The Namesake

In, "The Namesake," Jhumpa Lahiri continues to follow the lives of Ashoke and his new family. In the third chunk, Gogol, their son, is finally old enough to start school. Before taking Gogol to his first day of kindergarten, Ashoke and Ashima try to find a "good-name" for their son to be used only at school. Ashoke proposes the name Nikhil; even though she does not fully agree, Ashima accepts and so they take Gogol for enrollment. As they arrive to school, the family comes upon the very ignorant school principal who states that the school has two other Indian children enrolled, and perhaps the family may know them. Gogol is then introduced as Nikhil, but when he does not respond to the name, his father Ashoke mentions to him his real name and at the end of the day, the principal ignores the parents' decision to call Gogol by his "good-name," Nikhil and uses his pet name, Gogol instead. A couple of months later, Ashima becomes pregnant once more and in May, gives birth to Gogol's sister. At the time of the girl's birth, Ashima and Ashoke had already planned a "good-name" for the new baby, as they did not want to relive the difficult experiences of Gogol's name. The new baby was named Sonali—a combination of both her "good-name" and her "pet-name," though later in life, she will be known by her family only as Sonia. The family learns that in America, life is very different from what they are used to, and that it is now time to adjust to the American society they are now surrounded by.

Quote: "They've learned their lesson after Gogol."

Question: Why are American's so ignorant and why don't they accept other culture's traditions?

The Namesake

Jhumpa Lahiri's novel, "The Namesake," continues to trace the life of Ashima and Ashoke with their new baby. Ashima finally arrives home with her new baby and begins to notice how her husband truly is as a person. As she begins to look around her home, she feels grateful to be back again, but notices Ashoke's negligence towards the home's cleanliness—dirty dishes, dirty carpet, dirty clothes, dirty everything. Even though Ashima has been at the hospital awaiting to give birth to their child, Ashoke decides to stay home and do nothing, only because he is "a man." At that time, Ashima resignates to having to do everything around the house, but regards she cannot do it all. Ashima becomes overwhelmed with the duties of motherhood and the duties of being a housewife. Ashima then confesse that she is incapable of doing such things, but heedless Ashoke shows no consideration and offers nothing, but a cup of tea to help his wife.

Quote: "She begins to pride herself on doing it alone, in devising a routine."

Question: Why doesn't Ashima confront Ashoke to kindle him into caring for his child?

The Namesake

The Namesake, by Jhumpa Lahiri, follows the life of a couple that migrates from Calcutta, India, to the United States. The novel begins with Ashima feeling as though it is time for the baby to arrive, and is rushed to the hospital. As she waits for the coming of her baby, Ashima recaps on her life before marriage. Ashima and Ashoke—her husband—were married through an arranged marriage, and are now expecting a baby in a foreign country. Having just migrated into the United States, Ashima, the mother of the baby, is afraid of raising a child alone in a country she is not familiar with, and around people that are "unlike her." As she is about to delivery her baby, Ashima begins to think of how difficult life with a child will be in the United States without knowing anyone around her. When the child is finally born, he remains unnamed until a family memebr arrives with suggestions.

Quote: "It was only after the betrothal that she'd learned his name."

Question: Will the baby be accepted by the American people?

Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God

Johnathan Edward's sermon, "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," argues the belief that without the presence of a god, humans are doomed for our sins. The only reason we have remained out of hell for so long, is due only to God's sovereign power and his good will. The main theme of the discourse, is the way that religion plays a part in a human's life and the way that a human plays a part in religion. Edwards' sermon states that people are meant to serve God, and that disobeying his rules will cause the world to "spew you out," for "you are a burden to it." "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," illustrates the theme of the book with the continual use of imagery and metaphors, such as being at the edge of hell the way you would hold a spider above a dreadful fire. God has no obligation to retain us from falling into the pit of eternal damnation, yet he conceals our wickedness and keeps us at his side. I certainly did enjoy Johnathan Edward's sermon, "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," because it gives us a stance in the goodness that God holds among us—no matter how horrid our misdemeanors may be.

Question: Does religion form who we are as individuals?

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass

The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, is a memoir of Frederick Douglass's life as a slave and his hope to someday be free. Written by Frederick Douglass himself, the main themes of his story, are the quest to freedom and success, and the power of the human spirit to achieve that goal. In his narrative, Douglass argues the principle of how slavery is ethically wrong, and that the time for abolition has arrirved. Due to being born a slave, Frederick Douglass did not grow up with many opportunites, but he took advantage of any possibility he had to excel in learning—hoping that someday his education will make him free. Frederick Douglass illustrates the themes of his narrative by recapping on his suffering as a slave and his attempts for freedom and escape. I enjoyed reading Frederick Douglass's memoir of his life as a slave, because it gave me detailed insight on how difficult a slaves' life truly was and proved how one can accomplish any goal if we truly set our mind to it.

Questions:
How did Douglass discover at such a young age that an education was the key to freedom?
Why did Douglass' desire to be free seem bigger than the desire of other slaves? Why did it seem like he had more hope than the other slaves?