“When Mr. Pirzarda Came to Dine” Analysis

         Throughout this story Lahiri presents a fictional family who depicts the real world implications of living in a new society without letting their cultural values and traditions fade. Such motif highlights the characters self-identity crisis. Lilia’s family and Mr. Pirzada attempt to safeguard their identity by resorting to obtaining information of their native countries, and eating traditional dishes.

            The family’s struggle with the preservation of their cultural identity is mainly portrayed through Lilia and the education she receives. For example the author notes, “ ‘Is this book a part of your report, Lilia?’ ‘No, Mrs, Kenyon.’ ‘Then I see no reason to consult it,’ she said, replacing it in the slim gap on the shelf, ‘Do you?’ “(Lahiri, 33). In the new culture they reside in, the Pakistani-Indian conflict was of no relevance. The teachers focused on indoctrinating the students with the history of America, nothing else was important. When the history of their ethnic background isn’t taught to an individual they will forget it. For this reason, Lilia has to research her country’s information by herself, and her parents have to watch the news to be close to home. The family also protects their cultural identity by engaging in a special form of eating and dining. For example when the author writes, “After the television was shut off, and the dishes washed and dried, they joked and told stories, and dipped biscuits in their tea” (Lahiri,34). To the protagonists, eating is a form of connecting with their heritage, forgetting about their problems and the cruelty of being away from home. To Lilia’s family and Mr. Pirzada dining was reminiscent of their home country, as they ate traditional foods, and engaged in activities with people of a similar background. As seen through the actions of her characters, Lahiri’s literature is thematically influence by the struggle of maintaining one’s culture upon adversity. 

Lahiri, Jhumpa. "When MR. Pirzada Came To Dine." Interpreter of Maladies. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1999. 23-42. Print.