If certain books are to be termed 'immigrant fiction,' what do we call the rest? Native fiction? Puritan fiction? This distinction doesn't agree with me.
Jhumpa LahiriRead
Gogol remembers having to do the same thing when he was younger, when his grandparents died...He remembers, back then, being bored by it, annoyed at having to observe a ritual no one else he knew followed, in honor of people he had seen only a few times in his life...Now, sitting together at the kitchen table at six-thirty every evening, his father's chair empty, this meatless meal is the only thing that seems to make sense.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the significance of rituals in honoring loved ones and the way they evolve in meaning over time.
In this quote, Gogol reminisces about his earlier indifference towards familial rituals following the death of his grandparents. As an adult, he finds solace and meaning in those same rituals, particularly in the context of his father's absence, illustrating how practices that once seemed irrelevant can become profound anchors of remembrance and connection in times of loss.
Themes
RitualsLossFamilyMemoryGrief
In practice
Example use cases
During a family gathering, this quote could highlight the importance of traditions in honoring deceased loved ones.
More from Jhumpa Lahiri
All quotes →When I sit down to write, I don't think about writing about an idea or a given message. I just try to write a story which is hard enough.
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When I am experiencing a complex story or novel, the broader planes, and also details, tend to fall away.
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I think each time you start a story or novel or whatever, you are absolutely at the bottom of the ladder all over again. It doesn't matter what you've done before.
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The sky was different, without color, taut and unforgiving. But the water was the most unforgiving thing, nearly black at times, cold enough, I knew, to kill me, violent enough to break me apart. The waves were immense, battering rocky beaches without sand. The farther I went, the more desolate it became, more than any place I'd been, but for this very reason the landscape drew me, claimed me as nothing had in a long time.
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On the technical side, I hope that my writing is evolving and maturing, ripening, deepening.
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