Postmodernism within Interpreter of Maladies
Steven Lingerfelt
4/27/2023
English 102
Prof. Brady
Postmodernism
within Interpreter of Maladies
In the story Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa
Lhari the characters Mrs. Das and Mr. Kapasi are both given sad, and relatable
back stories to further humanize them. This is done so the reader can better
relate to the characters and decide for themselves if they are the antagonists
or simply victims in the story. Combining this with an ending that can be
interpreted in any number of different ways allows the reader and the
characters to form strong opinions within a short amount of time. This
exemplifies the idea of post-modernism perfectly as it allows the reader to
decide for themselves the meanings of statements from characters, such as when
Mr. Kapasi misinterprets Mrs. Das’ story for her coming onto him. We could look
at as Mr. Kapasi acting in desperation, or we could look at it as a man truly
believing this woman loved him and was opening up to him. This of course all
changes once the truth is revealed about Bobby.
Humanizing characters in postmodern stories lets the
author create a more relatable and ultimately better character for the reader.
Making a character flawed is the quickest and easiest way to do this, such as
learning the truth about someone you ultimately were ready to start a new life
with. Lhari best typifies this through misinterpretation in Interpreter of
Maladies when Mr. Kapasi thinks higher of himself after Mrs. Das comments
on how his job is “a big responsibility” (Lhari Page 18). This little bump to
his ego makes him consider the possibility that Mrs. Das is attracted to him as
well as reframing his thought process on his job as a doctor’s interpreter.
This sets in motion the character’s downfall but is still hidden from the
reader due to them not knowing the truth about Bobby yet, like Mr. Kapasi does
at this moment. Chain reactions from misinterpretations are not unique however,
often one single misunderstanding can lead to heart ache like in Kapasi’s
example. Kantaro Suzuki misinterpretation however is often regarded as resulting
in one of the greatest tragedies of all time.
Kantaro Suzuki was the Japanese Premier during the final
months of the WW2, essentially the prime minister or president of the country.
In July of 1945 allied leaders met and submitted a declaration of surrender to
Japan, otherwise they would face “prompt and utter destruction”. When asked by
reporters in Japan regarding the terms of surrender Kantaro “used the Japanese
word mokusatsu derived from the word for silence” (Mokusatsu: One Word,
Two Lessons Declassified Document). This one word however can be translated
several different ways as many Japanese words can be. One translation of
mokusatsu is “take no notice of; treat (anything) with silent contempt; ignore
[by keeping silent]; remain in a wise and masterly inactivity.” (Kenkyusha’s
New Japanese – English Dictionary, p.1129). Within ten days of this the first
atomic bomb fell onto Hiroshima killing roughly 177,500 people in the process.
This one single word being misinterpreted resulted in the greatest loss of life
in a single moment in all human history. Had Suzuki used a simpler word and not
fallen back on the older style of Japanese Hirohito implemented to boost
nationalism, many needless deaths could have been prevented.
In conclusion, Lhari’s use of misinterpretation as a
means of humanizing her characters shows the level of depth that is needed for
a postmodern piece of literature. Misunderstanding a person is a very “human”
trait, but Lhari goes even further as to make Mr. Kapasi a literal interpreter.
This contradictory irony cements the idea that Mr. Kapasi is a real person who
makes real mistakes. Though our story only ends with a broken heart, as
previously mentioned, even a single word of misunderstanding and
misinterpretation can spell disaster for an entire country.
Citations:
·
Mokusatsu: One Word, Two Lessons - National
Security Agency.
https://www.nsa.gov/portals/75/documents/news-features/declassified-documents/tech-journals/mokusatsu.pdf.
·
Kenkyusha’s New Japanese – English Dictionary