The Pain of Immigrants: Brave we Are by Tahira Naqvi and The Good Fall by Ha Jin - Essay Example

The pain of Immigrants Introduction The novel “Brave we Are” by Tahira Naqvi is about the life of an Iran born Pakistani who is an American immigrants. The cultural differences faced by the author have been a matter of concern. Being born in Iran the author has been alienated from her Pakistani culture. Naqvi explains that America is a land of cultural diversity and has the largest population of immigrants. . In the same manner the in the novel “The Good Fall” by Ha Jin the author tells the stories of Chinese immigrants and their life in America. The characters in the novel feel dislocated and crushed in the new society. The people in the story are exiled from the memories of China and find difficulty in establishing their own identity in an estranged country. Both the stories talk about the people who come to America to construct their life leaving their home, family, attachments and jobs. However the story “ Brave We Are” is more of accepting various culture than the Chinese immigrants of “ The Good Fall”. The two stories talks about hybridity and cultural differences faced by American immigrants . (Thesis) Hybridity – A cultural threat People get mixed and children born out of such hybridity bring multiculturalism which can be a brave action but still a matter of concern. According to ( Naqvi 932)“ Brave we are, we who answer questions that spill forth artlessly from the mouth of nine year old purist questions that can neither be waved not dismissed with ambiguity” The characters in both the novel were not able to switch culture easily as they think . According to(Jin 229) “ Mark Zong has ordered him to leave, but the monk went to a park and hanged himself instead”. By birth, their identity had been shaped by their culture and religion. Being a Muslim from Pakistan, it was not easy for Naqvi to change her cultural identity. As per (Varnum 9-13) “Cultural psychologists have consistently found different patterns of thinking and perception in different societies, with some cultures demonstrating a more analytic pattern and others a more holistic pattern”. She was locked in to a solitary culture and could not embrace the American culture completely. The American culture is new to Naqvi and being a foreigner accepting the modern life of America is a strange concept for her as well as the Chinese immigrants in “ A Good Fall”. In the novel “ Brave We are”Naqvi a mother faces threats when her son ask her about the meaning of hybridity. She tries to answer the question without her son going deep into the subject. She finds it absurd about the concept of hybridity and interracial marriages. In the novel, all the characters struggle to remain loyal to their homeland and its tradition along with exploring the independence and opportunities the new country has to offer. The sympathy and feeling of Naqvi can be highly related to the characters in the 12 short stories of Jin. Cultural imbalance among immigrants The short stories in the book reveal the cultural imbalance and the loss experienced by the immigrants. One of the story talks about an immigrant monk who attempts to suicide due to the cultural alienation and disorientation. The assimilation of two cultures is not easy especially between East and West. The children of immigrants feel the tie to their homeland but even feel that they are in a peaceful environment and escaped an unfair nation. Many a times the characters feel that they are trapped by their ancestry and unable to start a new in the land of opportunity. Coming from a Muslim country which is conservative, America seems to be a cultural invasion for the central character. In the novel of Jin, Chinese immigrants find it difficult to live in a cultural atmosphere where their language is strange. Not knowing English, the immigrants feel strange in America and torn between cultures. The Chinese are trying to establish the roots in America and some face threat of being driven away from the country. As per (Jin 221) “We have tried but cannot get your visa renewed. He placed Ganchin’s passport on the coffee table beside lamp”. Also bi – cultural citizens of America is an intimidation and threat to Naqvi and her family. According to (Pontecorvo 313-35) “ A family is not only a culture in itself but also the crossing-point of several different contexts and groups”. We can see from the novel that cultural and change in eating habits is a compromise that is sometimes necessary for survival. As per ( Naqvi 929) “ There we call it noodles, although it’s unmistakably spaghetti with no tomato sauce or meatballs or anywhere near, no cheese and no one has heard of mozzarella or romano”. In the story, unknowingly the character is adding Italian spice in her spaghetti which connotes the mixture of culture which comes by unconsciously in the minds of immigrants. In “A Good Fall” even after attempts the Chinese cannot merge into the American Culture as they wish. The cultural alienation among immigrants Naqvi finds it hard to accept that her children are getting exposed to the hybridization in the country. She is afraid that there would be an invasion on her religion and culture. As per ( Naqvi “Without meaning to I throw in some oregano into the boiling spaghetti, I shouldn’t have done that. How’s oregano going to in the company of coriander and cumin”?The author explains that America is a country which is insensitive to cultural identity and tempts children to hurt the feelings of people regarding culture and religion. There is cultural re- invention in the story as the family attempts to settle in America. Same way, in the story “ A Good Fall’ the hybridity is a confusing and strange aspect for Tian’s mother who visits him in America to find that her daughter - in law is a sophisticated American woman. The English professor who is denied tenure due to his less skill in English speaking is also in a cultural rift. His deportation showcases his inability to amalgamate into American society. According to (Jin 222 ) “ I don’t care where you go , Your visa has expired and you’re already an illegal alien, a law breaker”. “A Good Fall” is a book which showcases the suffocation of Chinese people who attempts to infuse in to American society. They find it hard to accept Western culture and longs for their country. Their every attempt to accept hybridity is out of desperation, helplessness and for survival alone. The pain of immigrants The pain of immigration is evident from the novel. The story alerts that the culture of the future generation of Chinese immigrants can bring in a hybridity which can be hostile to their very own culture. We can see that Ganchin is forced to change himself to accommodate into American culture , even though he is unsuccessful in it. According to ( Jin 231 ) “ Except for Indians, nobody is really a native in the united states”. Here, we can see that cultural difference between Naqvi and American society is large. Naqvi has a conservative and religious family culture .For her, the religion is a core value to her life and family is the corner stone of survival which is not necessarily in America. In America , religion is not a mandatory need of the society and the respect for elders and courtship before marriage are against both Naqvi’s and Chinese immigrants in the novel of Jin. Chinese people do not speak English and Naqvi is an Urdu speaking lady. We can see the character Amjad in the novel resents when his children dates without the consent of parents which is an insult to his culture which-shows the cultural difference in the novel. When her son sings an American song, Naqvi feels that her son will be alienated from Urdu, the language of Pakistan. The multi – culture environment of America is difficult to resist and preserving one’s own culture and identity had become a matter of concern for immigrants. As per (Mondak 26 -41) “Even modest enculturation and migration may be sufficient over time to entrench differences between the states not only in politics but also in collective personality”. Unknowingly adding oregano to spaghetti is an indication that mixing of culture is an unconscious affair in America. Naqvi children love the taste of America in their food unlike her and husband . As per ( Naqvi 929) “ My children like spaghetti the way it should be, the way it is , in America”. The differences and similarities of cultures The author understands that multi- cultural attitude is a benefiting thing as it brings people from various cultural backgrounds together. As per ( Jin 231)“ You can always change,This is America, where it is never too late to turn over a new page” The hybridity gives new dimension to the life of immigrants also abandons certain i93nhibitions in the mind of people. According to ( Naqvi 931)“Yeah Hybrid, do you know what it means? The note of resistive insistence in his voice compels me to tear my gaze away from the water”. However, author in the conclusive section mentions that a single culture could be a better idea. This can signal an irony but she does accommodate the idea that cultural alienation can keep people solitude and global harmony can be endangered. There are also some similarities in Pakistani culture and American culture which is giving value to food as a cultural celebration. Festivals and family gatherings are a part of the both culture .Pakistanis like American love to eat meat and thus can be relative in some way. Even though ,the Chinese immigrants experience conflict in relationship and frustration and difficulties in a new land their hardworking nature is compatible with American ideology. The American love for work and success is a cultural element of China too. Chinese are hard working and has love for art and entertainment like Americans. Education is also a important element in American and Chinese culture. Even when , the novels shows the struggle of the characters to maintain their loyalty to their culture we can see some aspect of similarities between Eastern and Western culture .Ironically, hybridity can be a threat to immigrants while the new generation feels the comfort to American life. Conclusion The authors of the story “ Brave We Are” and “ A Good Fall” suggest that switching between cultures is an important aspect of the novel. It is not easy for the Chinese people in the story “A Good Fall” to abandon their culture completely but partially accepting the American culture sis the way to the live the new life. The switching between cultures could be a difficult thing for characters but only is absorbing the American culture can they be successful in life. The embrace of one culture can pose many problems in the life of immigrants. If the immigrants live in Chinese culture then they could be alienated from the American society.The author has a mixed response on hybridity. The author thinks that hybridity is a matter of struggle for newly arrived immigrants. They find it uncomfortable to accept a culture which is strange to them. Chinese people are highly conservative and do not merge with other cultures easily. The hybridity may be acceptable for middle generation but there feel rifted between cultures. They feel confused as to what culture to follow and hybridity can bring in many challenges and obstacles in their life. Author believes that culture is an identity and personal possession of a person but American life needs a hybrid attitude to be successful in life. Work Cited Jin, Ha. A Good Fall. New York: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2010. 225. Print. Mondak, Jeffery J. "Personality and Political Culture in the American States." Political Research Quarterly 67.1 (2014): 26-41. Print. Pontecorvo, Clotilde. "Planning a Typical Italian Meal: A Family Reflection on Culture." Culture psychology 5.3 (1999): 313-35. Print. Please refer the book brave we are by tahira, I cant get information to cite Varnum, Michael E. "The Origin of Cultural Differences in Cognition:." APS 19.1 (2010): 9-13. Print. Read More