The Jade Peony and The Other Family Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Jade Peony and The Other Family - Essay Example They are made to feel like outsiders, at times and this can be very humiliating. They have to try to forget the language and way of life that they have been used to since their childhood, if they are to adapt to life in their new homeland. This can be a painful experience, because they have to give up something that is very close to their hearts. It is easier for children and young people to make these changes and to adapt to life in their new homeland. For older people it can be much more difficult to give up a way of life that they have been used to for all their lives. It is even more difficult for parents, who feel rejected, when their children adopt the language and culture of their new homeland. Bannerji, in The Other Family highlights the feeling of insecurity of an immigrant mother, who says to her only daughter "Is this the family you would like to have Don't you want us anymore You want to be a mem sahib, a white girl" (143). She worries that some day her daughter would be ashamed of her and would move out into the world of the residents of their new homeland. She thinks that some day they would be enemies. She is afraid that she will lose her child. She feels that the people in her new homeland have the power to crush little people like her anytime. She exposes her fear of rejection to her daughter.