The Namesake (5-7)

Hey guys, back at it with my second blog post! Once again, I felt I could really relate with some of the cultural struggles that Gogol (or Nikhil?) was feeling throughout this part of the novel. In fact, it’s like they just took quotes from my mom and put it into the book.

Before meeting Maxine, Gogol learns of ABCDs, which stands for “American-born confused deshi.” Upon learning of these, he begins to think about certain facts. We learn that “he cannot read or write it with even modest proficiency” (Lahiri, 118). I think for the most part, people like me who were born here, but come from immigrant families can agree with this statement. Speaking our mother tongue just comes naturally simply due to our parents using it all the time at home. However, learning to read and write is significantly harder. To add on to the difficulty, mandarin is a very complex language. Even with attending language school for around 8 years, the written language is completely lost on me now.

Really, what does this even mean?

Upon meeting Maxine and living with her for a while, he really starts noticing big differences between his own family and hers. “... the two of them kissing openly, going for walks through the city, or to dinner, just as Gogol and Maxine do… Gogol is reminded that in all his life he has never witnessed a single moment of physical affection between his parents” (Lahiri, 138). This is something I noticed personally when I was simply talking to another friend of mine. His parents would often go out for walks around the neighborhood, or even drive down to somewhere else more scenic and walk there instead. I thought it was really strange, as my parents would always bring me and my sister somewhere if they were to leave the house. At the same time, he thought it was really strange that my parents didn’t walk around just by themselves. I guess I was conditioned growing up to not see my parents showing many public displays of affection and found it somewhat strange when other parents did.

One part I really liked about the book is the ringing that Gogol imagines while on his trip with Maxine and her family at the cottage. Despite knowing his parents wanted him to call to let them know he arrived safely, he doesn’t (I will admit my parents do the same and I forget to tell them a lot of the times). Even though it’s really just a minor inconvenience at worst, he still chooses not to call them. Ultimately, I believe it is his guilt that caused him to imagine the ringing. Subconsciously, he knew that his parents already had enough to worry about and just calling them would really ease their minds.

Another thing I could agree on with is his decision to not attend MIT as he wanted to get away from his parents. For my post-secondary options, I actually want to do the same thing. Even though the University of Ottawa and Carleton University both have some pretty good programs, I want to get away from my parents just so I can learn to be independent and live on my own.

Now I think we can all agree that the biggest event throughout this part of the book was the death of Ashoke. It was quite unexpected and in my opinion, way too sudden. One day he’s perfectly fine, the next day he has a stomach-ache and right after he passes away?? I will admit that it was at this point that I found myself invested into the book. Just the thought of losing one of my parents so suddenly is truly saddening and not something I’d like to keep thinking about. It was probably especially bad for Gogol, given the little amount of time he spent with his father before the death.

Overall, my opinion is that this part of the book was a significantly better read than the first. Although I still felt chapters 5 and 6 were somewhat arduous and boring to read, chapter 7 really picked it up with the death of Ashoke and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

Works Cited

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Tones. (n.d.). Retrieved October 05, 2017, from https://xuehanyu.wikispaces.com/Tones

Manly scenic walkway. (n.d.). Retrieved October 05, 2017, from https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/things-to-do/walking-tracks/manly-scenic-walkway

G. (2016, September 14). Tv GIFs - Find & Share on GIPHY. Retrieved October 05, 2017, from https://giphy.com/gifs/season-rhobh-FBGYKjtG6urHW

G. (2017, July 10). Spongebob Squarepants GIFs - Find & Share on GIPHY. Retrieved October 05, 2017, from https://giphy.com/gifs/spongebob-squarepants-alone-lonely-ISOckXUybVfQ4