Refuse Thy Name?

The other night while I was watching Friends, Monica declares she will not take the last name Bing because it is "weird."  The casual diction "weird" creates a remote tone, which emphasizes the nonchalance both Monica and her fiancee Chandler feel at her name change.  The topic is easily forgotten without any problems, and their close relationship does not suffer because of her choice.  As I thought about this, my dad coincidentally brought up the fact that in the Middle East, a wife never changes her last name when she gets married.  Muslim women do not change their last name because Islam states that this may illustrate a transfer of property ownership.  This sparked more interest as I thought extensively about the name changing process.  Although Gogol and Moushumi do not practice Islam, I find their issues over her name change unnecessary.  I do believe her resistance to his name seems juvenile and ignorant, but I feel like they should not let something as trivial as a name affect their relationship.  Name changing traditions around the world vary; In Spanish-speaking countries, the wife has two last names and in Germany the wife or the husband may inherit their spouse's name.  Overall, the different customs of changing a name after marriage serve as a tradition, rather than a significant aspect of a relationship.

"It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas!"

With Thanksgiving quickly approaching and Christmas music blasting throughout the mall, I excitedly prepare for the holiday season.  I can hardly wait for Christmas cookies, snow, and decorating the tree.  A couple days ago in class discussion, the conversation turned to Christmas: American or religious?  I feel the answer to that question depends on the way the holiday is celebrated.  In The Namesake, the Ganguli's celebrate the holiday despite their religion by decorating a tree and throwing parties.  They partake in some festive activities, but they do not set up a nativity scene in their front yard or buy an Advent calendar.  Although my family is not Christian, we too celebrate Christmas, with cookies, music and a tree, without the religious aspects of the holiday.  I feel the media plays a large role in making Christmas more of an American holiday than a religious one.    

Similar Differences

I particularly enjoyed The Namesake and feel like I can relate to the characters in many ways.  My father immigrated to the United States from Syria and brought with him enriching culture.  Although my mother is not an immigrant, I still feel like I can relate well to Gogol and Sonia, born in America with immigrant parents.  My similarities make me feel extensive anger towards Gogol and his childish rebellion of culture, language, and parents, but I also understand some of his angst.  As a child, my father taught my sisters and I Arabic phrases and told us interesting stories about his homeland, but I was never pressured to take culture classes or speak the language, like Gogol.  I think my parent's ease with my interest in our heritage, unlike Ashoke and Ashima's pressure, made me embrace my culture more.  In intermediate and middle school, I felt discomfort due to the differences of my classmates' backgrounds and my own, but as I matured, I became more interested with my background.  I feel like if Ashoke and Ashima, although difficult, did not force their Bengali culture on their children, life would be happier for the Ganguli family.

Maxine

The other day while working on my data sheet, I thought back to Gogol's life with Maxine.  While I read those chapters, I honestly did not particularly hate Maxine as much as I hate Moushumi, but looking back, I wonder why she did not bother me as much.  At the beginning of their relationship, she seems great: "Maxine has a way of focusing her attention on him completely" (129).  The attentive indirect characterization of Maxine enhances Gogol's feeling of acceptance and I felt relived as it seemed like Gogol finally felt happy.  The fascinated diction such as "focusing" and "completely" creates an immersed tone, which also emphasizes the joy Gogol feels at the beginning of their relationship.  After Gogol and Maxine date for a while, Gogol learns that "[she] is open about her past" (137).  Maxine's direct characterization as "open" foreshadows the controlling nature she will soon employ in their relationship.  Things turn south when, after Ashoke's death, Maxine tells Gogol, "'You guys can't stay with your mother forever'" (182).  The didactic diction such as "can't" creates a controlling tone, which indirectly characterizes her as inconsiderate.  She, a grown woman, lives with her parents, and her obnoxious and hypocritical direction to Gogol bothers me so much.  Why can't Gogol find happiness?     

Moushumi

Today in class, we discussed Moushumi's role in chapter 10.  We talked about Lahiri's main characterization of her as well as the reason why chapter 10 focused solely on Moushumi.  After I finished chapter 9, Moushumi made me so angry.  I hated her, and as I dove into chapter 10 I felt prepared to hate her even more.  However, at their anniversary dinner, Moushumi seems highly uncomfortable: "She feels a lump form in her throat, tears filming her eyes" (252).  I agree that both Gogol and Moushumi seem at fault for their unhappy marriage, and I do dislike Moushumi more than Gogol, but I cannot help but notice how often she focuses on small details or cries over trivial reasons in this chapter.  One morning before work, Moushumi wakes up early: "Being out at this hour already feels like an accomplishment" (254).  Again, her feeling of fulfillment at completing such a simple task worries me and enhances my belief of her clinical depression.  Early one morning, she wakes up and notices rain puddles in the apartment: "The sight of it makes her weep" (266).  She seems overly emotional and although I hate her affair with Dimitri, I think her depression leads to some of her awful actions.  Her suspected depression makes me hate her less and even though I still sympathize with Gogol, I think he should notice that his wife seems unhappy and take more actions to help the suffering Moushumi.