The Namesake (Pages 220-291) "Fin"

Title: The Namesake
Author: Jhumpa Lahiri
Pages: 220-291
Chapters: 9-12

SUMMARY: After the wedding, Gogol and Moushumi buy their own apartment. They invite their friends for martini parties unlike their parents. They soon move to Paris for Moushumi's conference. There Gogol feels isolated because he feels like a stranger, lost, looking for directions as Moushumi is busy during the day at her conference. Gogol learns a little French in Paris and also begins to explore the breath taking architectures he used to see in books. They return to Brooklyn at a dinner party of Donald and Astrid, friends of Moushumi. People gather up at the living room where they shout out names for Donald and Astrid's child. Moushumi was a bit tipsy so she informs the crowd that Gogol changed his name. Gogol, aghast by Moushumi's statement, admits in front of the crowd. Later, furiously, he yells at Moushumi that they already talked about his namesake. At their first anniversary, Gogol and Moushumi go out to dinner in an extravagant restaurant recommended by Donald and Astrid. Moushumi seems unhappy about the food's quality and quantity. They soon leave the restaurant and Moushumi is still hungry. She decides to finish her last semester in NYU but she had to deal with a horrid scene. Suddenly, she sees Alice, the administrative assistant being taken by the paramedics. Alice passed away due to aneurysm. Moushumi takes a brief look at her office although she didn't prefer her so much and begins to look at the mailboxes. She finds a resume of Dimitri Desjardins who she begins to date furtively. On the other hand, Sonia meets Ben who becomes her boyfriend. Ashima throws her last party in United States as she decides to sell her house and move to India for six months. Gogol discovers Moushumi's secret about her affair with Dimitri. He leaves her and goes to the celebration arranged by his mother and Sonia. During the party Gogol goes upstairs and finds a book of Nikolai Gogol that he received from his father as a present. He reads the first story, "The Overcoat." His mother comes looking for him and asks him to join the party with the guests. They wish that Ashoke was there with them. Gogol leans back and begins to read the book as Ashima engages in a conversation with the a guest.

QUOTATION: "He felt the chill of her secrecy, numbing him, like a poison spreading quickly through his veins. He'd felt this way on only one other occasion, the night he had sat in the car with his father and learned the reason for his name" (Lahiri 282).


REACTION: Here we have Gogol vs. Moushumi. One of the most intense scenes in the novel. This is a nice quote that uses simile to describe the inner fiasco Gogol is having with a poison. Plus, it is related to his namesake which is also an important factor. The shock was so sudden for Gogol that the author had to relate it to the one-on-one event of him and his dad because the readers already knew about the affair. This is a great book. I really connected with this book in a good cultural way. I recommend this book to everyone especially to ones who would like a taste of Indian-Bengali culture. (Note: Fin for French connection with Moushumi).

~Fin~