Jhumpa Lahiri Essays

reading Jhumpa Lahiri’s short story, “Gogol” later turned into the novel, The Namesake, one of the motifs I recognize throughout the excerpt is the idea of discontent. Each character displays this theme throughout the story. This unhappiness is often highlighted by the difference in what they long for and what they have. Ashima mentions how her relatives had “admonished Ashima not to eat beef or wear skirts or cut off her hair or forget her family the moment she landed in Boston” (Lahiri 51). Coming

Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake centers on Gogol’s struggle to navigate and settle into his bicultural identity and he does so in various ways, most significantly through his relationship with Maxine, through which he seeks to confirm his American identity, though he is ultimately driven to accept his Indian American identity, and his relationship with Moushumi, through which he reaffirms his hyphenated Indian-American identity. Gogol’s interracial relationship with Maxine is initially attractive to

Bengali parents in July 1967,in London and with her family’s move to Rhode Island, Jhumpa Lahiri began life in the U.S.A. She grew up in the background of traditional Bengali culture. From childhood, she often accompanied her back to India-particularly to Calcutta (now known as Kolkata).. She observes that her parents retain a sense of emotional exile and she herself grew up with conflicting expectations. In her work, Lahiri, is a second-generation immigrant, reflects on the Indian diaspora and creates

long shadows upon the crowded street. Gogol, half asleep, is comforted by the warmth of another. The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri tells the story of Gogol, a child of immigrants, who experiences America and its culture. He experiences different cultures and lifestyles and is at times troubled about his own identity. Through Lahiri’s use of Gogol’s lovers, Ruth, Maxine, And Moushumi, Lahiri shows Gogol’s confidence and security within his identity. First, Ruth was Gogol’s first real relationship and

Jhumpa Lahiri, author of The Namesake, effectively exhibits the theme of the isolation experienced by immigrants assimilating into a new place and the exposure of two cultures, relative to how one's “home” reflects on their identity in the novel, The Namesake. This novel, where the setting is in both India and America which accompanies a Bengali family's attempts at assimilating within American culture, portrays this isolation theme throughout. Lahiri conveys this theme through her effective use

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

One of the main themes in each of the novel we read in class were about conflicting identities. The novel, the namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri is filled with conflicting identities. The main character Gogol has several conflicting identity’s. The conflicting identities come from Gogol’s heritage. Gogol was born in the United States, but his parents are from India. Gogol’s parents were unaware of Americas rules and customs. In India newborns have two different names, a name that’s considered “good” and

The Namesake is a book written by Jhumpa Lahiri that won many awards such as the Time magazine best fiction book and the L.A Time magazine. Jhumpa lahiri was born in July 11, 1967 in London,England.Her parents where bengali which is the reason why She writes books that illuminate mostly the immigrant experience from the east Indians. One of her famous book that illustrates the indian immigrant experience is called The Namesake. The story follow a main protagonist by the name of Gogol Ganguli. In

In The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri, Lahiri uses Gogol’s decision to mark a change his name as a turning point in his life and personality. When he considers his current circumstances, he thinks: “Other boys his age have begun to court girls already, asking them to go to the movies or the pizza parlor, but he cannot imagine saying, ‘Hi, it’s Gogol’ under potentially romantic circumstances. He cannot imagine this at all” (76). While his name is Gogol, Gogol feels uncomfortable and shy about his name

In the novel The Namesake, author Jhumpa Lahiri describes the Ganguli family’s life transition from Calcutta, India to America. Ashima Ganguli constantly tries to adapt to American culture, while still holding onto her Indian past. Ashima and Ashoke’s son, Gogol, struggles with his identity and various relationships as he grows up through school and his career. Though Author Lahiri reveals how a person creates new identities when building relationships with some people in their life, it is often

The Pakistan Partition, in 1947, generated a great divide within cultures and families. In “When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine,” Jhumpa Lahiri transcribes a short story about a man isolated from his family by depicting the aspects of symbolism, intrinsic first person point of view, and the theme of loneliness created by simple word choice structure. Jhumpa Lahiri incorporates her style, in this short story, with symbolism to synthesize two feelings of the main character, Lilia. In How to Read Literature

When a name is chosen for someone, the name becomes their personality, appearance and identity. In the book, the namesake, by Jhumpa Lahiri, she compares Gogol’s struggle with growing up in two different cultures, American and Indian. In the American culture, Gogol is able to change his name and be anyone he wants to be. On the other hand, the culture of his parents and them giving him that name, is anything but free. The name was chosen in order to respect and honor their homeland. The author teaches

strange in another. The children must then decide which culture they want to partake in or learn how to separate the two. In the novel, The Namesake, Gogol Ganguli faces a similar first generation immigrant child identity crisis. The author, Jhumpa Lahiri, emphasizes

The Namesake is a fictional novel on an Indian boy's life written by Jhumpa Lahiri. The main character is Gogol Ganguli with his family Ashoke, Ashima, and Sonia Ganguli. Gogol throughout the whole book wanted to figure out his identity in the world. His family wanted him to live the lifestyle of his original heritage with his pet name Gogol, but the world outside of his family wanted him to live like an American with a normal name. His life had many problems including his name, significant relationships

In Interpreter of Maladies, Jhumpa Lahiri tells the story of a young Indian American family as they embark on a sightseeing tour in India with Mr. Kapasi, an overeducated driver-cum-tour guide resigned to the monotony of life. Through the unconventional portrayal of the men and women in the story, Lahiri subverts our expectations of traditional gender roles and ultimately, makes us question the value of conforming to these roles prescribed by society. Lahiri’s depiction of Mrs. Das as an apathetic

Attaining one’s own self identity and self relation are usually molded by your surrounding influences and environment. In Jhumpa Lahiri’s novel, The Namesake, the author creates the juxtaposition of the conflictual relationship between the experiences of children living in American mainstream culture vs. the family culture of a first generation Indian family. Lahiri used the internal conflict of the “namesake” of Gogol vs. Nikhil as the ultimate symbolism of the conflict between the two cultures

The movie “The Namesake,” by Jhumpa Lahiri concerns itself largely with being Indian and American at the same time. Throughout the movie Ashima, Gogol 's mother, strongly identifies herself to Indian traditions. In the first meeting of Ashima and her proposed husband Ashoke we see her interest in North America, when she finds Ashoke shoes captivating. She also recites her composed writing in English very well, regardless of her Indian accent. She is warned that life will be hard in North America

Literary Analysis of The Namesake Jhumpa Lahiri is a creative author writer who displayed in the novel The Namesake the challenges and numerous aspects of immigration, relationships, identity and language. Also the author uses some literary techniques including imagery and symbolism. More specifically, the plotline of the story offers insight into the life of the Ganguli family and the struggles they face by respecting their native Indian roots and merging into American culture. The Ganguli family

The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri follows the life of Gogol Ganguli from his birth to age thirty-two. Gogol is American born child to Bengali parents, and the novel follows a series of events in his life. Gogol Ganguli, a twenty-seven-year-old man, is living in New York City and working for a large architectural firm. Gogol spends most of his time either at work or with his girlfriend, Maxine. Gogol is a person who has mostly disregarded his traditions and has accepted Maxine’s. Gogol is wholly immersed

The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri socially and culturally features the value of family through the characters as well as the author. It is shown through cultural influences by the characters when they start to celebrate Christmas and by Lahiri when her parents are skeptical of her getting a degree in creative writing. It is said in the movie, “For the sake of Gogol and Sonia they celebrate, with progressively increasing fanfare, the birth of Christ, an event the children look forward to far more than