture and American culture? What are some of the challenges the Lost Boys encounter? How do they adapt to life in the United States (think in terms of both assimilation and acculturation? How do you think you would adapt to life in a new country?

The Lost Boys have many questions and fears about living in the United States. Some of them are, different foods, technology and different cultural practices that they are not used too. The boys were also very confused when they were told about the Christmas Tree and Santa Claus because there culture does celebrate Christmas, but the tree and Santa are not symbols of it where they come from. If I was moving to a new place I would be scared of what people would think of me and that I would be judged. There is a big difference between American culture and their culture. One reason is that Americans use technology a lot and in Dinka Culture technology was not used at all. They boys faced challenges everyday, some being adapting to a new culture, trying new foods that they were not used too, finding a job and making friends. The Lost Boys adapted to the new culture by, not traveling in large groups, eating traditional American food and learning how to speak English. I would adapt to a new country by finding someone that could show/tell me everything I would need to know to fit in.

A benefit of this documentary lies in the opportunity to view our own (American) culture through the eyes of the Dinka. What aspects of our culture, which we may or may not take for granted, could potentially make immigrants feel marginalized or not a part of the American culture?

Some aspects of our culture that we take for granted is our freedom. The boys came to America and they were so surprised how free they were. We also take water and food for granted. The Lost Boys barely had food or water and when I saw how skinny they were it made me realize how lucky I am to have what have.

What scene(s) or ideas presented in the film stood out to you? Why?

A particular scene that stood out to me was when the boys tried the donut for the first time. All the boys grabbed the donut and started licking it at the same time. The people in the grocery store starting staring at them like they were crazy, but the boys did not know better.

Was there anything that surprised you as you watched the film? Detail one thing that you took away from the film study.

One thing that really surprised me was how the boys acted when they went into the apartment. They saw a toilet, a sink, a bathtub and snacks and they were so confused what those different things were for and they didn't know how to use them. They were so used to going to the bathroom outside and throwing there trash out the window, they didn't know how to act when they saw all these new things. One thing I took away from this film was I realized how fortunate I am to have want I have and I shouldn't take it for granted.