Going Back to His Roots?

Is Gogol finally starting to become more confident in his heritage? In chapter 8, it really seemed like he was getting back to his family roots, and Moushumi is helping him step out of his rebellious phase. Gogol seemed to be really humbled by his father's death, and it probably made him realize how important family is, and how uncertain life can be. Gogol seems to be spending more time with his family, and even though "he is invited to join [his coworkers], he always says no" when they ask him to go out for drinks (190). Gogol not going out to party and him staying at home with his mother and sister show how deeply Ashoke's death hit Gogol, and how he is trying to rekindle the relationship between him and his mother.
Additionally, the relationship forming between Gogol and Moushumi is helping Gogol become more confident in his heritage because he has nothing to hide. Unlike all the other girls he has wooed, Moushumi is the first woman who know Gogol by his true name. Gogol and Moushumi grew up together, so he has nothing to hide and can be completely himself. Even when they go out to dinner, "they sometimes slip Bengali phrases into their conversation in order to comment with impunity on another diner's unfortunate hair or shoes" (211). Gogol speaking his native language is a huge stepping stone for him. Gogol communicating with Moushumi in Bengali is the first time in a while we have seen Gogol not embarrassed about who he is or his past.
So what do you think? Is Gogol embracing who he truly is? Or will he just go back on the American path?

American or Indian?

I knew Gogol, or should I say Nikhil, would be faced with the challenge of embracing his Indian heritage, while fitting in to American culture and find out who he truly is. He becomes almost obsessed with his image after finding out who he was named after, and goes as far as changing his name. Instead of thinking about how changing his name will affect his parents, Gogol "thinks of how many more women he can now approach" with his new name and sense of confidence(103). He thinks that people will be able to take him more seriously with a new name; however, "the only person who tormented him, the only person chronically aware of and afflicted by the embarrassment of his name, the only person who constantly questioned it and wished it were otherwise, was Gogol" (100). The self inflicted pain Gogol causes makes him more similar to the man he so desperately doesn't want to be named after.

Additionally, Gogol faces challenges embracing his heritage in personal conversations, and fails to identify with his culture. When Gogol is asked "why [isn't he] a member of the Indian association," Gogol comes up with an excuse and says "[he] just [doesn't] have the time" (119). With his new name, Gogol believes he is more American than ever, and is extremely self conscious of being viewed any other way. I think that eventually Gogol will embrace his Indian heritage, but it will take a while for him to get over his insecurities of being judged and being viewed as the odd one out. As for now, Gogol despairingly tries to be viewed as American.

Cultures Clashing

To begin with, I actually really like what I have read so far of the namesake. I know a little too much about Ashima, yet I feel a sense of empathy. We all experience those situations where we feel helplessly alone, or out of our comfort zone. Ashima just is dealing with that on a much larger scale.
Much of Ashima's loneliness stems from the extreme differences between American culture and Indian culture. Even her marriage is completely different than anything we would expect in the U.S. Her husband was a suitor who visits her house one day, and then "one week later the [wedding] invitations were printed" (Lahiri 9). I mean how crazy is that? However, to Ashima, it is completely normal. Also in the hospital, she hears a man say, "I love you" to his wife, and all she can think is, "words [she] has neither heard nor expects to hear from her own husband" (3). Her reaction further shows the difference in American and Indian cultures. We are so used to hearing people express their love publically, like on Valetine's Day or through social media, that we forget in some cultures, feelings are often harbored rather than expressed. American's fear what we don't know, so everything has to be made public.
Additionally, Indian traditions differ from American traditions. Ashima is forced to face a
clash of traditions at the hospital when naming her new baby boy. While the doctor suggests naming her son after a family member when Ashima and her husband fail to receive the letter from her grandmother, "[the] tradition doesn't exist for Bengalis, naming a song after a father or grandfather, a daughter after mother or grandmother. This sign of respect in America and Europe, this symbol of heritage and lineage, would be ridiculed in India" (28). Even the small differences in traditions make Ashima feel like an outcast and long for her homeland where everything is familiar.

After reading the two chapters, my question is will Ashima's baby boy face this culture clash growing up? Will he be stuck between making his parents happy by embracing his Indian heritage, and trying to fit in as an American?