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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This 4 page paper examines a story by Chitra Divakaruni entitled Mrs. Dutta Writes a Letter. The concept of wearing masks to hide emotions is discussed. Bibliography lists 2 sources.
Page Count:
4 pages (~225 words per page)
File: RT13_SA820Dut.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
They lie about who they are. They act as if they are happy when they are sad. They hold in their anger and smile. In todays society, people are pretentious.
In the short story by Chitra Divakaruni entitled "Mrs. Dutta Writes a Letter," the protagonist does not want to hurt her sons feelings and so in some way she is
disingenuous. She wears the mask of happiness. Acting as if she is in control, and satisfied, her mind continues to critically evaluate her sons family. The gist of the story
called "Mrs. Dutta Writes a Letter" is that a woman who has been raised in Indian traditions and lives nicely in her homeland becomes sick. Widowed and with no where
to turn, her son asks her to live with him and his family in America. When she accepts his invitation, she is asked by a friend how she likes it
in the United States of America and her reply is the letter for which the story is titled. In the context of the tale, the fact that Mrs. Dutta will
not fool her friend with small talk is explained: "Mrs. Dutta knows that Mrs. Basu, who has been her closet friend since they both came to Ghoshpara Lane as young
brides, cannot be fobbed off with descriptions of Fishermans Wharf and the Golden Gate Bridge, or even anecdotes involving grandchildren" (Divakaruni 91). In other words, Mrs. Dutta is being asked
to take off her mask and write genuinely. In the story, what ensues is a culture clash between Mrs. Dutta, her sons family, and the American neighbors. Yet, while Mrs.
Dutta makes trouble due to the fact that she does not approve of things she sees and tries to make peace despite her strong feelings, in the end, things go
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