Generations, Do we even speak the same language?

This year at Thanksgiving our family decided to mix it up a little bit, rather than playing the mechanical catch-phrase game after eating, as is tradition, we decided to try playing a new, electronic version of the game. It was while playing this game that I noticed just how much the English language has changed in a generation, especially in communication between the two most recent generations. Now obviously an issue lies in the two generations use of examples to explain a word, I found myself often in the conundrum of trying to decipher a word from shows like “Happy Days,” “Gilligan’s Island,” and “Cheers,” amongst many others, most of which I have never seen and often not even heard of. However, I found that words that had changed their meanings were the largest problem. One perfect example was the term “Ace,” seems like an obvious word, the highest value card in many card games, but rather than that, my aunt described it as something “being cool or awesome.” Now I am left to assume that the term “ace” was used in this way when she was younger. My personal favorite term that came up was “doobie” which a parent described as a joint, I of course would have made a Scooby Doo reference but I guess joints can work too. I find myself really curious just how much the English language will change between our generation and the next, what new slang terms will we struggle to understand, and what will come of the slang we use today.

A Clash of Personalities: Loser or Outcast?

                While watching the movie Friday I noticed something rather interesting. While Gogol’s teacher teaches about Nikolai Gogol , a student sitting behind Gogol stands up for him when another student insults Gogol. At first I did not find this all that strange, only later in the film when Gogol is hanging out with three classmates did I realize this interesting discrepancy from the book. Suddenly it occurred to me that Lahiri never has a scene where Gogol appears to have any real friends. The closest Gogol comes to having a friend in the book is either his girlfriends, all of whom he immediately abandons after breaking up with them, or the “friends” he makes when going out with Moushumi. I found this discrepancy very intriguing. When I read The Namesake I always pictured Gogol as somewhat of an outcast, really having no or few friends and spending most of his time by himself. When watching the movie I don’t have that same image of Gogol, he seems more like an average teenager who only gets picked on by the select few who, more than likely, make fun of everyone. I feel the movie paints a much more solid picture of Gogol as an insecure, self-conscious child, while the book shows Gogol as really being how he feels. Granted the majority of the picture we get of Gogol comes from himself and therefore he would appear that way, I still find it unusual that from all the other perspectives in the book Gogol never appears with a general friend.

The Curse of the Broken Remote: Making Decisions

Today in class we discussed the thoughts that go into our decision making, especially when it comes to tough decisions such as Gogol's decision whether or not to ask Moushumi if she is happy with their marriage. I found that I myself am an outlier, in the fact that rarely do I consider anything but that which is going on at that exact moment. I do not know why but the thought of having a broken remote came to mind, rarely do I fast forward to consider what may happen as a result of my actions, and only on occasion do I consider my past actions. Instead I am stuck in the middle of the live action. My decisions are based really solely on what would happen at that moment. If I was in Gogol's position I doubt I would even consider how Moushumi may react, rather I would simply ask the question because I wanted to know the answer, then take the issue of her reaction head on as it occurs. In some ways I have come to really understand why Gogol seems to irritate me so much, he thinks too much for my interest. I want Gogol to have that same impulse I run off of, to decide not to go to sleep until 3 in the morning because I am more interested in doing something else right now, not thinking about the exhaustion. I will experience the following morning. Though to an extent I think a little impulse is a good thing. Maybe if Gogol was a little more spontaneous his life would get a bit more interesting, he may have actually gotten out there and met somebody instead of having Ashima hook him up and then getting trapped in a failing relationship, but I suppose we all can not strive to be like me. It seems I have finally explained my horrible tendency to procrastinate, as each day goes past I don't think, "oh gee, if I don't do some of this now it will all be left for the day before it is due" instead I think, "Hey! I can go have fun right now and do it tomorrow!" Perhaps I will change this, but probably not, I can not bring myself to care about decision making any longer.

Moushumi: Victim of Circumstance or Narcissistic Jerk?

In our discussion today the majority of the class took one of two stances on Moushumi's actions thus far in the book. We either sympathized with her for her troublesome past, or criticized her for her self-centered actions. I myself support the latter opinion, however I find it fascinating that the same information can inspire such contradicting opinions. In The Namesake, Moushumi has vowed to “never grow fully dependent on her husband, as her mother has,” thus revealing the inspiration for her actions (247). While some would choose to sympathize her for the apparent lack of a strong mother figure and for attempting to learn from her mother’s mistakes, I find her method to avoid the situation her mother has entered appalling. She has abandoned one extreme, complete submission to the husband, and gone subconsciously to the other, taking complete control of the relationship. She believes that she has not become completely independent because she makes decisions based on her marriage, such as her decision that she could not go to France for the sake of her marriage (246). Yet, in reality Moushumi has made this decision completely on her own, without giving Gogol an opportunity to state his opinion on the idea, and instead assumes he would say no and therefore grows angry and begins to act out. Many would sympathize with Moushumi for giving up something so appealing and exciting for her husband, yet I only see Moushumi’s complete disregard for Gogol’s opinions. If Moushumi actually felt her relationship was strong and legit, she would put deep consideration into Gogol’s suggestions, rather than simply not informing him of the situation. Finally Moushumi continues to grow more and more depressed as her relationship with Gogol continues, when Gogol attempts to help and asks “‘What’s the matter,’” she simply blows him off (252). Some would immediately sympathize for the position Moushumi has found herself in, stuck and depressed in an unhappy relationship with Gogol, however she chooses not to explain how she feels to Gogol. Here rather than attempting to mend her relationship with Gogol through cooperation she selfishly keeps her feelings to herself, sacrificing her relationship with Gogol simply to avoid and awkward situation. I personally find Moushumi a narcissistic, egocentric person who does not deserve my sympathy.