The conflict between pop culture and religious values is an extremely popular and often overlooked bicultural bind. In many women's lives not recognizing this bind could be emotionally damaging and lead to living double lives. Many girls that are raised in Christian homes are not exposed to true pop culture until they reach high school. They are often sheltered from the world by their blood family and their church family. Once they are exposed to pop culture and they can start making their own decisions the line between right and wrong becomes gray to them and they fall into a trap of living one life to please their parents and then another life to fit in with their friends. When this happens they tend to lose sight of who they really are and what really makes them happy. .
I discovered this bicultural bind in my own life when I was a freshman in high school. For me I began modeling at the age of fourteen and I was exposed to all sorts of things that were accepted as normal in that environment, but looked upon as a sin in my home. I began to become confused and I remained confused about whom I really was and what I believed was right and wrong until only about a year ago. When I finally decided to gain control of my life and determine my own set of beliefs I began to wonder if other women have gone through the same thing. Through research I found that many women have gone through this and some are still involved in this bind. .
In Paula Gunn Allen's article, "Where I Come from is Like This" she describes how Native American women are looked upon differently by American society than they are by their Native American tribe.(Allen, Course Packet) This is her bicultural bind. The bicultural bind I have researched is similar in that women are looked upon in the Christian church as being very submissive to her husband. She is there to serve him and her family and must be a classy lady, yet also conservative.