Jhumpa Lahiri officially published Interpreter of Maladies in 1999 but had been working towards this accomplishment all her life. The collection of nine different stories encompass the lives and experiences of various Indian Americans. They often take on the challenges of relationships and dynamics between couples and families at difficult times in their lives. The rich history and diversity of Indian culture play a huge role throughout the stories, some of them focusing on religion, some using the food traditions of the country.
Lahiri was able to draw from her own experiences for much of the context of the stories as she is the daughter of Indian immigrants. Her family moved from London to the United States when she was very young. Growing up with a mixture of cultures greatly influenced her life, specifically her writing, as these themes of characters trying to balance their heritage and their new life in America appear frequently. When the collection of stories was published, America’s growing economy led to a peak of foreign immigration and the Indian American population was steadily growing. Her experiences growing up in the United States, but frequently visiting India allowed her to draw from personal experience to pour into her work.
While there are many factors that play into the immigration of Indians to America the main driving force in the 20th century was the Partition. The history of the Partition goes back to when England first colonized India in the 1600s. This ended when India gained their independence in 1947, and divided India into two independent countries of India and Pakistan. This division was not easy or peaceful and was largely based on religious grounds. With widespread violence across the country, the Partition displaced millions of people and eventually lead to the mass emigration of Indians to the Western world in the 1960s. Many of them were chasing opportunities and advancements in the growing American economy, such as Lahiri’s family. Some of her short stories even directly refer to the Partition, specifically “When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine” in which a man and his family had been displaced in Pakistan.
Sources:
Jhumpa Lahiri Biography. (2006, October 31). Retrieved March 19, 2021, from https://www.chipublib.org/jhumpa-lahiri-biography/
Lahiri, J. (2019). Interpreter of maladies: Stories. Boston: Mariner Books, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
The Partition of India: What Happened? – BBC Newsround. (2018, December 6). Retrieved March 19, 2021, from https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/46428985
I appreciate the history you described in your post. It was great to read it in another format and perspective to really nail in the information I read before. Although all of us share different experiences, I for one love to hear from other perspectives. To hear another persons life story and how they overcame challenges or struggles, can help other people out who feel they are going through similar situations.
I find it is important to have background on events that you talk about, that way you have some context of what you are talking about – It looks like that is just what Jhumpa Lahiri did. As she grew up in Rhode Island, but also visited India, she got to experience both the inside and outside part of that world. She understood the war that went on from the inside stance, but she also watched it instead of being in the middle, she saw that impact both ways. Great job on your presentation, it most definitely got me thinking. One question that I have: although she visited and knew the background behind the events in India, was it ever specified which part she visited or where her heritage was from?
Very nice context presentation. I enjoyed how you spoke about the history of the partition and described that this was a main factor for the displacement of Indian people. It was also good how you described Lahiri’s duality of culture and how that impacted how she told her stories and what she would base her stories about. This really helped me understand where her ideas come from and also assists me in understanding her motives for writing some of these stories. Finally, your reference to the particular story of “When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine” and how it related to the partition allowed me to understand that story better.
I appreciate the way you concisely laid out your contextual background on Interpreter of Maladies here. One can see how Lahiri’s own experiences on three continents shaped the characters of her short stories, balancing old and new lives as you say. I was not aware of the peak of immigration you mention in 1999 before reading your blog post. Thank you for providing more history on the Partition as well.
Hi, I think that because the author understood and when through the process of coming to a new country made her writing so well because she used her own experience. I think that a lot of people do not care why a person is immigrating to a new country but puts them in a category as a person trying to do crimes in that country or take advantage of what the country has to offer. People forget to understand that a person may be leaving for safety reasons and a way to have their families grow up in a world of peace and opportunities. If there was a way for anyone to give their children a life with no struggles I strongly believe that everyone would jump at the opportunity. Great work.
I liked your presentation! I think you were very straightforward with the information you wanted to share with us and that made it a fun read. I agree that we see the commonality of a character trying to blend in in America in this story too. I appreciate that you gave us some background information on immigration and colonization from hundreds of years ago. I think that helps us better understand the author’s story. Thanks for a great presentation!