Perspectives

Yesterday my friend Sara and I went to the restaurant Tomaydo Tomahdo for the first time.  When we got there the man working, Rich, greeted us kindly.  We felt very overwhelmed from all the choices of food so we asked him what he recommended.  He nicely told us a variety of his favorites and we gladly took his advice.  Sara ordered a sandwich and I got a smoothie.  He proceeded to thoughtfully give us free drinks.  We took our seats and waited for our food.  Rich shortly came over with Sara’s meal and two smoothies.  He explained that he accidently put too much into the blender so he just gave Sara a free smoothie.  We felt touched by his unnecessary thoughtfulness.  When we finished we thanked him again and said goodbye.  On the ride home we could not stop talking about how nice he was and how we would go back as soon as possible.  As soon as we got back to her house we told her older cousin the wonderful experience.   He smiled at us and claimed that Rich did not do it just to be nice and that if he went there for dinner he would not receive the same treatment.  This thought did not cross our minds before and made us mad because it was not the case at all.  Although we knew this was not true, it still took away from the experience a bit.   It reminded me of our discussions in English class.  I feel that our class often only sees the negatives or assumes the worst in people.  Such as how Ms. Serensky always refers to the class as “machines” who act insensitively.  Many times I have read something at night and felt excited to talk about it the next day but as soon as I get to class someone rips it apart and changes my perspective on it negatively.  I guess it all depends on peoples’ perspectives on a situation but overall I feel like we should not always assume the worst in people/situations.    

Opinions on the Movie

Thus far the portrayal of the book The Namesake as a movie does not mimic my view of it from the book.   Although in most cases for me the movie does not live up to the book for various reasons, in this case the differences are very evident.  First of all, some of the scenes did not go in the same order as the book, such as the meeting of Moushumi and Gogol.  In the book they met at a young age at a family party, while in the movie they met after his graduation.  Also in this scene Moushumi did not look as I pictured.  Many times my perception of a character from a book does not match up to the casted role, but I think several would agree that Moushumi looked very off.  They made her look very unattractive and upon seeing her the class reacted with laughter and screams.   Another role whom my perception did not match up with the movies casting was Sonia.  Mostly because I believed she would correspond with her families’ nationality as Indian.  For some reason whoever cast Sonia chose an African American looking woman rather than an Indian woman.  This may create an issue because the book largely discusses the families’ Indian culture and the impact of it on their lives.  Although I may not agree with the directors casting job and the skewing of the order of scenes, I enjoy watching this movie because these mistakes make it comical.  I look forward to seeing how they chose to display the rest of Gogol’s life and how it will greatly differ with my personal thoughts on it.    

Thanksgiving

The other day in our class discussed Thanksgiving.  This year Thanksgiving causes mixed emotions for me.  I cannot wait for it in because I love that my family all comes together.  This year especially, I cannot wait to see my brother and two cousins will come home from college for the weekend.  My older cousins who now live in New York and my other cousins from Georgia decided to stop by for a couple days as well.  I look forward to sitting down with all of them and hearing about their new lives.  I will enjoy all the time beforehand when we all talk and catch up, however, as the actual meal approaches my enthusiasm will weaken.  I am not a huge fan of the actual food served, but we spend so much time sitting at the table talking that without noticing I will take plate after plate of food.  By the time the meal finishes I will feel disgusting and disappointed in myself from the mass amounts of food I just consumed, most likely out eating my brother.  I will not stop though, as always, when I turn my attention to the plethora of pies my grandma makes.  I will once again eat more than I should and fall asleep, only to wake up and repeat this process numerous times.  Overall, I look forward to seeing everyone but fear the outrageous amount of food I will devour which I do not even like that much. 

Moushumi's Fault

Chapter 10 of Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake tells of the relationship issues between the newlywed couple Gogol and Moushumi.  Although they seemed to love each other when dating and their engagement, the first year of their marriage proved otherwise.  With little time spent together and a lack of communication the couple seemed doomed to fail.  On top of this Moushumi cannot find happiness and blames everyone but herself.  She remarks to Gogol once during dinner that “It’s not what I thought it would be” (252).  Although directly speaking about her meal, she indirectly addresses her lack the happiness in her marriage.  With a dejected tone and negative diction she indirectly characterizes herself as miserable.  At first this quote evoked some sympathy from me.  I have been in a situation before which I looked forward to and as soon as I got there wanted to get out of it.  However, shortly after, this quote made me frustrated with Moushumi.  The narrator explains that “She has ignored Nikhil perhaps more than necessary” (246).  The narrator continued to tell of numerous accounts where she would make up excuses to leave the house and get away from Gogol.  These actions indirectly characterize her as selfish and inconsiderate.  I believe that Moushumi put no effort towards the relationship and gave up on it from the start so naturally her marriage will not seem picture perfect or what she imagined.  I understand that Gogol does not always display the qualities of a perfect husband so I feel sympathy for her at times, but overall Moushumi treats Gogol terribly and can only blame her own lack of commitment and effort for her unhappiness.  

Moushumi’s Rude Rejection

Yesterday our class discussed the topic of wives taking their husbands' last names.  In chapter 9 of Jumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake the main character, Gogol, married Moushumi.  Shortly after the marriage she decided to keep her own last name.  I do not see it as an immense problem if a wife chooses to not take her husband's name if she gives just cause.  I understand that in many cases it remains necessary to differentiate between the names due to work or personal life.  But overall I believe the wife should want to take the last name.  If the wife truly loves her husband and they plan to spend the rest of their lives together, I do not see the dilemma in adopting the same last name.  The circumstance in this novel particularly bothers me due to Moushumi’s apathetic and exasperated attitude towards the topic.  The narrator notes that “the thought of changing her last name...has never crossed her mind” (227).  It seems impolite to not even consider this old tradition and an insult to Gogol that she does not want to share it.  The situation continued to irritate me when she did not provide reasonable explanations for this decision, merely stating that their names would “no longer fit into the window of a business envelope” (227).  I feel that this response displays offense to Gogol and foreshadows her lack of commitment in the future.  I understand that a wife taking her husband’s last name remains an old, to some outdated, tradition, but I still believe that a husband and wife should want to share the same last name. Moushumi did not offer a practical motive to reject Gogol’s last name while acting rudely.  Without reasonable cause, I believe that rejecting a husbands’ last name displays problems right from the start.