A Dead Rat In The Rice Bag Analysis

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A Dead Rat in the Rice Bag “Younger people don’t respect their elders like they used to. People like to take advantage of elders for their own personal gain.” This is my grandmother’s response to the question: do you assume the elderly are treated fairly in today’s society? In modern society, elders ceased to be treated with the respect and understanding they used to receive. Although elders have greater opportunities now with technology and health care, they are slowly being pushed or pushing themselves away from the younger generation and the ways of the modern society.
However, our modern American culture treats the elderly in an atrocious and unfortunate manner. In Alexie’s essay What You Pawn I Will Redeem, the Native American refers to treating elders with tremendous honor and respect. In Native American culture, the younger generations would listen to their elders to gain morals and receive superior advice. In this essay, Alexie, a homeless man finds his grandmother’s regalia in a pawn shop and makes a quest to buy it back in 24 hours. That determination to save something of his grandmother’s shows how much respect and pride that he took in his elders.

How can modern America more effectively treat its elderly? Let elders tell their stories. The stories, elders tell are fascinating and make you think about life and how to
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Americans should treat their elders like the Native American culture has accomplished. We should appreciate the time and lessons personally received from our elders and apply the knowledge in the modern American society. We shouldn’t proceed in taking advantage of the elderly for our personal interests; we should respect them like the main character in Alexie’s essay, What You Pawn I Will Redeem. In all, listening to their stories might aid in bringing both generations back together, and we might all have an exceptional understanding of one