How Does Lahiri Present Examples Of Unexpected Events In 'The Overcoat'?

“They wept together, for the things they now knew.”(104) The last sentence of the first story in Interpreter of Maladies, reveals the cruelty of the elapsed romance in a marriage. In the two collections, A Temporary Matter and The Third and Final Continent, Jhumpa Lahiri demonstrates that a marriage can be either uplifting or discouraging depends on the mindset held by the couple and the strength of human bonding. Lahiri emphasizes the significance of mindset and human bondings through the ending of the two stories. The endings of the two stories are polar opposite : In A Temporary Matter, Shukumar and Shobha weeps for the termination of their relationship; The Third and Final Continent, by contrast, the protagonist(MIT) enjoys a fairytale-like

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.

time in his life. The theme of name and identity in Lahiri’s novel the Namesake is obvious.

He brings up the topic of when the circumstances arose, why did no one assist 2 of the people that had fallen onto the tracks. On one of the occasions a man named Wesley Autrey , age 50, had his two small children present when a man had fallen onto the tracks whilst experiencing a seizure of sorts. In disregard for his own safety, Autrey threw himself over the gentleman and proceeded to cover his body with his own as 5 railcars sped past and both men came out unscathed. The 22 seconds it took to save this man’s life was an example of the fight or flight response which, in this instance, he chose the fight

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.

After the initial rejection of his name at a party, Gogol has decided to legally change his name. This change is driven by the character’s disgust at the name his parents had given him, although it is he that had rejected being called Nikhil in kindergarten. The name Gogol comes to represent two very different things to his father Ashoke, and Gogol. To Ashoke, the name represents his life being saved the fateful night of the train derailment. As Caesar writes, “To Ashoke, the name Gogol is...a reminder of the way in which the reading of [Nikolai] Gogol’s short story saved his life…” (108). To Gogol Ganguli, the name simply reminds him of a strange and sad writer he learned about in English class, with no meaningful representation in his own life. Gogol is frustrated that his parents named him something so silly, especially since it is not even a Bengali name. As Gogol stands before the judge, he is asked why he wishes to change his name, to which he responds, “I hate the name Gogol...I’ve always hated it ” (Lahiri 102) His rejection of the name Gogol allows him to escape the identity placed upon him by his parents. Although Nikhil is an Indian name, it enables him to try on a new and more sophisticated identity. The one by which he has his first kiss, his admissions to college, and subsequently the relationships that

o “Whitman attempts, and succeeds at making the train come to live as a regal and powerful entity. The engine’s

After his divorce, which is a second difficult experience in his life, Gogol spends time with his family, specifically at a party his mother is hosting before she leaves for India, which again influences him to accept his Bengali culture. At this party, Gogol explores his old house and finds the copy of The Overcoat that his father once gave to him, which makes him realize that “without people in the world to call him Gogol, no matter how long he himself lives, Gogol Ganguli will, once and for all, vanish from the lips of loved ones, and so, cease to exist” (Lahiri 433). In college and when he was Maxine, going by Nikhil gives Gogol a newfound perspective in his life, one where being shameful of his name does not really exist. However, after going through both his father’s death and his divorce, Gogol feels upset when thinking about how he changed his name, which “provides no solace at all” (433). With most of his family and Moushumi gone, few people are left to call him Gogol, reminding him who he once was. Gogol’s sadness shows how he has become comfortable with his birth name, which he originally hated. Through his reading of The Overcoat and his reflection on the possible nonexistence of his life as Gogol, Gogol accepts both his name and his culture, which ultimately shows how he becomes comfortable with

Throughout the story “Samuel,” Grace Paley uses language to generate a healthy dialogue about the fragility of life by comparing the thoughts and reactions of all the characters in the story leading up to and following Samuel’s tragic death. The text leads the reader through four young boys’ adventures on a train. The story chronicles the thoughts of the passengers on the train in New York City, and their actions leading up to and following the unfortunate death of the main character, Samuel.

The story is concluded with the train arriving in five minutes, and with no resolution concerning the abortion or the couple’s relationship. Ernest Hemingway does not waste a word or line in this short story, giving everything a deeper meaning or importance. Hemingway uses various images and objects that project emotions and feelings that are not explained in words. They are left for the reader to infere for themselves. By looking at the symbolism of the title, the scenery, and drinks, we are able to analyze the truth in the couple’s relationship.

The author does a good job of keeping centralized around the train and train track theme to lead the reader to believe that there is foreshadowing taking place and that at least one of the boys will meet their fate and get hit by a train. This was shown by the boy that had already been struck and killed and the boys just happened to discover his body. They decided to do the same thing that the other boy had done when he was hit and walk down the train ties. They even decided that they should walk along the ties of a train bridge that did not even have a floor. It is miraculous that the boys were not struck and killed by a train. Rather most of them moved on to have a successful life. Others were less fortunate, such as Chris, who died prematurely after he was stabbed. Only two lived a full life. The narrator who has become a freelance writer and Ace. Ace just lives now. It is conceived that he has done nothing with his life and will continue not to. He did not even recognize the narrator when he saw him indicating that they were no longer

To anyone from New York City, the dangers of train cars are evident. This is why, when the reader begins to see that the children are acting recklessly, he becomes quite worried. This is because there are countless numbers of warnings on trains,

Gogol’s Parents, Ashima and Ashoke, gave him a name to add meaning and purpose to his life. The meaning is shown through Ashoke giving his son a name that represents hope for a better life and second chances yet it also represents tragedy. Nikolai Gogol, at the scene of Ashoke’s train wreck has passed away and this has a connection with Gogol’s life. When looking at his life it seems to be filled with confusion, disappointments, and dead-ends (Such as?) as he struggles to figure out whom he is and where he believes the curse of his namesake will lead him next.