Cultural Identity In Hero's Walk 'And The Namesake'

Improved Essays
Comparison between Cultural Identity between two texts

Every personin this world has the right to express their cultural identity and religion such as Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism and many others.. Some prime examples include The Hero’s Walk,”written by Anita Rau Badami and Mira Nair’s film, The Namesake. The cultural identity of an individual can change ultimate their views about marriage, family and customs.. As shown in both texts, culture can alter everything in a person’s life however it is important to follow the cultural traditions. To add on, the distinctive cultures can help individuals through times of despair and lost hope. The customs and religious practices help guide the characters from the text cope with such depressing circumstances. Hence, in each of the texts, cultural identity and background is a major influence on the decision which changes characters throughout the story.
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Each culture has its own unique perspective of significant events that occur during one’s lifetime, including arranged marriages. Traditionally in the Indian culture, nearly 70 per cent of marriages are arranged nowadays (The Times of India). Many people from the Indian descent believe that marriages should be a result of a perfect match for one another based on specific factors such as education, salary and property.. An example of this can be found in the novel, The Hero's Walk, when Putti and her mother, Ammayya are discussing marriage suggestions. Putti is used to her mother giving her little opinion as Ammayya states “Yes, my pearl, don’t you worry about anything. Your mother will decide what is best for you,”(Badami 191). The same situation of arranged marriage is discussed in The Namesake as Ashima marries Ashoke as a result of a set up relationship. Overall, This style of marriage gives characters very little freedom for example, Putti does not get to decide who she wants to marry and Ashima is forced to live in New York with Ashoke. Secondly, the culture that is continued throughout generations can be changed in an instant depending on the surroundings. This situation is displayed in The Hero's Walk as Maya, daughter of Sripathi and Nirmala, decides to move to Vancouver to complete her studies and eventually marries a man named Alan. Maya takes a new approach to life by moving to Canada and Sripathi does not notice until he realizes “She turned from beloved child… into a person he did not know,” (Badami 148).This can also be shown in The Namesake, as Gogol, who grew up in America, becomes accustomed to the American traditions. He changes his birth name to his good name; Nikhil, eventually his friends start calling him Nick. The cultural and religious practices from previous generations can be altered by the surroundings of dynamic characters. In Maya’s case, she moved to Vancouver which has a whole new perspective of the world and Gogol felt a huge change in scenery when he came to visit India. To conclude, each culture has its preaching which can be beneficial to characters who are in need of help. Continuing, the realization and importance of culture is evident in guidance as well as the success characters have in self identity. Firstly, as characters gain understanding about their culture, they gain more success and happiness that follows individuals throughout life. For instance, Sripathi was never followed spiritual and religious practises such as meditating or going to the temple. However, once he obtained a better understanding of his religious practises, he became more aware of his problems and had a positive mentality towards them as “Sripathi had gone from being an intensely rational man to a deeply superstitious one,”(Badami 160). Subsequently in the film, Gogol grew up in America and never has a sense of cultural pride in him. It is until his father passes away Gogol realizes the importance of his family and culture. This cultural understanding helps Sripathi and Gogol through the rest of their lives. Culture is more than simply preaching and religious readings but also one's self identity. Furthermore, it is important one’s identity in society, thus emphasizing the significance of success in cultural identity. In both texts, the death of a loved one sparks characters to fulfill the role in which they assumed they needed to fit in. Finally, during

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