This means a lot to me because when I was young, my teacher did the same thing by telling a similar ghost story. Because of this story, I was afraid to go to the bathroom alone. I understand that this is a cultural thing. Asian counties share a similar urban legend because they have a similar experience.
Thursday, February 27, 2020
Japanese Urban Legend
Hanako-san is a Japanese urban legend from the 1950s to nowadays. It is the most influential urban legends in Japan about a young lady Hannako-san who was killed in the bathroom. Her soul is still remaining and haunting in the bathroom. This is similar to Harry Potter's Moaning Myrtle. Till the 1980s, the story of Hanako-san was widely known. At the beginning of the 1990s, people started to make anime and movie about this urban legend Hanako-san. The reason why this became a Japanese urban legend is that people know this is nonexistent, and it is only a trick for adults to indoctrinate students or children. Hanako-san became so popular, significant, and relevant to modern society that people started to intimidate children by making an urban legend: after Hanako-san was killed in the bathroom by a villainous person, her soul haunted in school's bathroom; whenever students linger in the bathroom, she will kill the students by drowning them in the toilet. When a student didn't do their homework, teachers will intimidate the student with the urban legend.
Tuesday, January 14, 2020
The Name Game
Ashoke- In Indian, it means strong, strange, wholesome, youthful, and classic. It categorizes as civil rights. Ashoke has a strong mind but sometimes strange because he holds the truth about his son's name, and he knows his son is too young for this. That's why he decides to tell his son later. "Ever since that day, the day he became a father, the memory of his accident has receded, diminishing over the years. Though he will never forget that night, it no longer lurks persistently in his mind, stalking him in the same way. It no longer looms over his life, darkening it without warning as it used to do" (78).
Ashima- in other forms: Ashiyma. It means boundless and limitless. It categorizes as freedom. Ashima is willing to support her family and provide food. She is more boundless and limitless (she feels the freedom) when cooking her own cultural food (Bengali food). "All this is less stressful to her than the task of feeding a handful of American children, half of whom always claim they are allergic to milk, all of whom refuse to eat the crusts of their bread" (72).
Nikhil- It means whole and entire in Sanskrit. People think this name is youthful, formal, upper-class, wholesome, strong, refined, and strange. Nikhil is very upset with his pet name "Gogol," and he thinks that Nikhil is his only name. This name is whole and entire to himself because he doesn't want to share the same name as Gogol. "'I'm Nikhil now,' Gogol says, suddenly depressed by how many more times he will have to say this, asking people to remember, reminding them to forget, feeling as if an errata slip were perpetually pinned to his chest"(119).
Sonali- in other forms: Sonal. It means formal, upper-class, refined, strange. It categorizes as colors, gold, metals, and yellow. There is not much description of Sonali, Gogol's sister. However, I think her parents named her Sonali because she is the gold to their family. The last child and cherished girl to the family. "For their daughter, good name and pet name are one and the same: Sonali, meaning 'she who is golden'"(62).
My name is Chinese is Zhu Xi (朱希), which directly translates as the "vermillion hope". I guess the reason why my parents named me this because they want me to be positive, and I am the hope for my family. That's why I have a (personality) positive attitude every day.
Ashima- in other forms: Ashiyma. It means boundless and limitless. It categorizes as freedom. Ashima is willing to support her family and provide food. She is more boundless and limitless (she feels the freedom) when cooking her own cultural food (Bengali food). "All this is less stressful to her than the task of feeding a handful of American children, half of whom always claim they are allergic to milk, all of whom refuse to eat the crusts of their bread" (72).
Nikhil- It means whole and entire in Sanskrit. People think this name is youthful, formal, upper-class, wholesome, strong, refined, and strange. Nikhil is very upset with his pet name "Gogol," and he thinks that Nikhil is his only name. This name is whole and entire to himself because he doesn't want to share the same name as Gogol. "'I'm Nikhil now,' Gogol says, suddenly depressed by how many more times he will have to say this, asking people to remember, reminding them to forget, feeling as if an errata slip were perpetually pinned to his chest"(119).
Sonali- in other forms: Sonal. It means formal, upper-class, refined, strange. It categorizes as colors, gold, metals, and yellow. There is not much description of Sonali, Gogol's sister. However, I think her parents named her Sonali because she is the gold to their family. The last child and cherished girl to the family. "For their daughter, good name and pet name are one and the same: Sonali, meaning 'she who is golden'"(62).
My name is Chinese is Zhu Xi (朱希), which directly translates as the "vermillion hope". I guess the reason why my parents named me this because they want me to be positive, and I am the hope for my family. That's why I have a (personality) positive attitude every day.
Monday, January 6, 2020
The Namesake -- INTRO
When, where, and why did your family (or you) come to the United States? What is some family lore that you know about this experience? Mention any connections, if any, to a country of origin and any traditions that your family has maintained across generations.
My family came to the United States because of my father and his brothers' business and their works. To my knowledge, it was the 1980s when my father and his brothers first came to the United States, and they are the first people who leave the land of China and come to a foreign country among the entire ancestry tree. Even though they received knowledge and learned English in the United States, the process of living in the United States was a daunting task. According to my father, when they first left China and took the plane, it took them 25 hours until arrived in the United States. Due to the snow and terrible weather, the plane could not fly; therefore, my father and his brothers slept in the airport for a night (because they didn't have enough money). On the next day, the boarding customer said that they didn't have enough seats for all of them. As a result, they took another longer flys from Hongkong China to Frankfurt Germany, and finally, reach America. Still, when they came to the United States, they did not forget any traditions and maintained across generations. Like there is a tradition that they did for me when I was 1 year old. This tradition is called “Zhuazhou 抓周" also known as "Pick Anniversary". This tradition is very similar to the First Rice Ceremony in India and Doljabi in Korea. It was on my first year anniversary when my father put several objects on the table around me and then let me choose what object I like which stands for the path/career/life that I will take. This is like a prediction for the future.
My family came to the United States because of my father and his brothers' business and their works. To my knowledge, it was the 1980s when my father and his brothers first came to the United States, and they are the first people who leave the land of China and come to a foreign country among the entire ancestry tree. Even though they received knowledge and learned English in the United States, the process of living in the United States was a daunting task. According to my father, when they first left China and took the plane, it took them 25 hours until arrived in the United States. Due to the snow and terrible weather, the plane could not fly; therefore, my father and his brothers slept in the airport for a night (because they didn't have enough money). On the next day, the boarding customer said that they didn't have enough seats for all of them. As a result, they took another longer flys from Hongkong China to Frankfurt Germany, and finally, reach America. Still, when they came to the United States, they did not forget any traditions and maintained across generations. Like there is a tradition that they did for me when I was 1 year old. This tradition is called “Zhuazhou 抓周" also known as "Pick Anniversary". This tradition is very similar to the First Rice Ceremony in India and Doljabi in Korea. It was on my first year anniversary when my father put several objects on the table around me and then let me choose what object I like which stands for the path/career/life that I will take. This is like a prediction for the future.
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