Many cultures throughout the world have a unique gesture or phrase that they use as a greeting. A few cultures even rely on age and seniority when choosing the right form to use. From kisses to bows, every distinctive action should be respected and used when within a particular country or culture, hence the saying "When in Rome, do as the Romans do." In "Interpreter of Maladies," Jhumpa Lahiri uses this shared practice of saying hello to express American-born Mr. Das's superiority over his Indian-born tour guide, Mr. Kapasi. Even though Mr. Kapasi "…pressed his hands together in greeting," Mr. Das "…squeezed hands like an American so that Mr. Kapasi felt it in his elbow"(44). It is considered an offering of peace to fully accept, respect, and practice the customs of a host country. By overruling the Indian culture's form of greeting, Mr. Das disrespects Mr. Kapasi in his homeland. Mr. Das very quickly could have put his life in danger if he were to do the same thing in a......

Join Now to view the rest of this term paper!
Members: Login to view this research paper.

Title: American Ignorance
Approximate Word Count: 337
Approximate Pages: 2 (250 words per double-spaced page)

With the Term Papers Lab Membership Pass, you get instant access to every essay on this site, including this essay on American Ignorance, for as long as you remain a member.

Other essays sites charge almost $100 for a single term paper. At Term Papers Lab, you can get instant access to over 100,000 research papers for as little as $29.95!