Is Ashoke Couple In Jhumpa Lahiri's The Namesake

Jhumpa Lahiri is the author of the fictional bestseller, “The Namesake”, a moving novel exploring the life of the married couple, Ashima and Ashoke Ganguli, immigrants from India in the United States of America. The two both adapt to the new cultural changes in America though once they give birth to Gongol Ganguli, a name Ashoke has given after he was “rescued” by that author in a train accident, they have both yet to experience parenthood. As the years go by, and Ashima and Ashoke begin to get accustomed to the country, young Gongol despises his name. Later on, Gongol changes his name to Nikhil, still not knowing the history behind his real name. Eventually, Ashoke finally tells Gongol the story behind his name, but he had soon died after a heart attack. After this incident, Gongol ponders deeply of his name and the moments he had with his dad. This secondary character, Ashoke, has been an influential father in Gongol’s life, he has made him realize the importance of the name given to him; it was the name that saved his life.
If it were not for this train wreck, the name “Gongol” would not have been in the protagonist life. “Though there are only inches between them, for an instant his father is a stranger, a man who has kept a secret, has survived a tragedy, a man whose past he does not fully know” (Lahiri 123). This moment between father and son ignited a new bonding as to Gongol saw him as a different person. The man who he thought was old-fashioned; it has made Gongol realize the life his father had and the impact it had on him. His father has been influential in the cultural identity of Gongol; something Gongol has been struggling with for nearly half of his