Apples can fall VERY far from the tree

Hello, here comes yet another post about Jhumpa Lahiri's The Namesake. Gogol, the antagonist that I've mentioned in previous posts, grew up in a very traditional Bengali household. His parents were very partial to their Bengali customs and enforced Bengali social rules in their household. These rules were very strict, especially when compared to the usual restrictions put on American teenagers. And since Gogol grows up under these strict rules yet sees his American friends have more leeway, revolt grows within him. Being contained under his parents rules led to Gogol's explosion of rebellious independent acts; changing his name, having sexual relationships, and doing drugs. So now the real question is, was Gogol pushed to the point of rebellion by his parents' strict discipline? If so, is discipline then counterintuitive?

Stay Golden, Gogol

Hey all, today I'm talking about a important decision that many people face. In the book "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri, the main character is Indian but lives on the East Coast. He often faces many conflicts between the two cultures he knows; Indian culture, and the new unfamiliar American lifestyle. His parents disapprove and sometimes fear the American culture, encouraging him to do the same. However, Gogol(the main character)'s exposure to American culture has given him vastly different opinions from those of his parents. Although his father is well educated, a college professor, Gogol's education has led him to question and be ashamed of many parts of his ethnicity. For example, Gogol's greatest embarrassment is his name; for it is very ethnic and he is humiliated by it. He hates it so much that he decides to legally change his name. Throughout the story, Gogol comes across situations where his Indian side and American side come to a crossroads and he must choose which lifestyle he wants to live. As he grows older and starts making more decision on his own and without his parents' consent, he tends to choose the "american" way. Since his parents view the "american" way as a sinful way and Gogol idolizes it, they have many arguments. Which led me to think about the real question for Gogol; to stay true to his Indian roots or to adapt to the new environment and follow the American way of life. I believe it is simpler than that; I believe the only thing Gogol must stay true to is himself, without worrying about what Americans will think of his ethnic name or customs. Likewise, he should not be completely ruled by his parents' opinion on what is right, because Gogol is not living the same life as they are and should therefore not lead his own life the same way. Many people that come from another country or have an ethnic background face this same dilemma, and through seeing Gogol's struggle and the actions he makes, I firmly believe that being being honest to ones' self is important above all else, regardless of any society.

First Impressions

So in the book that I'm reading today called The Namesake by jhumpa lahiri, I came across the weirdest first encounter I have ever heard of. The narrator has a bunch of "suitors", potential husbands, over at her house one day and notices some shoes laying around. She tries the shoes on, and they fit. Obviously, when the owner of the shoes returned it must have been an awkward encounter; yet they ended up marrying so they must have been some pretty decent shoes. Reading this reminded me of some of my strange first encounters. I first met one of my close friends in the principal's office in 7th grade, where we were both getting detentions for something we didn't do. I explained this to the principal while making a joke and the guy to the side of me laughed; we went on to become best friends throughout middle school. Freshman year during football training camp, a fellow freshman was called up to read a contract. This freshman went on to pronounce the word "hereby"(hear-by) as hair-eh-bee. Of course, this sparked our friendship. I guess first impressions don't have to be good; they just need to leave any sort of impression, even if the impression involves bad memories.

For The Sake Of It

This blog post will be dedicated to discussing the novel Notes From Underground By Fyodor Dostoevsky. The narrator in this story spends a lot of time blaming his lack of action on his "consciousness". He says that the fact that he's aware of everything, what would or wouldn't happen if he did this or that, is the reason that he does not do anything. Essentially, he overthinks everything and sits out. My response: stop thinking, and do it for just for the sake of it. This is what I mean: When you were a little kid and were scared of going on the tallest ride at a theme park, you though about it. The more you contemplated it, the more your desire waned. However, if you managed to overcome your fear and go on the ride, you found it to be enjoyable. If you had over-rationalized, you would not have gone on the ride and therefore not have overcame a personal fear. Over thinking can often lead to this; missing out on important life moments that teach bravery and an unforgettable experience. Once in a while it is important to do things just for the sake of doing them, without analyzing the pros and cons, because sometimes what you could gain cannot be measured by a number.

Standing Up Against Stereotypes

Alfonso Corona

1/30/14

D Block

Mrs. Hawkins

English II

Lion

In the novel [RJ1] Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, Achebe provides a complete story of the African Ibo tribe in the same way that Tavis Smiley disproves stereotypes about Latinos in America.In Things Fall Apart, both the happy and somber aspects of African culture, namely those of the Ibo tribe, are exposed. As Achebe reveals the Ibo tribe’s way of life before and after the effects of imperialism by the “white men”(Achebe 174), [RJ2] the invasion of foreigners does not seem beneficial to the natives of the land. These foreigners had uneducated assumptions of African tribes, assuming  that they are all savages, or that there is no structure to the African way of life[RJ3] . Likewise, there are many stereotypes about Latinos in the United States.  A common misconception about the Latino population is that Latinos are all illegals and detrimental to society. As Achebe [RJ4] disproved stereotypes about Africans through a story that addresses misconceptions, a symposium hosted by PBS Broadcaster Tavis Smiley called “Latino Nation” interviewed many Latino leaders of today to dispel some of these notions.  

Achebe reveals that imperialism hurt the Ibo people more than it helped them. This is contradicting to what missionaries believed, that it was their duty to change the ways of people that they viewed as inferior. However, Achebe’s account shows how being imperialized disintegrated the lives of many and disrupted the preexisting order. Because Things Fall Apart illustrates a more complete canvas of the situation that the Ibo people were in, Achebe subdues any uneducated judgments or stereotypes.

Tavis Smiley showed Latinos can be influential because the speakers at his discussion were successful Latino individuals that had left an imprint on the organization that they are a part of. In this convention, the speakers were asked about their thoughts on how Latinos are viewed in America. Maria Durazo addressed a common stereotype immediately, saying, “...we are what everybody else in this country is. We work hard, we want to raise our families, have a good education…(Durazo, Maria. Interview with Tavis Smiley. “Latino Nation: Beyond the Numbers”.2013,Web.). Tavis Smiley’s symposium strives to justify Latinos against stereotypes the same way that Achebe does, by spotlighting actions by the group in question that disprove stereotypes.

Achebe sets out to show that the Ibo people had structure before missionaries came by narrating the tribe’s hierarchy. The Ibo’s main crop is the yam, and a man’s worth is measured in part by his success in farming yams. The tribe also values the accomplishments of an individual man and does not judge a man based on the accomplishments of those who came before, as Achebe explains, “Fortunately, among these people a man was judged according to his worth and not according to the worth of his father.”(Achebe 8). And since Okonkwo, the man in question[RJ5] , was a wealthy farmer with two barns full of yams, 3 wives, and great victories in war, he was a very well respected man[RJ6] . However, the arrival of foreigners also brought a change to the social hierarchy, as men who were not respected before could speak as an equal (Because of the Christian belief that every man is equal.[RJ7] 

Achebe displays how diplomatic the Ibo people are, opposed to the savages that they are thought to be. When an opposing tribe kills an Ibo citizen, the Ibo people do not react harshly and create a slaughter. The Ibo people make it a point to be reasonable in their disagreements, “…it never went to war unless its case was clear and just…”(Achebe 12).  However, when the missionaries arrive they do not care to investigate the people that they plan on conquering and instead walk around demanding change. This causes the Ibo people to change form their peaceful ways and there is unrest among them, where before all Ibo people were united, under faith and culture.

During Latino Night, [RJ8] the role of Latinos in shaping this country is also discussed. Oscar Chacon [RJ9] puts on emphasis on how influential Latinos can be, saying, “…mainly the fact that Latinos are, you know, the largest minority and the one growing at the fastest rate…”(Chacon, Oscar. Interview with Tavis Smiley. “Latino Nation: Beyond the Numbers”. 2013, Web.). Although Latinos are the largest minority, they are not necessarily a counterweight to society, as many believe. Maria Durazo explains,“Well, one thing that I think has always been positive not only of Latinos who’ve come here as immigrants from different parts of Latin America is the contribution that we give to the economy … we all have this great contribution that was made to this nation as working people and really boosting the creation of a middle class…”(Durazo, Maria. Interview with Tavis Smiley. “Latino Nation: Beyond the Numbers”. 2013, Web.).  The speakers at the panel discussion are used as shining role models to dispel stereotypes toward Latinos, just as Achebe uses the Ibo people.

•             By partly ceding to stereotypes, Achebe and Smiley become more credible sources. Achebe’s story of the Ibo people did not leave out the violence and wrongdoing that took place. If Achebe had only pointed out the good sides of Ibo society, the argument would be completely biased and lose credibility. During Latino Night Jesus Garcia elaborates on why some Latinos do come into this country illegally, “The reality is, Latinos just want to be Americans. They want the American dream.” (Garcia, Jesus. Interview with Tavis Smiley. “Latino Nation: Beyond the Numbers”.2013,Web.). Admitting to wrongdoings as well as showcasing the best of each group is what made both Achebe’s and Smiley’s accounts complete.

Both Achebe and Tavis set out to dissolve stereotypes through education. Achebe’s account of the Ibo people shows that the Ibo people are very different from what their stereotypes suggest. The complete story was shown in Things Fall Apart because Achebe also talked about Ibo traits that were unflattering; not only about the traits that disproved stereotypes. Tavis Smiley gave important Latinos a voice in his symposium, and they went on to provide a complete story. As Achebe and Smiley both strove to provide a complete story of groups that have been stereotyped, they left it in the hands of the people to best represent themselves.

After reading it, I understood that you were trying to tell us how those authors dispelled their respective stereotype. However, the organization, and frankly the lack of an introduction paragraph, confuses me.  Also, when you referred to your second text in the sixth paragraph as “Latino Night” is threw me off a bit because I was unaware of the additional text’s name. Nevertheless, the evidence you provide is informative.

Alfonso Corona

4/6/14

Mrs. Hawkins

English II

D Block

Bibliography

• Interview with Tavis Smiley. “Latino Nation: Beyond the Numbers”.2013,Web.)

·      Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. New York: Anchor, 1994. Print.

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 [RJ1]Not a book, it’s a novel!

 [RJ2]Even though this is an appropriate quote insertion, it provides little information in the introduction.

 [RJ3]I don’t know where your thesis is.

 [RJ4]Good job, here , creating ways to talk about both texts at the same

 [RJ5]What does that mean?

 [RJ6]Evidence?

 [RJ7]This is a confusing sentence.

 [RJ8]Is this a different text than the one mentioned before?

 [RJ9]Who is this guy?

Does Okonkwo Wear Wifebeaters?

So in the book Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe the main character, Okonkwo, constantly beats any of his 3 wives. The beatings do not stop with the wives though; he also beat his son for crying over the death of his brother, whom Okonkwo killed. One of Okonkwo's wives cut off a leaf from a banana tree, so he proceeded to beat her, as usual. It seems to me that Okonkwo has a plan on how to be a successful man in his society by getting his yams to prosper. Okonkwo has certain steps that he knows must be followed in order to be a strong man. When something happens outside of that plan, like Banana leaves being cut off, someone must be beat because it strays from Okonkwo's idea of efficiency and what is proper. Whenever something "different" happens around Okonkwo, he panics in his own way, and reacts by beating someone because that is the way of life that he has known. It's a pretty bad cause and effect sequence.

Lesson: REAL Learning happens outside the classroom

So I watched a TED talk where Gever Tulley talks about 5 dangerous that parents should let their kids do. Tulley explains how overprotective parents are actually hurting their kid's chances of staying out of danger by shielding them from real world dangers. When the ENVIRONMENT is constantly being adapted to fit the child, the kids  are at a loss when THEY have to adapt to their environment in a real world situation. This is exactly why children should be allowed to do a few minimally dangerous activities, like climb a tree. I for sure can attest that I learned 10x as many life lessons on a forbidden hike through a forest at night with my cousin than i could have learned through 2 years of reading a textbook. Occasions like this are what break through the dull barrier of "learning" in a safe environment where no risk is involved and manage to teach me valuable lessons that will I will actually remember. We have all had that mishap with a knife that our parents told us not to touch, and one bloody finger later, a life lesson is engraved: Don't touch sharp blades. No matter how many times my dad had told me to look left then right when crossing a street while I rode my bike in a park, he could not prepare me for when I went unsupervised bike riding across a boulevard and almost got ran over because I hadn't seen the red hand on the other side of the crosswalk. The contrast was clear: learning in a controlled environment didn't stimulate me enough to remember helpful lessons, but learning through actual experience, I never failed to remember. Gever Tulley is a genius