The Old Man Isn T There Anymore By Kellie Schney Analysis

A Dive Into Culture In the story, “The Old Man Isn’t There Anymore,” the author, Kellie Schmitt, focuses heavily on the differences between Chinese and Western cultures. Schmitt challenges the reader by introducing concepts that were not yet known to the reader and making her recall the differences that she has faced in the past regarding different cultures. Schmitt uses her experience from the past three years of her living in Shanghai, China, she illustrates the contrast between the two cultures using her encounters with her “housemates” in China. By sharing her experience of attending a funeral and living in a house with multiple people, Schmitt effectively demonstrates the gap between the expectations and ceremonies of the Chinese and Western societies. …show more content…
Schmitt called her cleaning lady to ask why their neighbors were crying in the hallway the day before, to find out that, “The old man isn’t there anymore”(quoted in Faigley 127). Schmitt had to clarify who the “old man” was. She was then brought to the conclusion that it was an old man she had seen before in passing, one of the many people she shared a house with in Shanghai. Between people “pop[ping] out of doorways, hallways, and hidden bathrooms, often wearing slippers and underwear” (quoted in Faigley 128), he was the only one who would even acknowledge Schmitt. Saddened by this idea, Schmitt, “Made the bold decision to buy sympathy flowers” (quoted in Faigley 129). Schmitt uses the flowers as an example of the difference between the cultures. While in Western society people give brightly colored bouquets and wreaths to the family of the deceased and even put single red roses on the coffin of the lost one, in China the floral arrangements are made in, “White, the color associated with death in China” (quoted in Faigley