English teacher Mary Lynn Ellis‘s AP Literature class is studying The Namesake, a 2003 bestseller by the Pulitzer-prize-winning author Jhumpa Lahiri, Born to Bengali émigré parents, Jhumpa had to struggle with early questions of her identity. Her experiences are reflected in the novel, which tells the complex story of two generations of a Bengali-American family in Massachusetts as they wrestle between new versus old, and assimilation versus maintaining traditional culture. Mary Lynn invited Radha Pai, mother to fellow English teacher Sheila Pai, to her classroom to share her own personal experience that connects in some ways to the trials of the main character’s life in The Namesake.
The eleventh grade students reflected upon the visit from their special guest:
“What really struck me in Radha Pai’s visit today was how brave and independent she was coming to America. She never gave up and she hurtled all obstacles to get where she wanted to go. What she told us about life in India, that she had to fight for everything she wanted and needed, was eye opening for me. In the United States, we take so many things for granted, but there they had to fight and be persistent in order to obtain anything from a good education to a bowl of rice.”
– Devyn Costello-Henderson ’21
“I thought hearing about Radha’s life helped me connect the book to a real-life story. The part that first stood out to me was her determination to get to America. As someone who’s lived here all my life, it’s easy to forget the privilege I have. Hearing about the challenges she had to face, fighting for education and to be taken seriously as a woman in India, made me realize how lucky I am. I also thought about my white privilege when she described her experiences with patients rejecting her care because of the color of her skin. It angered me that people could disrespect a knowledgeable and respectable individual based on race or the way she looked. I’ve never had to experience something like that and it really made me think about the racism in America and if everyone can truly live the American dream when oppression is still present in our society today.”
– Isabella Aguilar ’21
“Today’s visit from Radha Pai brought a series of unexpected revelations and connections to the immigrant story which I had not previously considered. I had gone in expecting for her to relate to Ashima’s point of view, one which was reluctant to become immersed in the American experience and one which is a common immigrant tale. I was surprised to hear pretty much the opposite; that while there were difficulties in figuring out American life, the majority of Radha’s experiences were much more positive than what she would’ve had in India. She found ways to explore her medical path in the U.S, appreciated and welcomed by the New York hospital where she worked when in India education for women was something that had to be fought for. She argued for the liberty that the United States allows for, liberty that we take largely for granted but which is not readily found in India or other countries around the world. I related this whole discussion a lot to my own family, who emigrated primarily from Russia. While they did face hardship immigrating to America, the freedoms which they enjoyed and the educational and professional experiences which they were able to achieve would’ve been impossible back home. It’s interesting how for The Namesake we often examined the negative consequences of assimilation to the United States when in reality there are many positive aspects from a life in America that are often omitted from discussion.
– Noah Vinogradov ’21