The Interpreter of Maladies: Character Sketch

THE INTERPRETER OF
MALADIES
Character sketch
Jhumpa Lahiri was born in 1967. She is an
English-born American novelist, essayist
and short story writer. She has Indian
origins. At present she is a Professor of
Creative Writing at Princeton University.
She is a prolific writer.
Her debut work "Interpreter of Maladies" is

a collection of nine short stories. They are
based on her Indo-American experience.
Jhumpa wrote extensively about the

immigrant experience of Indians in America.
She wrote about their cultural differences,
relationships, identity, practices and barriers
to language and communication.
In this story, Kapasi, the tour
guide and driver of the Indian
expatriate Das family,
interprets their character in
accordance with its Indian
values, attitudes and customs.
The story is in third person
limited narrative point of
view. It focuses on the
character of Mr. Kapasi. This is
a method of storytelling in
which the narrator knows
only the thoughts and feelings
of a single character. Other
characters are presented only
externally.
The characters :
• Mr. Kapasi
The Indian tour guide who accompanies the Das family on their trip.
• Mrs. Mina Das
The self-absorbed wife of Mr. Das whose infidelity has isolated her from her husband and children.
• Mr. Das
The middle-school science teacher who hires Mr. Kapasi to accompany the family on their trip.
• ‌Ronny Das
The eldest Das child.
• Bobby Das
The younger Das son
• Tina Das
The young Das daughter

.She was dressed in modern, fashionable
Mrs Mina Das is a character in Jhumpa Mrs. Das is on holiday in India with her .Like her husband and children, Mrs. Das is attires, looking smart and attractive ,she
Lihiri's short story "Interpreter of husband, Mr. Das, and their three of Indian origin but was born and raised in exposes her shaved ,largely bare legs like
Maladies". children, Ronny, Bobby, and Tina. America. any uninhibited , modern , liberated young
women.
In the story for the most part she remains

self- engrossed , almost callously and
On her family outing to the Sun Temple, .Having married and had children at a .Mrs Das is selfish declining to share her
insensitively busy with herself , either
which Mr. Kapasi chaperones in his role as young age, she has led a lonely, isolated food with her children, reluctantly taking
polishing her nails , or eating puffed rice
a tour guide, she behaves in an unpleasant life weighed down by family her daughter to the bathroom and
without offering them to anybody . The
way towards her children and her responsibilities, and is a very unhappy refusing to paint her daughters finger
fact that the nail-polish she uses is
husband, often bickering with the latter. woman. nails.
colourless suggests that her life has lost all
colours.
When she learns that the trip to the Sun

.She openly mocks her husband's
Temple will take about two and a half She was not at all concerned even if Ronny
enthusiasm for tourism using the fact that She does not take interest in anything or
hours she gives an impatient sign as if she goes close to the goat or enthused if
they are no longer in love as an excuse for anybody
had been travelling her whole life without monkeys display acrobatic feats.
her bad behaviour.
pause so bored and exhausted.
. Towards the ends of the story she reveals .She instead turns to Mr. Kapasi for some
Despite professing to feel terrible around
to Mr. Kapasi that , cheated on her relief which, of course, he is unable to
her family because of this, she proves
husband with a friend of his years earlier, offer her; when Mr. Kapasi suggests she is
unwilling to take responsibility for her
in a secret affair that led to the birth of not suffering from any malady other than
actions.
her son Bobby. guilt, she storms away from him.
Mr Kapasi
Forty-six years old
Doubles as a tour guide and a translator working in a doctor's office.
Perceptive and polite, fascinated by the American mannerisms of the Das family.
In his youth, Mr. Kapasi had hoped to become a language interpreter for foreign officials and dignitaries
Life has instead made him a tour guide who supports his family by working a second job as a translator at a doctor's office.
He yearns for more as he feels like his life has been a failure up to this point (since the passing of his son, he has also grown
distant from his wife, leaving him trapped in an unhappy marriage)
Fantasize about a romantic relationship with Mrs. Das, revealing the extent of his loneliness.
He is unable to overcome the cultural divide between himself and Mrs. Das.
He returns to the tedious cycle of his tiresome life.

Husband of Mrs. Mina Das and the father of Bobby, Ronny, and Tina.
Mr He is a middle school science teacher in New Jersey, lives with his family, and is on holiday with his wife and
children in India.
Das Looks very young and perhaps not even thirty.
Mr. Das has roots in India but was born and raised in America. He is an Indian by origin and American by culture.
Mr. Das’s desire to take photos, highlights the fact that the landscape of India is quite alien to the family despite
their roots.
Throughout the family’s outing to the Sun Temple, Mr. Das was busy reading from the “India” guidebook and was
snapping pictures with his camera.
He refers to Mrs. Das by her first name to his daughter.
His wife and children often ignore or challenge his directions and wishes. This shows how he lacks authority and
respect as a father and a husband.
He is unaware of how completely out of touch he is that he doesn't even know that his second son, Bobby, is not
his biological child, but a product of an affair that his wife had with a friend of his.
Mr Das and Mrs Das, the couple are not well in their relationship. They hardly talk to each other.
He is an irresponsible parent.
RONNY
• Nine-year old son of Mina and Raj Das.
• He is the eldest son to Mr and Mrs Das.
• Generally curious in nature.
• Excited by the sounds and sights of India.
• Born and raised in America.
• Although he is an Indian but he is Americanised in his speech, dress and mannerisms.
• Ronny doesn’t seem to have much respect towards his father's authority.
• He is also little mean in nature. He was mean to his younger brother Bobby , calling the boy a
dummy when Bobby asks an innocent question about why the drives seat is on the wrong side of
cars in India.
Bobby
• Second son of the Das couple
• Eight years old brave and adventurous boy
• He is not actually Das' child.
• He does not resemble Das physically or
temperamentally.
• He is conceived as a result of an affair that his mother
had with a friend of her husband.
• Clearly favoured by Mrs Das and treats Mr Das
disrespectful.
Tina Das
The young daughter of Mr. and

Mrs. Das.
She whines and misbehaves,

seeking her mother’s attention
and failing to get it.
• So here comes the end of our
presentation.
• This chapter interpreter of maladies by
Jhumpa
• Lahari concentrates on the interaction
between the family of das and Mr.
Kapasi to discover the difference in
"interpreting" their national and
personal perception. The central
characters are Mrs Mina Das ,Mr Raj Das
,Mr Kapasi.
• Hope you all understood the characters
presented by our team .So thank you so
much for your attention and time. Once
again thanking my team for making this
presentation wonderful
THANK
YOU

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THE INTERPRETER OF

Her debut work "Interpreter of Maladies" is

Jhumpa wrote extensively about the

• Mrs. Mina Das

The eldest Das child.

The younger Das son

The young Das daughter

In the story for the most part she remains

When she learns that the trip to the Sun

Forty-six years old

Doubles as a tour guide and a translator working in a doctor's office.

He returns to the tedious cycle of his tiresome life.

Das Looks very young and perhaps not even thirty.

The young daughter of Mr. and

She whines and misbehaves,

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