Interpreter of Maladies is all about gaps in communication, even between people who speak the same language. But that doesn't mean characters don't communicate in Lahiri's stories; they just often struggle to do so. Love and marriage are also complex in Interpreter of Maladies. In these stories, marriage is an occasion of joy but also of secrets, silences, and mysteries. The themes of marriage and communication, or lack thereof, are some of the most prevalent themes throughout each tale in Interpreter of Maladies.
Miscommunication or unexpressed feelings weigh on several characters, destroying their well-being. A Temporary Matter is the best example of secrecy taking its toll on a marriage. Shukumar and Shoba, lost in their own grief, cease communication with one another. Blackouts allow them the freedom to share secrets they have never shared. They are unfailingly honest and can no longer maintain the illusion that their marriage is
…show more content…
Considering there is a lack of communication, there are few successful marriages in the collection. Twinkle and Sanjeev's relationship showcases the contrasting attitudes and attributes of marriage in Lahiri's collection. Although they are both born in America and their marriage is not arranged, Twinkle and Sanjeev are nearly strangers to one another. No matter what romantic feelings transpire within couples, each husband and wife in the stories remain individuals, each with their own secrets and desires. Sanjeev doubts his love for his wife because of this disconnect. Shukumar and Shoba are radically altered by the death of their child, and the toll is taken on their marriage. They are no longer the same people as when they met. Love is found in unexpected places and can shift in the wake of experience. By reading Sexy from the point of view of a mistress, the reader also understands that each romantic connection is a unique and personal affair. There are no absolutes or strict
Miranda thinks she is in love with Dev but in reality she is not because she doesn 't know him as a person at all. She soon realize this after the child tell her the meaning of Sexy. It because of her innocent and lack of knowledge of good relationship with people. She finally lets go of the romance when she knew that it would not change at all because he is a marry man. The main character seem to not be in love with Mala even though they have meet several of times before, It just like how Miranda does not know Dev in any way and is in love with him. They are arranged to be married to each other and force to live with each other. He even mention how he was not touch by her words when a letter was sent to him. The main character did not even kissed or hugged his wife. He just knew that she was the perfect wife do to the explanation given to him by his older brother.” The only thing I ws not used to was Mala.” (Lahiri 's 190). I think he was afraid to get to know someone he didn 't know about. It may be because he grew up in a different way than his wife. It was something he could not get used to. Shoba fell out of love with his wife even though he tried to get back with her. He did not know that he was not in love with her anymore. He assume that they would be together after the second day of the game they played. It was like he was getting things
...ople see from outside might not be the truth about a particular marriage though there may be some truth in it.
Radha is emotionally detached and fairly disdainful of her husband, Shyam. Their matrimony existed only in name, without any effort on the part of Radha to keep it lively. She was unable to create a bond with him and considered that her marriage was already “fractured” as she mentioned to Chris. It is the beginning to enjoy her life and first step indirectly to voice out her travail. An affair can add excitement and a sense of purpose to life, and often this activity helps to taste up the state of achieving autonomy, from the hands of the dominati...
The relationship between the husband and wife seems initially to be perfect. They both show each other expressions of love. There is understanding, harmony, financial security, and good communication between them. The couple spends a lot of time together, discussing future plans, and talking about the good moments they had in the past. However, behind all of this positive interaction between the two of them is something they are both not able
Love and affection is an indispensable part of human life. In different culture love may appear differently. In the poem “My god my lotus” lovers responded to each other differently than in the poem “Fishhawk”. Likewise, the presentation of female sexuality, gender disparity and presentation of love were shown inversely in these two poems. Some may argue that love in the past was not as same as love in present. However, we can still find some lovers who are staying with their partners just to maintain the relationship. We may also find some lovers having relationship only because of self-interest. However, a love relationship should always be out of self-interest and must be based on mutual interest. A love usually obtains its perfectness when it develops from both partners equally and with same affection.
One example of this is when James is having an affair with Louisa and keeping that secret from Marilyn, but eventually Marilyn discovers the truth and confronts her husband, she sadly says, “I am disappointed’ Marilyn’s head snaps up. ‘I thought you were different” (242). James’ secret has separated him from his wife and his kids, he doesn’t know how to communicate with his family after losing his daughter thus he finds a sense of relief with Louisa.. When Marilyn states, “I am disappointed” this identifies the tension between each other and how James’ actions have taken a toll upon their relationship. With Lydia’s absence, James has disconnected from his family, causing him to keep secrets from his family. Another example of how Lydia’s role impacts the idea of keeping secrets causes the destruction of a family due to the lack communication is at the dinner table. Nath is aware of Lydia’s abnormal experiences with Jack and how she has not been acting like herself the past couple of weeks, “Nath watched her--half-angry, half-afraid--as if he wanted to say something but didn’t know how” (221). Nath watching Lydia change right before his eyes hurt him more than anything, but what makes it worse is who she is influenced by, Jack. The last
...is an American by virtue but Indian due to her parent’s upbringing. That is the reason why she is referred to being an Indian-American author which she has embraced. Due to the fact Bengali marries within their caste, Lahiri married a Latin American Journalist Alberto Vourvoulias and have two sons, Octivian and Noor. After getting married, Lahiri does not feel the need to be shy about speaking in Bengali or any other language. Currently residing in Rome with her family to feel how immigrants adapt to change and to go experience what her characters and parents do in her short stories. Through writing, Lahiri has discovered the fact she belongs to both the worlds and the generations of Indian-American immigrants will change and bring intense joy. "It has been liberating and brought me some peace to just confront that truth, if not to be able to solve it or answer it.”
“ A Temporary Matter” paints the portrait of a young Indian couple, Shoba and Shukumar, who have become cold and distant after the birth of their stillborn child. Both Shoba and Shukumar are very well assimilated to American culture, so much so that their Indian culture has slowly melted away and they often struggle to reconnect with their Indian roots. Wife Shoba decides to play a game of truth every night when their lights go out. She says it reminds her of her grandmother in India. Shukumar jumps on the chance to spend this time with his increasingly distant wife. Shukumar thinks that the game is a way to help Shoba reconnect with her past in India but he later learns that there is much more to the game than he thought.
The author of the story was born in 1967 in London, and soon after she moved to Rhode Island in the United States. Although Lahiri was born in England and raised in the United States and her parent’s still carried an Indian cultural background and held their believes, as her father and mother were a librarian and teacher. Author’s Indian heritage is a strong basis of her stories, stories where she questions the identity and the plot of the different cultural displaced. Lahiri always interactive with her parents in Bengali every time which shows she respected her parents and culture. As the author was growing up she never felt that she was a full American, as her parents deep ties with India as they often visited the country.
Love is a concept that has puzzled humanity for centuries. This attachment of one human being to another, not seen as intensely in other organisms, is something people just cannot wrap their heads around easily. So, in an effort to understand, people write their thoughts down. Stories of love, theories of love, memories of love; they all help us come closer to better knowing this emotional bond. One writer in particular, Sei Shōnagon, explains two types of lovers in her essay "A Lover’s Departure": the good and the bad.
Some people believe that opposites attract. Others believe that people who are more similar will have a better relationship. Some prefer relationships with older people, and some prefer them with younger people. Jhumpa Lahiri, author of the short story collection Interpreter of Maladies, explores the dynamic of relationships in her works. In her short story “Interpreter of Maladies” a married woman confesses a secret to a man she barely knows. In her story “This Blessed House” a couple fights over the religious relics they find in their new home. While one reads Lahiri’s stories, a theme begin to emerge that shows the woman of the relationship behaving like an adolescent and the man behaving like her father due to the internalized idea of
This story is a great representation of how relationships have changed over the years. Weather its the female dominance or the relationships are given up. Shoba and Shukumar are great examples of this phenomenon. This couple can be related to a typical American relationship. Jhumpa Lahiri does a good job of detailing this failure of a relationship and explains how this couple breaks apart.
Twinkle, in comparison to Sanjeev, is very much a free spirit. While Sanjeev has only been married once, Twinkle is on her second marriage, and the first was to an “American who had tried and failed to be an actor” (Lahiri 57). Twinkle married an American, one who didn’t even have a real job; this is unlike the more traditional Sanjeev who married an Indian woman the first time.
He doubted whether he love Twinkle or not likewise she is quietly opposite of the girl Sanjeev wants to get married. This perception is quite common upon Indian husbands in different diaspora, whose majority expects the same from their wives. ―Women are expected to be docile homemakers. But their girlish charm may not be a quality an Indian husband in the diaspora may admire or tolerate in wives (Jain 2315). Twinkle‘s spontaneous and girl personality is mainly mirrored in her carelessness in the household and cooking.
The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy tells the story of the communist state of Kerala and the forbidden love between two castes, which changes the lives of everyone. In the novel an ‘Untouchable’, Velutha is a carpenter and works at Paradise Pickles and Preserves for much less than he deserves because of his status as an Untouchable in the caste system. Velutha falls into a forbidden love with a divorced woman, Ammu who is associated with an upper caste Syrian Christian Ipe family. Marriage was the only way that Ammu could have escaped this life, but she lost the chance when marrying the wrong man, as he was an alcoholic and this resulted in them getting a divorce. Ammu breaks the laws that state ‘who should be loved, and how and how much’, as their affair threatens the ‘caste system’ in India, which is a hierarchal structure and social practice in India in which your position in society is determined and can’t be changed. Arhundati Roy portrays the theme of forbidden love within the caste systems and shows how they are t...