White Tigers: Being Caught Between Western And Asian Cultures

By Louis

I was speaking to one of my professors that only until recently I have gained tremendous respect for. His philosophy when he first came to Canada as a new immigrant was to completely immerse himself in a new environment by being receptive to it and not posting up a ‘shell’ of isolation like most people do. It broke new ground for me because I realized that although we attribute the word ‘assimilation’ as something that is bad, it is essential to adapt. It is what we are as humans, we adapt to new situations, new environments, new ideals. It’s how we survive.

This man not only made the effort to meet new people from other cultures. He was so strongly motivated to perfect the English language that he practiced everyday through conversations with his landlord, Caucasian friends, and colleagues. I was amazed at how well this man could carry a conversation in English. Besides his moderate accent, in some respects he was a better conversationalist than me. Myself being a second-gen Canadian who grew up speaking it as my native tongue. But wait, there’s more. This man not only wanted to perfect the English language. He told me that after he retires from his research (which is well established on its own), he wanted to learn how to dance, how to play music, and he even wanted to write a book. This man was a veteran as far as I was concerned. He is a true White Tiger. Sorry, let me backtrack for a bit, lets go to what I actually mean by this definition of a White Tiger which I came up with a while back.

I came up with the term White Tiger because it reflects the idea of what it’s like for an Asian person to be born and grow up in North America. There is this conflicting paradox where Asians feel bound by the shackles of Chinese culture whilst trying to integrate smoothly into the Western world. Now that we’re all on the same page, let’s get back to the story…

I guess what I’m trying to get at in this post is that you should always seek help when in need. Inspiration can come from anything. Motivation can come from anyone. Whether that be as White Tiger or a Purple Walrus for all that matters (Don’t ask, I have no idea what a purple walrus actually is, although a Hippie from the 60s might apply). Keep those people you care about close to you, and engage in them as much as you can. Life is too short to wait around and be discouraged by the lack of opportunities that are presented to you. As an Asian-American caught between the dichotomy of Western and Asian cultures, one must make their own opportunities in life. Whether it’s about relationships, role models, parenting, or school, a balanced lifestyle is out there and it’s wating for you.

White Tigers are strong and confident. They know what they want. They have to be if they want to survive in a fast paced world.

ABOUT LOUIS HO: I’m an Asian-Canadian living in the Greater Toronto Area. I’m currently doing an undergraduate degree at McMaster Univeresity in Hamilton, ON, but in my spare time I like to blog about issues relating to the nuances of being an asian in western society. I’m a self-proclaimed ‘White Tiger’.