Culture and Conflict: Orange is the New Black

Corrina Benavides

Focus: "Taystee"

From the very beginning, "children are socialized in their own culture to equip them with the skills necessary to cope with the complexity of adult interpersonal relationships" (Maruyama, 1212). Each of these cultures provides individuals with distinct methods of handling various situations. It's interesting to note that within what are considered Asian cultures, each region still maintains a very distinct way of handling problems. For example, "Chinese prefer obliging, dominating and avoiding more than Japanese and Koreans; Chinese and Koreans prefer integrating and compromising more than Japanese; and Japanese prefer obliging more than Koreans" (Maruyama, 1212). 

Although not as distinct as these subdivided Asian cultures, American has many subcultures as well. Each of these cultures are important on the influence and the beliefs of the individual. "Taystee", one of the main characters from Orange is the New Black, is a great example of this. Her actions, because of her background, upbringing and parental figures are different from others. When a new "gang" within the prison forms, rather than avoiding the situation all together like her best friend, Taystee joins. She works her way up to a valuable position also. This acts as a reflection of her past experiences. Rather than be homeless and beat down, she did what she could to survive (including working for a drug dealer whom conveniently also runs the gang in prison). She responds in certain ways because of her upbringing. 

Source: 
Maruyama, Hiroki, et al. "Cultural Difference In Conflict Management Strategies Of Children And Its Development: Comparing 3- And 5-Year-Olds Across China, Japan, And Korea." Early Education And Development 26.8 (2015): 1210-1233. ERIC. Web. 28 Mar. 2016