Ancestral habits of mind can be constricting; they also confer one's individuality.

I am an American, not an Asian-American. My rejection of hyphenation has been called race treachery, but it is really a demand that America deliver the promises of its dream to all its citizens equally.

What was the duty of the teacher if not to inspire?

But, Christ, there's a difference between exotic and foreign, isn't there? Exotic means you know how to use your foreignness, or you make yourself a little foreign in order to appear exotic. Real foreign is a little scary, believe me.

Ancestral habits of mind can be constricting; they also confer one's individuality.

In India, there are real consequences to inattention; drivers who jeopardize pedestrians can be lynched on the spot.

You see for me, America is an idea. It is a stage for transformation. I felt when I came to Iowa City from Calcutta that suddenly I could be a new person . . . What America offers me is romanticism and hope . . . Suddenly, I found myself in a country where