Outsider In his novel THE RELUCTANT FUNDAMENTALIST mohsin hamid explores changez attempt to make a life for himself in America. While at first he is successful at Princeton and then in securing a job with a well-respected American firm, the reader becomes aware that he finds it increasingly difficult become he is marginalized as an outsider. As he strives to live the American dream, seeking money and status, he begins to question his own values and those of American society. This self-examination triggers such a crisis of identity that he rejects the persona he is trying to fabricate. ‘I did not know where I stood on so many issues of consequence; I lacked a stable core.
To clarify, the author is the speaker and the narrator. The names are used interchangeably. Prologue “I am a man of substance... possess a mind. I am invisible, understand, simply because people refuse to see me.” The contrast between tangibility and invisibility shows the speaker’s life in a racist world. Even if he possesses great thoughts, strength, and value, he is still nothing because of his black skin.
To achieve this You have to release himself from the previous traumatic memories in China, get rid of the past and merely live in the present (p.10). Despite the great effort of you, Chinese images remain inerasable in your surroundings. You feel strongly that Chinese governance is eroding in Hong Kong (p.25) and would soon recall your memories no matter how hard You try to resist. Memories become an enemy to freedom. In this novel, memories are always “heavy,” (p.29) associated with historical trauma and authoritarian oppression.
Every time during the “my kid will be a heart surgeon” brag sessions with our Chinese relative they proudly shared that I wanted to be an artist. Their response drew ugly comments of never reaching success, living my life by the penny and every conservative Chinese thought. They did not expect that their words only made me more determined. Born a Taurus I am stubborn and determined to prove anyone wrong. It only drove my artistic pursuit further.
Dubois's philosophy not only shows nihilism in the black race during this era but it also shows the same lack of progression in the black community in 2011. It reminds us of the lack of harmonious solidarity as well as the lack of intellect, high morals and spiritual insight affecting the Black masses today. His piece brings up an array of valid points on why the black community is its own worst enemy when it comes to building a new infrastructure of educational, historical and financial knowledge of self like the Jewish, Asian and Indian cultures. Dubois says “It is the problem of developing the best of this race that they may guide the mass away from the contamination and death of the worst, in their own and other races. Now the training of men is a difficult and intricate task.”(Dubois 1) I personally think that the contamination of most blacks today is from out dated teachings, some churches, politicians and most importantly, the entertainment business.
The “drama” of the visit created hype as never seen before.14 The American people believed in the sentimentality of the trip.15 They really thought that this trip would change the course of the whole world forever, which needless to say, it was not. Television turned “what should have been a useful, diplomatic operation into a theatrical piece,” remarked a disgusted writer of the time. He believes that television was used to make the trip more than it was. He thinks that the trip to China was “propaganda-d” into the hearts and minds of the American people to show Nixon as the favorable candidate.16 Gallup polls indicate that the President’s approval rating before the announcement of his trip to China was 40.2%. But after the announcement it rose to 49.7%, an increase of almost ten percent!17 It is clear that the Nixon administration wished for the visit to China to affect the voting preferences of the American people and to make them see their President in a new light.
Twain puts a young white boy in a grand journey with an enslaved black man, running for his freedom. Such circumstances are enough to set people off by itself, but Twain goes one step further to show the malice of the time, stereotyping a race. The thought of explaining Mark Twain’s book to students is enough to make most teachers shutter because of the ferocity of actions taken against those who cannot properly present the information. However, it is their job to introduce students to a true literary work of art. If we have no faith in our educators, then we lose hope in future generations’ capacity to judge right from
Studies show that the subconscious mind remembers everything one sees during the day; therefore, when one dreams, he only sees what he knows. In Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man, a black, unidentified man, introduced as the narrator (Invisible Man), depicts his life starting from a naive youth in the South to confused adulthood in Harlem. Throughout the novel, the narrator encounters many situations that slowly push him to face the truth about racism in society and his own lack of identity. Racial tensions press the narrator to escape via a manhole where in the darkness and solitude, he begins finally to see himself- his invisibility and identity. Through the motifs of sleeping and dreaming, Ellison is able to awaken the narrator's sense of reality
Case Preparation Sheet Summary of the Situation | What is the case about? Gold Peak Electronics is an multinational company which has acquired two Brithsh Speaker companies. The managing director wanted to move GPE upmarket and create stronger and more creative teams in its Chinese R&D locations by the acquisition. However, the distances between R&D sites made innovative collaboration even more challenging. The British engineers were reluctant to share knowledge due to worries about future job security while Chinese engineers preferred to work with local team members.
In a comparison between Chinese and American youth it is seen that their goals are much the same and their motivation behind these goals all have to do with the universal need to be nurtured and loved in a family environment. In a country like China where tradition and family is so highly regarded it would be thought that young adults would be likely to follow in their parents footsteps. But in interviews with Wang Xiaolei, Ben Wu, and Lu Dong it is made clear that their life and career choices were very much their own. In the interview with Wang he even says, “My father, my mother- both useless” (Young and Restless in China). And Ben Wu says “So I want to learn how Chinese conduct business, what's the best opportunity in what industry” (Young and Restless in China).