Aspects of Assimilation in Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake

Abstract

The aim of the article is the presentation of selected aspects of assimilation processes among Indian immigrants that arrived in the USA in the 1960s, as depicted in Jhumpa Lahiri’s realistic novel The Namesake, with a particular focus on the differences between the first and second generation migrants. The life stories of Lahiri’s characters, American Bengalis, illustrate several phases of assimilation, chief among them being structural assimilation and acculturation, as defined by Milton M. Gordon in his book Assimilation in American Life: The Role of Race, Religion and National Origins.