CONTACTS WITH HISTORY IN THE SHORT STORY WHEN MR. PIRZADA CAME TO DINE

Abstract

This article aims to analyse two kinds of contact with historical events in the short story “When Mr. Pirzada came to dine”, written by Jhumpa Lahiri in 1999 and part of the collection Interpreter of Maladies. The short story at issue portrays the experiences of a child called Lilia, born to Indian immigrants and growing up in the United States. The first vector of her involvement with historical events focuses on the context of origin of Lilia’s parents, whereas the second is interested in discussing her socialization with American history, as mediated by a school in the USA.  In both contexts, Lilia relates to history and positions herself by identifying different forms of belongingness, inscribed in historical narratives. For this purpose, those historical events are relevant which provide meaning for the main character’s identity narration.