Millions of families suffer every year. (Go to Danya's for the first part)

     In Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake, identity is a huge part of what makes up the character’s motivation and personalities. In the novel, cultural clash and traditional values plays a large role of the many families that Nikhil joins throughout. Nikhil has two families throughout the novel: his own and Maxine’s. Nikhil also suffers from his own personal identity crisis throughout the entire novel that isn’t resolved until the very end.
     Within the Ganguli family is where most of the culture clash is centralized. His parents are entirely Bengali, but they also believe their children to be Bengali. This is where the trouble starts. Sonia and Nikhil see themselves as American, not Bengali. They like to participate in American traditions and fun, not the events their parents have brought over from India. Christmas celebrations become a staple at the Ganguli household, however Ashima tries to keep it as secular as possible to avoid the religious meaning behind the holiday. She simply wants her children to enjoy the American way of life, and with that comes, Christmas: Hallmark Edition. During Nikhil’s childhood birthdays, he always had two. One for his American friends and one for a Bengali celebration. This was the difference between the two generations: the need to constantly come back to their heritage. Sonia and Nikhil see no need to surround themselves with other Bengalis, like their parents do. Ashoke and Ashima seem to be friends with every Bengali on the East Coast but their children couldn’t seem to care less about the heritage of their friends. The older generation is still clinging on to the past, while the younger generation is looking towards the future by becoming more American, since they were born and raised here. Nikhil’s identity is torn, does he want to please his parents by acting like a Bengali or does he want to please himself by being an American?
     Within Maxine’s family, Nikhil discovers something he never had known: lack of responsibility or duty to one’s parents. From Nikhil’s point of view, Maxine seems to be able do as she pleases, her parents will be happy either way. The couple can live in Maxine’s parents’ home, eat Maxine’s parents’ food, and go on vacation with Maxine’s parents without worrying about criticism or following certain rules. This is an American family, Nikhil comes to realize. This is what he has been striving for his whole life. But he comes to realize that this isn’t his world. He doesn’t belong living this life nor does he want to. After the death of his father, he realizes that his place is with his family not with someone else’s. His identity is called into question once again. Is he a Ganguli or a Ratliff? This leads him to find love with Moushumi, a Bengali that he met when he was a child (I know Scalia, the love blog will come next but don’t get mad at me if I say similar things in both blogs). He returns to what his family wants and what his culture requires. He ends up marrying Moushumi because he truly believes he has found who he is. He believes himself to be a Bengali.
     However, he is proven wrong once again. Moushumi has an affair with a long lost lover, this ends in divorce for Nikhil. The path that he thought was right for him had just slapped him in the face. Neither the American life nor the Bengali life seemed to be who he truly was. While it is never explicitly revealed as to what is best for Nikhil, as the novel ends shortly after his divorce, I believe that he must learn to accept that there is no perfect culture for him to identify with. His journey ends when he learns to accept himself, not what others think of him. Cultural identity is extremely important to him but he understands that his father did not choose America to live in because he wanted to be American, he chose to come here because he wanted to be the best version of himself and America would allow him to do that. It’s not about the culture, it’s about who you are.