The Cultural Struggle

Essay by meeraberiUniversity, Bachelor'sA+, January 2006

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Being a first generation Indo- Canadian, I have found that I have had to maintain a fine balance between my parent's roots and this western culture I find myself living in. Sometimes I feel like I am in a tug of war, caught between the two - the cultural beliefs that my parents refuse to let go and that of my generation. I am constantly being surrounded with hundreds of visual images, on how to wear your make-up, how to act on a date and what are the hottest clothes of the season. Balancing the two cultures and integrating them to make it a livable situation for both me and my parents has proven to be a life long task.

Take a fashion article from Cosmopolitan magazine (Willardt 216) that I was looking at the other day. I just had gotten paid, and had money ready to be spent, which I wanted to treat myself and spend on clothes.

So, Cosmopolitan was giving me ideas of what's hot and what's not for this season. I saw beautiful outfits strategically placed and positioned on these models bodies accentuating every curve and bend, making them look absolutely flawless. Naturally, I wanted those outfits. So out to the mall I went. My mother wanted to go shopping with me, a bonding experience I think. So, we went and the struggle began.

Every piece of clothing lead to a lengthy debate; either the shirt was too tight, the skirt too short, the pants too sultry or the tank top too revealing. After an exhausting four hours with my mother I walked out of the mall with a hat. The only item we could agree on, but of course for different reasons, I thought it was fashionable, she thought it was good to block out...