Liberty University Online Academy

• LAN 1100

• WIT Entry 10 – Indian American Perspective Acclimating to a new culture may be challenging for people of all cultures. Indian and American cultural differences present significant cross-cultural issues. Jhumpa Lahiri's work The Third and Final Continent highlights some of these challenges. Clothing is one of the distinctions between Indian and American cultures. The main character in Lahiri's short novella recognizes after a brief experience with American culture that American attire is radically different from that of his native India. This is why when he saw that his wife has “put on a silk sari and extra bracelets” (Lahiri 12) in preparation for a date, he “regretted the suggestion” (Lahiri 12) of going on a date in the first place. Aside from clothing differences, the main character of the story initially struggled to communicate with Americans. His landlord's statements frequently