The story begins with a recipe, a mixture of “Rice Krispies, Planters peanuts and chopped red onion. She adds salt, lemon juice, thin slices of chili pepper…” (pg 1). This really is the best way to describe this book—the result of two worlds coming together. In an Interview, Jhumpa Lahiri says that “though I’ve never lived anywhere but America, India continues to form part of my fictional landscape” This was the perfect framework for her first full-length novel The Namesake which makes a fairly successful attempt to allure non-Bengali and Bengali readers. This novel traverses the legacy of one immigrant family from Calcutta, India—the Gangulis. From perspectives Ashoke and Ashima and their children Gogol (Nikhil) and Sonali Lahiri illuminates the plight of the immigrant as the constant negotiation of culture in the formation of identity.
Unlike many of her predecessors and contemporaries, Lahiri’s delicate prose doesn’t attempt to impose “Bengaliess” on the reader. The symbols and images are universal, and appeal more to one’s humanity rather than one’s nationality. When Ashima is about to give birth for the first time, she compares the immigrant experience to being pregnant. “Like pregnancy, being a foreigner is something that elicits the same curiosity from strangers, the same pity and respect.” (pg 50)
A non South Asian person with no exposure to the (Hindu)Bengali culture may not understand the significance of Gogol’s first rice feeding or the foreshadowing indicated by the watered-down wedding ceremony without the sacred fire. But for the most part, Lahiri does her best to describe American and Bengali culture with an equal amount of detail. She evokes the suburbia of Gogol and Sonia ‘s adolescence (which may invoke nostalgia in some readers) who ask Ashima and Ashoke questions a non-South Asian reader may be asking. Simultaneously, Lahiri portrays the combination of cultures to create something new. Much of the novel follows Gogol’s journey walking that tightrope between expectations of being Bengali and being American. Unfortunately it is not until after Ashoke dies that he develops a sense of respect for his Bengaliness.
Considering this is her first full-length novel, Lahiri does well to capture the immigrant experience and weaves the Ganguli family tales into one masterpiece of a book. Lahiri’s style is compelling and clear. She accepts the non-South Asian reader and welcomes the South Asian reader, leaving both groups reeling when by the time they get to the end of the book.
Author: Jacqueline Chatterpaul
