Amos Wesonga 
Analyzing American Identity in Jhumpa Lahiri’s ‘The Namesake’ [PDF ebook] 

Essay from the year 2017 in the subject Didactics for the subject English — Literature, Works, , language: English, abstract: ‘The Namesake’ is the first novel from Pulitzer-winner Jhumpa Lahiri, focusing on the division between assimilated American children and Indian migrants. The author analyzes Ganguli family, beginning with Ashoke’s close confrontation with death when he gets through a train crash in his homeland, India. Apparently, this took place when he was reading his cherished novel by Nikolai Gogol. During his stay in the United States of America with his wife, he chooses to name his newborn child Gogol, which was a pet name. Later, this turns out to be his official name, and Gogol is oblivious of the importance behind it. Thus, this piece analyses the American identity in the novel, The Namesake by exploring the role of family, culture, and environment in shaping American identity