Summary Of Sixty Nine Cents By Gary Shteyngart

“Times Square!” I screamed enthusiastically after my mother asked what was the first place I wanted to visit when I came to the United States. I was sixteen years old and I could barely hide my happiness and enthusiasm to start visiting all the places I had only dreamed of and seeing in movies. In the essay “Sixty-Nine Cents” written by the Russian author Gary Shteyngart, he narrates the story of the first time he went to Florida with his family. Shteyngart was fourteen years old at the time and he had recently lost his Russian accent, however, speaking without an accent and sounding like a native English speaker was not enough for him. He desperately wanted to become more American by doing things that represented the American culture.
Shteyngart

in his essay describes what for him was his real naturalization “The ride over the MacArthur Causeway to Miami Beach was my real naturalization ceremony. I wanted all of it-the palm trees, the yachts bobbing beside the hard currency mansions, the concrete and glass condominiums…the implicit availability of relations with amoral women” (Shteyngart,54). I remember feeling the same the first time I went to New York City, which is what I consider my naturalization. Ironically, the author lived in New York city at the time and he didn’t think of Manhattan as the most American city. People all over the world usually see New York as the place to go, when it comes to experiencing what being American is all about.
In fact, Shteyngart’s longing to be an American is represented in his essay by his desire to eat a Big Mac with a coke at a McDonalds.

He describes the action longingly “I could already taste it: The sixty-nine-cent hamburger. The ketchup, red and decadent, embedded with little flecks of grated onion. The uplift of the pickle slices; the obliterating rush of fresh Coca-Cola...” (Shteyngart,54), but McDonalds is not the only product or brand that represents what we see as typically American. Other brands such as: KFC, Burger King, Disney, Apple, Nike and many others are things that people outside the United States and immigrants living here usually buy to feel more connected to the country and in a way, feel more American. These brands are typically seen as American because they are heavily advertised by the media and you see many famous Americans consuming

them.
In countries like Colombia, (the country where I come from) and basically any other Latin American countries, people tend to idolize products and brands that come from the United States.

Brands perceived as typically American such as: Aeropostale, Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle and other clothing retailers are a luxury to wear for the simple fact they come from the United States. Shteyngart in his essay discusses what his parents thought about buying American products “My parents believed that going to restaurants and buying clothes not sold by weight on Orchard street, were things done only by the very wealthy”, which means that they also looked at American brands as a luxury. Surprisingly, immigrants living in the country also feel the desire to eat, buy clothes, and consume products that are typically American over any other option in the market. These brands played a major role during my childhood because I was able to acquire them through my mother and wearing them gave me instantly a higher status than the rest of my friends. I was the cool kid that could wear original Nike sneakers and eat at American fast food chains that are very expensive in

Colombia.
In conclusion, there are many brands and products that are typically American other than the Big Mac and the coke mentioned by Shteyngart in his essay. Iconic brands such as: Disney, Apple, Microsoft, Nike, and many others, are brands that figured prominently during my childhood and the childhood of millions all over the world. Without them, my childhood would not have been as good as it was, and my excitement for coming to the United States would have never existed. These products shaped the world as we see and know it today and will continue to influence those who wish to be part of the American culture.