A Mouthful of Silence is a novel set in Manchester. It is about a middle-aged Indian man, PK Monghia, who is full of regrets and bitterness about getting old and the steady decline of his business. He still has an appetite for love and happiness, but feels trapped in his marriage to Geeta. Their only child, Sammy, is a disappointment too. Born after several miscarriages, he is the focus of excessive maternal devotion on the part of Geeta and an object of contempt in the eyes of PK, who wanted a sporty son, a reflection of his own golden youth. A new woman enters the barren landscape of PK's emotional life. She is Esther Solomon, rich, beautiful, vivacious. She is all that his life is not. She also happens to be the wife of a competitor, Cedric Solomon, who is successful and powerful and a constant reminder of what PK might have been. PK and Esther are drawn to each other and embark on a love affair that distracts PK and fills him with guilt that he pushes aside time and again. PK begins neglecting his business and his family, and he fails to notice his son's growing friendship and obsession with a more street-wise girl, Alice. Sammy gradually changes from a molly-coddled boy into a surly, uncommunicative teenager with secrets. Geeta meanwhile watches the slow unravelling of her family life, and PK is never quite sure whether she has discovered his affair. Events unfold that compel PK to make choices. He is forced to confront his ambiguous morality and to question the nature and meaning of love in all its guises. My thesis explores the main theoretical approaches surrounding diaspora and the concepts of home, belonging and nostalgia. It is my aim to extrapolate from the theoretical framework and apply their relevance and limitations to the study of the diasporic condition. My primary focus will be on the Indian diaspora within the United States and its portrayal in Bharati Mukherjee and Jhumpa Lahiri's short fiction. More specifically, I wish to look closely at how nostalgia is both employed as a method and represented as a theme in creating and/or shaping the sense of belonging and home within their fictional narratives. Finally, I will place their work within the larger context of diaspora literature and analyse the overall diasporic literary response to established and often problematic understandings of nostalgia, home and belonging.

By examining the constitution of identity/ies related to women s diaspora in contemporary times, the present thesis focuses on its representation in two novels written by the Indian born U.S. writer, Bharati Mukherjee Desirable Daughters (2002), and The Tree Bride (2004). I argue that these two novels offer excellent cultural manifestations for the examination of the representation of the identitary process resulting from transnational displacements. Centred on the field of Cultural Studies, the first part of this study presents readings of the women protagonists´ identitary quest portrayed in the novels informed by the major concepts of diasporic identities, hybrid identities and transnationalisms, as they have been theorized by Stuart Hall, Inderpal Grewal, and Homi K. Bhabha. The analyses contained in the second and the third parts of this thesis draw from studies in the area of Gender Studies, and present reflections on the main characters´ trajectories which are illuminated by the central notions of agency, performativity, and empowerment, theorized by Judith Butler and Luce Irigaray. Studies on mythology both from non-feminist and feminist perspectives also provide a backdrop for the readings proposed. The thesis is structured in three chapters: the first one discusses the constitution of diasporic identities, particularly the main character s; the second chapter concentrates on the gender-marked appropriation of mythical discourse by the author in the composition of her narratives by means of the literary strategy of feminist revisionist mythmaking, as pointed out by Alicia Ostriker; and the third section analyzes the protagonist s actions, viewing her process of empowerment as a transformative strategy in terms of subjective development which is strongly marked by gender issues. The main results of the analysis carried out is the perception that, by combining the shaping of diasporic identities, the rewriting of myth, and the deployment of empowerment strategies in the composition of the main characters in her novels, Bharati Mukherjee problematizes the diasporic woman subject s identity formation in relation to the India/U.S. movement, revisiting and reweaving Indian traditions from multifaceted and gender-marked perspectives. This, in turn, may act in terms of raising readers´ understanding and critical awareness of the women subjects´ diasporic process in the contemporary world. / By examining the constitution of identity/ies related to women s diaspora in contemporary times, the present thesis focuses on its representation in two novels written by the Indian born U.S. writer, Bharati Mukherjee Desirable Daughters (2002), and The Tree Bride (2004). I argue that these two novels offer excellent cultural manifestations for the examination of the representation of the identitary process resulting from transnational displacements. Centred on the field of Cultural Studies, the first part of this study presents readings of the women protagonists´ identitary quest portrayed in the novels informed by the major concepts of diasporic identities, hybrid identities and transnationalisms, as they have been theorized by Stuart Hall, Inderpal Grewal, and Homi K. Bhabha. The analyses contained in the second and the third parts of this thesis draw from studies in the area of Gender Studies, and present reflections on the main characters´ trajectories which are illuminated by the central notions of agency, performativity, and empowerment, theorized by Judith Butler and Luce Irigaray. Studies on mythology both from non-feminist and feminist perspectives also provide a backdrop for the readings proposed. The thesis is structured in three chapters: the first one discusses the constitution of diasporic identities, particularly the main character s; the second chapter concentrates on the gender-marked appropriation of mythical discourse by the author in the composition of her narratives by means of the literary strategy of feminist revisionist mythmaking, as pointed out by Alicia Ostriker; and the third section analyzes the protagonist s actions, viewing her process of empowerment as a transformative strategy in terms of subjective development which is strongly marked by gender issues. The main results of the analysis carried out is the perception that, by combining the shaping of diasporic identities, the rewriting of myth, and the deployment of empowerment strategies in the composition of the main characters in her novels, Bharati Mukherjee problematizes the diasporic woman subject s identity formation in relation to the India/U.S. movement, revisiting and reweaving Indian traditions from multifaceted and gender-marked perspectives. This, in turn, may act in terms of raising readers´ understanding and critical awareness of the women subjects´ diasporic process in the contemporary world.

This study examines the course of the protagonists of the novels A asa esquerda do anjo and Jasmine, starting from the identity perspective, informed by the Cultural Studies, having as the main theorists Bhabha (1998) and Hall (1992) and by the Utopian Studies, through the work of Ernst Bloch (1959), as well as by questions related to gender, which use theoretical approaches by Buttler (2003) and Costa (1996). From these conceptual fields, the fundamental elements that guide the readings contained in this dissertation are constituted. Considering the works A asa esquerda do anjo, by Lya Luft, and Jasmine, by Bharati Mukherjee, an analysis related to the theoretical areas mentioned before is developed, for these novels offer a privileged study field, in which identity, cultural and utopian elements emerge. It is still observed that the studied works are part of contemporary context, revealing proper aspects to their time: multicultural societies, feeling of alienation, conflicts resulting from mass dislocation phenomena, confrontation between cultural traditions. Through the examination of the identity path of the protagonists in the referred works, in dialogue with the theoretical framework, the impossibility of recognition of an identity as a completed / closed structure is observed. Such a consideration indicates the major aim of our research: the understanding of the process in which the identity quest occurs through a comparative approach, as well as an investigation of the identity configuration as an inapprehensible element. / Esta pesquisa examina a trajetória das protagonistas dos romances A asa esquerda do anjo e Jasmine, a partir da perspectiva da busca identitária, informada pelos estudos culturais, tendo como teóricos principais Bhabha (1998) e Hall (1992), e pelos estudos da utopia através da obra de Ernst Bloch (1959), bem como por questões relativas a gênero, utilizando-se das abordagens teóricas de Buttler (2003) e Costa (1996). A partir desses campos conceituais, ficam constituídos os elementos fundamentais que orientam as leituras contidas nesta dissertação. Considerando-se as obras A asa esquerda do anjo, de Lya Luft, e Jasmine, de Bharati Mukherjee, é desenvolvida uma análise relativa às áreas teóricas supra citadas; uma vez que esses romances oferecem um campo de estudo privilegiado, onde figuram elementos identitários, culturais, e utópicos. Observamos, ainda, que as obras tratadas são analisadas a partir do viés comparativo, e se encontram inseridas num contexto contemporâneo, revelando aspectos próprios a essa época: sociedades multiculturais, sentimento de alienação, conflitos advindos de fenômenos de deslocamentos de massas, confrontos entre tradições culturais e entre os sexos. Através do exame do percurso identitário das protagonistas nas referidas obras, em diálogo com o aparato teórico-conceitual, observa-se a impossibilidade de reconhecer uma identidade enquanto estrutura acabada, fechada. Percebe-se, nesse sentido, uma concepção de identidade concernente a subjetividades pós-modernas, continuamente formadas e transformadas. Concluímos que a questão da configuração identitária, mesmo sendo bastante discutida e iluminada pelas teorias citadas acima, ainda constitui caráter complexo, consistindo-se enquanto elemento inapreensível em sua totalidade.

With its focus on immigration to the United States and development of American identity, Bharati Mukherjee’s fiction eludes literary categorization. It engages with the various contexts of multiculturalism, postcolonialism, and globalization, yet Mukherjee adamantly positions herself as an American author writing American literature. In this essay, I investigate the intersections between Mukherjee’s focus on the American character, culture, and people and developing theories and critical debates on globalization. Through Mukherjee’s works, we can see American identity in a state of flux, made possible by the immigrant and the relationships established between the transnational individual and America. Mukherjee’s immigrant characters challenge and expose American mythology from the American Dream of individual achievement to the canonical literature of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, rewriting them to show how foundational the immigrant is to American culture. I trace Mukherjee’s redefinition of the American character in and through three successive novels – Wife, Jasmine, and The Holder of the World. In Wife, Mukherjee challenges America’s adoption of multiculturalism because she considers it a means of essentializing ethnicity and both maintaining and enhancing difference. This multiculturalism, as part of America’s assumed principles of acceptance, alienates the protagonist Dimple from her immigrant community and the larger American culture, resulting in her violent attempts to force her Americanization. Jasmine continues to work against multiculturalism by explicitly inserting the immigrant into the American mythos, reshaping the Western literary canon to include the transnational individual and to assert the immigrant foundations of American ideology. Mukherjee expands her focus in Holder of the World as her protagonist Hannah travels to England, India, and the bourgeoning United States, rewriting The Scarlet Letter to suggest that globalizing forces have been present throughout American cultural history, not just at the end of the 20th century when critical debates began to flourish. Through analysis of these novels, I argue that Mukherjee’s reformulation of American character reasserts American ideals by including and developing with the rise of globalization theory.

With its focus on immigration to the United States and development of American identity, Bharati Mukherjee’s fiction eludes literary categorization. It engages with the various contexts of multiculturalism, postcolonialism, and globalization, yet Mukherjee adamantly positions herself as an American author writing American literature. In this essay, I investigate the intersections between Mukherjee’s focus on the American character, culture, and people and developing theories and critical debates on globalization. Through Mukherjee’s works, we can see American identity in a state of flux, made possible by the immigrant and the relationships established between the transnational individual and America. Mukherjee’s immigrant characters challenge and expose American mythology from the American Dream of individual achievement to the canonical literature of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, rewriting them to show how foundational the immigrant is to American culture. I trace Mukherjee’s redefinition of the American character in and through three successive novels – Wife, Jasmine, and The Holder of the World. In Wife, Mukherjee challenges America’s adoption of multiculturalism because she considers it a means of essentializing ethnicity and both maintaining and enhancing difference. This multiculturalism, as part of America’s assumed principles of acceptance, alienates the protagonist Dimple from her immigrant community and the larger American culture, resulting in her violent attempts to force her Americanization. Jasmine continues to work against multiculturalism by explicitly inserting the immigrant into the American mythos, reshaping the Western literary canon to include the transnational individual and to assert the immigrant foundations of American ideology. Mukherjee expands her focus in Holder of the World as her protagonist Hannah travels to England, India, and the bourgeoning United States, rewriting The Scarlet Letter to suggest that globalizing forces have been present throughout American cultural history, not just at the end of the 20th century when critical debates began to flourish. Through analysis of these novels, I argue that Mukherjee’s reformulation of American character reasserts American ideals by including and developing with the rise of globalization theory.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Hong Kong, 1994. / Cover title. Includes bibliographical references (leaf 47-48).

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Hong Kong, 1994. / Cover title. Includes bibliographical references (leaf 47-48). Also available in print.

L'objectif de cette thèse est d'étudier trois romans écrits par des auteurs anglophones du Pakistan ou de l'Inde, à savoir Bapsi Sidhwa, Bharati Mukherjee et Hanif Kureishi. On pourrait être tenté de placer les trois écrivains de cette étude dans la catégorie «littérature des immigrants». Ils écrivent tous à un moment de migration de masse lorsque l'idée de «choc culturel» parmi les peuples occidentaux commence à être plus évidente. Les trois écrivains sont affectés par des thèmes qui apparaissent seulement de manière marginale dans le débat évoqué ci-dessus, l'accent étant principalement mis sur les difficultés culturelles et sociales des femmes dans la société indo-pakistanaise. Quant à Kureishi, la polarisation mentionnée ci-dessus suppose un accent très différent, impliquant la situation d'un Asiatique né et élevé dans la société occidentale. Dans cette évaluation globale du contexte idéologique et historique commun aux trois écrivains, il sera important d'examiner les attitudes spécifiques adoptées par chaque écrivain par rapport à son expérience personnelle. L'objectif principal de cette étude sera donc thématique, en se concentrant sur les préoccupations spécifiques de ces écrivains et sur la manière dont cela se manifeste dans leur représentation particulière des tensions en jeu. / The objective of this thesis is to study three novels written by English-speaking authors of Pakistan or India, namely Bapsi Sidhwa, Bharati Mukherjee and Hanif Kureishi. One might be tempted to place the three writers of this study in the category of "literature of immigrants." They all write at a time of mass migration when the idea of "cultural shock" among Western peoples begins to be more evident. All three writers are affected by themes which appear only marginally in the debate evoked above, much of the emphasis being on the cultural and social difficulties of women in Indo-Pakistani society. As for Kureishi, the polarization mentioned above assumes a very different emphasis, involving the situation of an Asian born and brought up inside Western society. Within this overall assessment of the ideological and historical context common to all three writers, it will thus be important to examine the specific attitudes adopted by each writer in relation to his or her own personal experience. The main focus of this study will therefore be thematic, centering on these writers’ specific preoccupations and the way this is seen in their peculiar depiction of the tensions at stake.

My paper examines how American authors of the South Asian Diaspora (Indian-American or South Asian American) can be read 1) as simply American and 2) without regard to ethnicity. I develop this argument using American authors Jhumpa Lahiri, a first generation American of Bengali-Indian descent, and Bharati Mukherjee, an American of Bengali-Indian origin. I borrow from Deepika Bahri's materialist aesthetics in postcolonialism (in turn borrowed from members of the Frankfurt School of Critical Theory) and include theoretical insights from Rey Chow, Graham Huggan, and R. Radhakrishnan regarding multiculturalism, identity politics, and diaspora studies. Huggan and Radhakrishnan's insights are especially useful because their work deals with the South Asian diaspora, in England and the United States, respectively. After setting up a theoretical framework, I critique reviews and essays that privilege hyphenated, "Indian," or "South Asian" identity, and the resultant reading paradigm that fixes these authors into an ethnic minority category. I then trace aesthetic and thematic content of short stories from both Lahiri's Interpreter of Maladies and Mukherjee's The Middleman and Other Stories to demonstrate how these stories resist this ethno-cultural pigeonholing. My analysis exposes how ethnic and multicultural identity politics supplant aesthetic criticism and transform ethno-cultural identity into an aesthetic object, even if done as a celebration of hybridity or liminality as a putatively liberating space (hyphenated identity as embodying that space). Though my purpose is not to undermine the meaningful artwork and criticism instantiated in or about the "in-between" spaces of American culture, I demonstrate that an over-emphasis on ethnicity and culture (culture "other" than the majority culture in the U.S.) in fact stifles the opening of the American literary canon. Ethnicity and culture become ways of limiting the hermeneutics available to literary criticism because they become the only ways of reading, instead of one lens through which American literature is read.