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Interpreter Of Maladies

Decent Essays

“Everyone is a moon, and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody,” says Mark Twain. Twain’s concept shines through in multiple stories of Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri. Human vulnerability glimmers in the dark, while harsh public facades gloom over the daylight. Lahiri utilizes darkness to display true selves, personalities the individual desires to be seen are showcased using light. These devices are especially relevant in the text which is a tribute to human emotion and interaction as well as the power knowledge as on the heart. Two stories this is mainly true in are “A Temporary Matter” and “Interpreter of Maladies”. “A Temporary Matter” uses darkness in a literal sense, during multiple blackouts. Shoba and Shukumar …show more content…

Shukumar contrasts with her as he tends to wear his dissatisfaction on his sleeve, actively trying to rekindle their relationship by reminiscing positive memories. For example, when he looks at her recipe book, carefully recalling the dates and ingredients put to use in creating the memory of a meal, which in many cultures serves as a bonding experience, building relationships. Also, he makes her aware of how how her constant avoidance of him becomes an incontinence. When she complains the lights should be turned off during the day, when no one is home, he speaks up and corrects her, saying, ““When I’m here, you mean,”"(1). In the light, he is transparent that he wishes to move past the loss of a child, to address their grievances head on. In the darkness, oppose to seeking out a connection, he, in the beginning is slightly abrasive, dreading her touch. “At some point in the evening she visited him. When he heard her approach, he would put away his novel and begin typing sentences. She would rest her hands on his shoulders and stare with him into the blue glow of the computer screen. “Don’t work too hard,” she would say after a minute or two, and head off to bed. It was the one time in the day she sought him out, and yet he’d

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