Castellanos 1

Randy Castellanos

Professor R. Kane

English 115 F.

12 September 2019

Progression Exercise: Argue and Analysis (Two Ways to Belong in America)

Immigrants almost never create trouble and the government within the U.S. are always

causing and/or blaming trouble on the immigrants. Such as for the troubles for the two sisters,

Mira and Bharati Mukherjee, they have different views on the country. Mira’s troubles, Bharati’s

community troubles give interesting points and arguments that can still be seen today.

Mira’s encounter with U.S. was going off smoothly. Her talents of being a preschool

teacher was her selected job she wanted to do, +30 years. When she gets paid, she pays her bills

and insurance and any other bill she needs to pay, and on time. When the country decided to

change the rules of immigration laws, it affected the ones that already arrived to country and the

newcomers as well. She was fierce and angry towards them for using her. Most of her life was

teaching future young adults, paying bills, doing taxes on time, and was dedicated to her job as a

preschooler. For immigration laws to be changed suddenly was internally difficult for her to

adjust to the new environment.

As for Bharati, her life was less difficult than her sisters’ life. Bharati married a student in

Iowa City 1963, and later moved to Quebec, Canada, for the rest of her life with her husband.

Almost 20 years later she was looked down upon for her marriage with a Canadian. The

interracial marriage was not approved and the community turned its back towards hers and

declined her acceptance within in it. She too was betrayed by an authority figure. Angered and
 Castellanos 2

empathetic to now knowing what her sisters’ life was similar; she felt a connection with her

sister but found the interaction with the country, in general, different.

Both perspective could be agreed on, but however, Mira’s point of view or aspect of the

problem with immigration was the most I could have agreed on. Her struggle with U.S.

citizenship and the laws could be related to any illegal/legal immigrant in today’s time. Both

aspects of the betrayal from an authority figure were tragic but the only difference was the way

the situation was unfolded. Mira’s trouble was, in my opinion, most agreeable on and relatable,

not to me directly, but to any immigrant with or without citizenship.