Cultural Identity and Diaspora Experience in the Works of Jhumpa Lahiri: A Critical Study
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Abstract
This paper critically examines the representation of cultural identity and diaspora experience in the works of Jhumpa Lahiri, one of the most significant contemporary voices in Indian-American literature. Lahiri’s fiction primarily explores the lives of Indian immigrants in the United States and the psychological, cultural and emotional complexities that arise from migration. Through a close reading of major texts such as Interpreter of Maladies, The Namesake and Unaccustomed Earth, this study analyzes themes of displacement, alienation, generational conflict, hybridity and the search for belonging. The paper argues that Lahiri portrays cultural identity not as a fixed construct but as a dynamic and evolving process shaped by memory, migration and cross-cultural encounters. By highlighting the tension between inherited traditions and modern Western values, Lahiri’s works reveal the inner conflicts of diasporic subjects who exist between two worlds. Ultimately, this study demonstrates that Lahiri’s narratives offer profound insights into the formation of hybrid identities and the ongoing negotiation of selfhood within the diasporic condition.
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