Author : Salma Khanam Barbhuiya 1
Date of Publication :15th October 2020
Abstract: The paper critically analyzes Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake in context of cultural conflict emerging because of diaspora. The novel focuses on many differences and assimilations between the first and second-generation diasporic identity. Diasporic literature is an umbrella term which includes works written by immigrant writers. Diasporic literature deals with alienation, displacement, rootlessness, nostalgia, quest for identity. It also focuses on disintegration of cultures or cross-cultural emergence. Jhumpa Lahiri is one of the famous Indian American authors whose works are full of descriptions of immigrant experiences. She portrays the migrant’s experiences and their attachment to homeland along with their desire to belong to the new land for better opportunities. This paper aims to discuss and question the sense of displacement in the lives of the characters in The Namesake and especially its main character Gogol Ganguli. Question of identity always rises for those who are culturally displaced and it is a major theme in The Namesake. Cultural factors are very important in the quest for the identity and self, especially for immigrants. People living in diasporic condition always face cultural clashes and confusions. Diaspora is all about creating new identities in a new cultural space. This paper explores various diasporic aspects especially cross-cultural emergence in the novel The Namesake.
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