"american-ness VS indian-ness"

The piece "Interpreter of Maladies" was probably my favorite reading we have had assigned so far this semester.  I liked this piece because it was so relatable- basically anyone can relate to this story in one way or another.  Everyone has their own heritage. I really enjoyed observing Twinkle's struggle between embracing her "indian-ness" and her "american-ness."  It had me asking myself "can a person be a true american while being a true indian at the same time?" It is a hard call- although I think with a certain amount of effort, the balance is possible.  I believe if Twinkle embraces both her Indian culture while still staying true to her "American-ness" she can find this balance.   Although, I think Sanjeev may have a harder time finding a balance such as this because of his negative attitude toward other cultures. 

America is such an interesting place because of the diversity between cultures.  I especially love meeting people with a strong sense of pride in their own heritage-  Do you embrace both your heritage while remaining true to your American-ness? Which do you feel closer to, why? 

The Other Veil

I attended the DSLC speech by Doctor Fozia S. Qazi. Doctor Qazi started the presentation by showing us various cropped pictures of Muslim women. She showed us their faces with out showing us the entire picture and asked us to guess what these women were doing. The first picture really got my attention to the common stereotypes that are present today of muslim women who wear the veil . At first, she only showed us the section of the picture that exposed the faces of three veiled muslim women who looked like they were experiencing some sort of hardship or struggle. When a Saint Mary's student near me whispered a possible answer to the the question of what they thought these muslim women might be doing in this picture their response was that they were doing some sort of "brutal labor, or carrying a heavy object". When they showed us the entire un-cropped picture, the three muslim women were in fact playing soccer. This instance was a perfect example of how some people believe that muslim women who are veiled may be oppressed in one way or another, and this speech was a perfect opportunity for Doctor Qazi to break down stereotypical barriers such as these.

As well as breaking down some stereotypes, Doctor Qazi expressed her ideas regarding the reasoning behind wearing a veil. She said that many Americans assume that because many muslim women wear the veil, they must be oppressed, but in fact, it seemed to be the opposite. She brought up the point that each culture has its own ideas of what is morally right and wrong. She stated what women want in one culture, may be different than what women want in another culture. Therefore, the removal of the veil may look like freedom to us as American women, but to them it may seem drastically different. This point was also emphasized when Doctor Qazi stated " It is not seen as a liberated body if you are exposed" regarding the removal of the veil. I learned from Doctor Qazi that the veil expresses an amount of modesty and protection for the Muslim women, along with providing them with a "separation from something negative that can come in between them and their spiritual god."

this blessed house

The piece"This Blessed House" by Jhumpa Lahiri was an enjoyable read. I thought the relationship between Twinkle and Sanjeev was really interesting- Sanjeev seems to want Twinkle to be something she clearly is not, and his expectations of her are constantly unsatisfied. Sanjeev's frustrations with Twinkle due of her fascination with the religious pieces found in the house are ongoing. It is also stated "He did not know if he loved her" on page 147, which implies Sanjeev's indecisiveness and insecurities regarding their relationship. I still cannot figure this relationship out, do you think they are compatible or doomed for failure?

role models

This morning I attended the DSLC speech on (en)lightened beautfy media (mis)representations of "ethnic beauty." In the beginning of the speech, the speaker began asking the audience about our own women role models. She asked us to think of women who are not actresses or artists whom we look up to as role models and we could only come up with three women. I thought this was really interesting because one would assume at an all womens college we would be able to come up with more than three. Although, the speaker said our outcome of three was not uncommon. She said the reasoning for this outcome was because the most of the women we look up to as role models are prized for their beauty, not for their accomplishments. What women do you look up to as role models? Is this theory consistent with your views?

how far would you go?

As we were viewing "O" on film yesterday, I began to think about what it means to be a friend. Emily and Desi are supposedly "best friends" although according to what I viewed yesterday it seems differently.  Emily goes behind Desi's back and steals the scarf O gave to her, which was given to him by his mother when she was ill. Emily is aware of the significance of the scarf, although she still steals it from Desi in order to get Mikes attention.  It is maddening to see Emily take part in Mikes schemes, although she proves she is willing to risk a lot for his attention at the expense of her loyalty to her so called best friend. 

This scene made me think a lot about how far people are willing to go to get something they want. Emily had a initial gut instinct that Mike was going to do harm with the scarf, although she still went through with it.  She doesn't even show any regret when she sees the fight between O and Desi take place in the dorm room, even after she sees how upset Desi is over the missing scarf. This idea can be applied to Mike as well, considering he is causing harm to everyone else because in order to get his fathers attention.  How far would you go for something you want? Do you think Mike or Emily's actions can be justified or relatable?