Week Four
Reading Two: "Interpreter of Maladies"
1. What is the general temporal and geographical setting of the story? How important does the setting seem to be to the story?
The temporal setting is June and the geographical setting of the story is in India. The setting is quite important to the story. The setting helps explain the difference of people for instance the Das family look Indian but they traveled from America. The Das family is going back to their roots and and becoming one again as a family.
2. What is Lahiri trying to teach us about effective communication and ways of relating with each other when we don’t share the same culture and values?
Communication is key in any type of relationship. We may not all live on the same soil, but we all live a human life. Mrs. Das and Mr. Kapasi can relate, because the struggles they have within their marriage of communication. The two are not living on the same soil but just opening up to each other they are able to connect their life struggles to each other.
3. Mr. Kapasi finds it hard to believe of Mr. and Mrs. Das that "they were regularly responsible for anything other than themselves." What instances of selfishness or self-centeredness do you find in these characters?
I agreed with Mr. Kapasi that Mr. and Mrs. Das are selfishness or self-centeredness. Mr. Das was more inclined by his tourist booklet and taking photo's and Mrs. Das was more inclined on grooming herself. Both parents avoided the children and fought on who's turn it was to take responsibility for the children. Neither of them wanted to do the parenting job, because they both live their life in regret and now that they have three kids together they feel inclined to live life in a suffering way then to enjoy what they have in front of them.
4. Visitors to Konarak find the Chandrabhaga River dried up, and they can no longer enter the Temple of the Sun, "for it had filled with rubble long ago..." What do these images suggest about changing cultural or spiritual values ?
This image shows us that each culture is driven by some kind of spiritual value. This shows us that India is more spiritual value driven on an every day bases then the life style in America. India is a religious based culture where as American culture is more focused on image.
5. Mr. Kapasi is given foreign tourists because he speaks English. The Das “family looked Indian but dressed as foreigners”(398). What other signs are we provided that the Das family is more foreign (American) than Indian?
Even though the Das family look Indian you can tell their custom life style is American. The way they talk, treat each other, responsibility, dress, necessities, etc. The Das family gave a legit image of an average American life style even though we are all different heritage we share the same values and life styles in America.
6. Mrs. Das sees Mr. Kapasi’s job as an interpreter of maladies as “so romantic” (402). Why do you think this is so? How does that differ from the way Mr. Kapasi sees this job?
When I think of other languages or other accents of a different area of the world the first thing that comes to every girls mind is how romantic! I feel this feeling expands in us because we are hearing a new tone of language then we are use to hearing in our average day lives. Whereas to Mr. Kapasi he views his interpreter skills as a job and not something to admire as a unique talent.
7. Compare the picture Mr. Das takes of Mrs. Das and Mr. Kapasi with the picture of the Das family Mr. Kapasi focuses on at the end of the story.
The picture that Mr. Das takes of Mrs. Das and Mr. Kapasi is when they are eating lunch outside. During the photo session Mr. Kapasi was in aw with Mrs. Das, because her interest in Mr. Kapasi. At the end of the story Mr. Kapasi watches the photo fly away in the air and does not say anything because he realized in the end that the Das family is just another screwed up family like the rest of the world and that he did not need anything to become of the two families for the negative aspects out weighted the positive aspects of Mrs. Das and Mr. Kapasi to keep a "relationship" going.
8. What role does communication play in the story?
Communication is one of the major roles in the story. The interpretation is seen as romantic and looked highly on and the miss communication between Mr. and Mrs. Das of the affair and Bobby's real father has the whole reason behind the distance of the individuals in the Das family. Mrs. Das just stopped trying in life from guilt and Mr. Das just stopped trying because Mrs. Das gave up.
1. How does it matter--to Mr. Kapasi and this story--that the Das family both are and aren't "foreign"?
Mr. Kapasi feels a connection with the Das family because their heritage is one in the same; however, he feels unconnected to the Das family by the custom of life and way of living.
2. How might his encounter with the Das family alter Mr. Kapasi's sense of what it means to be Indian? Why is it important that this encounter has as its background a visit to ancient Indian religious shrines?
In India you do not hear many stories of "cheating" in relationships as much as you do in America. Mr. Kapasi was reminded of what he believed and looked for in life as a custom of life living of honesty and perseverance. Mr. Kapasi felt his true Indian culture the most when he was looking and connecting to the art of the religious shrines. He then was reminded of what he valued in life.
3. What is the thematic significance of the secret that Mrs. Das reveals to Mr. Kapasi? What is its relationship to the rest of the story and to aspects of human behavior that transcend culture and upbringing?
The secret that Mrs. Das reveals to Mr. Kapasi is the aspect part that Bobby (the middle child) is not Mr. Das child but is Mr. Das friends child. She reveals that nobody knows of her secret but her. In this story you can see that even though we may be the same heritage where you live is what your life style will more likely be at. In India you do not hear much about "cheating" where as in America "Cheating" is a custom aspect of relationships now in these day and ages. So, even though all six of the individuals in the story were Indian heritage they all have a different perspective of value and life style by where they live in the different types of culture.
Summary of my thoughts: I really actually enjoyed this story. The story opened my eyes to how as a human race we are all connected come way in heritage, but as humans we choose our own life destinies of life style, customs, living area, etc. As humans we all have struggles and we all have decisions we make. We are in charge of our own lives and yes our lives may be directed in a direction by the area of custom we grew up in or live. This story shows how big of an impact cultural areas have on a persons life, all we have to do as humans is discover what we truly believe in for the way of living. This story also shows how communication is key to every day life no matter your culture or heritage.
1. What is the general temporal and geographical setting of the story? How important does the setting seem to be to the story?
The temporal setting is June and the geographical setting of the story is in India. The setting is quite important to the story. The setting helps explain the difference of people for instance the Das family look Indian but they traveled from America. The Das family is going back to their roots and and becoming one again as a family.
2. What is Lahiri trying to teach us about effective communication and ways of relating with each other when we don’t share the same culture and values?
Communication is key in any type of relationship. We may not all live on the same soil, but we all live a human life. Mrs. Das and Mr. Kapasi can relate, because the struggles they have within their marriage of communication. The two are not living on the same soil but just opening up to each other they are able to connect their life struggles to each other.
3. Mr. Kapasi finds it hard to believe of Mr. and Mrs. Das that "they were regularly responsible for anything other than themselves." What instances of selfishness or self-centeredness do you find in these characters?
I agreed with Mr. Kapasi that Mr. and Mrs. Das are selfishness or self-centeredness. Mr. Das was more inclined by his tourist booklet and taking photo's and Mrs. Das was more inclined on grooming herself. Both parents avoided the children and fought on who's turn it was to take responsibility for the children. Neither of them wanted to do the parenting job, because they both live their life in regret and now that they have three kids together they feel inclined to live life in a suffering way then to enjoy what they have in front of them.
4. Visitors to Konarak find the Chandrabhaga River dried up, and they can no longer enter the Temple of the Sun, "for it had filled with rubble long ago..." What do these images suggest about changing cultural or spiritual values ?
This image shows us that each culture is driven by some kind of spiritual value. This shows us that India is more spiritual value driven on an every day bases then the life style in America. India is a religious based culture where as American culture is more focused on image.
5. Mr. Kapasi is given foreign tourists because he speaks English. The Das “family looked Indian but dressed as foreigners”(398). What other signs are we provided that the Das family is more foreign (American) than Indian?
Even though the Das family look Indian you can tell their custom life style is American. The way they talk, treat each other, responsibility, dress, necessities, etc. The Das family gave a legit image of an average American life style even though we are all different heritage we share the same values and life styles in America.
6. Mrs. Das sees Mr. Kapasi’s job as an interpreter of maladies as “so romantic” (402). Why do you think this is so? How does that differ from the way Mr. Kapasi sees this job?
When I think of other languages or other accents of a different area of the world the first thing that comes to every girls mind is how romantic! I feel this feeling expands in us because we are hearing a new tone of language then we are use to hearing in our average day lives. Whereas to Mr. Kapasi he views his interpreter skills as a job and not something to admire as a unique talent.
7. Compare the picture Mr. Das takes of Mrs. Das and Mr. Kapasi with the picture of the Das family Mr. Kapasi focuses on at the end of the story.
The picture that Mr. Das takes of Mrs. Das and Mr. Kapasi is when they are eating lunch outside. During the photo session Mr. Kapasi was in aw with Mrs. Das, because her interest in Mr. Kapasi. At the end of the story Mr. Kapasi watches the photo fly away in the air and does not say anything because he realized in the end that the Das family is just another screwed up family like the rest of the world and that he did not need anything to become of the two families for the negative aspects out weighted the positive aspects of Mrs. Das and Mr. Kapasi to keep a "relationship" going.
8. What role does communication play in the story?
No comments:
Post a Comment