Indian Cultures the White Man Tried to Remove

In the video clip, Unspoken: Americans Native Americans boarding schools, the white man tries to do away with Indian culture, a move which is disguised as civilization. Culture has acquired traits and building blocks and hence cannot be easily taken from humans. Its complex nature makes culture vary in beliefs, art, habits, and speech and distinguishes people within a community. From this, some characteristics of culture can, therefore, be established and be used to define culture as shared learned, based on symbols, integrated, and dynamic. This paper, therefore, discusses five Indian cultures: keeping long hair, dress code, sacred land, language, and dharma the white man tried to do away with, how they connect to cultural characteristics, and how the tactics used can destroy a culture.

The first Indian culture the white man tried to destroy was Indian hair. The Indian hair symbolizes rich Indian culture and gives one cultural identity. The significance of the hair shows that the culture is based on symbols. By cutting the hair of the Indians, the white man tried to destroy the cultural identity of Indians, symbolizing a sense of belonging, pride, and self-respect (Konishi, 2019). The hair in the Indian culture is therefore connected to the character trait of basing a culture on symbols.

The second Indian culture that the white man tried to destroy was their language. The Indians, according to the video, were forced to learn English, a move that made them adopt some of the white man culture. This shows that culture can be taught to share various views and aspects of the culture or to understand it better. The third Indian culture the white man also tried to do away with was stealing their land. The Indian native land was sacred and was used to practice most of their traditions. This shows that culture can be integrated with other cultures. Moving Indians to other lands that were not theirs made them subject to learning different ways, forgetting theirs, and being less united.

The fourth Indian culture, the white man, also tried to steal from the Indians their attire. Dressing the Indians into military uniforms that symbolize chaos showed that the peace-loving Indians were being turned into brutal beings. The idea, in this case, caused trauma and can be characterized as culture being dynamic and influencing beliefs. Lastly, the white man in the video also went for the children who are seen as the continuity of the Indian culture and subjected them to schools such as Santa Fe Indian School. The move eroded the childrens culture and forced them to learn new ways. This satisfies the culture to be learned since the children were subjected to assimilation.

The white man tactics could eventually destroy culture due to the traits of culture. The first tactic is waging war, resulting in death while stealing the Indians. For example, when one moves away from their native land to be in other towns or regions, they try to fit in since most cultures are diverse. The longer an individual stays away from their native land, the higher the chance of eroding their culture, an idea the white man used on the Indians. Additionally, cutting the Indian hair, a sign of prestige portrays one as defiant of their culture.

In the video, the white man also applies brutal force to take away the Indian children who have not developed much knowledge about the culture. Integrating the Indian culture makes it easier for them to adapt to new ways depending on how long the assimilation will take. Dressing the Indians in a military uniform also makes them possess a destructive nature rather than the peacekeeping nature the Indians have while wearing their attire, hence cultural destruction.

Reference

Konishi, S. (2019). First Nations scholars, settler colonial studies, and Indigenous history. Australian Historical Studies, 50(3), 285304.

Essay on Sexism in India

Social constructivism is defined as a social group constructing things for one another, collaboratively creating a small culture of shared artifacts with shared meanings (Moodle, 2015).

The theoretical base we use to understand knowledge is called social constructivism, or the ‘sociology of knowledge’. It characterizes knowledge as the sets of beliefs or mental models people use to interpret actions and events in the world. Social constructivism tells us we build knowledge as ways of understanding the world, and that these ways of understanding are a subset of how the world could be understood.

But the real question is What has Social Constructionism to offer Feminist Theory? To the extent that social constructionism problematizes nature as given, it offers feminists ways of criticizing dominant conceptions of being as based on false foundational claims about the nature of both ‘women’ and ‘men’.

Films reflect the socio-cultural configuration of a society at a given point in time. While cinema might not make many changes it has the power to tell stories and even plant images in your head. Stories have always been an extremely important way of delivering thoughts and ideas; history has always been an example- The Gita, Bible, Quran. Films have always represented women in stereotyped ways. It is well known that Indian cinema is famous for its portrayal of women in films. Bollywood plays a major role in the proliferation of sexist attitudes towards women. These attitudes are a part of the societal norm in India that many women experience. This research involves analysis of a few Bollywood movies, with explicitly sexist dialogues and music. A study revealed that sexist lyrics in a song may increase the audience’s tolerance for sexism by normalizing objectification and misogynistic attitudes.

Sexism is any expression (act, word, image, gesture) based on the idea that some people, most often girls and women, are inferior because of their sex. Sexism is seen in songs, advertisements, and stories and has become a way of living for some people. In Bollywood movies, it is often seen that the actresses are objectified, molested, stalked and even body shamed and let down. Take the example of the movie Biwi no.1 (1999), where the actor Salman Khan falls in love with a modern and well-dressed lady, Sushmita Sen while already being married to Karishma Kapoor who is traditional and simple. His wife then goes through a glamourous change and starts to dress up and modernize in pursuit of her husband who is a cheater, and even takes him back after seeing a change in her. These kinds of plots bring to the subconscious of the viewers that extra-marital affairs are normal and that there is a standard for beauty. It also portrays that modern and working women are the reason for breaking a relationship.

Bollywood is the preferred form of entertainment for a sizable portion of the Indian populace. You may select from a variety of genres, including drama, thriller, romance, and humor. However, one constant throughout all of these genres is Bollywood’s portrayal of women.

The famous movie Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998) which won the Film Fare Award for best film portrayed that men are always attracted to graceful and sensitive girls and not fun-loving girls. Women are struggling every day because of body issues, they are starving themselves, and it has nothing to do with themselves being weak, it has to do with the ideas patriarchy has planted in the minds of women.

Another problematic aspect of the Indian cinema is the depiction of toxic masculinity. “Mard ko dard nahi hota”- this line from the movie Mard (1985) is an example of how the portrayal of pain, crying, or showing emotions makes a person less of a man. The maltreatment of women normalized through movies makes them feel that it is how men behave and it is okay to be mistreated, which makes them lack an opportunity to stand up for themselves. Indians tend to put heroes, singers, cricketers, etc. on a pedestal, worship and glorify them which is why movies like Kabir Singh (2019) gained much popularity irrespective of their portrayal of stalking, lack of consent, violence, and objectification of women. In the movie, the main character Kabir Singh is shown as a violent medical student who falls in love with a fresher and stalks her, touches her without her consent, and also shows violence on her.

A court case in Australia found out that a man was stalking two women. When asked why he did that, he said that it was common in Bollywood movies for this to happen and the women eventually ended up falling in love with the men. A lot of people see films as an imitation of real life, and the ideas you water there, bloom into existence through these people. They cannot see the misogyny because, perhaps, you didn’t allow them to. You wrapped it in the paper that said ‘passion and love’. Snapdeal employee Deepti Sarna’s adduction made national headlines in 2016 after the main accused and kidnapper, Devendra said that he took inspiration from the 1993 Bollywood film ‘Darr’ in which Shah Rukh Khan played a stalker.

Analysis of sexist and misogynistic Bollywood movie moments

Dabangg (2010) –

Aamdani Atthani Kharcha Rupaiya (2001) – A movie that is found hilarious by most of the population but is guilty of making women beat a joke. The actor in the movie wouldn’t miss a chance to slap his wife. If she ever puts forward her opinion, she is threatened to get beaten by him. The woman is also portrayed as an individual who irrespective of all the abuse will stand by his side. The movie shows 3 couples

Raanjhanna (2013) –

Sonu ke Titu ki Sweety (2018) – Mr. Luv Ranjan despises women completely. This film, a tribute to ‘Bros Before Hoes’ or some such idea, made every broken-hearted lad feel like a superhero, while every woman in his thoughts was transformed into a lying, deceiving monster. A feud between the bride and her best friend. You may be wondering who the wicked one is. Take a RISKY guess. The fiancée is a devious, manipulative woman who appears to be a nice, soft-spoken angel in front of the boy while pursuing a meaningless battle with his closest buddy. Is there a reason for her actions? No, not at all. At one point, she describes how she intends to have sex with her husband to prevent him from leaving her later (as she intends to do).

Such Bollywood movies and songs are likely to glorify denial while condoning acts like stalking, abusing, and revenge in the name of love. Through the examples and the analysis, we can conclude that Indian films do add to the idea of sexism. Films not only depict women in several fixed roles but they also build a negative perception towards women in masses. In Hindi cinema, women are often depicted as weak, marginalized, and an object of entertainment. Objectification of women has led them to become vulnerable in society.

Films have depicted negative notions about women which seem to have infected the society.

Portrayal Of Women In Indian Religion

Introduction

This scientific paper on portrayal of women in different Indian religion intends to present how women are treated in religion, the importance given to women in religion, the specific roles played by women in religion. This term paper will enlighten you with a holistic understanding of women’s role in different religion. Certainly religion creates an important impact in every woman’s life which is an undeniable truth. Religion is just an instrument to make human life meaningful and significant irrespective of any gender discrimination. Especially religion played an important role in ancient time in determining what a woman ought to do and what not to do. Of course initially every rule and principle was drawn for a good reason and for smooth running of a society. There was no any kind of suppression, oppression, discrimination and belittlement exercised when any religion initiated. All these evil elements entered into religion after many decades of its birth through a few corrupted minded people. In each religion women are given certain roles to play. Women have been discriminated in all religion invariably on the aspect of the femaleness or in other words their physical weakness.

Portrayal of Women in Christian Religion

One could say that Christianity has respected women and given due respect to her in their religion. Even the Bible says that both men and women are created without any disparity among them for they are created in the image and likeness of God. Though the roles given to them may differ, they are equal to each other. We could see that women were placed in important positions and movements even from the very early ages of Christianity. Studies have been made by the historians to check the amount of contribution made by women to Christianity. There are two views which explain the role of women in Christianity namely: Traditional view and Egalitarian view. Understanding these two views would give us the understanding of how women really play an important role in Christianity.

Traditional View

The traditional view emphasizes on submission and dependence. The women are to be subjected and dependent to the husbands at home, elderly men and leaders in the society and in the Church. By saying this they do not say that they are to be treated as slaves, rather they are to be given freedom to exercise their own wishes but depending on men. For in the book of Genesis from The Bible it said that Eve came from Adam and was created from Adam. Thus, this view follows the hierarchal standard which is spoken by St. Paul in his letter were he says that Christ is subjected to the Father, man to Christ and woman to man.

Egalitarian View

The Egalitarian view stresses on the mutual understanding and reciprocity of submission between each other, both men and women. Here there is no hierarchal standards rather submission of one to the other both in at home and in the church. This view says that both men and women are from God and are made in the image and likeness of God.

Role of women

Having seen how women are looked at, it is equally important to see how women play a vital role in the church and what they did in the church. Down through the centuries women are not only treated as submissive but we find they are teachers and scholars. Several atrocious rules which existed have been banned. Women are considered equal to men by giving special privileges and honour. We find women in all the fields in Christianity, where they are allowed to start special orders like men religious, they are given the power to be the superior of their religious institutes, are asked to take up new missions to venture and proclaim the Word of God. Even in marriage life gone are those days where men rules her. They are united together to express mutual love between them and Christ. They are asked to offer and share love like Jesus Christ.

It is said that it is because of women that Christianity got constituted. They have played major role as religious women who gathered people together. This continues even today and we are still able to witness and experience the support of women in Christianity. In the 1970s there were several authors who broke the idea of traditional view and complemented with the egalitarian view which focuses on mutual submission. As a sign of encouragement during this period were formed four primary views in Christianity regarding the role of women namely: Christian feminism, Christian Egalitarianism, Complementarianism and Biblical patriarchy? Christian feminism focused on the active feminism from Christian perspective and how to face life challenging situations. Christian Egalitarianism kept an end to the specific importance to one gender and highlighted mutual love and submission are the key factors in building up a relation.

Portrayal of Women in Sikhism Religion

Sikhism is a monotheistic religion. It is one of the youngest major world religions. It is originated form Punjab the northern part of the Indian Subcontinent. Guru Nanak is the founder of Sikhism. The basic teachings of Sikhism are given in the Sacred Scripture Guru Granthe Sahib. Some of the teachings are: Divine Unity and Equality of all humankind; engaging in selfless service; striving for social justice for the benefit and prosperity, honest conduct and livelihood while living a house holder’s life.

Woman in Sikhism

One of the fundamental beliefs of Sikhism is equality of all humankind. It also stressed on social justice. Sikhism preaches women as equal to man. Sikhism believes that women have the same souls as men. Women have an equal right to cultivate their spirituality and attain salvation. Women are not restricted to take part in religious cultural, social and secular activities. They take part in recitation of the Holy Scripture (Akhand Path) and join in the congregational singing of hymns (Kirtan).

Sikhism: As Feminist Religion

Sikhism is considered as feminist Religion. It has many traits of feminism. There is gender equality and social Justice. Sikhism considered women as equal to men. Gurus and the Sikhs saints did much to progress the woman rights since the 15th century. The gurus have no distinction between sexes in matter of initiation, instruction or participation in Sangat (holy fellowship) and Pangat (eating together).

We can summarize the whole idea of women in Sikhism in the words of Guru Nanak the founder of Sikhism. He said, “from woman, man is born; within woman. Man is conceived; to woman he is engaged and married. Woman becomes his friend; through woman, the future generations come. When his woman dies he seeks another woman; to woman he is bound. So why call her bad? From her kings are born. From woman, woman is born, without woman; there would be no one at all

Women play an important role in Sikhism. Some of the roles of women in Sikhism are discussed below.

  1. Gender Equality: Gender equality means equal right and responsibility of women and men and girls and boys. Gender equality is one of the fundamental beliefs in Sikhism. Men and women are different by virtue of gender. There is no subornation of one sex over the other. They are all equal in the eyes of god. Guru Nanak exclaimed that with woman there would be no one.
  2. Hereditary Right: In Sikhism, women have the full right to claim their hereditary rights. The property of the father is equally shared because they believe that all men and women are equal before the eyes of God.
  3. Salvation: In many religion woman is considered as a hindrance to man’s spirituality. But in Sikhism, all men and women are equal and thus women can also attain spirituality. Sikhism believes that the god pervades all forms male and female. Therefore, woman was not a hindrance to man’s spirituality but a partner.
  4. Opportunity to pray: In Sikhism any woman enters to Gurudwara are freely allowed to go inside and pray. They can even recite the Guru Grath Sahib. Women are always the integral part of the congregation. They are not to be blamed for the inability of man’s enlightenment as some religions do.
  5. Menstruation: In Hinduism, menstruating woman are traditionally considered ritually impure; so also in Islam menstruating woman cannot touch a Quran. In early Orthodox Church of Christianity, they observe the ancient practice of abstaining from the Holy Communion during menstruation. While in Sikhism the Gurus made it clear that menstruation cycle is a God given process and that it required for the creation of any human being. They reject the any superstitious ideas considering as impure.

Portrayal of Women in Islam Religion

Since the 7th Century the Islam religion has ensured equal rights to both men and women. When thinking about women in Islam, words that arise in our mind are Oppressed, Inferior and Unequal these words no more mean the same in the current scenario. Islam confirms that both men and women are equal in the sight of God. In the Holy book of Quran, God declares, “Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is most righteous of you” (49:13). In another place of Quran, God clearly states that all humans are equal. “To whoever, male or female, good deeds and has faith, we shall give a good life and reward them according to the best of their actions” (16:97).

Islam gives women the right to Education, marry someone of their choice, retain their dignity after marriage, divorce, own and sell property, seek protection by the law, vote and participate in civic and political engagement. The rights, roles and responsibilities of women are evenly balanced with men in Islam.

The following are the different rights of women in Islamic society

  • Education
  • Financial Responsibilities
  • Marriage
  • Motherhood

Education

Islam encourages women to be educated no restriction is laid upon the freedom of education for women. The best example is Muhammad’s wife Aisha herself. She is considered as one of the most influential scholars. Seeking knowledge, especially religious knowledge, is an obligation upon all Muslims regardless of their gender. Women are allowed to pursue knowledge of any kind and they are not forbidden to any field of research. Hence the freedom of educating is guaranteed for the women in Islam.

Financial Responsibilities

Women in Islam religion are neither nor forced to earn money for their survival. At the same time they are not reserved if do they wish to do? One good tradition practiced in Islam religion is, the dowry giver during marriage to a woman solely belonged to her alone. Husband has no ownership over that dowry either money or any goods. This dowry is legally owned by her and cannot be used by anyone else. This principle was brought into practice to avoid problems, hardships, difficulties that she would face after the divorce. Even the things and money gained personally out of her hard work completely belonged to her. The previous husband has no command and possession of her goods. This naturally ensures a woman’s financial security and independence when problem reaches her.

Marriage

Islam religion offer adequate respect to the wish and will of a woman. It means that woman can agree and disagree to her suitor, if she does not willing to marry a person she can not be forced. Any act against the will of a woman is punishable offence according to the Islam religion. Marriage is arranged and made fixed if only both man and woman are in favour of it. In Islam, marriage is made feasible on the platform of mutual peace, love, and compassion. God says about Himself, “And of His signs are that He created for you from yourselves mates that you may find tranquility in them; and He placed between you affection and mercy…” (Quran 30:21) Muhammad himself projected as the best role model to be imitated, because he gave due respect to his wife. He even walked a mile ahead by helping in the household task of his wife. In this way Muslim men are exerted to give due respect and follow the footstep of Muhammad.

Motherhood

In Islam motherhood is considered as highly exalted position in the family. In Holy book Quran the sacrifice of mother is much spoken explicitly. It is done in order make the children realize the value of mother’s sacrificing heart. In turn all that any mother expects from their children is care, love and protection when they become weak due to age and any kind of sickness. The Prophet Mohammed Said “Heaven lies under the feet of your mother”.

The Condition And Life Of Indian Woman

Indian women writers in recent decades have produced abundant literary output. These writers probe into human relationship since it is closely connected with the mind and heart. In order to make the process of change smooth and really meaningful, women writers have taken upon them-selves this great task of their crusade against established traditions. It is only after the Second World War that women novelists of quality have begun enriching Indian fiction in English. Of these writers, Kamala Markandaya and Anita Desai are unquestionably the most outstanding.

A large number of critical articles and some full length studies with regard to the two writers have appeared individually. However, except for an article or two, not many studies have attempted a comparative analysis of married Indian women in the novels of these two writers. They are ready for sacrificing themselves. Hence, this study seeks to examine the portrayal of married women by these two contemporary Indian women novelists. The thrust of the study is on the depiction of women in particular because the protagonists are women in almost all of their novels chosen for study. Three novels of each writer in particular, which are relevant for the study, have been taken to assert the title, An Indian Wife.

The prime concern of Anita Desai has been the exploration of the inner selves of her married women protagonists, who are always in search of their identity, where as Kamala Markandaya attempts to focus on the inborn superior characteristic features of the Indian wife, who tries to keep the family ties intact. Her first novel ‘Nectar in a Sieve’ treats the theme of hunger and starvation in Indian villages. It depicts the rural life of the south India. It reflects the real condition of peasant woman and farmers in the light of contemporary India. It tells the story of India that what the picture of India was after the independence. It shows the difficulties, suffering, disasters, desolation and problems of Indian peasants.

For the first time, Kamala Markandaya dramatizes the East –West conflict. It is a novel of violence and destruction. Essentially, it is a political novel. It is also a tragic novel like ‘Nectar in a Sieve’. The novel deals with political passions prevailing over love and justice. The clash between passion and patriotism is presented in the novel. The Inner Fury is suggestive of Indian passion for independence. Kamala Markandaya’s second novel ‘Some Inner Fury’ is entirely different from ‘Nectar in a Sieve’. Her novels can be examined as the manifesto of female predicament. She has deep psychological insight into her characters. Her novels reveal feministic concerns with the predicament of women in male dominated society. Most of the women novelists are concerned with human relationship, social realities and woman’s predicament. Every writer is the product of the age in which he/she writes and Kamala Markandaya and Anita Desai are no exception in this respect. In the realm of literature, they are one of the most famous of the modern Indian writers.

What is true of women writers is equally true of all women in general. A small noise gone unheard by man may be a big bang for woman. Any small incident of bloodshed or violence may cause rupture in her. All these thoughts and emotions are genuinely handled by both the writers. In her novel Clear Light Of Day. Anita Desai explores two sisters’ very different positions within the home, the family and the post independence upper middle class Indian society, which lead to one woman’s leaving and the other women staying in the homeland and the domestic sphere.

The novel tells the story of an anglicized upper middle-class Indian family from the 1940s to the 1970s. The protagonist Bim Das is an unmarried elder sister who as young woman at the time of partition must take the place of her dead parents as guardian of her siblings and custodian of the crumbling family home in Delhi. She has to sacrifice her personal interest and dreams to take care of an autistic brother and an alcoholic aunt after her older brother Raja leaves the family to pursue a future of his own. Her younger sister Tara eventually marries a diploma and escapes the suffocating paralysis of the family home for Europe and America. Desai describes Bim’s efforts to expand her identity beyond the pseudo – motherhood she has had to take up and to come to terms with a family and society that often curb those efforts. The novel culminates in the two sisters’ painful attempts to make sense of the ways in which family and home have shaped their perceptions of themselves and each other. Alienation and east-west, cultural encounter is the theme of her another.

‘Cry, the Peacock’ is Maya’s story, the story of her married life with Gautam, and nearly the whole story is that remembrance of things past by Maya herself. The novel begins with the death of Maya’s pet dog, Toto and the way it affects her. it had been not the pet’s death alone that she mourned, however another sorrow, unremembered maybe however not even skilled. Her husband Gautam could be a busy, prosperous, lawyer. he’s refined, rational, sensible and an excessive amount of engrossed in his own affair to satisfy the strain, of his young woman physically, mentally and showing emotion. As a lady she had gone together with her house servant to AN prognosticator with unusual person eyes, and he had prophesied unnatural death four years once her wedding to either husband or wife! And it’s four years currently. The prophecy gets hold of Maya just like the prophecy of the witches upon male monarch.

Rescue from this might are attainable, had Gautam tried, however he was too lost in his own world of temperament and interest. And at some point there’s a windstorm followed by a number of drops of rain and that they go up to the roof. The pale moon has up, and Maya is fascinated and bewitched; they’re at the low parapet’s edge, and once unknowingly Gautam moves before of her, thereby concealment the moon from read, Maya waxes into a sudden delirium and pushes him over the parapet to “pass through an immenseness of air, right down to the terribly bottom”. 3 days later, Gautam’s mother and sister take her to her father’s house at Lucknow, ANd it’s tacitly understood that she’s going to ought to be place in an asylum. within the novel, Bye Bye Blackbird, Desai depicts the growing sense of migrator sensibility during this novel through 3 totally different however connected

The edification, the frustration, the despair, the quandary, the desire, and therefore the despair of the feminine world will best be seen from such ladies writers. Being a girl the writers has additionally given justification to feminine world by writing regarding them. we will see all her novels handle the story of family-drama that is usually vie by the feminine characters. This shows that Anita Desai has used the theme of escape to explore the character of the feminine world and outlook, and reconstructing the lost or suppressed records of feminine expertise. By the technique, she has tried to point out that ladies aren’t born, they’re created. She takes ladies not as a biological species however culturally outlined characteristics.

Anita Desai’s projection of women-characters in her novels shows her first-hand expertise regarding the feminine world with all its sides. In her art of characterization, she has place a lot of light-weight on the emotional or internal world of female-class than the external. She has seen the planet through the eyes of terribly Indian ladies, not through the eyes of intellectual lady with western education. the feminine characters that show her sincerity to the category dominate all her novels. She succeeds to portray advanced nature of ladies through her creations of Maya, Sita, Monisha, Nanda Kaul, Bimla, Tara, and Mira Masi. She has explored the unconscious still as acutely aware elements of ladies, and given the presentation through expertise.

The suffering of Indian ladies, matrimonial dissonance, philosophical theory, anger, twin tradition all notice an area within the novels of Anita Desai. She has given an excellent deal of contribution in transfer forth light-weight of ladies and has shown a glimpses into the world’s heart that had ordered hid from outer world. The edification, the frustration, the despair, the quandary, the desire, and therefore the despair of the feminine world will best be seen from such ladies writers. Kamala Markandaya has seen each East and West as she has lived in England and in Asian country for an extended amount. In her novels notably in ‘Nectar in an exceedingly Sieve’ and ‘A few Rice’ she has delineated the conflicts and tensions between these 2 opposite ways in which of life. She presents the conflict of those 2 totally different cultures with a rare penetration, under-standing and realism. Men, still as ladies characters in her fiction, react in several ways in which to the Indian culture and culture.

Indian ladies writers in recent decades have created rich literary output. These writers probe into relationship since it’s closely connected with the mind and heart. so as to create the method of amendment swish and extremely significant, ladies writers have taken upon them-selves this nice task of their crusade against established traditions. it’s solely once the Second war that ladies novelists of quality have begun enriching Indian fiction in English. of those writers, Kamala Markandaya and Anita Desai area unit unquestionably the foremost outstanding. many ladies writers have tried their hands within the field of fiction/novels. Earlier, novels targeted the social and political problems with the society. there have been stereotypical productions or portrayal of ladies characters and their roles. it’s additionally true that they were principally created by male novelists. Therefore, they were the lopsided presentation as a result of they mirrored the views, estimation of ladies from the understanding of men. They were the reflections of the male opinions and experiences. once someday the state of affairs has modified. The novelists desired to show the society and categorical the science of individuals.

Fasting and eating, renunciation and excess, easy variations of a similar disorder, are key words in a very novel by Anita Desai wherever it’s potential to trace out need and to analyse the scandalising effects of imitation. Challenging the present story of food we will choose from 2 theoretical models: 1) the subtractive model that singles out “favourite institutional scapegoats”, like political establishments, family and society at massive, additionally as psychological aspects, following a mechanistic and philosophical theory logic; 2) the model that puts in relation the parable of food and also the connected violent method of exclusion to the dynamics of mimetic need and to human relationships, following a posh and relative logic. I shall follow Renè financier mistreatment his notions of mimetism and exploitation, with relation to economic process.

Life could be a curious factor. It offers Associate in Nursing abundance of experiences and opportunities, nonetheless every individual encompasses a completely different perspective. In Anita Desai’s abstinence, Feasting, the exchange student from Asian nation, Arun, is confused by the tradition his yank family is decided to stay of planning to the beach. His journey is delineate by the elaborated mental imagery, light-weight humor, and abrupt syntax to make a mirthful scenario. Figurative language adds a brand new level of pleasure to the story. The scene involves life as Arun notes Melanie is “dressed in her bathing costume with a giant shirt drawn over shoulders.” the use o f these minute details create the story presumptive, even relatable. The mental imagery of Mrs. Patton’s “radiant, lipsticked smile” connotes a assured and all-American mother WHO is thirstily awaiting the beach. However, whereas he’s anticipating the event, Arun “finds the hair on the rear of his neck begin to prickle.’ The palms of his hands ore changing into puffy and damp.” This mental imagery can’t be mistaken of something however extremes nervousness and a concern for the unknown.

Desai conjointly uses humor to characterize this notorious trek to the beach. though the weekends commonly marked by the hospitable absence of college or employment,” Arun cannot plead work” to his chagrin. He even begin frantically grasping for “excurses” to not go. On the heels of overenthusiastic Mrs. Patton, each Melanie and Arun “try to lag behind her.” sadly and funny, Melanie “can lag even better” than Arun WHO prefers the town’s “post office” to the “grasses stirring with insidious life” within the methods to the beach.

The metaphors describe Arun’s trepidant journey as he experiences the wide life around him. The cicadas sound as if “the sun is enjoying on their sinews” as if they were little harps suspended within the trees.” This stunning and dream-like musical quality frightens Arun. he’s fully on the far side his comfort level. His entire journey is characterised through the employment of pictures, with, economical sentences, and exquisite metaphors. Ata deeper level, Arun experiences yank together with his foreign n perspective kind Asian nation. within the excerpt from Anita Desai’s abstinence, eating the exchange student Arun is unsettled and troubled by the novel expertise of planning to the beach.

Literary techniques, like purpose of read, reveal Arun’s anxiety in exploring the surface realm of nature together with his host family. His sense of uncomfortable disorientation heightens as he struggles to reconcile yank customs with the huge expanse of Associate in Nursing out-of city expertise. The passage adopts a third-person restricted viewpoint that fluctuates at points to reveal Arun’s nervousness and position of awkwardness. the easy diction of the primary paragraph straight off reveals that Arun is out of place. He “cannot plead work” as she may back in Asian nation, as a result of it’s a weekend and therefore, the eternal conflict manifests itself. The poor exchange student has nonetheless to conform himself together with his America family. Negative connotations within the 1st paragraph ar rife, from “despondent” to “wildly,” Arun frantically makes an attempt to “find excuses,” amplifying his need to not leave home. The repetition of “no” reveals the emphatic nature of Mrs. Patton. Her demand progresses the plot forwards toward the beach.

As the cluster continues on, the distinction drawn between Mrs. Patton and Arun becomes obvious. As she goes “confidently forwards” and begins singing, Arun, close along with her natural actions, seems even a lot of out of place. Approaching the woods, the cluster is greeted by a huge array of images. The visual imaging of “soft pine needles,: combined with the sense modality “thrumming” of cicadas and “bird shrieks” clashes with Arun’s construct of tranquility. Paradoxically, this cacophony of sounds has no roots, as “no birds” square measure “to be seen, nor animals.”

Arun is overpowered by these gift circumstances. Tactile imaging reveals that Arun’s “hair on the rear of his neck” begins to prickle and his palms become “puffy and damp.” Arun is disoriented by this expertise, and therefore the concern is heightened once he raises a rhetorical question; “Why should folks sleep in the neck of the woods of such benighted geographical region and become a locality of it?” the angle all over again shifts to it of first-person, representational process Arun’s reasoning and preference. He feels reception in city and enjoys its quaint offerings, like “its post office” and “its retailers.” The author then contrasts the homely image with a trope of the feral geographical region, AN rhymed “creeping curtain of insidious inexperienced.” The deadly diction of “insidious,” “poisonous,” and “pale” reveal indirectly that Arun is totally not enjoying this expertise. instead of quiet, he has been disjointed from an area of comfort and compelled to get pleasure from the pernicious geographical region

Like i discussed before, the purpose of read of the verbaliser illuminates Arun’s own thoughts thus in an exceedingly sense, Arun is speaking himself. there’s additionally speech inside the animals. The cicadas “shrill” and therefore the birds “shriek.” What the folks lack in dialogue, the animals form up for in noise. The animal’s “speech” irritates Arun, inflicting him to additional dislike geographical region. The distinctive perspective and speech permits the reader to interact and perceive Arun’s awkwardness and disdain for the geographical region. It additionally enlightens to Arun that he’s content with the town, which he prefers to be civilized.

Works Cited

  1. Desai, Anita. ‘A Secret Connivance.’ TimesLiterarySupplement (14 September 1990): 972.
  2. Kakar, Sudhir. The Indian Psyche. By Sudhir Kakar. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1998.

Sherman Alexie: Cultural Survival Strategies Of American Indians

By way of analyzing the significance of mental acts such as dreaming, daydreaming and imagining in American Indian worldview, and exploring the importance of humor as a notable characteristic of American Indian cultural identity, I have tried to demonstrate how these culturally important acts and characteristics are used as means of survival by American Indians who are exposed to discrimination, racial intolerance and genocidal oppression by European settlers. Especially by focusing on dreams, imaginations and humor, I have examined how Sherman Alexie depicts the cultural survival strategies of American Indians in his novel Reservation Blues and short story collection The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. Alexie portrays dreams, imaginations, personal recollections and humor as survival strategies mostly through the same main characters Thomas Builds-the-Fire, Victor Joseph and Junior Polatkin, who are the inhabitants of the landscape of Spokane Reservation. In addition to these main characters, minor characters also have significant roles in the manifestation of such survival strategies.

Being one of the most celebrated writers of Native American literature, Sherman Alexie deals with the current problems of American Indians and he displays the distances between both whites and American Indians and American Indians’ past and present. He depicts the struggles of American Indians to survive in a world that remains hostile to their very survival in an honest and humorous manner. As stated earlier, Sherman Alexie portrays American Indian characters who adopt Indian heritage and embrace Indian identity from different standpoints, and whose reactions and survival strategies against colonization, assimilation and acculturation methods differ. Accordingly, the survival strategies that American Indians employ give rise to different social and personal results. Even though the main characters Thomas, Victor and Junior struggle to survive under very similar conditions, they employ very different strategies to cope with the difficulties they encounter in their everyday lives.

The coming back of the rock band Coyote Springs becomes a turning point in their lives which also will determine their destinies. Due to their contract with Cavalry Records, Coyote Springs was seen as a traitor and hated in the Spokane Reservation. Their great disappointment as well as the hostile repercussion of Spokane Indians prevent them from continuing their usual lives. Thomas leaves the Spokane Reservation with the Flathead sisters Chess and Checkers, Junior commits suicide, and Victor decides to start up a completely new life and experiences failure one more time.

Thomas Builds-the-Fire is portrayed as a full-blood Spokane Indian who fully respects his Indian heritage. The tribal values compose his worldview. He is a “real” Indian both physically and spiritually; he practices the rules of conduct that are significant for Spokane Indians, he is a traditional storyteller, he believes in God in traditional ways rather than Christian ways, he respects the spiritual power of Big Mom, who is the traditional medicine woman of Spokane tribe, and he respects nature. Thomas who tries to lead a life in traditional terms has a love affair with Chess, who also can be described as a traditional character. Chess is a young Flathead woman. She believes in the necessity of Indian survival. She hates white women who chase after Indian men, and she thinks that her hatred is about “preservation” (Alexie, 1995: 81). Different from Thomas, Chess has a strong faith in Christianity. Thomas and Chess’s love for each other stem from their being traditional Indians sharing similar worldviews. Chess, who believes that Indian men need Indian women, likes both Thomas and his “DNA” (Alexie, 1995: 82). In other words, Chess likes Thomas not only for emotional reasons but also for racial and survival matters. Thomas who is a traditional full-blood American Indian is just the right person for Chess. Thomas and Chess who are portrayed as the traditional Indian characters succeed in their struggle to survive and continue their tribal heritage:

“Thomas,” Chess said and took his hand, “let’s get married. Let’s have kids.”

Thomas was surprised. He couldn’t respond. “Really,” Chess said. “Let’s have lots of babies to look up and see two brown faces. That’s the best thing we can give them, it? Two brown faces. Do you want to?”

Thomas smiled.

“Okay,” he said.

Thomas is persuaded by Chess to leave the Spokane Reservation for the city Spokane, “a mostly white city, sat on the banks of the Spokane River. Spokane the city was named after the Tribe that had been forcibly removed from the river. Spokane was only sixty miles from the reservation, but Thomas figured it was no closer than the moon” (Alexie, 1995: 258). Thomas, despite his very strong spiritual ties to his homeland, leaves the reservation with Chess and Checkers in order to continue his life (Alexie, 1995: 257). Thomas always prefers to keep his tribal values, and humor is his strategy to cope with the tragic situations. Self-destruction through alcoholism, which is very common among current Spokane Indians, never becomes an option for Thomas. As a result, he survives as a traditional character who keeps his tribal heritage. Whereas Thomas prefers to struggle to survive whatever the conditions are, Junior commits suicide because of the fact that he cannot endure the difficulties he has faced as an American Indian on and off the reservation. After Junior dies, his bestfriend Victor daydreams of Junior. In his realistic daydream, Victor wants to learn why Junior killed himself and Junior gives a clear answer: “Because life is hard” (Alexie, 1995: 290). Additionally, he explains: “Because when I closed my eyes like Thomas, I didn’t see a damn thing. Nothing. Zilch. No stories, no songs. Nothing” (Alexie, 1995: 290). As we can clearly see, what gives Thomas the strength to survive is his close attachment to his tribal values that empower him. Telling stories is selfsatisfactory for Thomas even though it is an act of imagination. While he is dealing with his stories, he forgets the harsh realities. Junior, on the other hand, does not employ imagination to feel better or to forget the brutal injustices he frequently confronts in real life. In his dreams and imaginations that reveal his unconscious, Junior is the last survivor of the Spokane Tribe who has the mission to save and resuscitate his tribe. He has dreams and imaginations that deepen his anxiety rather than bring him some relief from severe realities. In his real life, being aware of the gradual extinction and unfortunate lives of American Indians, he feels helpless and hopeless, and he consumes a lot of alcohol. Even though he does not appear to be as traditional as Thomas, he suffers a lot for his tribe’s cultural and spiritual losses. He thinks: “… when we look in the mirror, see the history of our tribe in our eyes, taste failure in the tap water, and shake with old tears, we understand completely” (Alexie, 2005: 178).

Differently from Thomas and Victor, Junior is an educated Spokane Indian. After high school, he could attend college for one year where he has an Irish girlfriend who becomes the mother of Junior’s half-Indian, dark-skinned and blue-eyed son Sean Casey (Alexie, 2005: 240). Lynn’s family refuses to accept Sean Casey’s Indian blood and Junior can never fulfill his longing for fatherhood. Nevertheless, he keeps contact with his son through the mail, phone calls and visits. However, Lynn is very sensitive about her son’s Indian heritage and does her best to raise him with the Spokane culture and language:

“Lynn continually reminded Sean of his heritage, read him books about Indians in the womb and crib, gave him Indian books to read when he finally could do it himself. Lynn taught Sean the Spokane word for love, quen comanche, but Sean could never get his tongue around the syllables. But he always tried” (Alexie, 2005: 240).

Through Junior, Alexie portrays the situation of American Indians who go out of the reservation in order to get better education or to enter the mainstream and who are subsequently discriminated and not accepted by whites. Furthermore, Alexie stuns the reader with the relation between Junior and his half-blood Indian son. Junior’s decision to return to the reservation reveals the situation of American Indians who try to adapt themselves to the mainstream and fail to do their strong attachments to their tribal identities. Junior’s half-blood son Sean Casey is also a key figure. Although his grandparents ignore his Indian blood, he is reminded of his tribal heritage by his mother Lynn and he displays to what extent a half-blood child can practice the values of his Indian heritage in the white dominant world.

Junior is portrayed as a character who actually has great spiritual ties to his Indian heritage although he does not seem to be so. However, the circumstances that he lives under do not allow him to keep his tribal values which are vitally important for him. The fact that he can neither enter the mainstream nor maintain his Indian heritage devastates him and finally he commits suicide. Junior’s committing suicide also elucidates the high suicide rates among contemporary American Indians. After Junior’s death, Victor decides to give up drinking alcohol, become a teetotaler and have a steady job (Alexie, 1995: 289); however, when he is not hired he becomes more depressive (Alexie, 1995: 292). Victor, caught between community and his own individuality, becomes full of self-hatred and anger. The unfair treatment American Indians undergo, their impoverished life conditions and unfulfilled hunger for tribal and cultural values make Victor antagonistic. At first, readers think that Victor hates being Indian; however, later it is realized that what Victor hates is not his Indian heritage but the assimilation and colonization methods that American Indians are exposed to and the life conditions his tribe suffers from. He states: “It’s hard to be optimistic on the reservation. When a glass sits on a table here, people don’t wonder if it’s half filled or half empty. They just hope it’s good beer” (Alexie, 2005: 49).

Moreover, what makes Victor feel helpless is the fact that he does not know how to survive under such severe conditions. He thinks: “…just like everybody else, Indians need heroes to help them how to survive. But what happens when our heroes don’t even know how to pay their bills?” (Alexie, 2005: 49). Like Junior, Victor is also distressed because of the gradual extinction of American Indians. He implies his anxiety by saying “We watched a group of Indian boys walk by. I’d like to think there were ten of them. But there were actually only four or five” (Alexie, 1995: 44). When Victor is asked what he is scared of, he says “Elevators, escalators, revolving doors. Any kind of forced movement” (Alexie, 2005: 40). As a member of a tribe which is forced to move from their land, to leave their tribal values, to live as dependants, Victor associates white man’s technology and civilization, the “elevators, escalators, revolving doors” with the forcible acts that his tribe has experienced so far and these “forced” movements scares Victor. The fact that his people has suffered throughout history and that they now live under even worse conditions affects Victor deeply and make him aggressive. His contradicting cultural values and present life engender a feeling of anger.

Assimilation and colonization methods oblige Victor to abandon his tribal life style; however, these methods cannot break the spiritual ties. He associates assimilation and colonization methods with “Crazy Mirrors”. Victor looks at himself at “Crazy Mirrors” and states:

Crazy Mirrors, I thought, the kind that distort your features, make you fatter, thinner, taller, shorter. The kind that make a white man remember he’s the master of ceremonies, barking about the Fat Lady, the Dog-Faced Boy, the Indian who offered up another Indian like some treaty. Crazy Mirrors, I thought, the kind that can never change the dark of your eyes and the folding shut of the good part of your past. (Alexie, 2005: 58).

Despite all the false stereotyping and cruel treatments that American Indians went through, they still tried to preserve Indian spirituality and maintain strong ties with their heritage, land and identity. Even the ones, like Victor and Junior, who do not seem to be strongly attached to their tribal values are actually ardent and faithful to the tribal culture and heritage. Whereas they live through white dominance, assimilation and colonization, they become psychologically devastated and they ruin themselves. The ones like Thomas can survive as long as they hold on to their traditional values. To be able to enter the mainstream is almost impossible for them for many reasons. Firstly, they have such strong spiritual ties that they cannot suppress or disregard them. Secondly, they are always disdained and they are not accepted by the mainstream people. Moreover, they are not given opportunities to make progress. In other words, they are neither allowed to continue their traditions nor live under equal circumstances. As a result, they have recourse to the strategies that make them survive. As long as they use their tribal and cultural values such as imaginative power and sense of humor properly, they succeed to survive like Thomas; otherwise, they fail like Victor and Junior. Seen from another perspective, however, Thomas’s survival is not an ideal one. He has to leave his homeland and move to city where he probably will not be able to maintain his tribal heritage. His is only a biological survival.

In conclusion, Sherman Alexie presents the survival of Spokane Indians in a diverse perspective. On one hand, the American Indians who cannot maintain their tribal identity despite their strong spiritual ties fail to survive are represented by Victor and Junior; on the other hand, Thomas represents the traditional American Indian who tries to maintain his tribal heritage by clinging to it in his imaginary world to feel better and eventually survives. However, even the ones who are able to survive do not have a life they can seek after. To be socially isolated and lead a traditional life like the one before the whites’ arrival is impossible. Therefore, what Alexie suggests at this point is that American Indians should both adapt themselves to the mainstream life and maintain their cultural values. To be able to survive by combining the tribal and mainstream values is presented as the best way.

Culture And Tradition: Rudiments Of Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s Novels

One of the major and dominant trends obvious in post-independence Indian English fiction is the portrayal of the vast and enduring culture of India. Culture is best expressed through the arts and writings of a country. The pluralistic heritage of Indian culture helped the Indian society to get exposed to a variety of cultural influences, and gifted the Indian cultural variety with its richness. Indian society has managed to absorb and assimilate the divergent traditions, customs and bodies of knowledge and art forms from its invaders and these in turn have combined into a cosmopolitan Indian culture of many religious practices, and a multitude of customs, beliefs, languages, art and architecture forms that we know and very easily identify with.

Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is an award winning author and poet. She has been published in over fifty magazines, including the Atlantic monthly and the New Yorkers, and her writing has been included in over fifty anthologies. Her books have been translated into 16 languages, including Dutch, Hebrew, Russian, and Japanese. She was born in India. She left Calcutta and came to in the nationally ranked creative writing serves on the board of MAITRI in the San Francisco. She has received several prestigious awards, such as the National Book Award and the PEN Faulkner Award.

Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s novels are put up with themes like immigration, myth, culture and tradition along with magical realism. Culture is a particular society or civilization especially considered in relation to its beliefs, way of life and art. It consists of activities such as the arts and philosophy, which are considered to be important for the development of civilization and of people’s minds. Culture includes all the elements in man’s mature endowment that has acquired from his group by conscious learning or by a conditioning process-beliefs and patterned modes of conduct. As the food and culture is a key feature of diaspora a strong sense of connection to a homeland is maintained through cultural practices and ways of life.

India is a land of culture and has strong belief in superstitions. Preserving the culture is the prestige of all countries. Chitra Banerjee’s novels are an evidence to prove it. Her novels portray the scope for establishing a bicultural identity. Divakaruni’s portrayal to ethnic identity is dependent on the view of South Asian Diaspora that believes in the necessity of integrating the Indian heritage with its American experience. Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni revives the long forgotten Indian myth, belief, tradition, culture and even dreams which are vital for existence, which in reality is only a mixture of all in fantasy or magic realism. However, as the novels progress, the fantasy element diminishes and the realistic element becomes prominent. She shares the memories which were shared by her mother by reading lot of Bengali books, with a growing audience. As cultural offshoots, the author loads her novels with rituals, customs and practices pertaining to food, dress, the language of her native place, along with the practices which evokes the sensibility of Indian readers, a feeling of intense nostalgia, for things past, etched in their memory as they incorporate themselves to a new immigrant culture.

Since Divakauni is a Bengali, her works are firmly rooted in Bengali soil. Not only Settings but also most of her characters are Bengali. The protagonists in Chitra Banerjee‘s novels reflect the culture of Bengal such as usage of Bengali words, dress, and food items. The most outstanding feature of the art of rural Bengal consists of life of the people and their seasonal and social festivals, their work and their play. The whole of life was conceived as worshipping the numerous deities, those from ancient Vedic times as well as those conjured up over time by the folk imagination, is part of the daily life of rural Bengal. Although the rituals, prayers, and offerings can vary from one deity to the next, some elements are common to all such occasions of worship. They reveal a fertile artistic imagination, springing from the tropical lushness of the region.

Weddings among Bengali Hindus are elaborate affairs, stretching over three days, with the preparatory rituals beginning even a week in advance. In a delta region whose rivers are fertile in fish, it is not surprising that Bengalis consider fish as a symbol of plenty and use it in their wedding rituals. In the novel Sister of My Heart, Chitra Banerjee has described about it in the wedding ceremonies of Anju anb Sudha. Traditionally, every village had a resident Padua, whose depiction of divine figures or scenes from myths, epics, and narrative poems often adorned the walls of huts, or substituted for images in the household slot reserved for worship. The illustrations were remarkable for their bold line drawings and vivid use of pure unmixed colours.

Parallel aesthetic visions are called up by the conjunction of food and art. There are direct depictions of food in art, in painting, literature, conversely, there is the artistry of preparing and presenting food. But all such convergence of food and art, however sublime, is about food as an object of consumption and sustenance, either in the immediate present, or savored as a memory, or anticipated as a future pleasure. But there is a third dimension, where food is the medium for depicting the emotional, ceremonial, and ritual universe of a people. Food, in that cultural mindset, was not only something to be consumed for survival, but also an artistic medium. It provided the raw material for painting and making offerings to the Gods. It enhanced personal experience when its shape, colour, and life became metaphors for human existence. It acquired symbolic meaning and enriched social customs with ceremonial value. And the creative force that was behind such transformations was a rurally derived folk imagination, and the cultivated, educated, sophisticated mindset of intellectuals.

Chitra Divakaruni Banerjee’s major novels such as The Mistress of Spices, Sister of My Heart, The Vine of Desire and Queen of Dreams clearly deal about women’s problem. The women characters in her novels though ready to play an active part in the new culture still peep alive their old tradition. One of the commonest problems faced by the immigrants is racial discrimination. One may find Banerjee’s protagonists attacked by the whites who resent the browned-skinned people who, the whites think, are over-crowding their land. Violence or verbal abuse turns out to be an intrinsic part of the life of the refugees.

Chitra Banerjee in her novel The Vine of Desire highlights the cultural adaptation of the characters. A few years after her settlement in America, the culture transforms Anju in her usage of peculiar words and interests. Her shrinking memories of India make Sudha realize that even their memories are isolated on separate islands. As Sunil, though outwardly understood, he could not tolerate Lalit’s intimacy either with Sudha or with Anju. His anger in turn targets a fight with a valet who comments over the Indians in the party, “Fucking Indians, showing off” (VD 167). The strange land seems to create the need of incorporation and transformation for the immigrants. But behavioral changes are hardly acceptable in accordance with the new culture for the characters.

Sudha realizes that she cannot go back to the old controlled ways of Indian life. She somehow feels secure for the frosty customs of America to start a new life. She thinks standing at the corner of a road, “I must be emanating some type of distress signal, because passerby stares at me strangely. If this were India, at least half of them would know me. They’d ask me a thousand questions, offer to help, give advice, may be even escort me back home”(VD 178). Not only Sudha but Anju and Sunil also trace new paths for them after deciding for a divorce. Anju begins her self-searching journey keeping distance with all closed ones. She shares room with one of her friends from writer’s club but as they belong to different countries they could not make a comfortable companionship between them. She always wants Sudha close to her to share and understand her completely. Anju feels like shivering in fingertips like pins and needles when any of her American friends criticizes about the heritage which she loves a lot. Even their everyday talks are so diverged that she feels lonely among them. She understands that, “…large chunks of herself will always be unintelligible to them: the joint family she grew up in, her arranged marriage, the way she fell in love with her husband, the tension in her household, that ménage a trios Indian style”(VD 98).

Tradition of a country claims its easy prey by women, which is clearly represented by the character Pishima, the sister of Anju’s father in the novel Sister of My Heart. She was widowed at an early age and even denied opportunity to continue studies, and always destined to the kitchen. She got a life of utter dependence. As a juxtapose, Gourima, the mother of Anju, is shown in contrast to the character of Pishima, who is bold and dominant in running the household after the death of her husband. She handles the book shop and even takes care of her two daughters, Sudha and Anju, their studies, and even the widows, Nalini and Pishima. She didn’t even takes care of her health, while struggling hard to take over the family without hurting the traditions of the Chatterjees. Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s literature brings about the adaptation to the needs of rapidly changing circumstances, both in literature and in everyday life. Thus, it is seen that Indians even in an alien world are accustomed to the Indian culture despite their struggle between the old strict tradition and the challenge proved by their new life.

In Calcutta, it is the belief of the people that Bidhata Purush, the God of destiny will come to bless the new- born child and the demons will also accompany with him. The old tales depicts this also, in the wake of the Bidhata Purush come the demons, and for that is the world’s nature, good and evil mingled. That is why they leave an oil lamp burning. That is why they place the sacred tulsi leaf under the baby’s pillow for protection” (SH 15).

In The Mistress of Spices Daksha, an immigrant came to Tilo’s shop with white nurse’s uniform to buy some cracked wheat to make a dalia putting for her mother-in-law as the day was ekadasi on which day the widow would not take. This custom in India is still observed in some orthodox families. She said to Tilo “Aunty today is ekadasi you know, eleventh day of the moon, and my mother-in-law being a widow must not eat rice. So I thought maybe some cracked wheat to make a dalia pudding for her” (MS 82). Likewise the grandfather of Geeta also praised the Indian culture and scolded Geeta when she cut her hair in the American style and he praised about the simplicity of Indian women:

That girl, this Sunday she cut her hair short-short so that even her neck is showing. I am telling her, Geeta what did you do, your hair is the essence of your womanhood.… Or. That Geeta, how much makeup she is using all the time. Uff, in my days only the Englishwomen and prostitutes are doing that. Good Indian girls are not ashamed of the face God is giving them. You cannot think what all she is taking with her even to work … You must do what is best for her. Even from birth a girl‘s real home is with her future husband‘s family only. … Can you see me with a veil over my head sitting in a sweaty kitchen all day, a bunch of house keys tied to the end of my sari. (MS 89 – 91)

A common practice in India is that some families in India give importance to one’s own community and underestimate other low caste community. Chitra Banerjee has given undue importance to the various culinary practices of India, dishes and the recipe of some of the food items which represents a cultural expression, create identity and help the immigrants to feel at home. The elements of magic realism, myth and culture are merged together to present surprise, novelty and new technique to Chitra Banerjee’s novels which also help to bring out other themes such as identity crisis, nostalgia, demythification and remythification.

Narrative Essay on Indian Culture and My Interaction with It

As a young individual, I had the opportunity to visit India. Indian culture is one that is quite different from American one. I was able to see the different building blocks of the culture as I interacted with Indians. The building blocks of a culture are the norms, values, language, and beliefs. The essay will focus on the different building blocks of Indian culture, how it compares to American culture, and finally, reflect on my reaction towards the culture as well as what helped me to adapt.

Building Blocks of Indian Culture

In Indian culture, there are several norms. They can live as an extended family. Another common norm is they communicate using gestures. For instance, Indians like to shake their head when talking, which can be confusing for individuals that are not accustomed to the culture. Respect is a value that Indians are taught from a very young age. Adults and the elderly are the most respected in society. One can assume that Indians speak the same language. However, they have many tongues that they speak because of the different tribes in Indian culture. Indians are very religious individuals. They have many temples that are used to pray and other religious practices. In Indian culture, they believe in many gods and they do not just pray to one god. Individuals have status, and it varies from one person or family to another. There is a caste system that has existed for centuries. Brahmins are at the top of the caste system. Brahmins are usually traditional priests or teachers and form a small part of the population.

Comparison with American Culture

There are many differences and similarities between Indians and my culture as a Caucasian American. Living as extended families is not common, and the family system is unclear, unlike in India. Communication is also direct, mostly verbally. Similar to Indian culture, respect is a value that is highly considered. The elderly and adults are respected in society, which is evident in how veterans are treated in American society. In the American context, different languages are used. However, unlike Indians, English is the most common language that is used among Americans from different backgrounds. Indians have substantial religious beliefs. They have many gods who play different roles in their well-being. In American culture, religion also plays a significant role. The two main religions are Muslims and Christianity, and both serve a single God. Status in American society is mainly associated with wealth, and the wealthier one is, the higher in society he or she is placed. Politics is also associated with status.

Reflection

I find Indians very interesting, and their culture is richer than mine. Thus, one is always learning every day, and I do not believe one can understand the whole culture without full interaction. It is curiosity and familiarizing myself with the culture that made me adapt to it. The willingness to understand and interact in a manner that an Indian can relate to was crucial for me. It is an exciting culture because of the different aspects of language and religious beliefs; it is a complex culture to adapt to quickly. Overall, interaction with Indian culture was eye-opening on how different cultures can be but still have some similarities. Understanding and familiarizing one with a different culture can be vital if one wants to have positive outcomes while interacting with another culture.

My Cousin’s Indian Wedding That Made Me Understand How the Human Brain Works

Indian weddings are enormous spectacles of color, sound, sight, aroma, food, and meeting people. These weddings go way beyond being just an eternal celebration of love. The newlyweds are blessed by hundreds of guests, bedecked in their most ornate jewelry and dresses who together participate in several ceremonies and rituals, making it a few days of togetherness and frolic.

Recently, I had a chance to attend one such lavish wedding of my cousin back in India. Little did I realize that these weddings are such a graphic laboratory to understand how the sophisticated human brain and the nervous system function in the fields of sensation and perception, as well as memory, i.e., for retrieving old memories and blending them with newly formed memories.

I observed three primary forms of sensation (registration of information) and perception (interpretation of information) at this wedding. My vision was helping me appreciate the multitude of colors, ranging from the bridal deep red (due to light rays of the longest wavelength in the visible spectrum getting reflected from the dress and entering my eyes) to the lovely violet flowers (reflecting the shortest wavelength and highest frequency visible light rays) that decorated the marriage hall. During the daytime, the cones in my eyes acted as visual receptors to send signals about the colors to the bipolar cells, which in turn would send the impulse to ganglion cells that would finally reach the cerebral cortex for interpretation of the colors. The central area of the retina called the fovea has the greatest density of these cones as receptors and brought the detailed vision of the embroidery work on the bride’s lehenga. Late into the night, we danced and mingled together, when the rods in my eyes took over to adapt my vision in dim light.

In addition, the sensation and perception emanating from touch were omnipresent at the wedding. When relatives would meet, they would shake hands, hug each other, or traditionally greet each other with folded hands (called Namaste), while the younger ones would bend forward and touch the feet of their elders as a mark of respect. Touch from these activities generates different types of somatosensation known as proprioception (relating to the position), observable and interpreted by monitoring the position of the body, as well as kinesthesia (relating to the movement). Engaging in a conversation with friends and family involved maintaining an optimal distance to ensure appropriate eye contact while gesticulating with hands-involved movement that aided the perceptions caused by spoken words and facial expressions. I could notice subliminal perceptions at various times, such as everyone wearing a natural smile on happy faces when the friendly banter and fun games were on, while many wore a sad expression when it was time for the bride to bid goodbye and part from her family.

Marriage functions pose a great test for people’s memory, to say the least. On one occasion, the bride called me up and hurriedly asked me to help her get over a dozen vanity items from the nearby mall. Despite trying hard, I could remember only the first 3-4 items (the primacy effect) and the last couple of items (the recency effect) from the list. Then again, one meets so many distant relatives and guests that remembering all the names proved to be a test of memory – a few names came to mind spontaneously (free recall), while the others came to mind as soon as the introducer started with the first syllable (cued recall). When I seemed unable to recollect the name of one of my relatives, he jokingly asked me to remember his name by picking from among three names he rattled off (recognition memory). On the dance floor, the singers were singing from their declarative memory (that can be described in words), while all the folk on the dance floor, including myself, were using our procedural memory (stemming from the motor skills used in the dance steps learned earlier). At the dinner table, while I was describing to my uncle my early experiences in college, I was vaguely over-hearing nearby conversations about the Indian Prime Minister’s recent visit to the US, which had an effect such that my own conversation with my uncle tilted towards Indian politics and how the re-elected Prime Minister is performing (implicit memory).

Everything we sense, perceive and remember go through three steps of memory – encoding, storage, and retrieval. I could observe that the sights of vivid color, the melodious sounds, and the innumerable new names of the relatives I had learned earlier in the day were perhaps stored only in sensory storage and my short-term memory (or working memory), and I had already begun to forget a few of those names. After a few days, it was the test of my long-term memory – could I retrieve the names of and conversations with so many new relatives I had met and spent time with? Despite trying, I could remember the names of only those people who evoked a good emotional conversation with me (emotionally arousal events), had left two- or three-lettered initials of their names (mnemonic memory), and with whom I had remembered something together during past events (association memory).

During the entire wedding celebration of my cousin, I was trying to recollect the wedding of my elder sister from a few years back, and I found that I actually remembered only a few events and episodes from that marriage, yet was able to reconstruct nearly the entire sequence of events and the happy stories from that wedding. I am told that such a type of reconstruction could be laced with ‘fabrications’ and ‘hindsight biases’!

While I may not remember all the rituals and ceremonies that an Indian wedding witnesses (relating to our semantic long-term memory), it is the specific events and experiences from these marriage functions that one remembers for a lifetime (emanating from the episodic long-term memory). I could see for myself that sensory memory – a type of memory that involves all our senses such as vision, touch, hearing, smell, and taste – plays such an important role. It appears to have an infinite capacity and has so far proven to be indelible for me.

Indian and Greek Cultures Comparison

Indian Culture

Indian culture is an example of tradition and conservatism. It has not changed much over the centuries. People still share the same values as they did in the past. Although modern India is a mixture of cults and beliefs, the ancient religion of Hinduism is still strong among the people.

Ramayana Epic as an Example of Indian Culture

The culture and values of Indian people are best described through their literature. The ancient book of Ramayana (Buck, 2000) originally written in Sanskrit has answers to the attitudes of Indians to almost every moral issue existing in today’s society. Ramayana is a story of the young prince Rama, who is sent away from his home for fourteen years. His beautiful wife Sita is kidnapped by Ravana, the king of Lanka. This hero is an example of what Indians believe to be a perfect leader. He possesses not only the excellent managerial qualities but also the personality traits which characterize him as a kind man.

Governance

The idea of a good leader mentioned above in Ramayana is best pictured by the advice which Rama gives to his brother that having one good minister is better than having many bad ones. Indians believe that a manager’s idea should rather be opposed by smart proposals, rather than supported in order to please the manager. Since the king cannot pay close attention to every issue, he requires a group of people to do this for him. Thus, these people “do not have specific tasks to carry out, but the king is always expected to consult them before initiating any task” (Olivelle, 2013, p. 40). Moreover, the essential idea is that this circle of councilors must be small in order to prevent the possible collision of ideas.

Succession Planning

Indian people highly value their traditions. They want to be sure that the new person in charge will follow these traditions and ensure the surpassing to the next generation. There are a lot of challenges facing a leader in this sphere, because “he faces the challenge of inspiring communities different from his own” (Verma, 2013, p. 182). The current leader’s opinion on who is going to be the next governor is highly valued. Prince Rama was loved and respected by his people, he was the oldest among his brothers, and confident about his actions. The community would only support the king’s decision if he chose Rama as his successor since he would be the keeper of traditions, yet the man who would be able to find a compromise with people of other beliefs.

Loyalty

Ramayana gives a proof that loyalty is earned by building strong relationships with partners. Rama was kind and open-minded. He made friends with all sorts of communities and never paid attention to a social status. It is important to remember that Indian society is still divided by the caste system. This inequality is based on discrimination which has its roots in the ancient history of the country. However, the majority of the population is against this system. That is why Rama’s character receives so much admiration. Paula Richman (2008) talks in the preface to her book about “the liberatory potential present in the Ramayana tradition” (p. xv). Prince Rama valued the equality, and this made people loyal to him.

Motivation

The Ramayana epic is an evidence of the Indian idea that motivation is valued much more that resources possessed by a person. Rama had started a war with Lanka without having any military benefits, on which he could rely as a prince. However, he succeeded because he believed in his victory and was highly motivated. Rama’s main thing in life was his wife, and “hapless Sita is the motivation behind the glory that is ultimately Ram’s” as Pestel, Palazzolo, and Burnett (2016) describe her (p. 219). Indians think that no matter how low they are on money or other resources, there is always a chance to win if they really want to. This idea is tied to the certain worldview, where the universe helps those who are courageous and strong-willed.

Family

Family ties are important everywhere in the world. It is particularly the case in Asia, where the community stands over individualism. India is not an exception, with a larger part of all individual decision made with a regard to family influence. According to Rao (2016), “maintaining strong bonds with family members as well as relatives” (p. 186) is one of the core values of the Indian culture.

Ramayana provides several examples of these values. Firstly, the war waged by Rama had its purpose in returning his wife, Sita. Secondly, Rama’s younger brother Lakshman decided to join him, when Rama was sent away for fourteen years. Lakshman could easily stay in the palace and enjoy all the benefits of living a life of a prince. However, he decided that he would not live happily without his brother, and easily traded all the comfort for the life in a forest.

Fair Judgement

One of the Ramayana’s main characters is Hanuman, a Hindu god who acts as Rama’s warrior. He has mighty powers of various kinds, like transformation and force. This god receives a lot of admiration in India. He is worshiped by “wrestlers and other athletes, by students seeking success in exams, by women hoping to conceive children, and by people suffering from mental and physical illnesses” (Lutgendorf, 2007, p. 11).

There is an episode in Ramayana where Hanuman transforms into a monkey and takes over the evil Lankini, who did not expect this from such a small creature. This story teaches that nobody should be judged by appearance, for everyone may have some hidden talents. Besides, this episode reveals another Indian value which lies in showing respect to every living creature. Indians believe that any bird or animal may, in reality, be an impersonation of a god.

Peace and Diplomacy

Continuing the theme of the Indian religion, its philosophy proclaims harmony between people and the universe. According to Roy (2016), Mahatma Gandhi is the one responsible for promoting an idea that “Hinduism is considered a religion of peace” (p. 47).

Indians would rather agree with an opponent than engage in an open confrontation. Although Ramayana’s pages have mainly the descriptions of battles, they are considered to be a fight for defending the people of Rama from the other society with different values. Besides, at first, Rama sent an ambassador to Ravana to see if the conflict regarding his wife may be solved by diplomacy. Only after the attempt had failed, the prince started a war. Moreover, Ramayana’s idea of war implies the settlement of dharma as a greater good, which is considered to be a required value.

Gender Roles

India stays a considerably conservative country regarding the social politics. Chowdhury and Patnaik (2013) note that although Indian families have already reached some progress in tackling the existing issues, the country “does not have any family policy per se” (p. 58). Women in the society are not equal to men. They hardly ever occupy positions in the management sector and earn much less money on the overall.

Their primary duties consist of housework and family care. These values can be traced in Ramayana as well. It is not hard to notice that most of the main characters are men. Sita is the only female character who has a lot of place in the story. However, even she does not make any decisive actions apart from supporting her husband.

Dharma

The concept of dharma mentioned above I one of the most important elements of the Indian philosophy. The term does not have a distinct translation into English and is generally described as the right way of living. According to Jain (2010), Indians use dharma in their day-to-day lives “to describe different virtues, duties, and ethics” (p. 105). Dharma is a key idea of the Ramayana with prince Rama as a bearer of these values. Apart from being a warrior, Rama loves nature, protects his family, obeys his parents and engages in various spiritual practices. His character is an example of what Indian people think to be an ideal person regarding moral values.

Conclusion

Ramayana is a great example of literature, which covers all of the cultural aspects of a nation. According to this ancient poem, India is a country of people, who find their duty in keeping harmony with communities, nature, and oneself. The conservative approach should be kept when interfering with this nation.

Greek Culture

Nowadays, Greece is viewed as a part of the Western Europe. However, the ancient Greece had different values, which stay unique up to this day. Various literature examples of the old times provide insight into the ancient Greek culture, which has been saved merely in museums and tourist attractions.

Iliad and the Ancient Greek Values

The Iliad epic is an excellent example of the ancient Greek culture. The Merrill’s translation (2007) contains twenty-four books, which are all a part of one poem that is generally considered to be written by Homer in the ancient times. The main plot in the Iliad is built around the war between the Achaeans and the Trojans. The poem covers, in fact, a very short period of time no more than several days during the siege of Troy. However, the author also describes the reasons for this war, as well as provides the insight on the culture and beliefs which prevailed at that time. The Iliad has certain mythology elements, but the depicted war is actually a historical fact. Below several values of ancient Greeks are described, as seen from this literature work.

War

Wars in the past used to be a regular part of life. Humanity was developing, and the most progressive societies searched the ways to expand their territory. In the ancient times, Greece was divided into several states. The rulers of these states often attacked their neighbors and took away their goods. Ordinary people had a routine life, which did not last long due to the existing level of humanity development. A battlefield was at that time, probably, the only place where a man could show himself and be remembered over the next generations. For example, when Coker (2014) talks in his book about Achilles, one of the main characters of the Iliad, he says that he “loves the glory and the fighting and the status he achieves” (p. 27). A war in ancient Greece was considered to be natural and full of opportunities.

Reputation

The matters of reputation were crucial in Greece. If a serious dispute took place, it would most likely be resolved in a battle, not in court. It was especially true with men who were kings or war chiefs. The Iliad has a note on the reasons for the war between the Achaeans and the Trojans. The abduction of Helen, the wife of Menelaus, by Paris was a serious insult undermining the importance of marriage. Besides, Menelaus was a king of Sparta, thus he was able to regain his reputation with the help of his armed forces. As Allan (2012) mentions in his book, reputation and honor are one of the most important concepts for the Iliad’s understanding (p. 37). Greeks thought that being an honored human is one of the most important achievements in life.

Glory

No battle stands aside from the concept of glory. The Greeks considered that even the defeated army could have its heroes, for it depended on the way they fought individually, not on the overall result of the conflict. That is why even though the Iliad has two enemy sides, the reader cannot identify, which one of them is better since each army has its heroes. According to Spencer (1995), Achilles “chooses not to have a nice, long, quiet life but to go for eternal fame and glory (kleos) via a heroic death in battle” (p. 135). Even though the king he fights for does not appear to be an honorable man, Achilles himself is an example of a person valued by Greeks.

Friendship

Returning to the storyline of Achilles, one may find friendship as this character’s fundamental value. When his friend Patroclus dies in battle, Achilles realizes that this is the end of his life as well. Jusdanis (2014) argues that “the failure of friendship leads to an examination of our desire for this union itself” (p. 37). The Greeks considered friendship among men to be even more important that the family ties. While women stayed at home and raised children, men spent most of their lives with their male colleagues, making this interaction more valued as compared to marriage. Besides, there existed a vast inequality between the two genders, so women were not considered to be good for serious friendship.

Love

Of course, the concept of love is sure to be among the values of every nation. Ancient Greeks were not an exception. The Iliad provides an extensive evidence of the love affairs of various heroes. Firstly, of course, it is the case of Helen, who was abducted by Paris because of her beauty. Then, the brotherly love of several men can be seen as well. Finally, Greeks believed that humans are able to build relationships with the gods as well. Lyons (1997) talks about this matter in her book, providing various examples of the ancient Greek gods falling in love with mortal people for their appearance and personality traits. Aphrodite, the goddess of love, plays one of the most important roles in the ancient Greek mythology.

Mythology

Continuing the theme of Gods, it must be said that they played a very distinct role in the lives of the ancient Greeks. Just like many other ancient countries, Greece had a polytheistic religion. The pantheon was represented by gods who impersonated various forces of nature and human professions. All of the gods resembled humans, and this is interesting from the point of view that it is common for other nations as well. Slater (1992) asks a question in the preface to his book of why they should “appear in the costume of fornicating and incestuous anthropomorphic beings rather than something else” (p. xii). The peculiar thing about the Greek gods is that they directly interfere with human actions, as well as possess the similar personality traits typical of mortal people.

Fate

The worldview of the ancient Greeks was quite fatalistic. They believed that no matter what actions people would take, they are still subject to the events predicted beforehand. Moreover, even the gods cannot use their forces to omit their destiny. Three Fates are the only ones who predict the future, although they just retell it and cannot shape it.

Nevertheless, “human autonomy is never completely stripped of meaning, even when the result of any one human decision is predetermined” (Kitts, 2013, p. 228). The idea of fate is very distinct in the Iliad, dominating all the outcomes. Thus, Achilles knows that he will die if he engages in the battle, but he still decides to do this in order to gain the eternal glory.

Death

Like many other religions, the Greek mythology had a concept of the underworld, where a soul travels to after a body’s death. However, the Iliad has an evidence of people of those times providing “surprising terminological plurality” (Bremmer, 2016, p. 228) for the term of the soul. Ancient Greeks partly viewed a released soul almost as a complete human being that kept all the memories and personality traits. Hades used to be the god of the underworld. Unlike the modern conceptions of death, Greeks did not view Hades as an evil character, but rather a neutral side. This idea has much to do with the fact that an ancient Greek hero always had to die to obtain glory.

Modern Greece

A note must be made regarding the abovementioned elements of the Greek culture. Greece was conquered by the Arabic armies, and the modern country lacks territories which are described in the Iliad. Moreover, Greece became an Orthodox Christian state and forgot the past mythology. Roudometof and Makrides (2016) analyze in their book how the Greek Orthodox Church has influenced Europe. Greece has become a distinct part of the Western civilization and accepted the traditions of the European world. Thus, it is important to distinguish the modern and the ancient culture, which differ in values, beliefs, and even the language.

Conclusion

Although the ancient Greek culture has lost its power in the modern world, it has influenced the progress of the whole European continent. Nowadays, current wars engaging most of the population are rare, thus the cult of the battle glory is not in use anymore. However, Greek literature like Iliad has inspired the development of culture and democracy throughout the world.

References

Allan, W. (2012). Homer: The Iliad. London, UK: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.

Bremmer, J. N. (2016). Body and soul between death and funeral in archaic Greece. In P. Berger & J. Kroesen (Eds.), Ultimate ambiguities: Investigating death and liminality (pp. 227-252). New York, NY: Berghahn Books.

Buck, W. (Ed.). (2000). Ramayana. Delhi, India: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers.

Chowdhury, A., & Patnaik, M. M. (2013). Understanding Indian family life: The gender perspectives. EXCEL International Journal of Multidisciplinary Management Studies, 3(7), 58-67.

Coker, W. (2016). Men at war: What fiction tells us about conflict, from the Iliad to Catch-22. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Homer. (2007). The Iliad (R. Merrill, Trans.). Ann Arbor, MI: The University of Michigan Press.

Jain, P. (2010). Dharma and ecology of Hindu communities: Sustenance and sustainability. Surrey, UK: Ashgate Publishing Limited.

Jusdanis, G. (2014). Tremendous thing: Friendship from the Iliad to the Internet. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.

Kitts, M. (2013). What’s religious about the Iliad? Religion Compass, 7(7), 225-233. doi: 10.1111/rec3.12050

Lutgendorf, P. (2007). Hanuman’s tale: The messages of a divine monkey. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Lyons, D. (1997). Gender and immortality: Heroines in ancient Greek myths and cult. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

Olivelle, P. (2013). King, governance, and law in ancient India: Kautilya’s Arthasastra. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Pestell, B., Palazzolo, P., & Burnett, L. (2016). Translating myths. New York, NY: Routledge.

Rao, G. P. (2016). Remarking ourselves, enterprise and society: An Indian approach to human values in management. New York, NY: Routledge.

Richman, P. (2008). Ramayana stories in modern South India: An anthology. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.

Roudometof, V., & Makrides, V. N. (2016). Orthodox Christianity in 21st century Greece: The role of religion in culture, ethnicity and politics. New York, NY: Routledge.

Roy, K. (2016). Concept of peace in Hinduism: A historical analysis. In T. Shogimen & V. A. Spencer (Eds.), Visions of peace: Asia and the West (47-66). New York, NY: Routledge.

Slater, P. B. (1992). The glory of Hera: Greek mythology and the Greek family. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

Spencer, N. (1995). Time, tradition and society in Greek archaeology: Bridging the “Great Divide”. New York, NY: Routledge.

Verma, H. (2013). Leadership and dharma: The Indian epics of Ramayana and Mahabharata and their significance for the leadership today. In J. Gosling & P. Villiers (Eds.), Fictional leaders (pp. 182-201). London, UK: Palgrave Macmillan.

Indian Culture and Its Building Blocks

Introduction

It is worth noting that culture is diverse, and it includes everything that was created by a group of people throughout its historical development. The study of culture occurs through the analysis of its elements such as language, values, norms, customs, traditions, and many other aspects (Basáñez, 2016). The purpose of this paper is to discuss the building blocks of a culture that is different from that of the author of this writing.

Discussion

Indian culture is significantly different from the culture of the author of this paper in many ways. In particular, these differences may be observed in such building blocks as values, norms, and language. Values are one of the main blocks of the Indian culture, and they imply a set of socially significant preferences to which the social group gives priority. Values demonstrate the importance that certain objects, relations, phenomena, norms, and ideals have for that group of people (Basáñez, 2016). Norms are another building block in which one may observe the characteristic features of Indian culture. They regulate people’s behavior and its standards in accordance with the values of Indian culture. Also, language is an equally important aspect that may be observed in any cultural group. It is an objective form of accumulation, preservation, and transmission of human experience. Hindi is spoken by the majority of the Indian population, and it reflects all the changes that occur in society.

Values of the Indian culture are quite different from that of Western culture. This is reflected in such aspects as relation to family, relationships within society, and so on. Based on the author’s observation, in Indian culture, people give high priority to the way other individuals perceive them and restrict their behavior based on the attitudes of others. In Western culture, people are more open-minded and focus more on their individual needs and worldview (Basáñez, 2016). Apart from that, in Indian culture, people care more about their family members than they do about themselves and are, generally, more attached to their family. In Western culture, people tend to become independent and separate from their nuclear family quite early.

In terms of norms, Indian culture may be considered more conservative, and people’s behavior depends on the customs and traditions. For instance, it is rather common to arrange marriages, and women still may have fewer possibilities than men do. However, importantly, Indian culture is striving for equality in all aspects of living (Baldwin, Means Coleman, González, & Shenoy-Packer, 2014). In Western culture, love marriages are common, and equality is highly promoted on all levels. Apart from that, as stated above, language is another building block encountered. Hindi is spoken by the majority of people belonging to Indian culture; however, there are many other languages spoken in different areas, and they are given official encouragement. In Western culture, most people speak English (although Spanish and French are also quite widely used). Interestingly, Hindi has adopted many words from the English language and Western culture while simultaneously accumulating the experience of Indian people.

It may be assumed that the reaction of the author towards a different culture was adequate enough. It was important to show a positive attitude towards another culture, appreciate its norms and values, and interact according to its rules while preserving the cultural identity. Understanding the differences allowed developing a positive attitude towards another culture and avoiding isolation (Baldwin et al., 2014). Adaptation to Indian culture occurred not through the recognition of the differences but due to a personal interest in comprehending the values of another culture and emotional contact with another person.

Conclusion

Thus, it can be concluded that representatives of the Indian culture identify themselves with their culture through such building blocks as values, norms, and language. Differences between Indian and Western cultures may be observed in many ways, and some of them are fundamental. By appreciating diversity, it becomes possible to explore the various cultures existing in the world and cognizing the features of the individual’s own culture.

References

Baldwin, J. R., Means Coleman, R. R., González, A., & Shenoy-Packer, S. (2014). Intercultural communication for everyday life. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Basáñez, M. (2016). A world of three cultures: Honor, achievement and joy. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.