Essay on Living with Strangers - Globalization and Industrialization Life Styles

Living with Strangers

Globalization and industrialization have lead to urbanization as we know it today. The life style of the urban cities has been extremely debated. The ordinary greetings, intimacy and communication between fellow citizens have not been brought along to the larger cities such as, London, Paris and New York. Siri Hustvedt debates, in her essay "living with strangers" 2006, the obstacles and complications that need to be overcomed in large city societies. The essay deals with the dreadful ability to show humanity when being in a place with many strangers. The question asked is whether she is right in her observations on how alienated people become to their humanity when living in accordance to the pretend law as she calls it.

Siri Hustved is a woman who used to live in, Minnesota, an egalitarian state. She moved to New York in 1978 and begun to sense central changes in the new society. It is not unlikely to assume that she is raised in a strongly religious environment "the worst possible sin in my small corner of the egalitarian state"(p.1,l.4). The essay is enquired the readers of London's magazine: Sceptre. Probably, because of London's development towards becoming a more urban city than it already is. The Author introduces us to the problem, which is the strong deviation between individuals in the same train, station, etc. Later on her own experiences are shared and one of her friend's. The stories underline her partly negative attitude and opinion towards urban living "On the subway, I found myself in intimate contact with people I didn't know, my body pressed so tightly against them" ( p.1,l.14) . The use of adjectives is frequent so it appears to be more realistic to the reader. The language is not complicated and the text is written in plain American English for example neighbor instead of neighbor. Furthermore, there are many references to places that are well known in New York: Upper west side in Manhattan, Brooklyn academy of music, Broadway and Brooklyn. Nevertheless, the use of symbolic language is also implied "It is usually better to treat the unpredictable among us as ghosts, wandering phantoms, who play out their lonely narratives for an audience that appears to be deaf, dumb and blind." (p.2,l,50)

I must underline that her attitude in the end of the text differs from what she expresses in the beginning. The upcoming quotation contains the essential meaning of the essay "Nevertheless, compliments, insults, banter, smiles, and genuine conversations among strangers are part of the city's noise, its stimulus, its charm"(p.3,l,103). She is able to express herself perfectly by writing words in italic "pretend" or words in big letters "PRETEND IT ISN'T HAPPENING". This results in an overvalued effect and in a more interesting essay.