In the personal essay “Two Ways to Belong in America” by Bharati Mukherjee demonstrates the idea of Bharati interfering with her culture by doing things the complete opposite of how her family would normally handle circumstances. On the other hand Bharati’s sister, Mira is the complete opposite with how she handles …show more content…
When Dee arrived to her mother’s house to visit, she returned as a completely different person in which her mother did not really admire and Maggie still envied. “Dee next. A dress down to the ground, in this hot weather. A dress so loud it hurts my eyes. There are yellows and oranges enough to throw back the light of the sun.” When Dee first arrived; Dee appears stylish and wealthy, unlike her sister and mother. She is embracing a different cultural heritage than the rest of her family, one that is associated with her imagined ancestry more than her actual background. As Maggie and her mother attempt to overlook the betrayal from Dee they continue to embrace her presence until she announces her new name. “What happened to Dee’?” I wanted to know. “She’s dead,” Wangero said. “I couldn’t bear it any longer, being named after the people who oppress me.” To oppress, means to abuse or mistreat, Dee feels as though it is disrespectful to have the same name as people who abused her kind, which was her reasoning for changing her name. In the story the is a well- valued quilt that represents the background of their family but, Dee sees the family quilt as a relation to their heritage and as an object that with holds her heritage to be put on display. However Mama views the quilt as her culture it is because it showcases her family’s heritage and