Culture Shock
            
             Throughout literature, authors incorporate personal experiences in their work. If a reader knows enough background information, he/she can pick up on subtle hints hidden in the text that reveal little known facts about the author. Bharati Mukherjee, like many of her peers, draws on personal events and memories when writing. Her short story, "A Father," truly mirrors her own life. The story is about the discomfort, reluctance, and hostility felt by an immigrant living in the United States. As a whole, Mukherjee's works focus on the "phenomenon of migration, the status of new immigrants, and the feeling of alienation often experienced by expatriates" (Pradhan 1). Upon her arrival into the United States, Mukherjee felt this same alienation her characters do. "A Father" parallels Mukherjee's uneasy transition into the American lifestyle. Like Mukherjee, Mr. Bhowmick cannot accept his new life nor can he deal with the loss of his previous lifestyle. Mr. Bhowmick is unable to make a distinction between the past and the present. His constant longing for the values associated with his homeland and his disdain for his current circumstances collide in Mukherjee's "A Father."
             There are several elements of Mr. Bhowmick's life that generate feelings of longing for the traditional lifestyle he lead in his homeland. The most important symbol of this in the story is Kali-Mata, the goddess of wrath and vengeance. Kali is the family's goddess. They are supposed to revere her, and she is supposed to protect and guide them. Mr. Bhowmick sees Kali in everything he does. Every morning before leaving for work, or getting out of bed, he sees Kali taunting him. This eight inch statue, made of "metal and painted a glistening black so that the metal glow[s] likes the oiled black skin of a peasant woman," is the only reminder Mr. Bhowmick has left from hi...