That Hair by Almeida: Identity & Belonging
One thing that stood out to me while reading That Hair was how Mila attaches meaning to something ordinary, like her hair. Her hair becomes closely connected to her identity, her family, and her experience of growing up between two cultures. With her parents being a Black Angolan mother and a white Portuguese father, Mila is constantly navigating different parts of her background. Her hair seems to represent this experience, connecting her to her Angolan roots while also making her feel different from the Portuguese society she grows up in.
I also found the title interesting. To me, the title “That Hair” almost makes Mila’s hair sound like something that other people point out because it is “different”. It made me think about the idea of being viewed as the "other". As she grows up in Portugal, where European beauty standards are present, her hair becomes a visible reminder of her difference. At the same time, her hair connects her to her family and ancestry, especially her mother and grandmother. Additionally, the memories of her grandmother illustrate how identity is passed down through family, even when someone does not fully understand their connection to their roots. Her memories of Angola are also interesting because she is trying to understand a place that is part of her identity, even though much of her connection to it comes through family stories. In this way, learning about her ancestry also becomes a way of learning about parts of herself.
I think the novel's writing style reflects this experience of coming from different backgrounds. Rather than telling the story in a straightforward, structured timeline, Almeida moves between memories, family experiences, and different moments in Mila's life. I guess this makes sense because identity is not something we develop all at once. Rather, it is shaped by our life experiences and the places we come from. Ultimately, I think Mila's relationship with her hair reflects the complicated experience of belonging to more than one culture. Her hair is effectively a reminder of both where she comes from and how she sees herself.
My question for the class: Do you have a personal feature that you feel connects you to your ancestral roots? How does it connect you, and does it form an important part of your identity? Do other people recognize it often?
My image today is what I imagine Mila’s hair looks like. I wish I had this curl pattern.
Very interesting post, Sydney. I really liked your observation about hair as something that connects Mila to her ancestry while simultaneously marking her as different in the society where she grows up. I think this tension is particularly interesting because the same feature that makes her feel alienated also connects her to her family history and cultural roots. I also liked your point about identity being shaped gradually through memories and family stories rather than through a straightforward process.
ReplyDeleteHi Sydney, I appreciated your reflection, especially when you said: "I guess this makes sense because identity is not something we develop all at once." This made me have new thoughts about the whole stream of consciousness/back and forth/ memory sequence writing style we saw in this text (and other ones like Ru). This idea of her writing style showing a progression of developing/uncovering identity is so in line with what she writes about her place of origin!
ReplyDeleteHi Sydney, I feel like your reflection was what I wanted more of from the actual book. I wish she had gone deeper into this feeling of otherness and connected how her hair reflected her identity, but it all felt mashed together with no connection to me. But I really like this concept of hair as a reflection of the dynamic aspects of life.
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