Diaspora, Identity, and Alienation in Jhumpa Lahiri’s Unaccustomed Earth

Name of Author : Bimilin Jebarcy N

Abstract: The collection of short tales Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri examines the lives of immigrants and their offspring in the US, especially those of Bengali descent. The diasporic rhetoric of identity and alienation in Lahiri’s writing is critically examined in this research article. This essay explores the themes of cultural displacement, the quest for identity, and the characters sense of alienation via a careful reading of a few stories from Unaccustomed Earth. It also looks at how the characters’ diasporic experiences and the difficulties they have in juggling their multiple identities as immigrants or immigrant children in a new country are closely related to these issues. The study makes the case that Lahiri’s depiction of diasporic experiences captures the subtleties and complexity of immigrant identity, the feeling of alienation, and the ongoing juggling of the old and new worlds. It also emphasizes how Lahiri’s writing addresses the tensions and conflicts that result from the collision of cultural standards, the yearning for home, and the difficulty of accepting the present while making peace with one’s past.

Keywords : Bengali, immigrant, cultural displacement, diaspora, identity, alienation, assimilation, and unfamiliar earth

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