Point of View in Unaccustomed Earth

Most of "Unaccustomed Earth" is written in third-person omniscient, and because of this the reader gets a more complete picture of each character. Lahiri includes characters thoughts, which help to bring the reader into the picture, but to me, it still feels as if I am watching over the characters in the novel. Since I am watching over the characters, I do not feel as involved in the story. But Lahiri makes a unique choice by switching to a different point of view for Part Two.

Part Two is written in second-person, which is unique in that the characters talk directly to you, the reader. Second-person point of view can make a reader feel more directly involved with the novel, which is why it is the style used in choose-your-own-adventure books. Unfortunately for me, however, Lahiri's use of second-person point of view only serves to further alienate me from the characters.

Since the first part of the book is written in third person, I feel as if I am watching the characters go about their lives. I can observe the way they feel and act, and it helps me to further understand the logic behind the actions of the various characters. And since the POV is omniscient, Lahiri goes out of her way to give the reader insight into the lives of Bengali Americans. What this means is that every action is explained so that those like me, with zero Bengali heritage, can understand more fully the characters in the novel. However, in Part Two, the reader becomes Kaushik, a Bengali American. This hurts my connection with the novel for one main reason. Although Hema address me directly by referring to Kaushik as "you", I do not feel like Hema is talking to me. This is because Kaushik has lived a completely different life than mine, so I cannot connect with him. As a result, reading this portion of the novel is more difficult, since I don't feel like I am Kaushik.

Connecting to Unaccustomed Earth

"Unaccustomed Earth" by Jhumpa Lahiri follows the lives of eight different people. One of the characteristics that each character shares with the others is that he/she is in or has been in a dysfunctional relationship. Relationships are a focus of the novel, and since I come from a loving family with strong bonds, I find it very difficult to relate to the book. For example, one of the first characters that the author introduces to the reader is Ruma, a Bengali wife, mother, and daughter. Within a few pages of Ruma's introduction, Lahiri begins to hint at Ruma's poor relationship with those around her. One such hint comes in Ruma's description of her preschool-age son, Akash. Ruma mentions that although Akash is only three, "...she already felt the resistance, the profound barrier she assumed would set in with adolescence." (10) I find it very difficult to connect with Ruma through this statement because my family has always been very close. I love my parents and they love me. I feel as if Ruma is overreacting; how could she conclude from the actions of a three year old that he is resisting her and will only continue to separate himself even more as he gets older? A three year old is completely dependent on his parents for survival, so how could the normal Akash possibly be putting up a barrier between him and Ruma? Furthermore, outside of parents, there are maybe two other people who could possibly show Akash as much love as Ruma and her husband Adam, and they are Akash's grandfather and his uncle. A three year old may not know much, but they are able to tell who loves them, so why does Ruma feel like Akash wants to be separated from her? Because I have never felt the barrier that Ruma feels, and because I cannot imagine a three year old truly rebelling against his parents for more than just a trivial reason, I find it difficult to connect with Ruma. Furthermore, the absurdity of Ruma's feelings makes the book lose much of its power, as I cannot seriously believe that a mother feels that her three-year old son is rebelling against her.

Writing Style of Unaccustomed Earth

Jhumpa Lahiri tells the story of a Bengali family through the point of views of eight different members of the family, but does so in a peculiar manner. Rather than write in first person for each character, Lahiri uses third person omniscient, focusing on one character at a time. There are both positive and negative aspects to this writing style. A positive aspect would be that the reader is given a more complete picture of each character. For example, Ruma hints at the poor relationship between her and her father at various points throughout the beginning of the novel. She describes how it has been a long time since her father had sent her a postcard. She also mentions that her father called her to ask if it would be okay for him to spend a week in Seattle with her family, while her mother simply would've told Ruma that she was going to stay with her. The fact that the father has to call and ask shows that the relationship between Ruma and her father is distant at best. Why is her father so distant? Rather than continue to describe the various ways in which Ruma's father is aloof, Lahiri offers the viewer insight on the mind of the father. The first glimpse the reader gets into the mind of Ruma's father is through the statement, "How freeing it was, these days, to travel alone..." (7) Clearly the father is relieved to not have to worry about anyone else, so the reader is given the feeling that the father must have been under a lot of stress when he travelled with his family in the past. Hopefully Lahiri will continue to develop the father's story, so that the reader may be able to figure out why his relationship with his daughter is strained. In sum, Lahiri's writing style gives a complete picture of the characters because we get both the views one character holds of another, and the individual thoughts of the different characters.

 A negative aspect is that there is some disconnect between storylines early on. One moment Ruma is complaining about not being happy because her husband is doing so much for her, and then all of a sudden the dad thinks how nice it is that he can travel to Europe without worrying about anyone else. It seems likely, however, that this problem will be resolved, as the father plans to go spend a week with his daughter's family in Seattle.

Writing Style of Don Quixote

The writing style in Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes is unlike anything I have ever read before. The book begins with a prologue by Cervantes in which he speaks directly to the reader; the first sentence of the book is, "Idle reader: I don't have to swear any oaths to persuade you that I should like this book." (1) This informal dialogue between the reader and Cervantes continues throughout the prologue, in which he describes the relationship between him and his book through the metaphor of a father and his 'defective' son. What Cervantes is essentially telling the reader is that the following book is not perfect, but he isn't writing to please you. Phrases like "I'd have liked to give it to you plain and naked..." and "Because I can tell you that, although it was quite and effort to write this book..." (12) give the feeling that the author is speaking with you as a friend would. The informal writing style does not end with the prologue, however. Cervantes continues to address the reader directly, and even makes a cameo in the first part of the novel. Cervantes's cameo comes during a scene where a priest and members of Don Quixote's family are deciding which of our protagonist's novels deserved to be burned for corrupting his mind. One of the novels that the priest looks at happens to be "Galatea by Miguel de Cervantes." (58)

The reason for this informal style is part of the book is about the work the authors of the History of Don Quixote de la Mancha did in order to write the novel. Part I ends abruptly in the middle of a battle between Don Quixote and the Basque. Cervantes then begins to address the reader directly, in order to tell him/her that the author had unfortunately left the battle unfinished, but not to worry, because "...the second author of this work refused to believe that such a fascinating history had been abandoned to the laws of oblivion." (70) The second part of the novel thus begins with Cervantes telling the reader how he found the rest of The History of Don Quixote de la Mancha.

I have never before read such an informal book. Don Quixote is written in a manner that makes it seem as if he was a real person, and Cervantes was tasked with finding and creating a complete history of the amazing knight. Cervantes speaks directly to the reader about his task at several points, making it feel as if the author is writing the very book as you read it.