ipl-logo

Maladies By Jhumpa Kapasi: Influential Identities

932 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Why is identity important in literature

Influential Identities
Each person’s characteristics are rooted within identity. A simple migration can change one’s identity, gradually changing their characteristics. The short story “Interpreter of Maladies” by Jhumpa Lahiri tells the tale of an American family visiting India. The family enlists the help of translator Mr. Kapasi on their trip. Throughout the trip, Mr. Kapasi observes the family, and learns a lot about the family -- from the smallest details to elaborate stories. The interactions between multiple aspects of identity evidently has an impact on the lives of the family, both in the past and the present. The story takes a stance on how two contrasting cultural, social and personal identities can classify each person as affiliating with different groups, providing reason for the story to be placed in the Identity unit rather than the Hybridity unit.
The differences between Mr. Kapasi 's and Mr. Das’s greetings show how their differing …show more content…

The author uses multiple aspects of the Das’s family identities to show how identity influences their life, therefore earning a rightful place in the Identity unit. Using cultural, social, and personal identities, the short story shows the importance of identity and how it uniquely shapes each and every person. Identity also shapes groups of people, as shown with the Das family and their American identity. While migration is present in the Das family’s history, the majority of the story focuses on the identities of the family. This evidence compels to believe that the story should be in the Identity unit because of what it taught me about the importance of identity as well. I learned how one choice in your life can change and shape who you are, and how every person’s actions and lives roots itself in identity. The story shifted my viewpoint on myself as well, teaching me that certain decisions that I make in my everyday life can stick with me for a long time, shaping and influencing my life in an instant, or

Show More
Related

Character Analysis: Before We Were Free

899 Words | 4 Pages

This book, can relate to people who don't usually believe that they can make a change. That they have no effect on the world. This book, tells you straight up, that if you change yourself, you can change the world around you. This is very motivating, and a very awesome

Read More

Conformism And Pride In The Short Story 'Borders' By Thomas King

490 Words | 2 Pages

Conformism and pride are two concepts that clash greatly in society today, as people fight to maintain their own identity in the face of a world created upon factions. Both conformism and pride are explored in the short story “Borders” by Thomas King, which is about assimilation and the importance of maintaining identity in a bureaucratic, compartmentalized society. Through the protagonist and his mother, King uses point of view and characterization to create a distinction between the ideology and practicality of identity, ultimately leaving the reader to question the importance and worth of clinging to one's identity when faced with the borders of society. In order to explore the different opinions surrounding identity, King uses characterization

Read More

Feliks Skrzynecki Essay

741 Words | 3 Pages

“Our sense of self is influenced by our interactions with our environment” The interactions a person encounters are an essential part in the formation of identity. In Peter Skrzynecki’s poem, Feliks Skrzynecki, a linguistic barrier between the father and son is present due to persona, Peter’s lack of cultural identity. The poem examines the relationship with his father explores how he has a constantly changing identity as he encounters his surroundings. Similarly, in Postcard, the persona’s identity is altered through the interactions he has with the environment around him.

Read More

Reb Smolinsky Identity

1005 Words | 5 Pages

Identity in this novel comes in different ways and is an essential component that must be discussed to determine its impact to immigrants today. The first place where we encounter identity is when the main characters, Sara and her sisters, are subjected to what they perceive as harsh Jewish law. The family of Reb Smolinsky migrated from Poland to the United States of America, in which the family’s identity in the United States is shaped by Reb Smolinsky’s belief in their religion. His religion dictates that God has no time to listen to women and that women are not blessed with the capability to learn the word of God, yet the religion reduces them to be the servants of men “...women get into heaven …because they were the wives and daughters

Read More

Banned Book Research Paper

859 Words | 4 Pages

This made me rethink how I look at my life because this story of a triumphant young boy showed me that you can do whatever you want to no matter how much people doubt you. I like the way the author has written this heart wrenching yet

Read More

Interpreter Of Maladies By Jhumpa Kapasi

1462 Words | 6 Pages

Cultural Clash “Interpreter of Maladies” by Jhumpa Lahiri recounts the excursion of an American family to India through the eyes of its driver, Mr. Kapasi. The bicultural family represents an affluent yet ultimately miserable lifestyle. Mr. and Mrs. Das are a young couple with severe marital issues, with their carelessness most manifest in how they treat their children. By contrast, Mr. Kapasi sacrifices his career aspiration to pay for his son 's medical bills and remains faithful to his wife, despite their loveless marriage. As the story progresses, Mr. Kapasi’s initial desire for an intimate relationship with Mrs. Das transforms into disenchantment as he perceives the unbridgeable gap in cultural values.

Read More

Fish Cheeks By Amy Tan Compare And Contrast

965 Words | 4 Pages

In both stories, the protagonists face the challenge of balancing their cultural heritage with their desire to assert their own identity, and they must navigate the expectations of their families and communities. The stories highlight the complexities of mother-daughter relationships, as well as the tension between conformity and individuality. Additionally, the stories underscore the importance of communication in shaping cultural identity and family dynamics, as the characters must negotiate their own desires and expectations with those of their families and communities. Ultimately, these shared themes offer insight into the challenges faced by individuals who are navigating cultural expectations and family dynamics, and they demonstrate the importance of communication and individuality in shaping personal

Read More

Reflection On The Glass Castle By Jeannette Walls

799 Words | 4 Pages

It taught me that strength and perseverance can make a significant impact in life. I also learned that forgiveness and the ability to forgive is much more powerful than I ever realized. This novel sucked me into the story and its characters and took me on an emotional ride of highs and lows. Finally, it forced me to reevaluate my previous judgement of the homeless.

Read More

Identity In Malamud's The Awakening

1487 Words | 6 Pages

The American intellectuals,like Malamud, for instance, denounce collectivism. Furthermore, American Experience places the accent on the individual safeguarding his separate identity though he is of different racial origins. The American intellectuals who value American Experience recommend new conditions of life, which, they argue, ensures one’s identity. One enjoys the identity only if one can remain the same, notwithstanding the varying aspects and differing conditions of life.

Read More

Identities Wd Valgardson Summary

579 Words | 3 Pages

The identity a person holds is one of the most important aspects of their lives. Identity is what distinguishes people from others, although it leaves a negative stereotype upon people. In the short story Identities by W.D Valgardson, a middle-aged wealthy man finds himself lost in a rough neighborhood while attempting to look for something new. The author employs many elements in the story, some of the more important ones being stereotype and foreshadow. For many people, their personal identity is stereotyped by society.

Read More

The Namesake Jhumpa Lahiri Essay

1000 Words | 4 Pages

Nothing reminds you of how far you are from home more than giving birth to a child in a foreign, distant land. As Jhumpa Lahiri describes in her novel, The Namesake, being a foreigner is like a life-long pregnancy, a perpetual wait, a constant burden, an ongoing responsibility, and a continuous feeling out of sorts. Throughout the novel, Lahiri accounts the story of a couple moving from India to America, as well as, the complex process of raising kids in an unknown country, without family, without friends, and without a familiar lifestyle. At the same time, she analyzes the tug-of-war nature between one’s ethnic heritage and the environment one is born into. As the novel progresses, Jhumpa Lahiri’s examination of the immigrant experience through

Read More

Daniel Tatum The Complexity Of Identity

683 Words | 3 Pages

Identity speaks of who we are as individuals but it also comes from two different groups: social and cultural. These groups are connected to power, values and ideology. Social identities are related to how we interact with people and how we present ourselves. Meanwhile cultural identities relate to society in whole such as religion, values, etc. In this paper I will talk about the dominant and subordinate identities.

Read More

Analysis Of Jhumpa Lahiri's Interpreter Of Maladies

743 Words | 3 Pages

Communication is the overtone argument of Jhumpa Lahiri’s all masterpieces and her debut work Interpreter of Maladies, which offered her around the world recognition, will be a standout amongst them. Interpreter of Maladies is a collection of nine flawless short stories, with an array of themes and sewed through admirable narrative styles and writing techniques. The ways Jhumpa Lahiri portrays relationships, in particular the institution of marriage has been emphasized by this paper and also discuss over the role of effective communication to conserve them sound furthermore concordant. Marriage as an institution bloom with love and understanding and fades with suspicion and non-communication. In all her

Read More

Analysis Of Two Ways To Belong In America By Bharati

465 Words | 2 Pages

In the essay “Two Ways to Belong in America,” from 50 essays, Bharati Mukherjee contrasts the different views of the United States from two Indian sisters. The author distinguishes her American lifestyle to her sister’s traditional Indian lifestyle. Both sisters grew up in Calcutta, India, moved to America in search of education and work. Bharati adjusts to the American society very quickly, where her sister Mira clings to her Indian traditions more strongly. Despite both sisters living in America, only Bharati is an American citizen, while her sister Mira is not.

Read More

Sociology Essay On Race And Ethnicity

957 Words | 4 Pages

Introduction The concept of identity has been a notion of significant interest not just to sociologists and psychologists, but also to individuals found in a social context of perpetually trying to define themselves. Often times, identities are given to individuals based on their social status within a certain community, after the assessment of predominant characteristics that said individual has. However, within the context of an ethnicity, the concept identity is most probably applied to all members of the ethnical group, and not just one individual. When there is one identity designated for the entire group, often times the factor of “individuality” loses its significance, especially when referring to the relationship between the ethnic

Read More

More about Maladies By Jhumpa Kapasi: Influential Identities

Related Topics

Open Document