#synthesis 2

The psychological researchers and scholars also illustrated the harms of Eurocentric authors like Joyce. They point out the importance of memory, including personal memories and understanding one’s history, and reveal the issue with removing or changing a character’s background. Drawing on the work of psychologists and theologians, Dykstra argues that Jack from Rise of the Guardians could fully understand himself only by "reclaiming a repressed and traumatic childhood past" (707). So, he establishes why personal history and personal identity cannot exist or be built upon without the other. This adds to Nasara’s claim that removing “the characters’ contexts… provide a mechanism for readers to ignore elements that do not reflect and affirm their lived experiences” (Nasara 240). So, deleting a character’s racial identity confirms to white readers that that identity was not important. However, just as Jack needed his memories to understand who he was, cultural history can help audiences understand fictional characters and identify with them. By removing Toothiana's South Asian origins, Rise of the Guardians takes away a part of her identity that makes her distinct. Additionally, it is important to accept every part of yourself, and let yourself “to be interested in what interests [you] despite the shame” (Dykstra 709). Dykstra mainly discusses this in the context of personal interests and passions, but after reviewing Nasara’s work, I would expand this to cultural identity as well. Eurocentric authors may write books that allow “readers to ignore elements that do not reflect… their lived experiences” because it may be too difficult or shameful to accept anything else. So, it is difficult to understand one’s own culture in the context of American society without exploring the world views of people with other “lived experiences.” Furthermore, if someone has not accepted or explored the significance of their own ethnic background, they are stopping themself from true self-reflection and growth. So, the removal of Toothiana’s background robs her, and any audience member that related to her, of the opportunity to understand their culture, let alone other cultures. This is especially significant because of Toothiana’s personal connection to her childhood memories. Her parents reminded her that in difficult times, she must “remember that which [she] need[s]– a memory of happy days, or of deepest hopes” (Joyce 93), or of her family. By accepting both her memories that were traumatic and those that reminded her of better times, she could conquer the difficulties that came her way. Memories, including one’s racial background, are extremely important for self-discovery and to understand others, and the removal or loss of these memories can serve to reinforce cultural erasure.