The Management Of Grief By Jhumpa Lahiri Summary

An Ocean Of Difference Distance is such a simple concept and yet it can cause the greatest of changes in a people. This idea is reflected powerfully in the stories “The Management of Grief” and “Interpreter of Maladies” written by Bharati Mukherjee and Jhumpa Lahiri respectively. Their stories illustrate two different cultures populated by the same people, Indians. Although they are all Indian, the people are separated by a culture barrier between countries. In “The Management of Grief” a Canadian widow finds that her life is drastically different from the lives of her family in India(Mukherjee, 434). In “Interpreter of Maladies” an Indian man comes to know a an Indian-American family there on vacation(Lahiri, 448). These stories compare two

In India, culture, tradition, and religion have an influence in every aspect of life from the food they eat, how they greet one another, and even how they marry. To Native Indians, there isn 't much that 's more important to them than their family and their culture, as shown by Mr. Kapasi 's surprise at the standoffish attitude of the Das parents(Lahiri, 450). The Das come from America where there is much less emphasis placed on family values and togetherness. The mother, Mrs. Das blatantly ignores her children, focusing instead on painting her fingernails(Lahiri, 451). The father is more concerned with talking to their driver, Mr. Kapasi, about the tour before his wife takes over the conversation clearly taking an interest in Kapasi and his work as a translator and interpreter(Lahiri, 452). The children are rowdy and talk back to their parents while allowing their attention to wander. In India, this sort of behavior, that of the parents and the children alike, would be frowned upon desperately and the entire family may be excommunicated from the community. India parents are taught to be strict, yet attentive to their children. If a child addresses their parent, the parent is obligated to reply to them, even if it is to scold them. Also, children are taught to be respectful of their parents at all times, even after they become parents themselves. A Native-born

Her and her husband lived in an area with a community of other Indian-Canadians. This story addresses Shaila 's experiences from the moment she learns of the plane crash to the moment she decides take up the cause of the Indian voter and start a foundation/charity. Upon hearing of the incident she does not burst into tears and hysterics. Unlike the other Indian women, she appears stoic and calm in the face of such tragedy. Others see her as a “pillar” of the community in this time of need.(Mukherjee, 437) However, inwardly she worries that there is something abnormal and terrible about her calm and it isn 't caused by the pills the doctors prescribe her for her stress and trauma from the experience of losing her family. Her reaction may be a cause of her adjustments to Western culture where expression of grief is often looked down upon and seen as a sign of weakness, which would account for why her calm is perceived as strength. Shaila and a few other family members of the deceased plane passengers return to India, and yet despite being Indian by nature, some still return to the Western world and resume their lives there as Canadians and Americans, Shaila moving back to Toronto after living with her parents in India for several months for example. Another “relative”, Dr. Ranganathan, returns to the West