Essay Topic

I've finally decided what to do after finishing the 'book'. I'm going to talk about my own refugee experience focusing on my culture shock in america and then compare it to the culture shock that Pham has when he returns to Vietnam. For me, moving to America was a huge change and radically impacted who I am today. The same is true for Pham after his visit to Vietnam of course. I want to explore how those social perceptions change through experience. I had already visited the states before I moved but had no idea what it was actually like to live there, similarly Pham lived in Vietnam but did not remember the exact nuanaces of his people and culture. I think I might even include something from my first trip back to Croatia and the changes that I noticed while visiting. I'm very excited about the essay although I will unfortunatly miss the next class, I think I will do well on the paper. I normally wouldn't have read a book like this but I am glad that I did because I found a lot that I relate to, almost a frightening amount. I think there is some universality to the immigrant experience.