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The Immigrant Generations Argument: In this article the author, Mandira Sen, focuses on the major themes that Lahiri presents in her short stories found in her novel "Unaccustomed Earth." Sen focuses on the Indian immigrants desire to distance themselves from their families and the Bengali traditions. There are several different short stories, and in each, although detailing various lifestyles and events, common themes and ideologies can be found. For example, Sen reveals that all the short stories generally tell of tragic, unhappy, and sometimes depressing actions, contrary to a lot of writers. Lahiri's characters tend to grow distant from their family and in some cases break all ties with them. And in other cases, their American friends, spouses, etc. do not fully understand them because they are living in between two cultures, and it becomes hard to relate to/follow both cultures at the same time. Evidence: "Lahiri depicts uncertainty, betrayal, cruelty-and the looming presence of death in a culture that shies away from it" (Sen). "Does being torn asunder between two worlds, the one left behind, the one sought, heighten a consciousness of loss and death, as the fragments of existence do not quite come together?" (Sen). "Consisting of five short stories and a novella in three parts, Unaccustomed Earth focuses on relationships in which communication is often partial, and what is unsaid is perhaps more important that what is said. This is especially so between the generations; both seek refuge in concealment" (Sen). "The children are embarrassed at being different and are careful almost never to reveal any details of their home life to their American friends" (Sen). "Despite Sang's emotional turmoil, obsession, and isolation, she refuses to ask for help, perhaps because she has not informed her family that she has dropped out of graduate school at Harvard--Asian families would see this as unacceptable 'failure,'" (Sen). "J

Literary Analysis #2 Argument: In his work analysis, Kellman argues about the difficulties that Indian/East Indian immigrants face in the course of their American lives. Most of the characters in Lahiri's novel were either born in the United States or immigrated at a young age. Kellman argues that through the transition, these characters have lost their Bengali roots. Kellman critiques the thoughts and actions between the main characters and their familes who have retained a strong hold on their Bengali roots and ideals. He depicts the clash of cultures and how Lahiri's charcters struggle to thrive in "Unaccustomed Earth." Evidence: "If her Indians are everywhere, they are at home nowhere"(Kellman). "Lahiri's characters strike their roots in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Washington State, corners of the earth unaccustomed to Bengalis. However, the transplantation does not produce the vigor Hawthorne expects in relocated tubers. Most of the characters in these pensive stories are transplants who never find a soil in which to thrive" (Kellman). "Her characters belong to generation 1.5; children of immigrants, they were either born in the United States or arrived too young to have formed an Indian identity" (Kellman). "Though dragged along on family visits to Calcutta, they lack an appetite for Indian foods, languages, and spouses" (Kellman). "For Lahiri's characters, the tension between Old World and New World identities is often embodied in the generation gap between parents who look back to India for models of behavior and of thought and of children who strive, however futilely, to pass for unhyphenated Americans" (Kellman). "Nevertheless, even those children who manage to attain worldly success are haunted by a sense of loss"(Kellman). "However, the problem for Lahiri's characters is only in part an unbridgeable chasm between cultures. She depicts a world in which to be human is to fail" (Kellman). Thoughts: Kellman present