How difficult is it for immigrants to adapt to a new culture? My family is from Cuba and I asked my grandparents how it was to change from Cuban culture to American culture. They said it was difficult because people would discriminate on their language and how immigrants are destroying the country. They also had to struggle changing from slow and relaxed society to a fast and stressful society. The only way to survive in America was to work. But they managed to evolve but immigrants keep their culture no matter what.
Recently I’ve come across an author named Jhumpa Lahiri a English-Indian immigrant who came to America. Her parents were very deep into their Indian culture and drilled the culture into Lahiri. She had to jumble both Indian culture and American culture at the same time. Throughout her life she wrote a collection of short stories called Interpreter of Maladies which has themes related to marriage, culture, and immigration.
One story called yet again The Interpreter of Maladies talks about Mr. Kapasi a tour guide leading the Das family. The Das family are Indian-Americans who came to India to visit. In the beginning of the story, Mr. Kapasi notices how the Das family has interesting and expensive like clothing. Mr. Kapasi highlights all this to show how American clothing is more colorful and “expensive” like to Indian people. “The family looked Indian but dressed as foreigners did, the children in stiff, brightly colored clothing and caps with translucent visors,” shows how American clothing and Indian clothing are very different but it also shows India’s economic status and how Americans are viewed more as people of wealth.
Joshua TR 