International Journal of English Literature and Culture
 

International Journal of English Literature and Culture

Vol. 7(1), pp. 4-9, January, 2019

 ISSN: 2360-7831

DOI: 10.14662/IJELC2018.090

Review paper

Jhumpa Lahiri’s “Interpreter of Maladies” depicts the displaced immigrant protagonists and second-generation Indian-Americans searching for their identity in the culture of the other. Each story in the collection depicts the lives of Indians dealing with different roles and circumstances. Some are living in India and some are Indian immigrants surviving in the United States. The hyphenated Indian identity has stuck them between two different approaches i-e: Indian American and Indian. We find a strong connection between identities throughout the nine stories. These stories may seem as individual nine stories, but the underlying themes of all the stories are same. Language, Nostalgia and fear of separation are visible throughout the pages. It’s a literary piece in which characters are grappling to know how to become visible and fit themselves in a different social setting.  This research paper will be discussing connection of language with the lives of the people. From Lahiri’s collection, I have selected four short stories namely “A Temporary Matter”, “When Mr. Pirzada came to Dine”, “Interpreter of Maladies” and “Mrs. Sen”. Cultural diaspora and nostalgia have led characters to negotiate the gulf between Indian and white cultures. In its discussion of four stories of the collection, in which language has a central role, the paper draws on ideas and opinions about the given topic. Through a keen observation and attention to the characters and their environment and relationships, theme of language will be analyzed. This paper will be spotlighting the trauma, consciousness and possible success, failure or resistance of characters in which they acquire new identities of other culture through language and identity-quest.

KEYWORDS: Identity, Language, Nostalgia, Hybridity, Diaspora, Immigrants.

Cite This Article As:  Bushra, B (2019). Analyzing Theme of “Language” in Jhumpa Lahiri’s Selected Short Stories. Inter.  J. Eng. Lit. Cult. 7(1): 4-9