Living in and adopting a different culture is a major challenge for immigrant children. The story "Lost in Translation" by Eva Hoffman is about a Polish family who immigrated to Canada after World War II. They passed the hard days of war and Holocaust and landed in the new country, facing cultural differences. The mother is worried about losing familial bonds in the new society. Their two kids Eva and Elinka gradually learn more about the new culture and try to adapt to it. This adaptation makes them seem emotionally colder in the eyes of their mother. The second story "The Struggle to Be an All-American Girl" by Elizabeth Wong is also about the struggle of an American born Chinese girl to emulate Americans in every way. The writer talks about a Chinese family living in US. The parents, especially the mother, try to raise their kids under Chinese culture while the kids prefer to be more American rather than Chinese. Both of the stories are about the challenges that immigrant people face in host cultures. Comparing two stories reveals us three main differences between the two girls in facing new culture in a new society.
These two characters have different attitudes towards their original culture. Eva was born in Poland and was raise as her parents. Therefore, there is no cultural gap between kids and parents in her family. She does not want to unravel the fabric of loyalty in her family. In contrast, Elizabeth was born in target country. She talks English fluently while her mother speaks English mixed up with some scattered Chinese words. Eve feels hurt hearing her mother say she has become "English", while Elizabeth is unhappy to go to Chinese school every evening under her mother pressure.
Also, they have different family lives. Their relationships with their parents are not similar. Eve`s mother has always been gentle with her two daughters and doesn't want to" tighten the reins"; in contrast, Elizabeth's mother is solidly determined to have her kids learn Chinese language. In addition the authority of both mothers is challenged. Both mothers care about familial bonds that seem "to be dangerously loose" in the hosting country. The siblings of two girls pose similar challenges to their parents. Elinka and Liz's brother are both the second born children of their families. Similarly, they challenge their families more evidently than their older sisters. Elinka does not care about her mother's worries when she comes late at the night; likewise, Elizabeth's brother criticizes her mother's pidgin speech often cruelly.
Finally, their attitudes towards host culture are different. Eva should learn more and more about this new culture. She faces culture shock when she realizes that shaking her friends arm in excitement is a gesture of aggression not friendliness in the hosting culture. Unlike Eva, Elizabeth faces a reverse culture shock. She has a strong tendency towards the hosting culture. She prefers to speak English rather than Chinese. She hated Chinese medicine like smell of the old Chinese school while she favours crisp new scents like the soft French perfume that her American teacher wore in public school. She doesn't need to adapt to American culture.
Consequently, living in new society and facing new culture is a common challenge for most of immigrant. Children in immigrant families feel culture shock very noticeably and need to learn and know more about the hosting society. Adapting a new culture takes time, and in this period of time their relationship with their parents is one of the most important factors to help them in their way to live in new society. In addition, their root culture as a main element of their character should be kept and appreciated. They should have a chance to know and learn both cultures and criticize both of them as well.
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