Contemporary Literature

Introduction

I've really enjoyed Shteyngart's novels, so I was pleased to see him included in the list of contemporary writers. This short story is set in another of his future dystopia, complete with a shrubby main character.

It opens with the obvious (yet very satisfying in this case) technique of a diary entry. This works really well because the narrator is so strong (not physically) and quirky. Lenny begins this diary because he is in love with Eunice Park, a young Korean woman with whom he shared a moment (and later an intimacy). And he intends to win her over.

Lenny is a Research Coordinator of the Post-Human Services Division of the Staatling-Wapachung Corporation, a corporation bent on making everyone (especially its employees) immortal. Of course, since Lenny is an older, out of shape nebbish, who has just spent a year in Rome gorging on carbs, his future looks bleak. Rome is where he met Eunice by the way. I love the way Eunice's letter to her friend Grillbitch (sent via the GlobalTeen network) opens with awesome, hilarious misdirection. I also enjoyed that Eunice is self serving, and yet is able to give Lenny pleasure (in a weird way).

There's a lot of Shteyngart's humor in the story: the office where he works displays everyone's name and mood on a large train station board (that clacks as it changes). And, everyone is constantly speaking to each other on their part (I HAD to include that word). Finally, Lenny is considered very weird and possibly disturbed because he reads books. Like for fun. (He had to spray his old books with perfume so they wouldn't smell like old books).

Here now we talk about how understanding a particular concept in philosophy or psychology is assisted by the teachings in the article.

Self-Knowledge

Knowledge of yourself is the fundamental starting point - who you are and why you hold certain views and preferences. This enables an individual to explore the host country's people and values from a definite point of reference, whilst understanding that that is all it is - a particular point of reference.

Ability To Manage Stress

The expatriate will need to develop a higher tolerance level to deal with uncertainty, ambiguity and unfamiliarity. The ability to correctly perceive, reason, analyze, synthesize and formulate action plans is strategically important. This ability is better accomplished when the individual is free from unwarranted stress anxiety or self-doubt. Better stress management ...