1) Read from "Becoming a Dominicanyork" on the bottom of page 17 to the top of page 18.

How do the two types of merengue -- merengue de orchestra and merengue típico reflect
class stratification in Dominican society? What particular images in the videos bring this
class stratification to light? Look up the word stratification; write it down; and then write
down the definition.
The two merengue shows the two types of class society by their music and even their actions.
The tipico merengue seem to be mostly know by the lower class of Dominicans as to the
merengue de orchestra which the music in itself has a different type of classic beat to it, which is
presume to be listened or played by the upper class of Dominican. Even to two video shows the
different environment to which each type or class of music is played or listened. In the first video
(merengue tipico), the people are having a good time in their neighborhood where everyone
seem to be dancing even with their shirts off and the (merengue de orchestra) whereas, these
people are dressed in fine linen with classical instruments playing and they are having a good
time likewise but the atmosphere is different and even though you may not see the audience at
the second video live show. You can also observe the difference in era the first video seems more
modern when compared to the second video. In those two videos you see the division in society
by their appearance and environment.
2) Read from the bottom of page 18 to the end of the 2nd paragraph on page 19. Why did
the author experience racial trauma when she moved to New York City? How did her
social and cultural values change after moving to NYC?
As the author explained that before coming to New York, she had a mindset of how the
Dominicans that lived in the US was of the lower class of Dominicans from the Dominican
Republic due their behavior or attire when compared the them. But when she came to New York
she realized that things that she had learned about the Dominicanyorks were not true and not
only that but she was not any different from them when she got to New York. She was not seen
as the lighter skin individual but someone of color, a member of a minority group that people
that were white had discriminated against.
Her social and cultural values had dramatically changed because she now realized that the world,
she was brought up into was not the same as other parts of the world and her privileges that she
might have had when she was living in the Dominican Republic was not notice by anyone here
in New York. All she knew was that she was Dominican. She also became more aware, that even
the music that she had thought was more of people of their stature in the Dominican Republic
was not even representative of the true Dominicans, so when she began listening to bachata and
merengue tipico she noticed that it was more of who she really was and that was the true culture
of her people. She saw that moving to New York brought more awareness to her culture and
made her understand that she was not better than her fellow Dominicans who were in New York
trying to make a life for them and their family and when they went to visit, they were just
enjoying the fruits of their labor, but they were not vulgar or drug dealers but they had adapted to
the culture of America but was still holding on to their culture by the music they listened to.
3) Read the 2nd paragraph on page 22. How does Dominican popular music reveal a
changing class awareness among Dominicans, as well as growing identifications with
African American culture?
With the traveling of the Dominicanyorks back and forth to Dominican Republic, have had a
huge impact on the changes of cultural thinking to, if not all of the younger generation in the
Dominican Republic. They have been influenced through the music that they hear playing all
around than it was before. The Dominicans have become more aware of their African heritage
through this music for the reason that they had made significant changes in the different stages
by blending their music with bachata, merengue tipico and Afro-Dominican. These types of
music had become a mainstream market in the music industry for the Dominican Republics
4) Read from the bottom of page 25 to the top of page 26. According to the author, why did
the Bachata group, Aventura, become so popular?

The Aventura, a bachata group became popular in the early 2000 among the Latin society in
urban genres and even now more popular in Dominican Republic. They are the only bachata
group who was featured on a very well establish station known as 105.9, they are considered an
influential New York urban station. The Aventura’s are also popular because of their ability to
create local Dominican music with a transitional flavor and to combine typical Dominican
Republic based bachata with other genres in various selective songs.