Thursday, February 4, 2010
"The Third and Final Continent" - SCASI
Since not all students have completed reading the story "The Third and Final Continent" prior to "Health Week", this essay is being assigned as homework due the Monday following our return from Carnival weekend. All students are encouraged, however, to finish reading the story and to write this essay during "Health Week" while our recent class discussions are more easily remembered.
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"The Third And Final Continent" is written by Jhumpa Lahiri in 1999. Jhumpa Lahiri is an author born in 1967, she is a woman but she rote this story as a man.
ReplyDeleteThe story sets in a couple of different places. England, Calcutta, but most of all in USA, Boston. Mostly it sets in an apartment of which the narrator rents one room. The setting was very well explained.
There is he main character in the story, the narrator, i hink that e never get to know his name, but we know that he is from Bengali, India. First he left to England in order to have better jo opportunities, then he leaves to America. The other character in the story is Mrs. Croft, she is a very old 103 year old lady who gives out a room for renting. Helen who is Mrs.Croft's daughter, and Mala who is the narrator's wife.
The story is about a Bengali guy who first goes to England in search of fortune, then after he works there a bit he is offered a job in America, about the same time his edding is arranged. First he goes to Calcutta to marry, then he leaves his wife until he settles in America. He is in America for about three weeks until his wife comes, first he lives in a small room which he rents for eight dollars a week. He has a routine going on with the lady who owns the apartment, and then he rents another bigger appartment for twenty dollars a ewek when his wife comes. Then hey live ith eachother and Mrs.Croft dies.
The style of the story is very interesting, because the narrator himself is from Bengali, he is talking about Hindu traditions, food, way of life and fashion. To me it is quite exotic and ood to know.
The main idea of the story is immigration, to show that it might be hard for people to completely move into a ne country, and how to live there and adapt to new things. It is called the "third and final continent", and it is because first he is in India, one continent, then goes to live in England, second continent and then America which is third and final continent, so we get to know that the narrator stays in USA.
I really loved this story, it is easy to read, not too long, not too short and it is very interesting. I liked that the narrator included Hindu food, mentioned sari and traditions they have, so the story itself was interesting and didn't get boring cuz of its exotic things. I recommend this story to anyone who likes to read short stories.
In class we were reading the story which was called “The Third and Final Continent”. This story was written by Jhumpa Lahiri in 1999.
ReplyDeleteThere are several settings in the story. The character was traveling and was in different places. He is from India from where he sailed on the SS Roma to England. He lived in North London, in Finsbury Park, in a house occupied by penniless Bengali bachelors like him-self. He attended lectures at LSE and worked at the university library. His wedding was in Calcutta after which he flew to Boston. Most of the story he spends the time in America. There at first he was staying at the YMCA then he was rending the flat on a quiet street where he was living till his wife arrived and then they were renting bigger flat which was few blocks away.
Characters in the story were narrator whose name we don’t know, his wife Mala was 27 years old also was daughter of a school-teacher, narrators brother and his wife who arranged the wedding for narrator, Mrs. Croft 103 years old women who gave the room for narrator and her daughter Helen who was 68 years old. Also we know about narrator’s mother he always think about her.
“The third and Final Continent” is about a Bengali men who moved from India in 1964 He wasn’t rich because he had just 10 dollars at the beginning of his trip to England and he was in the third-class cabin next to engine on the boat. In England he lived in North London in the house with Bengali man. He lived three or four man to a room. In 1969 when he was 36 years old his wedding was arranged in Calcutta. He never saw or knew before the women which become his wife.” So little did I know her that, while details of her face sometimes rose to my memory, I could not conjure up the whole of it.” Around the same time he was offered a full-time job in America in MIT where salary was generous enough to support a wife. By that time he had enough money to go by plane and rent good flat. First night he spends in YMCA after he found a room in the house of old women it wasn’t expensive just 8 dollars per week. Every day in this house was the same story for the narrator. “Each evening when he returned Mrs. Croft slapped the bench, ordered to sit down, declared that there was a flag on the moon, and declared that it was splendid after narrator was saying that it was splendid too” after what narrator was free to go to his room. Every weekends Mrs. Croft’s daughter Helen was coming to help her mother. She was bringing the food and cleaning the house. When Narrators wife was coming he rent a new more comfortable and bigger flat where they could live together. After Mala came to him they were trying to get each other. One day Narrator showed to Mala the house of Mrs. Croft as the first home in this country and there the distance between Mala and narrator become less. Later narrator read in the news paper that Mrs. Croft died “she had left this world at last, ancient and alone, never to return.” He was really sad because it was the first life he had admired. Mala and Narrator are living together in the house with their son 20 miles away from Boston.
Polina
Part 1
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteNarrator wrote this story in the third person. It’s very interesting because Jhumpa Lahiri is a women but she wrote the story as a men. There many Indian words like “sari”. Also we can see traditions in this story “for six weeks she had worn an iron bangle on her wrist, and applied vermilion powder to the part in her hair, to signify to the world that she was a bride.” And that narrators wedding were arranged.
ReplyDeleteThe main idea of the story is to show feeling, emotions, and thoughts of people who are moving to different place far away from their country side. How they trying to learn something about new country. Also the story shows us that people are keeping their traditions even if they aren’t in their own country.
For me “The third and Final Continent” was really good short story. It was very interesting and exciting. I learned some things about Indian traditions and their ways of live. For me was seemed that the author was telling the story through her own personal experiences. At some points I could feel her struggle. It’s very true story.
Polina
Part 2
Caroline Schiller
ReplyDeleteThe third and final continent was written by Jhumpa Lahiri in 1999. It is about an Indian man who lived in Europe and then moved to America. The author is Indian and was born on July 11, 1967. She has also written the novel ‘Namesake’. “The Third and Final Continent” is a short story of the short story collection “Interpreter of Maladies”.
The narrator was first living in India, but he doesn’t tell us a lot about his life there. He then left India and sailed 3 weeks on the SS Roma. He ended up in England and then lived in North London, in Finsbury Park, and he had to share his room with three or four other people. Then he moved to America, Boston, because he was offered a full time job. There, he first spend some nights in the YMCA in Central Square, Cambridge. Then he moved to a house for eight dollars per week. He shared this house with an old lady. Then the narrator’s wife came and they moved into an own apartment for forty dollars a week.
The narrator is an Indian man from Bengali. He had no high demands and got used to new places very fast. He can act like a gentleman and seems to be really nice. He often thinks about his mother who died a long time ago. Then there is his wife, Mala. He married her, but has never seen her before. She later joins him in America. For some time, they are like strangers to each other. She doesn’t get used to America very fast. Then there is the old (103 years old) woman Mrs. Croft. She was a bit crazy, because she always repeated the same scene each evening, and she couldn’t move very well. She used to play the piano once, but now her fingers were really bad. And she couldn’t get used to the new century. It meant a lot to her, that there was a flag on the moon. Then there is Mrs Croft’s daughter, Helen. She is 68, but is still treated by her mother as if she was a little child. Helen visits her mother once a week and brings her soup.
The story starts with the narrator leaving India. He comes to England by ship and there he lives for quite a while. He was really poor at the beginning. Then he got married with a woman from Calcutta. About at the same time, he was offered a full time job in America. So right after the wedding, he moved to America, but without his wife. In America, he soon lives in a house with an old woman, Mrs Croft. This woman is really happy about the flag on the moon and tells the narrator every evening, that this was really ‘splendid’. Helen visited Mrs Croft to give her food. Later, the narrator’s wife arrives, and so he moves to an own apartment. They behave like strangers, but that is understandable, because apart from the wedding, they have never met. She has some difficulties to get to used to America. Then they visit Mrs Croft, and she says that the narrator’s wife was the right for the narrator. The evening at Mrs Croft, made the couple laugh together and for the first time the distance between them got smaller. Later, Mrs Croft dies, which affect the narrator, because she was important to his life. He saw his dead mother in her. Even years later, he often drove past her house and remembered the time with Mrs Croft.
The story is a lot about Indian traditions. We learn that the Indians get married even if the couple doesn’t even know each other. And I learned how a man who was so poor managed to build up a life with a wife in an absolutely new continent. It is a lot about traveling and new things, like the flag on the moon or America to an Indian. The story is written in 1st person and the narrator is a man, even though the writer is a woman.
...part1
The main idea of the story is different cultures and moving. It describes America as something new and different. And then the narrator says some differences. Also comparisons with England are there. The narrator has lived through a lot and shows us his experience. First Asia, then Europe and in the end living in America isn’t a life everybody goes through, especially when you are so poor. Then the story is also a lot about changes. Changes, because of the whole moving things, but also changes like Mrs Croft has lived through in her century of life. That now a days, girls also wear short skirts and can talk with boys without anyone watching them.
ReplyDeleteI really liked the story especially the scenes with Mrs Croft. She was so old fashioned but made the story so funny with her behavior. I also thought that it was really interesting to learn about India. Though this story was kind of long, it was worth reading it :)
...part2
“The Third And Final Continent” was written by Jhumpa Lahiri in 1999 a female writer who was born in 1967.
ReplyDeleteThe story is first set in Calcutta India, but then moves into England and then Boston in the United States. The narrator spends most of his time in a rented room in an apartment but then moves into a bigger decent house when his wife moves in with him.
The main charecter is the narrator. He comes from Bengali, India and we dont have a name. He seems like very decent man, he acts like gentleman and is very polite. He adabts to new soroundings very easily since he moves around alot. He thinks of his mother very often and he is married to Mala. He married her, but has never met her before but later on meets her when she moves in with him in America. Most of the time they act like strangers but they soon become very close. Then their is Mrs.Croft who is a very elderly women who rents out a room to the narrator when he first moves to america, she seems to have amnisia as she repeats the same thing over and over again each day. Helen is Mrs.Crofts daughter who takes care of her and brings her soup and becomes good friends with the narrator.
The story begins with the narrator leaving India and setting off. He is really poor at the start and sets of to England, and lives there for a while.He then got married to a women called Mala and then he got offered a full time job in America so he traveled across the world to Boston, USA. Thats where he met Mrs. Croft who rented him out a room for 8 Dollars a week. She sits with the narrator every evening and repeats the same things, to check the lock, and to tell him to say splendid about the flag on the moon. Helen vists everyday to give her mother some soup and Helen and the narrator become good friends. When Mala finally moves in she doesnt like America and is very traditional about India. They start of as strangers but soon become very close, we see this starting when Mrs.Croft says Mala is perfect for the narrator and they have a laugh about it. In the end the narrator moves to a bigger house, and is in some way upset about leaving Mrs. Croft. Later in the story mrs.croft dies and the narrator is affected because she remined him of his mother.
The story is written in the third person and the main style of this is ‘Indian tradition’ indian words like sari are used throughout the story and it talks about Indian tradition, an arranged marrige to eating rice with youre hands. It is also very interesting because the author is a female but wrote this story from a male’s point of view.
The main idea of this story is traditions and meeting new people. Traditions like i spoke about in the style, from arranged marriges to their eating habits and how many traditions are usually kept. Meeting new people because of traveling around the world, as people are lost more people are met.
I enjoyed reading this story because it was different in a way, and wasnt really predictable. Even though it was the longest story in the book i didnt get bored of it. :)
The third and final continent was written by Jhumpa Lahiri in the year of 1999. Jhumpa Lahiri is an Indian author who was born on July 11th in the year of 1867 and had also written “The namesake”. It is mostly about an Indian guy who was raised in India, lived in Europe but later moved to the United States of America.
ReplyDeleteThe Indian guy was born and raised in India (however he did not tell us much about his life in India) After this he left India for good and had to sail three weeks on the “SS ROMA” (must be a boat or ship) The narrator ended up being in England and then lived in the North of London in Finsbury Park. Later he had moved to the United States of America, to Boston since he was offered a full time job over there. First few days were spent in the YMCA in the Central Square of Cambridge. He had then moved to a house for about eight dollars per week and had to share this house with some old woman. Later on in life, the narrator finds love and this woman becomes his wife. They move into their own apartment which was around forty dollars per week.
The narrator is an Indian man who was born and raised in Bengali. He was living in Europe for some time but later moved to the United States of America. The narrator seems like a nice guy, he often recalls his mother who had died a long time ago (we do not know why or how) Then there is the narrators wife, Mala. They never saw each other before and act like strangers to each other. She moves to the United States of America to be with him but does not get used to the country easily. There is also another character called, Mrs. Croft who is an old lady around a hundred and three years old. She is considered to be a little bit mental; since she repeats the same words and actions each evening after the narrator gets home from work. There was one time when she could play the piano but something happened later to her fingers which disabled her ability to play the piano once again.
The story “The Third and Final Continent” begins with the narrator leaving India. He comes to England by the SS ROMA and stays in England for some time. He then marries a woman from Calcutta, Mala. And in that time, he got offered a full time job in the United States of America. He moves to the United States of America after the wedding and without Mala, who becomes his wife. When he arrives, he lives with an old lady (who happens to be Mrs. Croft) in a house and looks after her. Later on, the narrator’s wife arrives, and they move to their own apartment but has a hard time adjusting to her new home. In the end Mrs. Croft dies, which affects the narrator since he got so close to her that she seemed important to him. He mentions that she saw his dead mother in her eyes. And since then, even years later, he often drove past Mrs. Crofts’ house and remembered the times they had together years before.
The story mentions many Indian traditions; which we learn from, for example - that the Indians can get married even without knowing them each other and that their parents seek for the right person to come in their children’s lives who later should get married. The story is written in 1st person.
The main idea of this story is probably to be mentioning many and different cultures from the Indian side. It describes the United States as something new and different to the world. The narrator has gone through many sad and happy things in his life so far and shares his experiences with us, which is very appreciatable.
I have enjoyed reading this story, I thought it was pretty long however still worth reading. I really like reading these kind of stories which include this kind of drama. I look forward to reading more of these stories!
By Christina Lomakina
The Third And Final Continent
ReplyDeleteThe Third And Final Continent is a very interesting story written by Jhump Lahiri in 1999. Jhump Lahiri is a female writer who was born in 1967. She writes this story as a man.
The Third And Final Continent is set in many countries including, Calcutta in India, England, Boston and the United States. The writer spends his time in a rented room in an old woman’s apartment. This old woman rents the apartments to young students. Later though he moves into a bigger house where he and his ‘wife’ stay.
The main character of the story is the man who is telling the story. I forgot if he actually said his name but I do not think so. The narrator is a Bengali man. He comes from India. He is a very nice proper man who is gentlemanlike and kind. He unfortunately moves around a lot and has to get used to his new homes over and over again but he succeeds very well. His mother is very close to him and he loves her very much. Another main character is his wife, Mala! He didn’t know her at all when he married her except that she spoke English. He soon gets to know her and starts to love her like a wife. She moves in to America. Mrs. Croft I find is the most absurd character. She is extremely old fashioned and thinks of herself as, ‘she can do it’ style. The word that describes her perfectly is OLD. The Bengali man rents out a house at her apartment and gets to know her better. She is a very sweet person who keeps repeating the same day he comes to her. Helen is Mrs. Croft’s daughter who takes care of her and brings her soup every month. He and Helen get along very well.
The story is about a man who leaves India to set off to England. He is extremely poor but lives in England for a while. He got blindly married to a woman named Mala and then got a job in America. He is then moved to Boston and that is where he lives for a great period of time. Now comes in Mrs. Croft a 102 year old woman who he is renting a room from her apartment that he pays her 8 Dollars a week for. She sits with the narrator at the piano of the house all day and repeats the same thing every day, ‘check the lock, say splendid, there’s a flag on the moon’. Helen, Mrs. Crofts daughter visits every so often to give her soup and soon he and Helen become good friends. Mala then arrives in America and they start to actually love each other. Since Mala arrived the narrator stopped going to Mrs. Crofts house and rents a bigger house. Mala though doesn’t like America. Mrs. Croft suddenly dies and the narrator is very affected from this happening as it reminded him of his mother.
The story is written in the third person. There are many Indian words in the story like sari and it is mainly talking about the Indian traditions. The marriage is very interesting as they eat rice with their hands. I really liked the style. It is interesting as the author was a woman so it is very interesting what her point of view is. This gives us an idea of what women see in the male point of view.
The main idea of this story is traditions. It is also travel and life/families. Eating habits dressing all effect the traditions whilst travelling because he moved so many times and life because he had started a new life.
I really enjoyed reading this story because it was effective, interesting and because it was different. Thinking that it was written by a woman and the narrator was a man is very interesting. It was fun, and long but didn’t get boring. It remained fun and full of suspense!
XD
The Third and Final Continent
ReplyDeleteThe Third and Final Continent is a story written by Jhumpa Lahiri about an Indian man and how he travels from India to the London and then the United States where he starts his family.
It is set in three countries, and continents for that matter. The story takes place over a time span of more than 30 years in India, London and Massachusetts (Boston). The very beginning of the story takes place in India, or rather as the protagonist is leaving India for London where he stays in a flat with other Indians. After London he moves to the US where he lives with his wife after their arranged marriage in India.
There aren’t a lot of main characters in the story, in fact only a handful. Firstly there is the narrator and protagonist, a Bengali Indian from Calcutta who moves to London and then the US. The second character that plays a big part in the story is Mrs. Croft, a 103 year old landlady who forgets things and is very old fashioned. Then there is Helen, Mrs. Croft’s daughter, who is sixty years old and is a lot more in tune with the time period then her mother. Mala is the next character to appear, Mala is a shy Indian woman who is arranged to be married with the narrator.
At the beginning of the story, the narrator is just leaving Calcutta in India to go to London on a cargo vessel called the “S.S Roma”. When he arrives in London, the narrator studies and works at the London School of Economics until he has enough money to fly to Calcutta for his wedding and then to Boston to continue his life. At first, living in the YMCA, the narrator finds life in America different from London, little things that aren’t the same. Then the narrator decides to move from the YMCA to a room in a house on a quiet street. It is at this house that the narrator first meets Mrs. Croft, who surprises him with her energy despite her old frail appearance. After drilling into him that he is to lock the door when he comes in, they settle their soon daily routine of sitting at the piano bench, talking about the moon landing and saying “Splendid!” Until the day where he hands in the rent and puts it directly in her hands, later that day she doesn’t ask him to say splendid, nor talk about the moon.
That weekend, the narrator meets Mrs. Croft’s daughter Helen. That day he also receives a big shock, he finds out that Mrs. Croft is 103 years old. Suddenly, the narrator feels he cares for Mrs. Croft and is amazed at how each day she lived was a miracle in itself. This also causes him to start worrying about Mrs. Croft and himself. For six weeks he lives with Mrs. Croft and is still amazed at her age. By the end of
August Mala is ready to come to America. After some weeks she starts to adjust to the American way of life, as well as getting used to having a husband which the narrator finds difficult as well. However, the two start to grow together in time and after meeting Mrs. Croft, and later on after her death, they have a son.
The story is written somewhat like a diary, a recollection of what happened when he moved to America. This is due to the use of first person and the past tense that is used right up until the very end of the story. However not in the first person of the author, who is a woman.
“The Third and Final Continent” provides insight into Indian traditions and ways of life, i.e. arranged marriages and traditions for the bride. There is also the idea of moving from not just a country, but a way of life into a new world. It also provides a lot of insight into how life has changed over the years, for example the cost to rent a room in Boston for 8$ is extraordinarily low compared to today’s prices, and how to Mrs. Croft mini-skirts were an abomination. Overall the main idea of the story is a change of lifestyle, change as a whole.
I enjoyed the story a lot because of its diversity, both literally (countries and lifestyles) and figuratively (genre). Some parts of the story are funny, and some are informative, whilst others are sad.
THE THIRD AND FINAL CONTINENT
ReplyDelete'The Third and Final Continent' is a short story written by Jhumpa Lahiri in the year of 1999. The short story is mainly about the migration to the USA of one Bengali 'Bachelor'.
The setting of this short story is in many places throughout the narrators life. First he is living in Calcutta, India with his family where there was a hot and humid environment. Then he travelled to the north of London in England for a few years at a university. And last of all, where he spent the rest of his life, in Boston, the United States. Here the environment was much colder with different seasonal changes than in India. All of this was mainly set in the 1960's/70's.
The main character is, of course, the narrator, the bengali man who moved to Boston starting a new life in a new world. Other characters consist of his wife, Mala, from an arranged marriage, who came to live with him in Boston after 1-2 years since he moved there. The other character in the book was the 103- year old woman, Mrs. Croft, who was the land woman of his apartment when he worked at the Boston tech university.
The action of this story started in Calcutta in 1964 as he left for England on an Italian cargo vessel. In London he attended lectures and worked at the university Library until he was offered a job in Boston in the United States. But before he left to the new continent, he had to go to his arranged wedding with his new wife Mala and straight after caught a plane to the new country. There he worked at the Boston tech university while living at a home owned by a 103-year old woman with a demanding, modest, polite personality and who had unusual but fun/traditional behaviours with him. A year later after he had adjusted to the U.S. his wife Mala had been accepted for her green card and came to Boston to join her husband. Their relationship grew slowly but increasingly. As years past, and the married couple had grown into a family and adjusted to their new home in the US, the narrator got news of Mrs. Croft having passed away and was greatly affected by this horrible news. But then life went on for him as he thought of his past experiences of his journey of the three continents.
“The third and final continent” was written in 1st person from the narrators point of view. It was written mainly showing his observations of the differences of the three continents he had lived in. The language style was very descriptive with beautiful vocabulary but also understandable for our age group.
The main themes of “The Third and final Continent” is of arranged marriage, Bengali culture, Indian-americans and adjustments to new continents and places. The morale of this story is how people never actually realize their past of all the people they have met and what lives they could of affected and what places they have travelled to. How all of the content of your life, no matter how ordinary it is, is shocking to your mind when overlooking the people you have known as acquaintances or have known very closely. This all shows how all these people have affected your life as well. So the theme of this book is a lot about life and the beauty as well the reality of it.
My conclusion of this short story was that it had a beautiful philosophy of life and especially the life of a migrator to new countries. This we can really connect to since most of us in the class are international migrants, with bilingual backgrounds and different experiences/views in life. I loved how it had a clear overview of the narrators life all the way from Calcutta to London, England and at last to Boston, US. The highlight of the story I thought was of his peculiar relationship with the old woman, Mrs. Croft and of her humorous personality but also how her experiences through the ages of an 103-year old has affected how she acts at the present time. Even though this was a very long story, I found it very exciting, interesting, and a great joy to read.
The Third and Final Continent was written by Jhumpa Lahiri in 1999. She was a female writer who was born in 1967; she was 32 when she wrote this story. The Story is written in the perspective of a man.
ReplyDeleteThe setting of the story is first set in Calcutta, India, but then he moves to Britain, then again to Boston, USA. In India the narrator lives in a family home, but then when he is in the USA, he lives mainly in a rented room, but then he moves to a larger house when his wife moves to the USA to join him.
The main characters in this story are the narrator, the narrator’s wife, Mala and Mrs. Crofts and Helen. The narrator was an Indian Man from Bengali who moves from Calcutta to England, then from England to Boston, USA. The narrator is a gentleman but unfortunately, we don’t find out his name. He is married to Mala, but he hasn’t actually met her yet. The narrator meets Mala when she moves to the USA to be with him, it was an arranged weeding, like the culture of Indians do. When Mala first moves to the USA, they are married, but complete strangers, and act this way. But not too long after they become close and very fond of each other. Mala didn’t like the USA when she first moved there as she was very cultural about India and she thought the way India is, was allot nicer than the USA. Mrs. Crofts was a very old lady who lent out part of her house to the narrator for 8 dollars a week. Due to her age, she was slightly crazy and forgetful and every night she would wait for the narrator to come inside the house and repeat the same thing over and over again. She would first ask him, “Have you locked the door?” Then she tells him “there’s an American flag upon the moon!” After that, she would force the narrator to say “Splendid!” Helen was Mrs. Crofts daughter and she would come every Friday, once a week to check that Mrs. Crofts was okay, and would open tins of soup and put them into a jar for Mrs. Crofts to eat.
The story is about the narrator who leaves India to go to England, and then to the USA, and how he got married to Mala without even seeing her before. He lives in the house that Mrs. Crofts Rents to him and the narrator waits till Mala comes to the USA. When Mala finally comes to the USA, the narrator gets a larger house and they start to love each other. Mrs. Crofts dies after the narrator left her house and he is very affected by her death as it reminds him of his mum.
The style of the story is written in the third person and is mainly about Indian tradition. Many Indian words like ‘sari’ are used in the story and it talks about various aspects of Indian traditions. The author of this story is a female, but she wrote it from a males perspective.
The main idea of this story is about traditions, migration and Relationships. Traditions is from the clothes worn, and the rituals they do. Migration from the moves from India – England – USA. And Relationships with the marriage of Mala and the narrator.
I enjoyed this story as it was long, but I didn’t feel like I was bored of it, and was always interested in what would happen next. The finial income was sad that Mrs. Crofts died but it was still surprising but fun.
The Third and Final Continent
ReplyDelete‘The Third and Final Continent’ is a story written by Jhumpa Lahiri in 1999. It is about an Indian man’s life that first moves to London then to the USA.
This story starts with the author telling us about his voyage on the SS Roma going to England from India where he was born and grew up. He arrived in England where he started at a house with other Indian men. He then moved to Boston the USA where he spent his first nights at the YMCA there while he finds a place to live. Eventually he moves with his wife to another house where we assume he lives for the larger part of the rest of his life.
The narrator is a Bengali man who. He was a very nice man, always payed his rent on time and never seems to expect much from things. Another character is Mala, his wife. Mala is a very shy person who doesn’t like to be away from him. There is also Mrs. Croft, a 103 year old woman who was the narrator’s land lady when he first moved to the USA. She was rather crazy, asking him to yell splendid every night when he came home about there being an American flag on the moon. She used to be a very good piano player, but her fingers had been damaged too much too play anymore. The last real character is Helen, Mrs. Croft’s 68 year old daughter. She comes to visit Mrs. Croft Sunday and brings her soup, the only thing she can eat.
The story begins when the narrator is telling us about leaving India and his voyage on the SS Roma. He arrives in London and lives in a house for Bengali men for a while. He gets an arranged marriage with a woman named Mala, who he would live with in America. He goes to America and spends his first few nights in the YMCA, getting used to everything and getting into a routine. He then needs to find another place to live. He finds that Mrs. Croft has a place to rent for $8 a week. This is in 1969, when the Americans first landed on the moon. Mrs. Croft hears about this and is amazed by it. Every night when he comes home she asks him to yell splendid about there being an American flag on the moon. Eventually he meets Helen, Mrs. Croft’s daughter who brings her soup every Sunday. This is when he learns of Mrs. Croft’s age. He then finds another place to live with his wife who had just moved to the USA. They move in and get into their usual routine, each slowly becoming more comfortable with each other. Years later, when the narrator is reading the newspaper, he comes across Mrs. Croft’s obituary. He is deeply saddened by this, as he liked Mrs. Croft.
This story is written in the first person and this obviously lets the writer talk and write as someone else. It is very interesting that the author, being female, wrote this story from a male’s point of view.
The main ideas of this story are Indian Culture and traditions. Their arranged marriage is a big part of the story and we can also point out things like the fact that they eat food with their hands and that Mala wears a sari where ever she goes and also covered her head when they first met and lived together.
I really enjoyed reading this story. I liked the themes and how it really seemed to capture Indian culture. I liked how it had many similarities with the Namesake, but were two separate stories.
The Third and Final Continent
ReplyDeleteThe story “Third and Final Continent” written by Jhumpa Lahiri in 1999 is about an indian man who travels from India to London, and then later onto America, where he begins to start his family, and get a job.
The story is set mainly in America, and for the most part, in an ordinary house, where he pays a cheap rent to the old landlady, and starts off his job when he is living there. He then moves onto a bigger apartment, when his wife moves in, and finally onto a house. Before he moves to America, the story is set in India, where he is about to set off for London, where he lives for about five years, in a small house with other Indians. It is after this that he moves on to Massachusetts, America for his career.
The main character of this story is the Indian man, from Calcutta, who moves from India to London via the SS. Roma, a goods ship, and then onto the US, for a job in MIT. He initally lives in a house, owned by Mrs. Croft, an elderly woman, one hundred and three years of age, who is very old-fashioned, and strict, with a high dicipline. She can be careless, and is very forgetful, and has a sixty year old daughter, Helen who brings here groceries, and helps her with everyday life. She seems more up to date, and she thinks that here mother is a slightly foolish woman. Mala is the protagonists wife, and the wedding was arranged by the families of both of them, and she eventually moves over to America when here green card and VISA are sorted out. She seems very shy, and finds it hard to adapt to the new lifestyle.
The story starts with the protagonist on the cargo vessel the SS. Roma, traveling to London from India, so that he can travel and get a good job there. He lives there for five years, in a small house with other Indians, and works at the London School of Economics to earn some money, which he plans to use to fly back to Calcutta, so that he can attend his planned Wedding, and move onto America. After attending his wedding, and leaving his wife to sort out here VISA and travel problems, he moves on to Masachusetts, where he finds out that man has just stepped foot on the Moon. He first stays at YMCA, and finds it very difficult to adapt to the different lifestyle and way of life and daily routine. He eventually decides to rent out a room in a quiet house, owned by Landlady Mrs. Croft, who is a very forgetful person, who seems to be fond in the main character. When he finds out from Helen, Mrs. Croft’s daughter,who comes every Sunday to bring Mrs. Croft supplies from the shop, that Mrs. Croft is one hundred and three years old, he feels shocked that she could have lived this long, and he feels stronger for her, and he feels that everyday is a miracle for her. He finds it hard to part after six weeks of staying there, but he must, as his wife is about to come to America. A few weeks or months later, when the couple are having a child, he finds out that Mrs. Croft has passed away, and he feels deeply sadened, although not shocked. Eventually, they form a family, and adapt to the new lifestyle together.
The story is written in the first person, and goes through events in chronological order, like a sort of diary of his life, starting from his marriage and moving to America, and ending with his family growing up. The language was very descriptive, and did not contain much dialogue.
The main themes of this story would be that of migration, arranged marriage, and adaptation to a new lifestyle. The narrator starts off a young man, traveling to London to earn some money, living in a dirty house, and eventually works his way up to marriage, and then onto sucess in America, and building his family there. He doesn’t seem to have great Indian cultures, but has little actions that show it, like taking off his shoes before entering his room, and that he eats food with his hands. It also in a way shows the ways of other people, like Mrs. Croft’s opinion on miniskirts, and how people should be dressed, and shouldn’t talk unless married, and all sorts of old-fashioned traditions.
I liked this story a lot, and was probably my favourite story so far, especially with the movie adaptation showing the great ideas of the story, even though the stories were different in some ways. The themes of the story were added in very well, and the general idea of the story and how it was layed out was great.
ReplyDeleteThird and Final Continent
ReplyDelete“The Third and Final Continent” is written by Jhumpa Lahiri and it is about a Indian man that has travelled to London and then finally to The US as he begins his new life.
The story starts off by introducing us to the Indian man who left India in 1964 and how he has travelled to London on the SS Roma, and then making his final voyage to America, but before when he had enough money he flew back to Calcutta to his own wedding only after to take a flight to America, Massachusetts.
There is the Narrator who is a Bengali man, we don’t know his name or his appearance but we do know that he is a kind man that always pays his rent on time and looks after the elderly woman that would be his landlady. There is Mala, the Bengali man’s wife, we do not know much about her but we know that she is shy and finds it difficult to adapt to the American lifestyle compared to the Indian’s. Mrs. Croft is an 103 year old lady who is the Bengali mans Landlady is a very nice lady but being 103 she is fragile and sometimes she forgets that. Mrs. Croft is also a little crazy as she keeps saying the same thing over and over again every night. Helen is the last characters and she is Mrs. Crofts 68 year old daughter who brings her soup every weekend and provides company for the Bengali man.
It starts off with the narrator, leaving India in 1964 to sail on the SS Roma to London and then take a flight back to Calcutta for his wedding and then back to America, Massachusetts. Before the Bengali man took up the house that Mrs. Croft was offering he lived in the YMCA hall where he spent most of his days eating cornflakes and reading the newspaper. When he sees the ad for the apartment he goes for an interview only to get the house with the rent only being $8 a week. Mrs. Croft asks him to sit down near her on the piano bench and tells him about the flag on the moon, she asks that the Bengali man says Splendid! Back and he hesitates for a while but then shouts Splendid! After while the Bengali man meets Mrs. Crofts Daughter Helen who is 68 years old, when she explains that Mrs. Croft is 103 years old he then takes it into consideration to do small things to help Mrs. Croft as he is not her son but putting the $8 in her hand and making sure she was safe at night was the only things he thought he could do. He then receives word that his wife is coming over to America to live with him and he finds another apartment since Mrs. Croft won’t allow females in her apartment. When Mala comes life goes on as usual, Mala gets used to the American Lifestyle and they go about their daily business, then the Bengali man takes Mala to Mrs. Croft’s house to introduce her only to find out that she has had an accident and had fallen off her Piano bench. A several months later he hears about Mrs. Crofts death and feels it has deeply affected him but as his life carries on he always thinks about the moments he has had when living for over thirty years.
ReplyDeleteIt is a female author and I find it interesting how she portrayed a man in this story and I like it. The story is also told in the first person to give it that more of a homely feel as again with all first person narrations you can relate and imagine it is you that’s living that person’s life.
There is definitely Indian traditions in this story as we see the Arranged Marriages made by the parents, how Mala has her Sari over her head and tucks it so that it is a sign that she is married and also travelling, as the Bengali man travelled from Calcutta to London and taking on a new lifestyle and then moving to America and changing his lifestyle yet again but this time staying in America and bringing his wife across.
I liked this story as it was different to the others; it showed the early lifestyles of the world in the 1960s-80s and how $8 was the rent for an apartment. I also liked it because of the similarities between the movie ‘Namesake’ and this story. Overall this was one of my favourites as it was a change of scenery for me.
‘The Third and Final Continent is a short story written by Jhumpa Lahiri in 1999. She was born in 1967.
ReplyDeleteThe story is mainly set in the states, Boston, but also Calcutta and England. It is set in either his flat with the old lady and later on with his wife in a bigger apartment a few blocks down from the YMCA he stayed in.
The main character in the story is the narrator but we don’t know his name. He has a wife called mala who in the beginning of the story is 27. They are both Indian. Then there is Mrs Croft who was the land lady of his first apartment in the story she is 103 years old and lives on her own.
The story starts off with the narrator moving the England and settling in but soon after his marriage is arranged with his wife mala. He gets offered a job in Boston and moves there where he lived with Mrs. Croft paying 8 dollars a week. During this time he becomes good friends with Mrs Crofts daughter Helen who used to bring her soup everyday. The arranged marriage happens and they marry as complete strangers and together they move to Boston in a bigger apartment a few blocks down of where he used to live. Mala is very traditional and in the beginning finds it very difficult to fit in and needed time to adjust to the life style of the Americans. Towards the end Mrs Croft dies and this strongly reminds the narrator of when his mother died.
The story is written in 3rd person by a female the author in the point of view of a male. The story’s theme is India. It is all about the traditions of india and how migrants from anywhere have to fit in and still have there traditions and manage to live a normal life in a totally different country. They eat rice with there hands and throughout the story India words such as ‘sari’ are used.
The main idea of the story is to show how difficult it is for families to move from their home in to a totally new country which has a a completely different way of living and how they have to adapt and live so far away from their families. The narrator moved from India his home to England and then to America the 3rd continent in his life which is where i guess the title comes from.
I really enjoyed reading this story. It was different to the others. Even though it was really long compared to previous stories i read i still enjoyed it. I think watching the film really helped me grasp the story and themes of it but it was really good.
Third and Final continent was written by Jhumpa Lahiri. It is a modern story written in 1999. She is an Indian author born in July 1967.
ReplyDeleteInitially, the story is set in the city of Calcutta in India. This man then moves to London in the 1960s. In 1969 he moves to Boston, Massachusetts. The main part of the story is in a small apartment that the narrator shares with an extremly old woman.
The main character is the narrator - an indian man who works in the library in MIT. He has an arranged marrige with this woman called Mala. Though, Mala isn't involved with the story until the end when she moves in with him. The narrator is a very polite man who shows a lot of respect and manners. The other main character is Mrs Croft, the owner of the flat who is 103 years old. She is a very traditional woman and is very patriotic. Mrs Croft has a 68 year old daughter named Helen. She isn't mentioned that much in the story except for when the narrator talks to her briefly.
The story starts when the Narrator is on the SS Roma on his way from Calcutta to London. He stays in a flat and works in the London School of Economics. He then goes back to Calcutta to marry a woman called Mala. He then flies out to Boston initially staying in a YMCA. He begins working at MIT in the library. He finds a flat with an old woman named Mrs Croft, she charges him $8 a week. The Narrator is oblivious that she is over 100 years old due to her enthusiasm and energy. When he finds this out, he begins to care for her a lot. We get the impression that she has inspired him. After 6 weeks staying with Mrs Croft, the Narrator moves out to find a flat for when Mala arrives in America. At first, they seem to have barely and intimacy, but this soon grows. We find out that they have a son at the end.
The story is written as a recount of the events that happened to this man. He talks a lot about adapting to western culture and life in London and Boston. The story is written mostly in first person until the end part.
There is definitely a theme of traditions in both Western and Indian cultures. There is a theme of marrige and relatonships. It also shows the differences even back then in America to now e.g. Mrs Croft being firmly against mini skirts.
I really enjoyed this story as it was very interesting finding out about how people adapt to completely different cultures and what the world was like in the 1960s.
The “Third and Final Continent” was written by Jhumpa Lahiri in 1999. The story is written by a women however the narrator is a man. Jhumpa Lahiri was born in 1969 in India. The story mainly deals with migration, marriage and growing up.
ReplyDeleteThe story starts in India and the narrator travels on the SS Roma to England,he lives in North London in a house with Bengali men like him. He returns to Calcutta to marry a women he had never met. He moves to America and rents a small room in a house owned by 103 year old lady. His wife then joins him and he rents a house of his own.
The narrator is a man however we never learn his name, he is at first a student at LSE in London. He is a gentleman. Mala is his wife, her marriage to the narrator was arranged by the narrator's brother. Mrs. Croft is 103 year old women. She is a very strange women, who seems to forget things very easily. Hs couldn't really move around and always sat on the same bench. Helen is 68 years old, she is Mrs. Croft's daughter.
The story starts with the narrator moving from India to London, he is quite poor at that time and he lives in a small house with other Bengali men. He than marries Mala, and travels to America without her. He lives with Mrs. Croft for a while and than he moves to his own house with Mala and tries to find the love which they were unable to find before they were married. Mrs. Croft dies and every time they are close by to the town they always pass by her house.
The story is written in third person. It is very strange that the writer is a women however the narrator is male. In the story we see a lot of Indian traditions, such as the sari which adds colour to the story.
It think the main idea of the story is learning how to show your emotions. The narrator is very reserved when it comes to showing his emotions. It also shows how hard it is to be in a different culture as the characters are so far away from home its a learning experience for them both.
I thought that the story is a very good one and that it shows what people who are different go through.I thought that the character's background was a big character in the story. I liked the fact that the writer keep the story very true to Indian traditions. It was a very good story and I really enjoyed watching the namesake and thought that there were a lot of things which are the same.
Valentina Spiteri
The Third and Final Continent
ReplyDelete‘The Third and Final Continent’ is a short story written by Jhumpa Lahiri in the year of 1999. She is a very famous female writer born in the year of 1967. This short story has many similarities to the movie ‘The Namesake’.
The short story is set in several places. It is set in India, England and America. He had gone to America for a better lifestyle and that he would make himself some money to live a healthy life.
The characters in the story are the narrator, who is a Bengali person from India. We do not find out his name but his age would be somewhere in the range of 25-30. There is his wife, Mala who he took to America with him so they both have a better life. She is about 27 years old. There is Mrs. Croft, an old woman who is over 100 years old. She enjoyed being accompanied by the narrator and was the one that gave the narrator and his wife a home when they had nowhere else to go. There is also Mrs. Croft’s daughter, Helen who was about 68 years old. Mrs. Croft had considered that age ‘young’.
‘The Third and Final Continent’ is basically about a Bengali person and his wife, who travel to America, Boston to find a good job and have a better lifestyle. He had to start out with $10 and build his way up to have a good lifestyle. The Bengali is a success in this task, and his wife Mala was also successful after a while as she found it very hard to adapt to America since she had come from India. Every night, whilst the narrator was at Mrs. Croft’s house he would go and sit near her on the bench outside her front door. She would always go on about the American flag being on the moon, and somehow convince him into saying ‘Splendid’ with expression. Eventually, when the narrator found a job with good wages, he and his wife went to a very cozy apartment to live in. At the end of the story, he finds out about a tragic event; the death of Mrs. Croft. She had died of old age. This upset him as he admired her a lot and cared for her very much.
‘The Third and Final Continent’ is written in 3rd person’s point of view. It isn’t written as if it is all just happening, but as although he was remembering the past, and probably the good times that he had with Mrs. Croft. The main style about this short story is about someone who adapted to different traditions had to start over and learn new traditional ways, all to be able to get a job and live a good life.
Overall, I liked the story very much. Knowing how much ‘The Namesake’ and ‘The Third and Final Continent’ relate made the short story much more interesting and easy to read. After watching the movie, then reading this story it made it much easier to know what exactly was happening.
The Third and Final Continent
ReplyDeleteBy Jhumpa Lahiri
The Third and Final Continent was written by Jhumpa Lahiri. It is about change of culture and relationships. The story is written from a guy’s point of view.
The story takes place in America Boston. It takes place in a rented room for university students by the main character.
The Main character is a man from Bengal. The story is told from his point of view. He moved to America in order to have a better and more successful life and to discover new things. The second character is his wife Mala for most of the story she is in Bengal waiting for her husband to send for her. the other important character is Mrs. Croft she is an old lady that is 103 years old, she is the owner of the room the main character lives in. She is tiny bit crazy but she is also sweet. The last character is Mrs. Croft’s daughter Helen who looks after her mum.
The story is about the main character and he leaves his country to England to start a better life he then goes back to Bengal and marries Mala. He departs for Boston without her, so he can get a job and find a place for her to stay. Mrs. Croft is the landlord and she always makes him say “splendid” He works in the University Library. He learns that Mrs. Croft is 103years old and starts to be extra careful just in case something happens. He finds a different place to live and Mala moves to America. He worries about her and thinks she is a sweet person. He takes Mala with him to visit Mrs. Croft. Mrs. Croft had an accident she fell and is recovering so they sit with her. Mrs. Croft says Mala is the perfect lady and Mala smiles.
The style of the story is a realistic and shows a slice of life how the main character managed to get to where he was. The story can be a non-fiction but it is fiction. It is something that could actually happen like a bibliography because it is written in first person.
The story has two main ideas are a slice of life and relationships. A slice of life because it shows how he had to work and the hardships he had to overcome (like how he had to spend some night at the YMCA or get money), it is about all the people different he met Mrs. Croft and new things he discovered like the subway. The main character also had to adjust to the American culture and had to understand things where done differently than in his home country. The second idea is relationships because he married Mala without knowing her and after the marriage he left to American to work and find a place. So when she moved in with him, she was like a stranger but I think at the end of the story he managed to accept and I think that is because he was close to Mrs. Croft and Mrs. Croft said Mala was the perfect lady when she saw her so it was like her approval had some influence on the main Character.
The story was very interesting to read. It was long though. If I had the choice out of all the stories we have read so far I would be less likely to read this one and the ‘Lemon orchard’ than the rest and I think that is because the two seem really serious and not a light matter and so I would reconsider life and become a bit depressed.
By Evita Otigbah
Third and Final Continent By Jhumpa Lahiri
ReplyDeleteBy Siri Arends
Introduction S.C.A.S.I Conclusion
In class we have been reading the story “Third and Final Continent” by Jhumpa Lahiri. It tells the story of a young man’s journey to the United States to make his life the way he wants it to be. The story is set in Massachusetts, United States and also in India. There are parts in Mrs Crofts House, others in he narrator’s apartment.
The characters are; the narrator who is a thirty-year-old Bengali man, his wife Mala, Mrs. Croft, Mrs. Croft’s daughter Helen and the narrators son (mentioned towards the end of the story).
The story tells of the narrator’s journey from Bengal India with nothing but $10 to his name to go to London, England where he lives for a couple of months with other Bengali men in a hostel sort thing. They eat egg curry, out of their hands. Then he moves to Massachusetts in New England, United States. There he stays in the Y.M.C.A for a couple of days while he sets up his life as a librarian in M.I.T. He then moves into a room he rents for eight dollars a week from an elderly woman named Mrs. Croft. Everyday when he returns from work she pats a bench and he sits with her then she declares there is an American flag on the moon and for him to say splendid, after that they sit for ten minutes before she nods off. After about a week Helen, Mrs. Croft’s daughter comes to bring her mother some more food, here we find out that Mrs. Croft is 103 years old and has very outrageous ideas about modern fashion. When Mala comes from India the narrator moves into a small flat. Here Mala and him begin to live together, total strangers. Then when Mrs. Croft dies, the narrator feels effected and upset. Every time the family (the narrator and Mala have a son) pass Mrs. Croft’s house he tells his son about what a great woman she was.
The story is written in the first person. It is written in a simple style and in chronological order. The main themes would be cultural differences and relationships; it talks about his relationship with Mrs. Croft and with his new wife who at first is a stranger to him. Cultural differences because he talks about how he finds it hard to become accustomed with wearing shoes indoor.
I liked this story. I thought it was very good and I liked how he described how hard it was to adjust to moving to a new country and then to having a wife to look after and protect.
Third and Final Continent by mike cini
ReplyDeleteThe story “Third and Final Continent” written by Jhumpa Lahiri in 1999 is about an Indian man who travels from India to London, and then later onto America, where he begins to start his family, and get a job.
The main characters are the narrator who is a thirty-year-old Bengali man, his wife Mala, Mrs. Croft, Mrs. Croft’s daughter Helen and the narrator’s son.
The story tells us about the narrator’s journey from Bengal India with nothing but $10 to his name to go to London where he lives for a few of months with other Bengali men in a hostel. They eat out of their hands. He then he moves to Massachusetts in New England. He stays in the Y.M.C.A for a couple of days while he sets up his life as a librarian in M.I.T. He then moves into a room he rents for eight dollars a week from an elderly woman named Mrs. Croft. Every day when he returns from work she pats a bench and he sits with her then she declares there is an American flag on the moon and for him to say splendid, after that they sit for ten minutes before she falls asleep. After about a week Helen comes to bring her mother some more food, here we find out that Mrs. Croft is 103 years old and has very outrageous ideas about modern fashion. When Mala comes from India the narrator moves into a small flat. Here him Mala begin to live together, total strangers. Then when Mrs. Croft dies, the narrator feels effected and upset. Every time the family (the narrator and Mala have a son) pass Mrs. Croft’s house he tells his son about what a great woman she was.
The main idea of the story is different cultures and moving. It describes America as something new and different. And then the narrator says some differences. Also comparisons with England are there. The narrator has lived through a lot and shows us his experience. First Asia, then Europe and in the end living in America isn’t a life everybody goes through, especially when you are so poor. Then the story is also a lot about changes. Changes because of the moves and that now a days, girls also wear short skirts and can talk with boys without anyone watching them.
I liked this story. I thought it was interesting and I liked how he described how hard it was to adjust to moving to a new place and then to having a wife to look after.
The “Third and Final Continent”
ReplyDeleteThe “Third and Final Continent” is written by Jhumpa Lahiri in 1999 and it belongs to the collection “Interpreter of the Maladies”. . This short story is told in the first person by a Bengali narrator.
First the story is set in India. Then the story moves to several places. The main character sailed on the SS Roma, an Italian cargo vessel. He sailed across the Arabian Sea, The Red Sea, and the Mediterranean. Finally, the character went to England where he lived in London in Finsbury Park. Then the story moves to America where the main character got a job. He rented a room in Boston from a person called Mrs. Croft.
The main character in this story is an Indian man who traveled to several places and finally went to America where he had a job. The other character is Mrs. Croft, she is an old woman of hundred and three years old. The Indian man rented an apartment from her. Then there is Helen, she is the daughter of Mrs. Croft and she comes every weekend with a bowl of soup to look after her mother. She also does grocery shopping for her mom. Another character is Mala. She is a woman that narrator marries later in the story.
In the beginning narrator leaves India to travel to England with the SS Roma. There he studies for some time. Then his marries Mala. The marriage is arranged in Calcutta by his family when he is thirty-six years old. Around the same time he is offered a full time job in America. Without his wife Mala, who stays in Calcutta, he goes to the States. There in America he meets Mrs. Croft. He rents a house from her for 8 dollars per week. The woman is really old, around 103 years old which the narrator didn’t know first. Every evening he sits with her on the bench and does the same things. She begins to talk about the flag on the moon, and he has to say “Splendid” but she wants to hear it louder and louder. Also he needs to check the locks. Helen, Mrs. Croft’s daughter, comes every week to bring her some soup and tells the narrator about her old mother. When Mala finally comes she is very traditional about India and doesn’t like America she also doesn’t know anything about her husband but that changes in soon when Mrs. Croft says that Mala is a perfect lady. Mala and the narrator laugh about that. But later he moves with Mala to a bigger house and he has to leave Mrs. Croft but she isn’t sad about it at all. Later Mrs. Croft dies and she reminds him of his mother and sometimes he drives his car past the house of Mrs. Croft.
The story is written in the first person and the style of the story is a bit different because it mentions the traditions in India for example, the woman wears a sari, and the parents/ family arrange marriages for their children when they grow up. The woman who writes this story uses a male narrator and depicts things from a male perspective.
The main idea of the story is traditions of India and Indian people how they feel about some things in life. How they arrange a marriage is really different than how we arrange a marriage for example the food they eat no milk and cornflakes in the morning. They eat rice with their hands and the woman wears a sari around their body and head.
The story was a bit complicated because in the beginning he moves a lot. I didn’t get the thing where it was all about but later it was nice how he had a bit of relationship with Mrs. Croft and the traditions of India is nice to read. Although it wasn’t the best story it was interesting to read.
The Third and Final Continent is a story written by Jhumpa Lahiri in 1999.
ReplyDeleteThis story is mainly set in America, in Boston, but also Calcutta in India and also England. It is set in house of the old lady and later on with his wife in their new rented appartment which was a few blocks down from where he origionally stayed at.
The main character in the story is the narrator but we don’t get to know his name sadly. He has a wife who is called Mala and she is not mensioned much in this story because she is not in the same country as her husband. They are both Indians who have just married but their marriage was an arranged marriage and so it is a bit awekward for them at times. Then there is Mrs Croft who is the land lady of his first apartment in the story. she is 103 years old and lives on her own.
The story starts with the narrator moving to England and settling in but soon after his marriage is arranged with his new wife mala, He gets offered a job in Boston and he decides to move there where he ends up living with new wife. When he firsts moves to Boston he becomes good friends with Mrs Crofts daughter Helen who used to bring her mother soup everyday. Then when he makes enough money his wife who is a complete stranger to him, she comes over and together they move to into a bigger apartment which is a few blocks down from where he used to live. Mala is very traditional woman and in the beginning she finds it very difficult to fit in and she needs time to adjust to the life style of the Americans. Towards the end Mrs Croft dies and this strongly touches the narrator of when his mother died and it reminds him a lot of it.
This story is written in 3rd person by a female the author in the point of view of the narrator who is a male. The story’s theme is India and indian traditions. It is all about the traditions of india and how migrants from everywhere have to fit in and still manage their own traditions, and manage to live a normal life in a totally different country. They still manage to keep their most important traditions like eating rice with there hands and throughout the story India words such as ‘sari’ are used and also other words which are other traditions.
The main idea of the story is to show how difficult it is for people to move from their home country into a totally different and new country which has a completely different way of living. and it is interesting how they have to adapt and live so far away from their families and old friends. The narrator moved from India which was his home to England and then to America the 3rd continent. This was a large move for him but he managed to addapt well and fit in perfectly.
I really enjoyed reading this story, it was different to the other stories we have read. It was long unlike some of the others, but it was really interesting because of the migration issue and traditions. i really enjoyed it :)
SCASI Essay – The Third and Final Continent
ReplyDeletePART 1
‘The Third and Final Continent’ is a short story written by Jhumpa Lahiri. It was written in the year 1999. It is about the issues of migrating to a country with completely different traditions than the ones you are used to, and the emotions of getting married to a woman you do not know at all.
This story is not set in an earlier or later date than it was written. I think the author made the story according to when she wrote it, because there aren’t any items that you would not find in 1999 which would mean it is set in the past, and there aren’t any overly technological items that would be found in the future. The story is set partly in India, partly in England, and mostly in America as the story is mainly about adapting to America.
The characters in the story are the main character, who is probably about 36 years old and is the one that goes to England by boat and then to America to work in the university, the old lady, Mrs. Croft, who is 103 years old and is letting her house to the main character, the main character’s wife, Mala, who is the one that he got married to without even knowing her at all, and there is Mrs. Croft’s daughter, Helen, who is 68 years old and helps Mrs. Croft by coming over to the house once in a while.
The story beings with the narrator sailing on the SS Roma and describing how it was not a very hospitable place. He arrives in England and he does not have a good job, and he has to stay in a place with 3 or four other people, and how they take turns cooking egg curry. He has to go back to India to get married to a woman called Mala, and he then travels to America (Boston) to work in the processing department of a library at MIT, and the salary he gets will be enough to support a wife. He rents a house for 8 dollars a week. The house belongs to an extremely old lady called Mrs. Croft that makes him do the same things everyday; check the lock, sit next to her, and say ‘Splendid!’ after she tells him that there is a flag on the moon. Mrs. Crofts 68 year-old daughter comes to help Mrs. Croft out and this is when the narrator learns that Mrs. Croft is 103 years old. He is astonished that he knows someone who is over a century old. The narrator’s wife finally manages to come to America, and they move out of the house he was renting and move into an apartment for 40 dollars a week. They sleep in the same bed, but they are having trouble getting a close relationship. The narrator shows Mala the house he was renting and they see that Mrs. Croft had broken her hip. She makes the narrator say ‘Splendid!’ again and this makes Mala laugh. Then, Mrs. Croft makes the narrator laugh, and this is the start of the marriage becoming more intimate. They decide to grow old in America, and they have a son who goes to Harvard University. They meet other Bengalis, and the story ends as the narrator tells us he has been living there for 30 years.
This story is written in first person; the whole story is told in perspective of the narrator. The whole story is written in past tense.
The ideas of this story are coping with migration, because the narrator moved to a country where most of the rules are different, the religion is different, and the tradition is different. Another idea in this story is the emotions faced when marrying a woman that you don’t even know, just because it is a tradition of the country, because the narrator and his wife have trouble connecting with each other until later in the story.
PART 2
ReplyDeleteI liked this story, although it isn’t one of my favourite ones. I like how the author describes the emotions felt by the characters in the story in such a strong way that makes you feel like you are feeling what they are feeling. I also like how the story is structured, and I like the actual story. The only thing I didn’t like about this story was the last page and a half because it seemed to me like the story was rushing to finish, and was not giving much detail about anything, and instead just quickly telling you what happens and finishing it. But that’s just what I think.