Cultural identity is a powerful force with the ability to preserve history, create a sense of belonging, and provide a reference point for an individual's identity. Reflections on the importance of cultural identity can be found within the two essays, “Memories of Montreal - And Richness,” and “Lend Me Your Light,” authored by Moses Milstein and Rohinton Mistry respectively. Milstein’s story, describing his vibrant journey to school on the busy streets of nineteen-fifties Montreal, is bookended with guilt and sadness. Sadness that his son won’t share those experiences and guilt for feeling responsible for those missed experiences. Through Mistry’s eyes the reader is presented with a story of changing cultural identity. In his youth, Mistry
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A contrast between the essays can be seen in the importance of parental influence over the development of cultural identity. Milstein is saddened that his son won’t get to experience the culture that he strongly identifies with (Reinking et al 152), while Mistry’s parents want to remove him from their Indian culture for Mistry’s own good (Reinking et al 156). The sights, smells, and people that surround Milstein in his youth created a feeling of joy and security (Reinking et al 152). The strong association, by Milstein, to that environment is the driving force behind the fear that the gentle and placid environment that surrounds his son might be inadequate for developing a likeminded cultural identity. A comparison can be drawn between Milstein’s son and Mistry’s acquaintance, Jamshed. The “hyphenated lavishness” (Reinking et al 153) that Jamshed was raised in didn’t endear him to any of the variety of cultures that surrounded him. As Jamshed moved into adulthood he erased himself from the lives of those that connected him to any non-western Indian culture. Milstein laments that his son will follow a similar path, and it is …show more content…
Firstly, the influence of a parent’s culture on a child and secondly an appreciation and respect for the working class. In “Memories of Montreal - And Richness” Milstein places great significance on both and see his cultural identity as extremely important. Consequently, he is sad and blames himself that his son won’t get to experience the same cultural richness. In contrast, in “Lend Me Your Light”, Mistry doesn’t see his parent’s cultural identity as important to his own. Through his own maturation he starts to value and respect the working class of India. There is a realisation from Mistry that the coolies, tiffin carriers, ghatis, ghatons play an important role within Indian culture. Together, Milstein and Mistry’s, essays read almost as a recommendation to expose children to a variety of cultures to help foster a rich cultural
A contrast between the essays can be seen in the importance of parental influence over the development of cultural identity. Milstein is saddened that his son won’t get to experience the culture that he strongly identifies with (Reinking et al 152), while Mistry’s parents want to remove him from their Indian culture for Mistry’s own good (Reinking et al 156). The sights, smells, and people that surround Milstein in his youth created a feeling of joy and security (Reinking et al 152). The strong association, by Milstein, to that environment is the driving force behind the fear that the gentle and placid environment that surrounds his son might be inadequate for developing a likeminded cultural identity. A comparison can be drawn between Milstein’s son and Mistry’s acquaintance, Jamshed. The “hyphenated lavishness” (Reinking et al 153) that Jamshed was raised in didn’t endear him to any of the variety of cultures that surrounded him. As Jamshed moved into adulthood he erased himself from the lives of those that connected him to any non-western Indian culture. Milstein laments that his son will follow a similar path, and it is …show more content…
Firstly, the influence of a parent’s culture on a child and secondly an appreciation and respect for the working class. In “Memories of Montreal - And Richness” Milstein places great significance on both and see his cultural identity as extremely important. Consequently, he is sad and blames himself that his son won’t get to experience the same cultural richness. In contrast, in “Lend Me Your Light”, Mistry doesn’t see his parent’s cultural identity as important to his own. Through his own maturation he starts to value and respect the working class of India. There is a realisation from Mistry that the coolies, tiffin carriers, ghatis, ghatons play an important role within Indian culture. Together, Milstein and Mistry’s, essays read almost as a recommendation to expose children to a variety of cultures to help foster a rich cultural