Advanced International Journal for Research

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The Cultural Nexus and Ambivalent Identities in The Namesake

Author(s) Ms. Sristy Sharma, Dr. Devendra Kumar Sharma
Country India
Abstract The Namesake (2003) by Jhumpa Lahiri centres around diaspora, culture, ambivalence, name, and identity. In the novel, Lahiri doesn’t display culture as merely a backdrop. Instead, she demonstrates how culture is malleable and bends between the two worlds of preservation and transformation. Thus, culture is a space that evolves and progresses. In The Namesake, it acts as a juncture, a nexus where diaspora people experience the challenges of living in a distant land, while at the same time feeling nostalgic about their own culture. In all, they face cultural tensions, and these challenges are visible in cultural habits, languages, and rituals. This cultural nexus can offer comfort at times, but it can also be unsettling. Moreover, Lahiri’s focal character, Gogol Ganguli, exhibits this cultural conflict through his name. His name serves as a symbol of his efforts to maintain his life in America alongside his Indian familial roots. In this way, he exhibits the emotions and struggles of the second-generation immigrants. He can neither escape nor resist these conflicts. Therefore, this paper seeks to understand how Jhumpa Lahiri represents such cultural tensions. This paper also explores how identity gets influenced by ambivalence or culture. The plot of The Namesake suggests that these crossings can be difficult. But they also offer ways to understand oneself and find a sense of belonging while stuck in the juncture.
Keywords Cultural nexus, Ambivalent Identity, Diaspora, Hybridity, Third Space
Field Sociology > Linguistic / Literature
Published In Volume 7, Issue 1, January-February 2026
Published On 2026-01-02
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E-ISSN 3048-7641
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