Just off main street †summary Essay

In Just Off Main Street author Elmaz Abinader depicts the physical and social barrier between Americans and hyphen ingestd Americans such(prenominal) as Arab-Americans who live in dual sensitivity facing identity crisis, racism and other various problems living in America. In the first luck of the story Crossing The Threshold we learn of young Abinader, her family, their customs and how they are separated from the rest of the families in their town.In the second part of the story making A WriterAbinader explains how entering college changes her view on her identity that lead to the person she is today. Abinader grew up in a small Pennsylvanian town, her father and uncle ran three businesses finished which they served the neighborhood. From the store gate Abinader saw no difference between her father and the people on the streets.This idea soon changed when she met the two Barbie like girls in school, she cognise there was nothing in common between her and the other kids. Even thou gh they didnt know how her lifestyle was, they made fun of her. After she reaches scale she understands her life and that of her peers are separated by the magic door. Since its a Wednesday Abinaders mother prepared Arab delicacies which have hypnotic effect on her. The three boys and three girls of the Abinader family had after school duties, devotion to God, obedience to parents, and good school grades dominated the family.They gave little importance to interactions that took place outside the house. On holidays, relatives visited, they ate together, danced and enjoyed but Abinader knew that her life inside and outside the magic door would always clash, she would never be accepted by her peer and felt like an outcast. Abinader went to university of Pittsburgh when she grew up. That had nationality classrooms which delineated different cultures. The Syrian-Lebanese room, one she wanted to see was locked and required permission to access.When she finally got into it, the royal fur nishing and exoticness of the room made her feel proud. Soon she wrote about her heritage culture but she realized the Americans exoticized her. Focused on her writing, she wrote about her family and their history that was suppressed inside. Her writing was still inside the door.Outside the door she felt unwelcomed. Abinader didnt birth up and continued writing about the issues on identity, culture, etc. She participated in activism as a U.S citizen, marched, protested and created committees. Her writing made her feel like an activist as it conveyed her message more directly.