Like Me But Kinda Different

After reading Jhumpa Lahiri's story "This Blessed House," it got me wondering how two such different people could be attracted to one another. Sanjeev and Twinkle seem to be different in many ways, except that they share the same culture and religion. But even that is different, because Sanjeev has lived in Connecticut while Twinkle has only just moved there after living in California. Their age difference may play a role into why they act differently to situations, but overall their personalities are different. In contrast, the couple Douglas and Nora are almost the same person it seems when they are introduced. They even dress the same, and act very similarly. So it seems interesting that sometimes people pick their mates because they are just like them while others pick their mates because they are totally different. It seems though that either way can work out or not work out. Being in a relationship with someone who has the same interests as you allows you to do things that you both enjoy together. But being in a relationship with someone who has different interests than you can allow you to be introduced to new things that you may start to enjoy. And if it wasn't for that person's introducing you to those activities then you may have never found your enjoyment for those things. In one of my English classes in high school we were reading Tamim Ansary's memoir West of Kabul, East of New York. Ansary was born and raised in Afghanistan and many of his family members were married to their cousins. My English teacher was explaining to us that people like others who are like them but slightly different, and that cousins fit this category nicely because they come from similar backgrounds but are still slightly different. So overall I think that the two extremes that Lahiri shows us in couples work, but the true solution is finding a relationship with someone who "is like me but kinda different." You get the best of both, sharing interests but also learning of new things.

O

The film "O" has a striking similarity to Othello, but it also very different. The film does offer a modern view of how Othello could happen. It was interesting that they chose the setting to be in a high-school. In a high-school, people tend to know other people's business through the gossip network and there are also many different cliques. I thought that this fit well for the setting, since it showed how Odin could believe Hugo's lies about Desi. It also showed how Odin didn't really fit into the rest of the groups, because he was not like everyone else. One difference that I didn't really like was that Odin died outside, and not in Desi's room. Seeing Othello die with Desdemona next to him shows their emotional attachment that Othello at the very least had here, but having Odin die outside showed how truly alone he was in his world.