Open Access
American Research Journal of English and Literature
ISSN (Online): 2378-9026
DOI: 10.46568/arjel
Maladies Interculturally Unperceived: A Psychological Analysis of “Interpreter of Maladies” by Jhumpa Lahiri
Professor Emeritus of English, Department of English & Linguistics, University of Ruhuna, MATARA 81000, Sri Lanka
EA Gamini Fonseka, “Maladies Interculturally Unperceived: A Psychological Analysis of “Interpreter of
Maladies” by Jhumpa Lahiri”, American Research Journal of English and Literature, Vol 9, no. 1, 2023, pp. 95-101.
Abstract
This is a psychological analysis of Jhumpa Lahiri’s short story “Interpreter of Maladies”. Jhumpa Lahiri, although born
and bred in the West, writes her short stories with an Asian, especially Indian, touch. Her “Interpreter of Maladies” relates
an experience a US-born Asian young woman assimilated to Western culture has with a mature English-speaking Asian
man engaged in tourism. They both fail to perceive the chronic issues of family life as particular to each other. Mina and
Mr Kapasi are both in the same plight as frustrated spouses in their respective arranged marriages. But they cannot
be explicit to each other because of cultural barriers. So, their maladies remain unperceived by each other under the
influence of their cultural orientations. Mina considers Mr Kapasi a prospective counsellor, but Mr Kapasi considers her a
prospective mistress. Ultimately, their considerations prove baseless, when they are both supposed to work out a solution
together for an ailing problem.
