The Cure is Love, Hope, and Purpose

“ What won’t be cured must be endured. Bibi has caused enough worry, added enough to expenses, sullied enough the family name.” (Lahiri 163). What bothered me is how badly a family would treat someone with a mental problem. They treated her terribly like she was useless, a burden to the family, a disease. I understand that people who suffer from mental conditions need to be taken care of and that at times they are a lot of work to watch and require money to pay for medical needs, doctors, and therapy; however, I expected that the bonds of family would be for her relatives to want to take care of her. It was cruel that Bibi’s family and neighbors made her think that she could get married when they knew that no man would marry her but on the other hand, if the family had told the truth that she would never marry, the outcome would have been just as bad but at least they would not have been giving her false hopes. Even though she may not be as smart as other people, she could have helped take care of the baby and entertain it when the child got older. Haldar ‘s wife treated Bibi as if she was contagious and poisonous to her newborn child. Perhaps fear, superstition, and paranoia caused her to miss judge Bibi and the influence she would have on the newborn. Just because Bibi couldn’t take care of the child while the parents were not around does not mean that she still couldn’t help out.  She probably felt so isolated and so alone. I admire the neighbors for helping her through her struggles and trying to cheer her up, looking after her when she got put into the storage room and even after her family abandoned her like some animal. The neighbors sympathized with her and tried to keep her alive but her mental state was not good ever since her family left her.  In the end Bibi ended up getting pregnant without a husband. Her neighbors were so upset that they wanted to investigate however, Bibi wouldn’t tell them. “She was, to the best of our knowledge, cured.”(Lahiri 172). Because she had the child, she had to force herself to play the role of a mother and be strong and happy for the child. Now she had a child and a purpose. The child will love her and she won’t be alone. I believe that is what cured her. She now has a purpose and a future hope. She sold what was left of the goods her family previously owned to help her and the child make it through and to me that shows progress and that her family underestimated her. When times got rough, for the sake of the child she pulled through. Perhaps the reason Bibi did not tell anyone who the father was is because she did not want him to get punished and she was thankful to him for giving him a child.

Learning About New Cultures

“Two things Eliot learned, made Mrs. Sean happy,” shows that a young American boy is learning about another woman’s Indian culture. ( Lahiri 121) What I found interesting is that throughout the Mrs. Sem’s story, a boy is exposed to another culture that is completely different from his own. Through out the story, the boy is questioning his own customs and comparing them to Mrs. Sem’s. It is important for kids to be exposed to different cultures because when they are young, they do not judge harshly as if they were like a teenager or older.  Eliot did not say mean things or negatively question her religious practices but at the same time he did not understand them nor did the adults either. Perhaps if we have children exposed to different cultures, while they are growing up they will appreciate them and because they are so young and innocent, they will not stereotype foreign people because hate and prejudices are taught and exhibited throughout teenage years and into adult ears. But, when a child is young, they do not have any reason to racially judge and it isn’t in their mindset. For example, Eliot did not criticize Mrs. Sem for her customs of cutting the vegetables or her religious fasting though he did not understand them while the mother seemed to be concerned with Mrs. Sem's cultural behavior. If children are raised around other cultures, perhaps they will learn tolerance for them and understand them in later years. What I enjoyed about Eliot is that he asked questions to Mrs. Sem about the things she did that was different from his family. Because of his curiosity, he was learning about a new culture that he may never have learned about. Because he was so young, he knew that she did things differently but he did not attach those differences to race. Such as, all Indian woman love fish or are bad drivers. Eliot accepted these without question and he seemed to enjoy her company. I wonder if he was fascinated by the stories she told him from her country. I personally be. The boy was a curious and learning new thing, which should be encouraged. I have never really known someone from a different country that I could ask questions and learn about what life was like for them. Eliot had innocence to him because since he was a kid, he had no shame in asking questions about her life, which is something, adults do not do. Why do people not ask questions about foreigner’s customs? Is it because they do not care, are curious but do not want to seem nosey? Do they not know how to ask about a sensitive topic? If more people mingled with people of different cultures, would be able to understand different people? Would be able to appreciate our culture and make us rethink some of our customs? Would we be more accepting if we learned what it was like to live in their shoes? The only way to learn about people is to ask them about their lives changing our perspective that could help future generations be more tolerant and strive for co-operation.

The Dark Reality: Tainted Meat

            How far are people willing to go in order to save money when producing food eve n though there may be a health risk? Jane and her crew film a show about raising cattle for food uncovering some disturbing information. For starters, some beef may have been exposed to radiation from when people were making bombs. It is interesting that My Year of Meats by Ruth L. Ozeki is fiction yet it addresses problems that are present in modern times such as nuclear pollution and contaminating meats though using hormones. “In the 1950’s, it was discovered that the radioactive iodine had contaminated local dairy cattle, their milk, and all the children who drank it.”(ozeki, 246).  In modern times, there have been cases of nuclear pollution such as Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania, Chernobyl, Ukraine, and the Fukushima plant in japan. These incidents have released pollution into the environment and it is possible that the cattle could have become tainted yet we may be eating that mead and not knowing how dangerous it is. If we are not careful, more dangerous pollution disasters could severely contaminate our food and we would have no choice but to eat the meat in order to survive.  Another problem with the pollution of the mead is all of the hormones Gale is feeding the cows. The hormones are really strong and can lead to birth defects. Today in my environmental class we were talking about how certain hormones could make male populations more feminine. The fact that this is a true reality is frightening. In Ozeki’s book she addresses these issues that could become a reality. Yes the hormones help beef grow faster, produce more product faster while saving money but what is the price?  The daughter that was exposed to those intense hormones developed into a woman at the age of five! If we continue, what affect will these hormones have on the human population and the environment? While this is a work of fiction and I don’t think there is scientific data of young girls developing that early, if we eat enough hormones could this become a reality? I feel that in some ways Ozeki’s treatment of issues such as tainted meat may be a warning for the future. She wants the readers to question if it is possible for these things to happen. Gale says, “ Now, aint that something? You see what I mean? That’s just another example of modern science comin’ up with a way to kill two birds with one stone.”(Ozeki, 263). Yes modern science can make things progress faster but it might me safer for us to be patient and let things take their course with out all of the hormones people would not be developing abnormalities. Just because things are more efficient, are they safer and better? Should we keep blindly eating this food when we are not one hundred percent sure of the results which we may not understand until twenty to fifty years down the line? I bet that most people do not know about all of the hormones in the meat. The meat industries and other people want to keep the information hidden by saying that it’s all right to eat it or avoid questioning. Jane wanted to expose the truth with all of the video evidence that will cause it to be a wake up call. If everyone knew the truth, would they let companies produce and make us eat tainted meat? Is there hope that science will fix the problems associated with hormones? “Nobody is going to do anything about it, and then slowly, bit by bit, it will be too late.” (Ozeki, 251). If we can expose the truth, will it be too late?

Why is She Married to Him?

Akiko is a housewife in japan who has been trying to get pregnant but for medical reasons she cannot. Because of her not being able to give birth, her husband has been getting upset and taking his frustration out on her. “ … He said you were perfectly capable of controlling it if you wanted to. So now, how can you explain that?” (Ozeki, 99). Shortly after this statement Akiko offers up the idea to adopt since they want children however john disagrees and wants his own biological children. The main trend throughout the story with Akiko is that she struggles with having children the doctors say that she is ill and unable to have children because she is throwing up and getting really sick interfering with producing children. I am not sure exactly what her medical condition is but the Japanese doctors put the fertility blame on the women. For example, later in the story, Jane has to go to the doctors her infertility. They took X-rays and found a problem in her uterus and that they had found some cancer cells but the doctor urged Jane that she could still bare kids. The Japanese doctors are putting all of the fertility control onto the women even though they may have health problems. Because of these health problems, it stresses out the husbands. Is the role of women in Japanese society to have children and start a family or is it the same for every culture that women are to blame for infertility? The reasons behind Akiko’s health are not fully known. I feel that her violent husband who scares her, abuses her, and degrades her impacts her mental health. “No matter what answers she put down, John always got angry and told her they were wrong. And then she had to defend them.”(Ozeki, 128). If he is always getting angry and yelling at her, she probably feels stressed and is getting sick from the emotional trauma. Why would she allow herself to marry a man who treats her like this? They met by an Akiko’s boss getting them together and suggesting marriage. Akiko sort of slid into the marriage. It seems like once she started to date and get serious with him that she would get sick from being nervous and not be able to keep food down so she started loosing weight. I feel that the reason she married John was because of her boss saying that she should be getting married and that she needed to find a husband. But I would rather be single then to deal with the stuff she has to face. Is it a cultural thing that the Asian women are so shy towards men who demand children and a family? In America, there are husbands and wives who do not have children, either they don’t want to or they cant yet they still last because they love each other. Does john love Akiko enough to work through the hardship that they are facing as a couple who want to start a family? How much does John love her if he is acting so violent and having thoughts about finding a new wife in order to get children? If he loved her so much why doesn’t he believe her when she says that she cannot help getting sick? What if this marriage is not solely based on love but rather traditional Japanese society?

Who is the Enemy?

Sa-I-gu was an unfair attack on people who had nothing to do with white power. The blacks were angry at the whites and wanted revenge so they attacked the Koreans because the Koreans were taken care of and educated by the whites. Some Koreans felt like they had a bond with black people because a woman said " I felt betrayed by black kids," implying that because they were minorities they could relate to each other and struggle through white oppression and overcome it. But another person stated that Koreans did not try to understand black people. Many Koreans felt upset that the blacks were mad at them and not the white people. The Koreans lost everything in that unlawful riot because they were not the ones who betrayed the black people; they only wanted to start a new life. Perhaps the black people were jealous that the whites liked the Koreans or that they wanted to take their anger out on other people and the Koreans happened to be an easy target. I feel like the blacks should have been more understanding towards the Koreans who had nothing when they came to this country and now they have destroyed everything that they had worked for. Surly the blacks would understand the feeling when people persecute you because of your skin color. If the blacks had sympathized over them and tried to work together, could they have overcome white power? Why does this war against the white society have to be against other minorities? I believe that even though someone is not a Korean, to some extent they can sympathize with all the hate that they have felt and all of the hardships. If we take the time to talk to one another and listen to what they have to say, imagining us in their shoes, how far will we go? Is it possible for the white people to change and make up for the past? Once we all start communicating, we can try to understand each other then we will become stronger as a nation and truly live up to the American Dream. 

Equally Represented

If minorities had more politicians and leaders in America, how would it affect the public and certain minority groups? The quote “Queens had seen a drop in violent crime since his election. The latest school test scores were you. You could think wise John Kwang was responsible,” explores the question. (lee,84). If there were numerous politicians representing every race, would minority groups be less tempted to steal because they felt like someone of their own race will look out for their needs? Would a minority being in power inspire others that they can over come the white system if they try hard enough? If there is only one minority group in power, there will be competition from all of the other minorities to get someone to represent them. There would also be more racial tension between other minorities rather then just the whites. Obama for example could represent the black community but how effectively can he represent the Asian American community or the Hispanic community? Some black people had problems with Obama because he was not “black enough”. What defines racial representation if a race will not accept him? Would the crime rate go down in communities if they did have someone to represent them? I believe that in order for minorities to feel like they have a voice in America, more minorities need to be elected meaning that there is a possibility for minorities to be accepted in America rather then being told what is best for them by a group of people who do not understand them. Minorities need a person who can stand up for them to level the playing field. The white politics have taken advantage of the cheap labor from immigrants but if they had been represented then they could more easily stand up for themselves. In having a variety of politicians, America will truly belong to the people with the political representatives seeing to the fair treatment of everyone instilling a sense of belonging in America rather then being dictated by the white society.