Dominican and Italian

Jonathan D. Iulo October 27, 2010 Topic: Comparison Essays My Italian and Dominican families English 105 I come from two different backgrounds which are very similar but different. I chose to write my comparison essay about the Dominican culture which comes from my mother’s side and the Italian culture which is my father’s.
Comparing and showing the similarities of both cultures is very interesting since I grew up with both in the house. Both cultures try to keep most of their homeland tradition here in the United States.These include religion, morals and values, customs, language, music, and food. The Italians and the Dominicans are family oriented. The male role such as the father is being the care taker financially and plays an important role in decision making in the house. The men in both cultures are the protectors. Many men in both cultures are said to be jealous, which probably comes from being over protective.
They tend to be overprotective of their wife’s and their daughters. The men is perceived to be the” Macho” in the family and the women are more of a “delicate” symbol.In both cultures, it is more acceptable for a man to have more than one girlfriend than for a woman. The female role such as the mother is the care giver, the one that soothes you when you are in need and the one that cooks. Women are the ones that hold the family together specially the mother and grandmother. Everyone comes to them for guidance. Women are supposed to preserve themselves for one man, although that is changing.

The family always gets together on weekends and holidays. The family is very important and both love to eat.Even though Italians love pasta and Dominicans love their rice and beans; they have the coffee in common. They can drink coffee at breakfast, lunch, and dinner and it’s usually espresso. Both cultures also enjoy bread. They eat bread with coffee, chocolate milk, and food in general. Italians and Dominicans love gardening.
Italians like to produce their own fresh vegetables like zucchini, eggplants, and tomatoes. Dominicans like to plant flowers of many kinds, as well as peppers and cilantro, like my mom.There is a great respect for the mother and the elders. The mothers are the ones that mainly guide you spiritually and you need their approval when it comes to relationships. They both want their children to have an Italian or a Dominican as a future wife or husband. The elders are the keepers of history memories and are the root of the family. The grandparents are usually the ones teaching you the native language, in this case Spanish and Italian.
Most Italians and Dominicans are catholic and religion plays an important part in their lives.The special religious events, seasons, and the church in the community are part of the cultural traditions. Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter traditions are very special events to both Dominicans and Italians. During these religious holidays the immediate and extended families get together for church and home festivities. The families enjoy the prayers, food, and music together. Both cultures are very similar and I believe this is one of the reasons my parents and the family get along well and I enjoy being part of both worlds.