Unfortunately, Moushumi grows unhappy with Gogol. (one code per order). . They marry within the year. Out for drinks with his classmates one night, new name, and the fact that she was taught as a child to call him, leave, and then, spontaneously, to have dinner. He wonders how his parents had done it, leaving their respective families behind, seeing them so seldom, dwelling unconnected, in a perpetual state of expectation, of longing. If he picks the dollar, he will be a businessman. As he works, he thinks of Thanksgiving dinner the week before. Before Gogol goes off to college at Yale, he decides to officially change his name from Gogol to Nikhil, this name change represents a maturation as he attempts to find his own identity. And when Gogol's father suddenly dies, Gogol's relationship with Maxine is strained and quickly ends. His mother was descended from Leonty Kosyarovsky, an officer of the Lubny Regiment in 1710. Gogol was born in the Ukrainian Cossack town of Sorochyntsi, in the Poltava Governorate of the Russian Empire.His mother was descended from Leonty Kosyarovsky, an officer of the Lubny Regiment in 1710. Nikhil/Gogol Ganguli Timeline in The Namesake The sudden death of Ashima's husband and Gogol and Sonia's father, Ashoke Ganguli, is a drastic turning point in their life. How does the loss of Gogol's father turn him back toward his family? say goodbye to Ashoke before he leaves for a prestigious nine-month teaching fellowship in Ohio. At the final examination, he sat in utter silence with a black handkerchief wrapped around his head, simulating a toothache, while another professor interrogated the students.[23]. Wed love to have you back! The novel is told through the sensibilities of four different characters, Gogol Ganguli, his mother Ashima, his father Ashoke, and his wife Moushumi, all of whom reveal different aspects of the material world and the personal relationships which are a part of each character's outer identity. For Sonia and, buys packs of six Bic razors, and even removes his wristwatch. "Sholem Aleichem, Gogol Show Two Views of Shtetl Jews. It stunned Gogol when critics interpreted The Government Inspector as an indictment of tsarism despite Nicholas I's patronage of the play. Jenna received her BA in English from Iowa State University in 2015, and she has taught at the secondary level for three years. Gogol keeps the relationship a secret from his parents. In The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri, the main character Gogol is not very good at communicating . What is meant by the word "namesake" in "The Namesake"? Please wait while we process your payment. 21 February]1852) was a Russian novelist, short story writer and playwright of Ukrainian origin.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11]. Struggling with distance learning? At his fourteenth birthday party, Gogol meets Moushumi, a Bengali British girl near his own age whose family has just moved to Boston from England. Gogol is not entirely dissimilar to his father, in this way. Gogol is the center of the novel, and it is his journey from childhood into young adulthood that the narrator tracks most closely. For Nikhil, his father's influence lingers, too: In Lahiri's novel, Nikhil's story ends in his childhood bedroom, where he reads the collected works of Nikolai Gogol that his father gave him years ago. But these cartoons have a convincingness, a truthfulness, and inevitability attained as a rule by slight but definitive strokes of unexpected reality that seems to beggar the visible world itself. His name continues to be a source of frustration and confusion for many years. Instant downloads of all 1682 LitChart PDFs The magazines he sent it to almost universally derided it. The book established his reputation as one of the greatest prose writers in the language. Gogol focuses his major creative occupation on the manners of his characters; his creative energy is nowhere more apparent than in the "mannerizing" in which he describes and characterizes. His relationship with Maxine is an extension of this. [19] A second volume was published in 1832, followed by two volumes of stories entitled Mirgorod in 1835, and two volumes of miscellaneous prose entitled Arabesques. Gogol has been featured many times on Russian and Soviet postage stamps; he is also well represented on stamps worldwide. It was adapted also for radio by Adam Beeson and broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on 24 December 2008[57] and subsequently rebroadcast on both Radio 4 and Radio 4 Extra on Christmas Eve 2010, 2011 and 2015.[58]. house down a remote dirt road and find Gerald and Lydia, lounging with their books. Throughout his life, Gogol struggles with his identity. Speaking of forward motion, the 33 pages you read this week of The Namesake reflect Nikhil's (Gogol) life redefined as he manages the unexpected loss of his father, his growing distance with Maxine and the possibility of new love. The name Gogol was the emblem of his father which Gogol didn't realize at first. The Nose or Conspiracy of Mavericks has been in production for about fifty years. He thinks of his life at fourteen, when he was still, with the names of each of her children, her husband, and her own. Gogol was mourned in the Saint Tatiana church at the Moscow University before his burial and then buried at the Danilov Monastery, close to his fellow Slavophile Aleksey Khomyakov. Their parents were friends, not they. At times he is conscious of the fact that his immersion in Maxines family is a betrayal of his own. Based on this work, Vladimir Nabokov published a summary account of Gogol's masterpieces.[42]. The principle of these are: the tradition of the Ukrainian folk and, "The structure of the stories themselves seemed especially unskilful and clumsy to me; in one story I noted excess and verbosity, and an absence of simplicity in the style". Gogol is also inspired by the design of the Taj Mahal when the family visits India together, when he is in high school. His relationship with Maxine was strong because he was very close with her and her family. His father Vasily Gogol-Yanovsky, who died when Gogol was 15 years old, was supposedly a descendant of Ukrainian Cossacks (see Lyzohub family) and belonged to the 'petty gentry'. For instance, Ashima refuses to display the rubbings of gravestones young Gogol makes with his classmates. Belinsky, for instance, berated his horror stories as "moribund, monstrous works", while Andrei Bely counted them among his most stylistically daring creations. He also dislikes the fact that he was named after Nikolai Gogol. And yet he cant really blame her. While growing up he did everything in his power while growing up to stray away from . The death of Gogol's father causes him to reevaluate his relationship with his family and to reconsider the part his parents and their culture have in shaping his identity. In The Namesake, how does Gogol's definition of home change throughout the novel? Study and Discussion Questions for Chapters 8 & 9 of Jhumpa Lahiri's The Namesake In these chapters, Gogol moves beyond his relatonships with American women of European descent and, through Ashima's insistence, agrees to meet with Moushumi, whom we first met at Gogol's fourteenth birthday party [73]. Latest answer posted March 25, 2017 at 12:45:01 AM. [29] His body was discovered lying face down, which gave rise to the story that Gogol had been buried alive. The Ratliffs own the moon that floats over the lake, and the sun and the clouds. But the change to Nikhil also represents a maturation, an attempt to find a new self in college. Read More Yet the thought of this eventual demise provides no sense of victory, no solace. In the Namesake, how can we compare Gogol's two main relationships, Maxine and Moushumi? Ashoke once told him, "We all came out of Gogol's overcoat. Some sources indicate he was born 19/31 March 1809. Members will be prompted to log in or create an account to redeem their group membership. And then he remembers that his parents cant possibly reach him: he has not given them the number, and the Ratliffs are unlisted. Relationship between Gogol and the father, A major part of the novel "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri is the portrayal of each, character's goals and their progress via the use of relationships. Teachers and parents! Discount, Discount Code The stories adapted were "The Two Ivans", "The Overcoat", "Ivan Fyodorovich Shponka and His Aunt", "The Nose", "The Mysterious Portrait" and "Diary of a Madman". comments in Bengali to avoid being overheard. rental car into the driveway so that it is not in the way of harm. She has given birth to vagabonds. In 1963 an animated version of Gogol's classic surrealist story "The Nose" was made by Alexandre Alexeieff and Claire Parker, using the pinscreen animation technique, for the National Film Board of Canada. Gogol is unable to return to Maxine's world "in which nothing had changed" after his father's death, showing a sense of hidden anger and blame. to start your free trial of SparkNotes Plus. This period of mourning resembles in some ways Gogol's shock in the aftermath of his father's death. Free trial is available to new customers only. . . His first serious relationship is with a girl named Ruth. Continue to start your free trial. The novel Taras Bulba (1835), the play Marriage (1842), and the short stories "The Tale of How Ivan Ivanovich Quarreled with Ivan Nikiforovich", "The Portrait" and "The Carriage", are also among his best-known works. Despite the support of Alexander Pushkin and Sergey Uvarov, the Russian minister of education, the appointment was blocked by a bureaucrat on the grounds that Gogol was unqualified. What are some differences between Bengali and American customs, traditions or practices? The book is called the Short stories of Nikolai Gogol. He later starts to date his future wife, Moushumi. [18] It was only after the presentation of his comedy The Government Inspector (Revizor) at the Saint Petersburg State Theatre, on 19 April 1836,[24] that he finally came to believe in his literary vocation. Konstantinovsky seems to have strengthened in Gogol the fear of perdition (damnation) by insisting on the sinfulness of all his imaginative work. "In The Namesake, how does Gogol's relationship to his family influence the development of his identity?" Though she knows its not his fault, she cant help but associate him, at times, with a sense of resignation, with the very life she has resisted, has struggled so mightily to leave behind. When Gogol is born, the Gangulis meet other Bengali families with small children, and Ashima finds with the new baby that "perfect strangers, all Americans, suddenly take notice of her, smiling, congratulating her for what she's done." How, for all of us, do children change our place in the community, and what we expect from it? Maxine comes from an extremely wealthy family, and she seems to be the opposite of the type of girl Gogol's parents would want him to date and marry. By 1994, Gogol has received his graduate architecture degree from Columbia and is working at an architecture firm in New York City. However, Gogol's satire was much more sophisticated and unconventional. In the first chapter, Gogol is born, and his parents decide to name him after Nikolai Gogol, a 19th-century Russian writer. For this reason, he, is ignorant of their Indian heritage and culture, having been reared in the United States whereas, they were raised in India from birth. Now, sitting together at the kitchen table at six-thirty every evening, the hour feeling more like midnight through the window, his fathers chair empty, this meatless meal is the only thing that makes sense. 2023 eNotes.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Nabokov, Vladimir (2017) [1961]. As he navigates through his life and failed relationships, Gogol constantly finds himself caught between two identities and cultures. He intensified his relationship with a starets or spiritual elder, Matvey Konstantinovsky, whom he had known for several years. When he grows up, he tries to separate himself from these traditions by avoiding the Bengali themed parties his parents throw and . As Gogol grows into a teenager it becomes even harder to get close to his dad. notice that the narration seems to be taking on more of Moushumis perspective, referring to, surprised by the instant attraction she felt. 1703 Words. Interesting choice, right? Vladim Joseph Rossman, Vadim Rossman, Vidal Sassoon. Gogol's transformation can also be marked by his romantic relationships. The comedy, a violent satire of Russian provincial bureaucracy, was staged thanks only to the intervention of the emperor, Nicholas I. Gogol the child is the happy outcome of a terrible event in Ashoke's younger days. He met his future wife during the student protests of 1990 in favor of Ukraine's independence. Despite having clear instruction from his father that Gogol would be addressed by his good name "Nikhil", an incident during Gogol's first year in school forced the hands of Ashima and Ashoke to abolish their standard of culture and abide by the rules of the American education system. Enrolling in a course lets you earn progress by passing quizzes and exams. Jhumpa Lahiri's The Namesake centers on the life of Gogol Ganguli. "My students can't get enough of your charts and their results have gone through the roof." It isnt simply the fact that his parents dont know about Maxine it is his knowledge that apart from their affluence, Gerald and Lydia are secure in a way his parents will never be. Educators go through a rigorous application process, and every answer they submit is reviewed by our in-house editorial team. Mirsky declared it "a piece of sheer play, almost sheer nonsense". Shortly after moving to New York City and starting his job at an architectural firm, he meets a woman named Maxine. For much of the twelve years from 1836, Gogol was in Italy, where he developed an adoration for Rome. Gogol himself, an adherent of the Slavophile movement, believed in a divinely inspired mission for both the House of Romanov and the Russian Orthodox Church. How does Ashima try to make over her home in Cambridge to remind her of what she has left behind in Calcutta? His grave was marked by a large stone (Golgotha), topped by a Russian Orthodox cross. "[43] Critics traditionally interpreted "The Overcoat" as a masterpiece of "humanitarian realism", but Nabokov and some other attentive readers argued that "holes in the language" make the story susceptible to interpretation as a supernatural tale about a ghostly double of a "small man". With our Essay Lab, you can create a customized outline within seconds to get started on your essay right away. Named after his father's beloved Russian author, he sees no identity in his name, which is neither Indian nor American nor even Russian 921 Words 4 Pages Good Essays Read More But after eighteen years of Gogol, two months of Nikhil feel scant, inconsequential. They allow Sonia and. He meets a girl named Maxine at a party. They know him only in the present, not at all in the past. As was typical of the left-bank Ukrainian gentry of the early nineteenth century, the family spoke Ukrainian as well as Russian. Purchasing [66], A definitive animated movie adaptation of Gogol's The Nose released in January 2020. Gogol was one of the first to use the technique of the grotesque, in works such as "The Nose", "Viy", "The Overcoat", and "Nevsky Prospekt". The closest intimacy they share before their wedding is when Ashima steps briefly, secretly, into Ashoke's shoes. "Gogol's Research on Ukrainian Customs for the Dikan'ka Tales". Outside of Russia, the film loosely served as the inspiration for Mario Bava's film Black Sunday (1960) and the South Korean horror film Evil Spirit: Viy (2008). Download the entire The Namesake study guide as a printable PDF! You'll also receive an email with the link. Subscribe now. No matter where he is, Gogol feels out of place. Latest answer posted March 06, 2009 at 6:23:32 AM. His father tells him the story behind his name. [65] The episodes were also released theatrically starting with Gogol. This does not mean that numerous influences cannot be discerned in his work. Gogol's Problematic Relationship To His Name. Would not have made it through AP Literature without the printable PDFs. The relationship between Moushumi and Gogol is driven by Moushumi's desire which is greater even than Gogol's own, to confirm to a certain image of a modern American. | After his father's death, Gogol gradually returns to his Indian traditions, takes care of his mother and sister, abandons the life he could have with Maxine, then marries a Bengali woman. They had both acted on the same impulse, that was their mistake. With the death of his father and the reevaluation of his behavior, his family plays a role in his identity as he spends more time with them, even entertaining the idea of marrying the Bengalese girls, Moushumi. Gogol's transformation can also be marked by his romantic relationships. This is what upsets him most. His name has always caused him a lot of frustration, so before college, he decides to change his name to Nikhil. From this point on, he introduces himself as Nikhil to everyone he meets. As a result he starts to reconnect with his family, something that is causing him to question his lifestyle. Gogols decision to become Nikhil occurs before he knows his fathers story in detail. Suddenly he regrets having ever told Moushumi; he wonders whether shell proclaim the story of his fathers accident to the table as well. The first Russian intellectual to publicly preach the economic theories of Karl Marx, Belinsky accused Gogol of betraying his readership by defending the status quo. Words: 403 Length: 1 Pages Topic: Literature Paper #: 60213251. Latest answer posted March 13, 2019 at 4:46:10 PM. He cannot imagine them contributing to one of their dinner party conversations. Dostoevsky appears to have had such a reading of the story in mind when he wrote. Although Ruth, Maxine, and Moushumi were right for him at the time, they didn't end up working out. However, as Gogol grows up, he starts to hate his name. You can view our. Gogol is called away from the fantasy he had built for himself with Maxine, where he is now "Nick" - a further sign of the new, Americanized identity he has built himself there. By contrast, Moushumi, who is of Gogols world, wants constantly to leave that world, to make a new, more intellectually rich life for herself among her cosmopolitan New York friends. He bought all the copies and destroyed them, swearing never to write poetry again. Its like a teacher waved a magic wand and did the work for me. It strikes him that there is no term for what they once were to each other. Sadly, the marriage comes to an end. Even as they get to know one another, she worked hard to catch up. At the party, . [39], Even before the publication of Dead Souls, Belinsky recognized Gogol as the first Russian-language realist writer and as the head of the Natural School, to which he also assigned such younger or lesser authors as Goncharov, Turgenev, Dmitry Grigorovich, Vladimir Dahl and Vladimir Sollogub. They did not know that Dead Souls was but the first part of a planned modern-day counterpart to the Divine Comedy of Dante. for a customized plan. The guests begin to arrive, chattering in Bengali and expressing their regret at Ashimas departure. $18.74/subscription + tax, Save 25% She is a family acquaintance but she is not family. However, his family members and people who knew him previously continue to refer to him as Gogol. Gogol's relationship with his father is struggling. Gogol was in a few different relationships over the course of Namesake. Latest answer posted September 02, 2012 at 9:16:26 PM. Gogol, about to embark on a new life in college, wishes to do away with the name he hates and attempt to try on a new identity, one that he has complete control over. They are left parentless within a decade of their arrival, and, learn to roast turkey, even if it is spiced with Indian flavors. As soon as Ashoke dies, Gogol begins to remember all of the happy memories that he had shared with his father. Packs of six Bic razors, and the sun and the clouds closest intimacy they before! And she has taught at the secondary level for three years be discerned in work. For a prestigious nine-month teaching fellowship in Ohio strengthened in Gogol the fear of perdition ( damnation ) insisting. Answer posted March 13, 2019 at 4:46:10 PM imagine them contributing to one of the left-bank Ukrainian of... Read more Yet the thought of this Maxines family is a betrayal of his gogol's relationship with his father growing up to stray from... 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