Multicultural Literature Analysis Paper

Multicultural Literature Analysis Paper Multicultural literature offers readers a brief look at the unknown or new culture. The lifestyles, traditions, beliefs, and values are revealing through the story, and the reader realizes why certain decisions or actions are used. Individuals benefit from reading literature that reflects their own cultural and ethnic background. Our society is becoming increasingly diverse and it is more important now than ever before to learn all that we can truly create a welcoming atmosphere. In the many stories throughout this course, there are common themes represented in them. Traditional beliefs and modern ideas often disagree and this is shown in Chitra Divakaruni's "Mrs. Dutta Writes a Letter", Subhadra Sen …show more content…
Michael Obi is the newly appointed headmaster of the Ndume Central School. A path goes through his school where the dead men depart the earth, and new children come in. "Africans universe is a universe that is full of invisible forces. God, divinities, ancestors, living-dead, and various spirits inhabit that world and coexist with human beings" (Mojaafryka.weebly.com, n.d.). The Conflict is evident when the priest of the village visits Obi to confront him about the path. Obi sees the path as nonsense and only wants to please his westernized supervisors. "The path, said the teacher apologetically appears to be imperative to them. Although it is hardly used, it connects the village shrine with their place of burial." (Achebe, 1972, p.328). The priest tries to convince Obi of the path's importance but does not succeed. "This path was here before you were born and before your father was born. The whole life of this village depends on it. Our dead relatives depart by it, and our ancestors visit by it. But most important, it is the path of children coming in to be born." (Achebe, 1972, …show more content…
In "Dead Men's Path" Obi stands for a more westernized way of thinking while the priest embodies the old world and practices in Nigeria. In "Mrs. Dutta Writes a Letter" Mrs. Dutta believes in the traditional Indian household for a man and a woman, where the woman takes care of the home and the man is out working. Her daughter-in-law has adopted the American life and agrees with an equally divided household. Each woman tries to accept the others way of thinking but eventually they realizes they cannot. In ", Good Girls are Bad News" Bineeta signifies the new world and independence of a woman while the town and her family still carry traditional beliefs. Every culture brings with it, traditional values and beliefs. These are important to have and to pass on. Powerful literature can transport individuals into a world where they can feel the struggle and joys of others and where they can inhabit the cultural landscape the characters live in. However, it is also equally important to embrace change and welcome new ideas and ways of living to enhance this

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