Rachel Choi Blog #1 Belonging to a Nation

I believe  a nation is made up of a substantial  amount of people who share a common characteristic whether it being a language, ancestry, or culture.  The reason why a nation must be made up of a notable population is for the basis of being recognized as a solid people  who have the power to act as a whole.  Most importantly in the nation is a group of people who share a common belief and feeling of national unity.  

A nation provides a safe house of some sort in which you may explore in, within some sort of boundaries of course.  Through your exploration, the nation is flexible in sharing with you it’s culture.  This nation protects you as it shields you with a collection of shared morals, understandings, and beliefs.  As long as every participant in the nation follows the law set by the people, there should be no misinterpretations or clamor but of course, we are human and humans make mistakes.   A nation provides you comfort in knowing that you belong to it and in it is a system of laws to keep the nation and ultimately your community from falling.  It provides an equal-opportunity environment in which you can also learn of the surrounding communities’ cultures and languages.  

The thought of belonging to a nation is very subjective in that neither language nor ethnicity may make you feel a part of the nation.   Nothing can make you feel as though you are a part of a nation, you simply have to feel as though you are.  In Nathan’s case in Passing Through, I believe that the nation he felt as though he belonged to was definitely the one that showed the most kindness and care for him when he needed a support system.   His family in America provided a home in a community in which he grew up in and developed a sense of belonging in.  He visited Korea , the nation in which he was born in.  Through his visit there, he realized that belonging there simply because of ethnic reasons was a totally foreign concept.  Though he did try to interact with the Korean people, everything he experienced was new and awkward.  Though he struggled at first as he continually questioned which community in which he belonged to, he ended his film saying that he must go back to his true home, America.