A Perfect Life In Arranged Marriage

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In the short story "A Perfect Life" in Arranged Marriage by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni an American-Indian woman, Meera, and an American man, Richard, find a lost young boy under the staircase of Meera's apartment. Meera decides to take the boy, Krishna, in regardless of Richard's objections. Even though Richard and Meera from "A Perfect Life" have different views on what to do with Krishna, they both want the best for him and themselves. Richard and Meera have their own views on what to do with Krishna. Richard thinks that Meera's actions are "stupid and dangerous" and he could not believe that she "kept him for over a week" (Divakaruni, 86). Richard believes that Meera should have reported Krishna to social services. He admits that Meera's …show more content…
Meera first noticed that she wanted to be a mother when she visited the maternity ward where she had a "flaming rush" of "mother-love" (Divakaruni, 75). Like most women, Meera experienced the first taste of maternal-intuition. When she had the rush of a warm emotion, she realized that being a mother is something that is in her nature. When Richard becomes aware of Meera's connection to Krishna, he says to her: "Maybe what you need is a child of your own" (Divakaruni, 89). Richard notices that Meera's connection to Krishna is not only compassion for the poor child, but also a hidden desire for motherhood. To conclude, Richard and Meera postulate that the best option for Krishna is for Meera to be his guardian even though there are concerns about the legality of the situation. In "A Perfect Life" Richard and Meera have a difference of opinions regarding on what to do with Krishna, but both have similar thoughts on the best interest of Krishna and themselves. Even though this story is fictional, this scene of abandoned children plays out everyday in the United States. This can be seen with the high number of needs for foster families and children in the juvenile legal system. There is an overwhelming lack of funding and resources available for underrepresented children not only in the United States but across the