Diaspora and Hybridity: A study of the Second generation Diaspora in Jhumpa Lahiri’s ‘Unaccustomed Earth’.

The United States of America is a dream destination for many Indians. In fact, Indians settle down in America for a variety of reasons, like trade, better job opportunities, better education, marriage, better future and also in the pursuit of a better life. In such a scenario, it is interesting to know as to how the second generation Indian American diaspora, who are born in America live their life in America, their place of birth, as their parents, the first generation Indian American diaspora always look back and consider India to be their home and the place to which they will eventually ‘return’. The offsprings of the first generation Indian American diaspora who are born in America face a predicament as to which culture or way of life they will follow. They appear to be torn between the culture of the parents’ homeland, India and the culture of USA, where they are born and raised. This paper seeks to study and to interrogate as to what extent the second generation diaspora follows the culture of their parents’ homeland vis-a-vis the culture of the hostland. This paper seeks to analyze the second generation diaspora through an examination of Indian American diaspora writer, Jhumpa Lahiri’s story ‘Unaccustomed Earth’. Thus, through an exploration of the character of Ruma, a second generation Indian American diaspora, this study arrives at a conclusion that though Ruma is born in the U.S. and lives her life in the U.S, she continues to follow in many respects, certain elements of Indian culture. She, we note, occupies a ‘third space’ and emerges as a ‘hybrid’.