Family

One of the major conflicts throughout The Namesake arises from Gogol's desire to alienate himself from him parents and his Indian culture. Many people, myself included, felt anger and frustration at Gogol's unwillingness to make time for his family. A perfect example of this occured when Ashima called Gogol to ask him to come visit his father before he left for the "flat, charmless town" of Cleveland and Gogol replied, "Why do I have to see him off?" (174, 144). Initially, I felt only stunned at Gogol's rudeness and disrespect for his father. But after some contemplation, I thought about my own life, all the times I have blown off my parents for plans with friends or have spoken to them with less than the respect they deserve and I have realized that in the same situation as Gogol, I might very well have said the same thing. Parents are something I think many people, myself definitely included, take for granted. At least for me, my parents have never left for an extended period of time, fallen life-treateningly ill, or done anything to cause me to question their contunied presense in my life. But after reading The Namesake, especially Chapter 7 when Ashoke dies, I have begun to see my family in a new light. I now realize that family, as much as we hate to admit it, is impermanent, and I plan to spend as much time as I can with them before I leave for college. Thankfully, it seems like Gogol came to the same realization following the death of his father. When Maxine attempted to pursuade Gogol to get away from his mourning mother and sister, Gogol steadily replied, "I don't want to get away" (182). Gogol's simple, declarative statement clearly shows his newfound devotion to his mother and sister. Thankfully, I do not have to experience the death of a parent to learn the preciousness and value of family, I only have to take heed to Gogol's experience.