"A Real Durwan" and "This Blessed House" - Othering and Change
I have read many of the short stories in Jhumpa Lahiri's Interpreter of Maladies before in undergrad, including "This Blessed House." In my undergraduate advanced fiction workshop, we might've talked about several different themes, but upon rereading "This Blessed House" in conjunction with "A Real Durwan," I'm finding many interesting connections throughout Lahiri's writing that I haven't noticed before.
The most prominent recurring theme in these two stories is that the narrators are, so to speak, on the outside looking in. In "A Real Durwan," Boori Ma is an observer of the apartment building, contributing only her sweeping and her stories, and cut off for the entirety of the story from the rest of the apartment's inhabitants; in a way, she is even cut off from the reader, since we never quite get enough into her head to know the reality of her past.
In "This Blessed House," Sanjeev can only watch as Twinkle unearths all the Christian paraphernalia, and is cut off from the rest of the party attendees as they join in Twinkle's search. Even though Twinkle has moved to his state (Massachusetts) instead of her to hers (California), and even though Twinkle has not made any new friends in her home, she charms everyone at the party while Sanjeev is left by himself, alone in his distaste for the Christian decorations.
On another level, the characters are culturally othered. Boori Ma was forced to deport to Calcutta after the Partition of 1947, and since she feels compelled to tell the residents about her lavish lifestyle before her deportation, we can assume that she is a foreigner amongst those who have perhaps lived in Calcutta all their lives. This further alienates Boori Ma from the residents, to the extent that they see her as more of an entertainer than a peer, and when it comes down to it, it is easy for them to boot Boori Ma out of their lives.
Though the cultural themes of "This Blessed House" are more subtle, they are still present. Sanjeev and Twinkle are both Indian and Hindu, and knew each other only for four months before getting married in India "at the urging of their matchmakers" (143). Though they live in the United States and though Sanjeev chose Twinkle over his mother's other choices for prospective brides, their life up to the point in this story has been rooted in Indian tradition. With the introduction of the Christian objects, Sanjeev becomes distant from Twinkle, and especially during the party, Sanjeev is further alienated when everyone becomes fascinated by the Christian objects rather than opposed to, as Sanjeev is. One party attendee even assumes that there are no Christians in India, a small microagression that also contributes to Sanjeev's cultural alienation.
Another theme in these stories is that of change. In the beginning of "A Real Durwan," Boori Ma is a creature of habit, maintaining the same routine of sweeping and storytelling day in and day out. However, when Mr. Dalal gets a promotion and buys two new basins, this introduces change to the apartment building. The wives decide to continue the renovations, and these disturbances to the building, Boori Ma's home and work, cause her own routine to be disturbed. Most significantly, she stops telling stories about her past, as though the changes are erasing her history and the history of India before Partition. When the residents kick her out of the newly-renovated building, it is as though they are erasing that history themselves.
In "This Blessed House," Sanjeev's life is also filled with change. After beginning his married life with Twinkle, the previous comforts he was accustomed to - cleanliness, quiet, classical music - are disturbed by Twinkle. Sanjeev prefers a life that make sense, whereas Twinkle introduces Christian objects, which do not make sense in their household since Sanjeev and Twinkle are Hindu. Instead of being kicked out of the changing life, however, Sanjeev is forced to (or perhaps, forces himself) to ride with the waves of change, submitting himself to Twinkle's Jesuses and Mother Marys. However, in submitting to the change, he loses part of himself. Just like the apartment building loses Boori Ma's history when they kick her out, Sanjeev loses his old lifestyle when he marries Twinkle.
The most prominent recurring theme in these two stories is that the narrators are, so to speak, on the outside looking in. In "A Real Durwan," Boori Ma is an observer of the apartment building, contributing only her sweeping and her stories, and cut off for the entirety of the story from the rest of the apartment's inhabitants; in a way, she is even cut off from the reader, since we never quite get enough into her head to know the reality of her past.
In "This Blessed House," Sanjeev can only watch as Twinkle unearths all the Christian paraphernalia, and is cut off from the rest of the party attendees as they join in Twinkle's search. Even though Twinkle has moved to his state (Massachusetts) instead of her to hers (California), and even though Twinkle has not made any new friends in her home, she charms everyone at the party while Sanjeev is left by himself, alone in his distaste for the Christian decorations.
On another level, the characters are culturally othered. Boori Ma was forced to deport to Calcutta after the Partition of 1947, and since she feels compelled to tell the residents about her lavish lifestyle before her deportation, we can assume that she is a foreigner amongst those who have perhaps lived in Calcutta all their lives. This further alienates Boori Ma from the residents, to the extent that they see her as more of an entertainer than a peer, and when it comes down to it, it is easy for them to boot Boori Ma out of their lives.
Though the cultural themes of "This Blessed House" are more subtle, they are still present. Sanjeev and Twinkle are both Indian and Hindu, and knew each other only for four months before getting married in India "at the urging of their matchmakers" (143). Though they live in the United States and though Sanjeev chose Twinkle over his mother's other choices for prospective brides, their life up to the point in this story has been rooted in Indian tradition. With the introduction of the Christian objects, Sanjeev becomes distant from Twinkle, and especially during the party, Sanjeev is further alienated when everyone becomes fascinated by the Christian objects rather than opposed to, as Sanjeev is. One party attendee even assumes that there are no Christians in India, a small microagression that also contributes to Sanjeev's cultural alienation.
Another theme in these stories is that of change. In the beginning of "A Real Durwan," Boori Ma is a creature of habit, maintaining the same routine of sweeping and storytelling day in and day out. However, when Mr. Dalal gets a promotion and buys two new basins, this introduces change to the apartment building. The wives decide to continue the renovations, and these disturbances to the building, Boori Ma's home and work, cause her own routine to be disturbed. Most significantly, she stops telling stories about her past, as though the changes are erasing her history and the history of India before Partition. When the residents kick her out of the newly-renovated building, it is as though they are erasing that history themselves.
In "This Blessed House," Sanjeev's life is also filled with change. After beginning his married life with Twinkle, the previous comforts he was accustomed to - cleanliness, quiet, classical music - are disturbed by Twinkle. Sanjeev prefers a life that make sense, whereas Twinkle introduces Christian objects, which do not make sense in their household since Sanjeev and Twinkle are Hindu. Instead of being kicked out of the changing life, however, Sanjeev is forced to (or perhaps, forces himself) to ride with the waves of change, submitting himself to Twinkle's Jesuses and Mother Marys. However, in submitting to the change, he loses part of himself. Just like the apartment building loses Boori Ma's history when they kick her out, Sanjeev loses his old lifestyle when he marries Twinkle.
I really appreciated your take on these two stories and the parallels you drew between them. I was especially captivated by your commentary about "This Blessed House," where you talked about what the introduction of the Christian objects does for Sanjeev in the story. Lahiri's genius here is using these objects as a doorway through which Sanjeev can observe his life and choices. In a way, this is very meta because all religions ask us to do this: consider questions or morality, faith, commitment, and ethics. I like how Lahiri's writing here about alternative religious iconography gives Sanjeev an opportunity to reflect. Pretty genius stuff.
ReplyDeleteReally excellent job dissecting the changes of Sanjeev's forced assimilation and the tension his resistance causes between him and Twinkle. I didn't catch that detail about Boori Ma's previous life. We all tend to envision our past with inaccurately rosy glasses, but it seems clear that she lost something she never wished to lose and deeply regrets losing. I am curious whether you think Sanjeev's situation necessitated his loss of self, or whether he envisioned the burden of assimilation in such a way that he had to lose himself in order to attain it?
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