Essay on "The Namesake"

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Namesake
Immigrants have for many centuries integrated into the American society and consequently strengthening the culture and economy of the country. Nevertheless voices against immigration which mostly come from the conservatives argue that assimilation is not good for the country as immigrants really are a burden to the society. Immigrants today in the shores of the U.S are following the paths of their predecessors, as they rapidly assimilate. Immigrants in the U.S since 1900 are advancing at a high rate their social and economic status notwithstanding.(Gibney, 24) Integration is most evident in the areas of citizenship and homeownership. High school completion and wages are also rising. The figure of foreigners earning above the low income level now stand at 68 percent up from 35 percent in 1990. As for homeownership, the Latinos have for the past 18 years gradually attained the this important hallmark of the “American Dream” with 58 percent of them now being homeowners. Homeownership for non residents rises as their stay in the U.S lengthens. The latest immigrants into the country are surely following in the footsteps of their ancestors spreading across the country and assimilating in communities.
Curiously in America, immigrants from developed countries are less assimilated. Korean immigrants for instance which is a high-income country according to the World Bank, have an assimilation value index that is lower than immigrants from such low-income countries as Cuba or the Philippines. Immigrants from developed countries do not become naturalized citizen as rapidly as those from the developing world. Immigrants from Cuba, Vietnam, and Philippines have the highest assimilation rates. Nonetheless, these groups assimilate more in some respects than others. For instance, with them, assimilation happens more economically than it happens culturally. Note that all these countries have experienced U.S military occupation one time or another. On their part, Mexican immigrants experience very law rates of civic and economic assimilation. This slow rate of assimilation on their part sets them apart from other immigrants and the assimilation rate is a reflection of the fact that many Mexicans living in the US illegally have limited opportunities to advance themselves along those lines. However, Mexican immigrants experience normal rates of cultural assimilation, as that of immigrants born in other counties (Stacy, 62).
The novel Namesake by Jhumpa Lahari paints the perfect picture of people who have mmigrated to the United States in a quest for a better life and the challenges that they unexpectedly experience in the process. The challenges that the American immigrants experience are feeling alienated, the cultural differences and the desperate desire of the second generation to identify themselves. The encounters that foreigners is evident throughout the novel. During her pregnancy, Ashima becomes af...