Indian American identity : career, family and home in Jhumpa Lahiri's Unaccustomed earth

Abstract

In my reading of Jhumpa Lahiri’s Unaccustomed Earth, I explore how Indian American identities are shaped and function. Identities are ever-changing and impossible to fix: the need to negotiate identities is therefore constant. The continuous renegotiation of identities lies at the core of Unaccustomed Earth, and is central in the lives of its Indian American characters. Though these short stories show the obstacles that Indian Americans must overcome in order to pursue the lifestyles of their choice, they also show some of the advantages that come with the territory. Many of the characters grow up to be high achievers, raised in a traditional manner within close-knit families. Lahiri’s stories offer many alternative ways of living and negotiating identities in the Indian American Diaspora. Three central spheres in which the characters find themselves negotiating their Indian American identities are: Career, Family and Home, and these will be discussed in the three main chapters of my thesis. Together they represent some of the core goals for the Indian American characters, and attaining these goals epitomizes success in America. However, my exploration of these three spheres also highlights that success can be difficult to achieve, and that happiness may be even more elusive than success.