Blog Assignment 4

I think Lui’s need to be with other Chinese is to replace the feeling of missing his family. Knowing that going back to China isn’t an option, the next best thing for him was to be with Chinese people. People from different countries carry out their daily activities in different ways. I have had a similar experience like Lui’s during the first two weeks of my semester but unlike Lui, who went on to befriend Chinese strangers, I decided that if I want to stay here for four years I have to change myself socially and culturally slowly toward American but never completely, since I will be travelling back home quite a number of times within these four years, I still need to keep my culture intact within myself when I am with my people at home. For me the need to be with people of the same country or race or religion is to block out any depression felt from leaving your family and friends, which may affect the work I have come to do here, that is to be successful in my university level education. Even though people from your own country are strangers, their culture and the ways of thinking are the same. This familiarity provides us with a feeling of being safe and secure and almost at home.

Blog Assignment 3

Since I have lived most of my life in a city, my culture has many similarities with the American culture. For example eye contact. Like in USA having excessive eye contact is important in relationships with teachers and elders as it shows respect for both the person and what advice or knowledge they are about to pass on to you. While having insufficient eye contact by focusing on anything else other than the person speaking is usual a queue for person to leave by saying they have to go to some other place of greater importance than the conversation that is currently taking place. The same holds true with body space. The distance between two persons in a social conversation is an arm’s length but between best friends and family this distance is closer. Facial expression forms an important part of a social conversation. Like if someone says something sarcastic to person, he may laugh at the sarcasm but the laughing expression does not reach to all the parts of the face showing that he disapproves what the person said but laugh at it as the majority find it funny or he does not want to be in an argument with that person. Finally Gestures. The shapes that the hand forms are similar to that in USA. People wave to say ‘bye’ or say ‘hi’ when the distance is too far for the person to be heard by the person they are saying ‘hi’ to.

Blog Assignment 2 - Option 2

I have grown living in Mombasa my entire life, therefore the culture that has been ingrained onto me over time has been a mixture of the Hindu, Kenyan, Arab and Western European cultures. This blend of culture influences my actions such as how I introduce myself to both friendly and hostile strangers or people I know but am not friends with and finally friends.

For example, when I meet hostile strangers, my western culture guides me to tread carefully in my conversation and behavior with him/her by keeping a neutral and formal tone and language.

However when I meet hostile people whom I know but am not friends with and has done something against me then, my Arab culture takes over and seek justice for the wrongs done by these persons toward me.

While if I meet a known friendly peeople, usually these are teachers and elders, my Hindu culture takes over by making sure that my behavior does not show any form of rudeness and/or disrespect toward them.

While If I meet a friend, my Kenyan side take over that is “HAKUNA MATATA” culture which literally mean “There is no worries”. This is the laid back attitude I will have around friends.

This is just but an example of the diverse blend in culture of the people of Mombasa. For some people, a particular culture maybe be more or less ingrained. Therefore some people are very demonstrative of their affection of others in public while others are not.

Blog Assignment 1 - Part 2 - Essay Question Response

I am the first born of the Paul family. At my home the main means of communicating was using my mother tongue, Bengali. I was schooled in an international school my entire life, where the only means of communicating to teachers and other peers were using English. My brother who is six years younger than me is also being schooled in an international school when the main medium of communication is English. When people talk to both me and him, they automatically know that my younger brother has a better command of the English language than I have. So what was the difference between me and my brother that made his English skills better than mine? Both of us have got similar grades in other subject areas so how comes he is better than me? The reason he was better than me was because of the environment he was raised in. During the first six year of my life our family used to live in an area which was quite isolated while during my brother’s first six year we were living in a building full of people who knew English and their own mother tongue which wasn’t Bengali. So for my brother to communicate to others it became important for him to concentrate in learn the language properly while for me it was just a language being taught at school. Therefore by the time it also became important for me to become fluent in English I used to process what I would say in English by translating in my mind a Bengali sentence. This was the same case for Amy Tan’s mother in the essay “Mother Tongue” by Amy Tan. Her English was direct translation of Chinese to English therefore sounding “broken” to native or fluent English speaker.

Due to the invent of instant messengers and sites like “Facebook”, the language I used when talking or chatting to friend are usually the sounds of the word I want to say or abbreviation of phrases. For example “are” would to shortened to the sound “r” or the phrase “oh my god” to be “omg”, “laughing out loud” to be “lol”. While during informal or less formal face to face conversation I would only say “hi” or “hey” as a greeting while during a formal I would use phrases like “Good Morning Madam”. I use words like “assist” instead of “help” in a question “Would you please assist in Mr. Smith’s endeavor to complete the assignment?”

In my life I have come across many people with many different sorts of “languages”. One example is similar to Amy Tan’s Mother in the essay “Mother Tongue”. These people have known the direct translation of their mother to English but do not know of the difference of the structure of the English language compared to their own. Another example is me. I know of the difference in the structure of English language but still are influenced my mother tongue to revert to the sentence structure of our mother tongue during stressful or confused situations. My third example is my brother. Due to his early effective English training he is able to control his English language without reverting to the mother tongue way of speaking. Lastly but not the least are the people whose mother tongue is English. Since in their mind they think using English, there is no influence of any other language other than an accent they may obtain depend on which native English speaking country they come from.

Blog Assignment 1 - Part 1 - Self Introduction

Hello ENGL 100-121 class students

My name is Bikram Byomkesh Paul, from Mombasa, which is the second largest in the Kenya and the largest Sea Port in the East African region. I have spent nearly all of my life at Mombasa with my parents and younger brother. I am a freshman in University of Delaware, majoring in Chemical Engineering. I went to Oshwal Academy, which follows the British Curriculum of Edexcel International IGCSE and A-Levels. I have been in this school from the first year in junior school to the senior year in high school which totals to 13 years of my life. I love playing soccer, cricket, table tennis (ping pong) and taking part in the President’s Award Scheme (of which I will explain later). I used to be in my school’s soccer, athletics, basketball, water polo and badminton team squad. I also was the Disk jockey in my final year for school’s synchronized swimming team. At home my three most frequent activities were watching movies, TV shows like Heroes, Prison Break, House, and play video games like Max Payne, Delta Force, Hitman, Red alert, Generals and Need For Speed( Underground2, Most Wanted, Carbon, Prostreet).

My dad works for a multinational company called Comcraft Group of Companies, while my mum is a house wife. My brother is in his first year on senior school at Oshwal Academy.

The President’s Award Scheme is part of The International Award for Young People and I am a member of a group of over 6 million people. I have been in this organization for the last seven years under which I have under taken many expeditions, charity work, physical recreation and community service activities. I am currently a Gold Member, which is the highest level of Honor that can be achieved by a student. I got this after the ascent and decent of Africa’s toughest mountain, Mt. Kenya along with various community service and a Residential Project.

I am Chemical Engineering major in UD and hope to do a minor but I haven’t decided on which on yet. I am not sure about what career path I will take since it’s too early for that, but will be probably do a MBA or Masters in chemical engineering before going anywhere outside of receiving education.