Examining all the stories in Lahiri's interpreter of maladies ( or at least thinking about them) , what do you think these stories argue regarding the creation of human identity?
Let me put my question in very simple terms: According to all the stories, or at least to the majority of them, what is the foundation of human identity or what makes up human identity? What are its necessary ingredients? Does Lahiri see human identity as positive or negative? As conformist or non-conformist? As all of the above or as none of the above?
When you formulate your response, make sure you have solid evidence for your perspective.
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What role does ethnicity play in one's identity? How important are one's religious and local origins in Lahiri's book? Explain.
I think that our identity is made up by who we are and the way we've developed in situations in our surroundings. Our surroundings have a lot to do with our ethnicity, in most cases. The people who raise you and where their from have a big impact on your life. Depending on your heritage your religion might be different then someone else. Both of those things attribute to the morals and standards you expect from life. Also because we are humans our perceptions of things we learn and see can make us interpret things uniquely. Those unique interpretations often trickle down genealogy and end up helping ego's personal identity. A good example of this from Lahiri's stories When Mr.Pirzada came to dine and Lilia's reaction to him there and after he leaves. I feel like her experience was definitely a source of Lilia's ethnicity and the way her parents raised her based on their culture and morals.
ReplyDeleteI feel like Lahiri uses relationships as the foundation of human identity. In each of her stories there is always some type of bond between the characters, good or bad, whether it is a marriage or the communication between parents and child. Through these relationships the characters build their identity, because after all we are a product of our environment. An example of this would be how the american children in the story about Mr. Prizada had no interest or knowledge in what was going on outside of their own country due to the fact that their parents and teachers didn't either or never bothered to teach them. This breeds ignorance. As well as in the first story, the wife is emotionally changed due to her strained love with her husband. While a part of our identity is how we view ourselves, that view is influenced by the many relationships built during life. In the relationship of a bully and his victim, the victim will naturally have low self esteem and perhaps unsure of who he is because of the bully's taunting. I also felt like the characters in each of Lahiri's stories were built off of their communication abilities with those in their environment. The couple in the first story grew apart as they stopped speaking to each other and lost their emotional investment in the relationship. Things got even worse when the husband told the wife at the end the sex of the baby. Not only did he communicate that improperly by doing it in a spiteful way, but he had been virtually lieing to her the whole time. As we keep good company around us, our identities will be healthy and positive.
ReplyDeleteIn Lahiri's short stories people's environments,relationships, and careers play a major role in the creation of their identity. In the short story Sexy, Miranda's life is molded by her job in a cubicle and her lack of a social life. Miranda has a lonely life, she only speaks to Laxmi and Dev, she lives alone in her apartment and stares at her cubicle walls,there isn't any exciting elements in her life, so, naturally, Miranda looked for excitement,and a sense of importance. Miranda made a demoralizing decision to have an affair with a married man;however, her actions were influenced by her lonely surroundings. It's natural for a human being to seek out attention, when they're deprived of it. Lahiri shows that Miranda's actions are influenced by her surroundings. Looking at Mr. Kapasi,one can see that his identity is influenced by his marriage, which is dull and unhappy and his job as an interpreter. Mr Kapasi's wife has resentment toward Mr. Kapasi, because he is able to translate people's diseases;however, he wasn't able to help prevent his son's death. Mr. Kapasi also, feels lonely and not important, and imagines an affair with Mrs. Das. Mr. Kapasi's feelings stem from his environment. Shukumar and Shoba were madly in love,however, after the death of their son, they both felt empty inside and once again not important. All these characters' environments hinder their personalities and cloud their views on life and in return, their environments aren't healthy and because of that they search for happiness outside of their relationships. Lahiri shows a lack of support through marriages, instead of the couples coming together during unfortunate times, they blame each other and hurt one another with words. Lahiri also, shows how immature the characters are, for example, Shoba and Shukumar end their relationship with hurtful stories. When Shukumar told Shoba that their son was a boy, he knew how bad it would hurt her, and he wanted it to scar her. Shukumar's actions are an example of Lahiri showing readers the immaturity of her characters. Overall, Lahiri is showing us generally, how human beings react and handle negative situations, instead of coming together, we attack the ones we love, so from my judgment she has a negative view on human identity.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading Interpreter of Maladies, I believe that Lahiri is demonstrating how the identity of someone is made up from the surroundings of the person, the relationships that the person has with others, and the obstacles a person faces in life. I believe it is important for everyone to have an identity; however, Lahiri shows her readers how painful and hurtful having an identity can be for certain individuals. For example, Boori Ma has an identity that causes others to single her out and blame her for occurrences that she was not involved in. The people of Boori Ma’s building judge her on her past. Her past life is what forms her identity in a new location. The identity that Boori Ma claims she once had before deportation is not accepted by the people of her building. Boori tells the people, “Believe me, don’t believe me. My life is composed of such griefs you cannot even dream them” (Lahiri 72). This quote is important because it shows how obstacles and negative occurrences in a person’s life can affect his/her identity. Challenges in our lives make us who we are.
ReplyDeleteRelationships are also important in Lahiri’s Interpreter of Maladies. Human identity is formed by surroundings. In A Temporary Matter, Shoba and Shukumar affect each other’s identities. Without each other, neither of them would be who they are. During and after their relationship, they both learn a lot about each other. I love the way Lahiri portrays relationships in her book because she shows how imperfect relationships are. Relationships are strong and positive at times; however, they can also be painful and destructive at other times. I believe that relationships help us understand our own identity, and they teach us a lot about ourselves.
The Treatment of Bibi Haldar shows the reader how identity can be used negatively. In the short story, Bibi Haldar is mistreated and singled out in her town. Bibi Haldar has seizures, and because of this her whole life is affected. Bibi wanted to have a different identity; she wanted to be like other women in her town. She asks, “Is it wrong to envy you, all brides and mothers, busy with lives and cares? Wrong to want to shade my eyes, scent my hair? To raise a child and teach him sweet from sour, good from bad?” (Lahiri 160). This unfortunate medical condition not only forms Bibi’s identity, but it also tells us a lot about Haldar and his wife’s identity; they act as if Bibi’s identity can ruin their family’s identity, so they keep her at a distance.
I really enjoyed reading Interpreter of Maladies because it shows how important human identity is. I feel as a young person, truly knowing your identity is something that occurs later on in life. Basically, life experiences make us who we are, and the more we live, the more we will know about our own identity.
In Lahiri's short storys, she uses relationships and communication as the foundation of human identity. The characters in Lahiri's stories all feel like they are outsiders to their personal relationships and their socities. These characters are just average people dealing with the discontent in their lives. Shoba and Shukumar are at the end of their relationship but Shukumar seems to be holding on to the past. The Temporary Matter is not the fact that the electricity is out for a short amount of time, but the reader can interpret that both individuals are trying to rekindle their crumbling love in a temporary matter. Both characters affect their own identities because they both feel isolated from their relationships. Lahiri short stories have some kind of relationship. Even though for example, Mr Kapasi and Mrs. Das are not intiment with eachother, just them communicating forms a deep relationship between them both. Although Lahiri shows a lot of negativity in relationships in her book, there are also positive factors too. Bibi Haldar is an outsider in her town because she has seizures. This disorder affects her identity and what others think of her. The towns people think the only way to cure her is for her to get married. (In my opinion i think they just didnt want her to be alone.) Bibi has a child at the end of the book therefore according to the townspeople she is cured. I think Lahiri is showing the reader that relationships are important for our identity even if they are good or bad.
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ReplyDeleteSarah Case - March 21st
ReplyDeleteLahiri formulates each story to allow the reader a peek at each individual’s identity and ethnicity. I believe that Lahiri does portray identity being influenced by ethnicity, however, she goes beyond ethnicities role in identity. In fact she shows the reader how little ethnicity may play in ones identity. In the short story Interpreter of Maladies she gives examples of both American characters and Indian characters. The characters are very contrasting, partially due to their different ethnic backgrounds. Lahiri explains the Americans as the typical tourist type with cameras and magazines, but she also prods to their inner identity. Both American characters are shown as careless and childish. These personality traits are characteristics of their identities. They most likely come from money and privilege. In the description of Mrs. Das’ Strawberry outfit it is evident that she does not dress to do physical labor, rather for looks instead. It is a minor detail that should not be overlooked when assessing Mrs. Das’ identity. Mr. Das is a pushover with an interest in anything historical. He is so removed from the present that he cannot see how poor his relationship is with his wife. The two characters are both lost. Their heritage of Indian decent plays little role in their current American lives. The only trait that makes them Indian is their skin. They do not need to share the same religious beliefs or day to day customs of Indians to be lumped into the same category together. Lahiri wants the reader to see how it is a culture that one lives in that shapes a person the most. It is irrelevant what color someone’s skin is, what they do for a job, what religion they believe in…what is important is how well someone can mold to a part of the society. An example of this concept is the story The Real Durwan. A woman seeks refuge in a village in India. She becomes part of the society and culture of the town. Everyone comes to like her, and then when she goes off and is herself she gets into trouble with the tenants in the building. Her ability to adapt to the society and blend, was more important than the country of which was her decent or her religious beliefs. Lahiri creates stories for the reader to interpret. Each person who reads her work is likely to pull their own experiences from the book and view it differently. I think that the most important thing Lahiri is able to do is put emphasis on the Human Condition and remind her readers we are all human.
Lahiri's most important molding factors for the structuring of identity are the concepts of love and loss. These twinned emotions are the formative bonds which via creation or destruction force an individual aspect of one's identity to flourish or flounder. In the first story "A Temporary Matter" the death of their first child while still in the womb sounds the knell for both their marriage and their love. After the childs death the wife falls victim to depression as the physical embodiment of the marriage is pronounced dead. This loss causes the splitting if the marriage and the mental destabilization of both characters. In "When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine" we see the formative effects of love on the young narrator. Mr. Pirzada's showering of affection and gifts awakens the young girl to his loss and the suffering he and his family are going through. The prime amalgamation of the love and loss is in "The Interpreter of Maladies" short story. Both Mr. Kapasi and Mrs. Das have a stabile marriage, based on some variety of love no matter how small it may be. But while each is married, and hav eexperienced love, they both seek the comfort of the other in some way. Mrs. Das seeks moral reconciliation for the infidelity she committed against her husband and Mr. Kapasi seeks the physical release from his stagnate marriage yet neither gets what they seek in the end. This complicated juxtaposition of love and loss is a major theme in Lahiri's collection, but it isnt complete without considering that without human intercourse, neither love nor loss is possible. Therefore it would be more precise to say that Lahiri's use of love and loss within the human interaction, shows how she feels identity is formed or stymied.
ReplyDeleteIn the stories of Lahiri's Interpreter of Maladies she forms the characters human identity based on all their relationship issues. In A Temporary Matter Shoba and Shukumar form their identity based on their poor relationship. They discover how unhealthy their relationship was based around the secrets that they were not telling eachother. They both discover their identity through the story telling ceremony they have every time the power is out as well as discovering they are not the people they thought they were from the beginning. In the story, Interpreter of Maladies Mr. and Mrs. Das discover that their identity is different from who they thought they were through their relationship as well. Mrs. Das turns interested in Mr. Kapasi and realizes that her and her husband are two different people, but Mr. Das does not recognize it. In the story A Real Durwan Boori Ma discovers her identity by realizing the rest of the community of the household do not realize who she really is. They suspect her of being a theif and stealing the basins when in reality she did not. Her identity is based off of how the people who live around her interpret her. In When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine his identity comes from comparing his own family to the one he spends most of his time with. Realizing that they are more like his family than his actual family is. All of these stories consist of the characters realizing with the wrong doings in their lives that they learn from their mistakes which helps them realize that they do not hold the identity they thought they did all along. Lahiri see human identity as a positive thing. The characters all open up doors to seeing something they have never realized before. Lahiri views human identity as non-conformist because all of the characters choose their own way at the end to view their identity.
ReplyDeleteI think that Lahiri is trying to portray identity as being almost entirely based on the perceptions of others. In our search for human connection, we are vulnerable to others’ expectations of us. We change ourselves to live up to what we think that others see in us. In the end I think she is also saying that allowing our identity to be formed to please others is not good for us or those we want to please. First of all, we will always end up disappointing them, because no one is perfect, and the idealized version of ourselves that they have made up is impossible for anyone to live up to. Secondly, we will disappoint ourselves, because in the end when we fail to be who it is they want us to be we will have lost touch with who we were before.
ReplyDeleteIn “Sexy” Miranda changed the way she dressed and structured her life around Dev and his desires especially after hearing him call her sexy. She felt no guilt for her actions until Rohin used the same word with a different definition that she had never thought of. She defined her actions and her moral system using the opinions of others.
In “Interpreter of Maladies” Mr. Kapasi is completely prepared to emotionally cheat on his wife when he thinks he may have found a kindred spirit. In the end his anger is so strong because Mrs. Das in disappointing him, has also taken away his feeling of importance.
These stories argue that the identities of humans change over time. Life experience has a lot to do with who we become. In all of the stories that we read for class most of the characters were much different people than they once were. For example, in the story “A Temporary Matter” it is evident that Shoba and Shukumar once had a loving, healthy relationship. The reader understands that Shukumar cared deeply about his pregnant wife because he wanted to stay with his wife instead of leaving to go to a conference (2,3). After they lost their baby, they “had become experts at avoiding each other” (4). This tragedy changed the both of them dramatically, and their marriage ended up falling apart.
ReplyDeleteSimilarly, in the “Interpreter of Maladies”, Mr. and Mrs. Das’ marriage is very unhappy during the story. We come to find out that Mr. Das seems so withdrawn from her marriage and her relationship with her children because she is extremely guilty for cheating on her husband. The two parents are completely self-absorbed and constantly bickering. Lahiri’s message in both of these these stories is that because we are human and we change, it is extremely important for us to communicate. Without communication we start to resent the people we once loved.
As humans, life experiences shape our identities. In the story of “A Real Durwan”, Boori Ma’s identity seemed to be a mystery. Many of her neighbors thought she was a story-teller, but it is evident that some tragedy took part in the fact that she became known as the “sweeper of the stairwell”. Communication was lacking in this story as well. Once the neighbors realized that the basin had been stolen they confronted Boori Ma, but she “gripped her reed broom and said nothing” (81). When she finally spoke up the neighbors seemed to have let their anger cloud their judgments and they were mean. They ended up kicking her out with nowhere to live. Lahari points out that humans can be judgmental and close-minded. These neighbors shut Boori Ma out of their lives, much like the Mr. and Mrs. Das, and Shoba and Shukumar did to each other. The foundation of human identity is life experience. Communication and open-mindedness are key ingredients as we can see from these stories. Lahiri sees human identity as positive, but her stories are a warning that if we do not communicate with each other and remain open-minded, we will change for the worse.
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ReplyDeleteExamining all the stories in Lahiri's "Interpreter of Maladies", I think all the stories argue that every human relationship relate to one another, despite on their different cultures, like in the story Mr. Pirzada. In this story allows readers to see different cultures and how they connect with one another. Lahiri focuses on the connection in the relationships and struggles human encounter while in a marital relationship. I think within the stories, the human identity is defined by being around one another long enough to form your own identity as an indivdual, like in the story A Temporary Matter between Shoba and Shukumar. These two characters separate themselves which form their own identity within their marriage. The necessary ingredients that I believe that forms their own identity is establishing who you are within yourself and allowing yourself to accept who you are. I think that Lahiri believes that human identity can be both positive and negative because within reading her stories, the relationships in the novel shows both negative and postive aspects of human identity. I think that Lahiri wants to show relationships can be difficult and have ups and downs. Lahiri wants to prove that no relationship is perfect and has traumatic incidents that can break the relationship up between one another by falling out of love and just staying in an unhappy marriage although they don't love one another anymore. Human identity is different within all the characters in the stories, this is what Lahiri is trying to explain. I really like reading "Interepter of Maladies" because it shows human identity in numerous ways that others can relate to and have a connection which brings one another closer to the reading.
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ReplyDelete(Dr. Pruss - For some reason my whole post won't show up so I emailed you my complete answer. Thank you!)
ReplyDeleteAfter reflecting on each individual story in Jhumpa Lahiri’s book “Interpreter of Maladies,” I have come to the conclusion that these tales argue that it is one’s sense of self, others, and an individual’s particular environment that mainly define human identity. Lahiri’s book conveys the idea that there are many dynamics which come into play in the creation of human identities. She makes a point to display human identity as non-conformist in her tales, for each character appears to have an individual identity that is unique and distinct from others. I feel that Lahiri’s stories all focus on the fact that every human identity is multi-faceted and that the establishment of an identity and an understanding of self is a continuous process of lifelong discovery.
Lahiri’s story “Sexy” focuses on Miranda, a lonely woman who has few connections aside from Laxmi, a friend from the workplace. Miranda lacks a sense of true identity and longs to find a way to define herself within her life of solitude. She resorts to having an affair with Dev, a married man, in order to feel that she has purpose. Dev opens Miranda up to a facet of herself that she had been previously familiar with when he calls her “sexy.” Her relationship with Dev allows her to take on the role of mistress, “… Miranda went to Filene’s Basement to buy herself things she thought a mistress should have.” (92) Through their relationship, Miranda develops a sense of belonging and an understanding of her identity that enables her to end her affair with Dev and establish herself as an individual in her own right.
The short story “Mrs. Sen’s” is about an Indian woman who has had to uproot her life in Calcutta and move to an Eastern American city where her husband works as a university professor. Although Mrs. Sen tries to maintain many of her old customs in her new home, she is restrained by various factors causing her to suffer an identity crisis. For example, since Mrs. Sen is unable to drive on the main streets she becomes dependent on her husband and consequently loses her individual identity. “‘Here, in this place where Mr. Sen has brought me, I cannot sometimes sleep in so much silence.’” (115) Mrs. Sen is brought to a place where she is far from her family, estranged from her customs, and ultimately stripped of her human identity which she must rediscover within her life of isolation.
(cont.) “This Blessed House” focuses on a newly married couple who move into their new home and discover not only hidden Christian paraphernalia, but also seem to uncover aspects of their partner’s identity that they seem to have not previously been aware of. “It was a quality he did not understand. It made him feel stupid, as if the world contained hidden wonders he could not anticipate, or see. He looked at her face, which, it occurred to him, had not grown out of its girlhood.” (142) Sanjeev becomes irritated with Twinkle’s interest in the religious objects she finds scattered throughout the house, whereas Twinkle becomes bothered by the fact that Sanjeev cares so much about what other people think of him. Sanjeev concludes that Twinkle’s eccentricity and enthusiasm for life are part of who she is, part of her identity, so he realizes he must accept her and alter his own identity in order to make their relationship work.
ReplyDeleteLahiri’s stories center on her characters’ search for their identities in which gender, heritage, relationships, occupations, and their roles within their environments all intertwine, acting as defining characteristics in each individual’s identity.
Dr. Pruss,
ReplyDeleteMy post.. which I posted last night.. is also removed! I will try putting it on again but also email it to you.
Tiffany Robb
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ReplyDeleteHuman identity in Lahiri's book is a concoction of the honesty born from a situation and one's individual personality that unfolds from said situation. In many of her books honesty seems to be a recurring theme, a theme I could not readily ignore. In one of the stories, When Mr Pirzada Came to Dine, the young protagonist is swept away by Mr. Pirzada's presence. At first, naturally, she is held fast by her own upbringing and shys away from the stranger. Soon enough she warms up, and becomes lost in her own little world. She chooses to ignore the fact that their dinner guest will not always be there, and keeps his candies as mementos, as a reinforcement of their relationship. She no longer sees his background or where he comes from, but identifies with him by the honesty of his emotions. He feels a sadness because he must leave his family, and so too does Lilia feel saddened when he leaves her. They are not separated by their ethnicities or their localities, but instead united by the familiarity of emotions they felt. Lilia must eventually be honest with what has transpired, and she realizes that he never comes back. She throws his memory away by throwing the candy away. Her identity is shaped and born from their experience. Similarly, in A Temporary Matter, the husband and wife must come to terms and face the matter at hand. As temporary as their struggle or realization is, it must be dealt with. They attempt to hide their pain, to ignore the obvious struggles they silently endure, but eventually honesty frees them, and they forge a new identity through this honesty. Again, in Sexy, the pair have separate ethnic backgrounds, but find a common ground. A false common ground. They live lies and pretend that they can be a stable, happy affair-based couple. Eventually this perception is shattered when the truth of the matter is presented and haunts Miranda. This brings her to break it off. Using the strength of the truth, she realizes that her identity, her character, cannot endure being placed in such a negative light. She begins understanding who she is, and what she cannot accept from life.
ReplyDeleteIn light of all of these stories and how swiftly and powerfully the "truth" bucks and rears at each of the people presented in the stories, I believe it is safe to say that Lahiri views identity as an ugly truth, almost. A truth that people can ignore or try to twist. Their identities and how they've managed to shape them, based on their past and present circumstances, will always have a truth behind it. A blunt truth that many chose to ignore or dive into a fantasy to get rid of.
People's identities are shaped by their circumstances, by how they chose to react to them, or/and by how these circumstances build a person's character. In each of the stories there was a truth to each of their circumstances and how the character's reacted built their personalities. Lahiri, I believe, does not see identity as a complete positive or negative, but a truth. Truth can be both positive or negative, but most see it is a haunting negative that affects them on all levels of the psyche. The truth that is born out of each of their individual circumstances becomes apart of their identity. Truth forces them to expose who they really are, to see who they truly are. To see their true selves and forge integrity from it.
I believe the two foundations to human identity are communication and relationships with each other. Lahiri gives an example of this in the case of Shukumar and Shoba. The lack of communication in their relationship following their tragedy led to the ultimate termination of their union. The hurtful words uttered at the end of their relationship were a good example of negative communication that can destroy a relationship. Another good example of how communication and relationships go hand in hand is with Mr. Pirzada and Lilia. They had spent a couple of months building a father and daughter type relationship. Mr. Pirzada was missing his family and, although Lilia had her family, they were distracted doing other things. They used communication to develop their relationship. When Mr. Pirzada suddendly departed, Lilia was hurt and felt a sense of remorse. She was not informed he was leaving and the lack of communication hurt their relationship. This helped to build her identity as a person. It's the relationships in life that help to build the human identity.
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