Gogol : American Culture, And Indian Culture

For starters, Ashoke and Gogol were different because they didn’t really have the same culture even though both of them are Indian. Ashoke was born and raised in India, unlike Gogol who was born and raised in America. Ashoke felt as if he was living in a foreign land because even though he had lived in America for many years, it was not a part of his culture. When they move back to Calcutta for eight months Ashoke felt alive and he felt like he could enjoy life because he wasn’t being judged by others. On the other hand, Gogol was born and raised in America and he had adopted the American culture. Gogol hated leaving The United States to move to Calcutta for eight months. In addition, he felt like an outsider because even though he was Indian he had never been around that culture so he didn’t really see the Indian culture as being a part of him. Gogol was more American than he was Indian, because he had been raised in America rather than India.

his freedom he quickly began to forget his original Indian traditions. The first of which was

The film, The Namesake, directed by Mira Nair, suggests that everyone has a cultural identity, whether they ignore or embrace it. Gogol Ganguli initially wants to abandon his family’s traditions and adopt American customs since he was born in America. Soon he learns that his name has a very emotional meaning to his father. Because of his new knowledge of the significance of his name, he begins to enter a transformation where he accepts and loves his culture. Throughout the film, Gogol has an internal conflict with himself when, on one side, he has his Indian culture, and on the other, he has the American culture he has always wanted to belong to. Although some people think that cultural identity is destined and final, I claim that cultural identity can change because of how willing people are to welcome it.

Difficult choices come and go from our life. Like trying to understand who you are as a person and where you come from. In the book The Namesake, a boy named Gogol grows up in a cultural Bengali family while living in a different country with different customs. Gogol is special because he is trying to balance the two cultures. Gogol tries to understand and learn his family's culture but tends to pick and choose things from each culture to fit his lifestyle. His response to his cultural collision is very unique. From this cultural collision Gogol question himself and his life decisions.

Gogol grapples with his name throughout the majority of the novel, yet this tension was in the makings even before his birth. Ashoke and Ashima being immigrants set Gogol up to live in two different cultures, American and Bengali. Many children of immigrants may feel like Gogol, having one foot in each world. Gogol framed his struggle with cultural identity through something tangible, his name. In Jhumpa Lahiri’s novel, The Namesake, Gogol’s struggle with cultural identity is exposed most greatly by the name others call him and his reaction to it.

The makeup of our everyday lives is influenced immensely by the culture we are a part of. In Bengali culture, a person is usually given two names, a pet name and a proper name. Families who move from Calcutta often struggle to assimilate to American life and maintain their cultural heritage. In the novel, The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri, Gogol’s changing of his name along with his romantic relationships with Ruth and Maxine show his initial rejection of Bengali identity and culture. This essay will give an explanation into the ways in which Gogol rejected his culture, first by changing his name, but also through his close relationships with American girls.

When someone has established his or her identity based on experiences and is proud of that identity, he or she is said to be comfortable. In the novel The Namesake, the main character, Gogol Ganguli, is divided between Bengali and American culture, while also having difficulty accepting his name. This causes him to struggle with establishing and being comfortable with his identity. In The Namesake, Gogol, who struggles to identify with his name and his culture, becomes more comfortable with himself after going through difficult life experiences

As Gogol grows, he begins to hate his name as Gogol, and requests to change his name to Nikhil. ""What is the reason you want to change your name, Mr. Ganguli?" the judge asks. … "I hate the name Gogol," he says. "I always hated it."" (p.101-102) as Gogol brings up this topic to discuss during dinner befor he changes his name in the summer, Gogol claims that because he is an Indian with a Russian name in America, nobody is taking him seriously, thrust requesting to change his name into Nikhil, even if it makes a huge hassle to change his legal documents. With out the question of his rare name and confusion of the choice, Gogol accepts himself more easier and believes that he has become more Americanized. Gogol sees himself more Americanized as people do while he attends parties and other group activities in his social circle.

“The Way of a Cherokee” by Foxxy is about her memories and experiences growing up as a young child with her sister, Sierra, and grandpa. She is a Native American that has lived in a world that is different from the world her grandpa grew up in. In addition, she learned to love and appreciate nature just like her grandpa did. I can relate to her relationship with her grandpa because I have created many memories with my grandpa. My grandpa told me stories about his childhood. In Foxxy’s essay she explores the relationship between identity and cultural history through physical location, family relationships, and language differences.

Many second generation minorities from immigrant parents are driven subconsciously to conform to new culture and social norms. For foreign born parents and native born children integrating the two cultures they inhabit brings about different obstacles and experiences. In Jhumpa’s “The Namesake” the protagonist Gogol is a native born American with foreign born parents. The difference with birth location plays an important role in assimilating to a new society in a new geography. The difficulty for parents is the fact that they’ve spent a decent amount of time accustomed to a new geography, language, culture and society which makes it difficult to feel comfortable when all of that changes. For Gogol the difficulty only lies with the cultural norms imposed by his parent’s and the culture and social norms that are constantly presented in the new society.

Intergenerational conflicts mainly involves in the process of searching identity in a new country. In The Namesake, it seems like the major part of the book is about Gogol’s identity formation and confusion. In fact, Ashima is also part of the process of forming American identity. One of the significant incident is the name-changing process of Gogol. At first, we can see how Gangulis’ parents Ashima and Ashoke are “still proudly and deeply entrenched in their Indian heritage” (Bhattacharyya 77), when they were asked to name their baby after themselves or one of the ancestors. They think “This tradition doesn’t exist for Bengalis, naming a son after father or grandfather, a daughter after mother or grandmother. This sign of respect in America and Europe, this symbol of heritage and lineage, would be ridiculed in India” (The Namesake 28). But later when Gogol ask to change the name, his parents agrees either because becomes accepting individualism or doesn’t want to explain why they name Gogol at the very first place. This explains how much Gogol wants to possess a new identity beyond his parents’ traditional norms.

This can be shown when Gogol’s in Maxine’s house in New Hampshire and Pamela says “But you’re Indian… I’d think the climate wouldn’t affect you, given your heritage” (157). People don’t seem him as American, which alienates him and causes him to put a wall between his past and his present. With the adoption of the name ‘Nikhil’, he can live only in the present but he cannot forget his old name. Subconsciously, he is still Gogol and so he does not respond immediately when he is addressed as Nikhil. He tries to become an entirely different person from what really he is. As Nikhil, he embodies the AmericnGogol struggles to carry the burden of two names. Nikhil resembles American names, yet ‘Gogol’ and his past follow him everywhere. Gogol is an outsider in American society whereas he does not feel intimacy with Bengali

The novel The Namesake written by Jhumpa Lahiri writes about the struggle and hardships of a Bengali couple who immigrate to the US from India to create a lifestyle outside of everything they have known all their lives. The story begins as Ashoke marries Ashima and brings her to the Massachusetts. Their first child’s name is Gogol, which they didn’t intend on naming initially but because of different mistakes, Gogol has officially become his name. This book/film gave a pleasant insight into identity

In the Namesake written by Jhumpa Lahiri, America is often referred to as the land of opportunity despite how foreign immigrants are still being treated as second class citizens such as an outcast. Throughout the novel The Namesake the parents of Gogol, Ashoke Ganguli and Ashima Ganguli brought their family to America to find their opportunity despite their strong beliefs in their Bengali culture. Going against their Bengali belief, Ashok and Ashima settled in america with their baby boy Gogol and their baby girl Sonia. Throughout the novel The Namesake Gogol has been struggling to find himself and make peace. Gradually throughout the story Gogol begins to wonder why his parents made the decision to come to america, Despite their strong Bengali beliefs to stay in india. Gogol’s crisis to finding himself slowly deteriorates when he finds himself come to peace with who he is. The author, Jhumpa Lahiri shows Gogol improving and developing as a mature character intellectually, socially, and emotionally despite all the hardships that Gogol had faced.

After Gogol leaves home, he meets Maxine who is American in every sense of the word. She is in the upper social class, and Gogol is attracted to her family because they are American. They call Gogol, Nick short for Nikhil. He distances himself from his parents by not returning phones calls, and upsets Ashima when he would rather visit Maxine’s parents than his own. Gogol does decide to stop at his parents on the way to visit Maxine’s, out of possible guilt for not keeping in touch. Gogol introduces Maxine, and she calls Ashima by her first name. It’s apparent that is not the respectful introduction Ashima would have preferred. Again, a clash in cultures, and what’s considered appropriate. Gogol and Maxine leave, and Maxine states she would’ve never guessed those were his parents. Gogol celebrates his birthday with Maxine’s family and his mother cannot get in