Interpreter Of Maladies

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Interpreter of Maladies

A short story Interpreter of Maladies was done in 1999 by Jhumpa Lahiri who is Indian –

American writer. The book has won several awards such as PEN Award (Roy 227) as well as

Pulitzer being the best fiction story. The story is about Mr . and Mrs. Das family.

The couple hires Mr. Kapasi who is a tour guide and a driver to take them for a tour along

with their children. It is during this vacation they discover some things about themselves and

their relationship. Within this narrative, the author of this book presents some fundamental

themes that are central to the story’s development. These themes include personal perspective

concept and communication.

The author presents how difficult communication can be at times with the tendency of

breaking down. This, in turn, may lead to hurtful consequences like broken relationships. The

communication problem is first evident in Mr. Kapasi’s character. It is very ironical how Kapasi

interprets for a living in that he is unable to communicate properly with even his wife despite

named as an interpreter of maladies, Due to his loveless marriage, Mr. Kapasi is forced to

drinking his tea all alone. His inability to communicate other languages now also represents

communication barrier. He remembers with nostalgia how in younger years he was a scholar of

many languages which now he has lost and is only fluent in English.

The difficulty in communication is also clearly portrayed in the characters of Mr. and

Mrs. Das. In the entire story, we get to know that it is only when this couple is arguing that they

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talk to each other. The couple argues on who should take their daughter to the bathroom. In the

entire story, Mrs. Das is shown hiding behind her sunglasses while Mr. Das is busy reading a

guidebook. All these activities show how this couple is incapable of talking with one another

properly. It is no surprise that their communication failure is also apparent in their relationship

with the children (Gross). For instance, Ronny who is their son does not heed his father’s order

when he gave a gum to a goat. This could be a result of Mr. Das not following through to enforce

his commands towards his children. Their children never listen whenever their parents talk just

like their parents.

The family’s inability to connect and communicate with one another is clear with how the

children are always running around as their parents are somewhere else. The couple silently

bears inworking marriages. We find out that Mrs. Das is aware of his loneliness and she seeks

his opinion on having a secret affair. Mr. Kapasi cannot, however, cure the guilt Mrs. Das has as

this guilt can only be freed by communication with her partner. This family lacks

Communication which is the greatest pillar of any relationship. The love they had when they

were young is no more. Mr. Das who once loved his wife is contented with his life, ignores clear

problems for either his happiness or for the sake of his children. Mr. Das doesn’t show his

concern to his wife’s dwindling affection and affair.

Another, important theme that is displayed in this story is that of Cultural differences

between the Indian-American and Indian. At a first look, the family looks to be Indian, but Mr.

Kapasi takes them as just tourists. Their manner of attitude and dress describes them despite the

tone of their skin. Mr. Kapasi remembers Dallas which was a television show whenever his fares

speak (Davis). The author tells us the guidebook that Mr. Das read was just labeled INDIA

signifying he was looking for his culture.Mr. Kapasi is surprised by the coolness Mrs. Das’s

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shows towards her children. The false togetherness the Das family shares is built upon exoticism

and misunderstanding of their separate cultures.

Another theme expressed in this story is that of perspective. Every character in this story

has a different way of how they see things. For instance, Mr. Das views his job as important

while his wife loathes his job believing he is just a failure. Similarly, Mr. Kapasi sees his job as

just a waste of linguistic skill he once had, but to Mr. Das, he terms it as a huge responsibility

and romantic.

The Das family describes Mr. Kapasi’s job as simple and humble to support himself. Mr.

Kapasi is surprised by the response the family gives towards his job which to him is worthless

and just a waste of time and linguistic skills. In some way, Mrs. Das searches for a separate

experience from her own boring existence.

The characters in this story have the diverse perspective of things which is described by

their behavior. For instance, Mr. Das is often looking through the lens of a camera. On the other

hand, and Mrs. Das always wears sunglasses while her husband looks at the car’s rearview

mirror.

In conclusion, based on the above points, we can say that Jhumpa Lahiri presented three

key themes in the story Interpreter of maladies. These themes include the perspective, cultural

differences, and communication, all of which are evident in every character and the relationship

they have towards one another.

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Works Cited

Davis, Carol. Interpreter of Maladies. 11 April 2013. 18 Feb 2017.

Essays, Sure. Critical Analysis Essay of Lahiri’s Interpreter of Maladies . 25 March 2015. 18 Feb 2017.

Gross, Brian. Interpreter of Maladies: Themes and Reflection. 1 August 2014. 18 Feb 2017.

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