Psychological Journeys in Diasporic life: A Study of Works of Jhumpa Lahiri and Bharati Mukherjee

  • Ms Monica PhD Scholar
Keywords: Key Words: Psyche, Diaspora, Migration, Homeland, Hostland, Exile, Identity, Alienation

Abstract

This paper examines the migratory experiences of the immigrants and the role of psyche in their life which is well portrayed in the works of Jhumpa Lahiri and Bharati Mukherjee. It attempts to diagnose the problems of aggravated psyches and tries to resolve the complications associated with it. The comparative analysis of these texts demonstrates that a merging identity is dependent upon a return to the protagonist's roots either by the protagonist or medium which is closely associated with them.  Their identity keeps shifting from past to present and vice versa. They are living in the contrasting experience of association and dissociation through psychological journeys. The migrants keep travelling to their ancestral homeland and in the process develop a value system that reflects the manifold identity.

Key Words: Psyche, Diaspora, Migration, Homeland, Hostland, Exile, Identity, Alienation

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Author Biography

Ms Monica, PhD Scholar

Ms Monica is currently a PhD Scholar. She has also worked as an Assistant Professor (Ad Hoc and Guest Faculty) with Delhi University. Her research interests include Diaspora Studies, Stylistic Studies, Indian Writings in English, and Victorian Literature. She has published research papers/chapter (book) in reputed national and international journals.

References

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3. Lahiri, Jhumpa. The Namesake. New Delhi: Harper Collins Publishers Ltd., 2007.Print.
4. Interpreter of Maladies: Stories of Bengal, Boston and Beyond. New Delhi: Harper Collins Publishers, 2007. Print.
5. Mukherjee, Bharati. TheTiger’s Daughter. New Delhi: Penguin Books, 1990.Print.
6. The Middleman and Other Stories. New Delhi: Penguin, 1990. Print.
7. Mukherjee, Bharati. "Immigrant Writing: Give us Your Maximalists!" New York Times Book Review (28 Aug. 1988): 27-29.
8. Pankaj Mishra. “There’s no place like home” in Away: The Indian Writer as an Expatriate Ed. Amitava Kumar. (New York: Routledge, 2004):388.Print.
9. Rushdie, Salman. Imaginary Homelands: Essays and Criticism 1981- 1991. London: Vintage Books, 2010. 12. Print.
10. Said, Edward. Reflections on Exile and Other Essays. Cambridge.
Published
2019-11-05
How to Cite
Monica, M. “Psychological Journeys in Diasporic Life: A Study of Works of Jhumpa Lahiri and Bharati Mukherjee”. Contemporary Literary Review India, Vol. 6, no. 4, Nov. 2019, pp. 25-34, https://www.literaryjournal.in/index.php/clri/article/view/407.
Section
Research Papers