The Sense of Strangeness by Simmelian Conflict in Gauris Character In Lahiris The Lowland

The Lowland is a novel by Jhumpa Lahiri. In this novel, Lahiri depicts the tale of two brothers who raised in Tollygunge in Calcutta. The novel narrates how the different ideologies change the way of two brothers life. Subhash the elder brother is cautious about further education. He just concentrates on his decisions to study in Ph.D. degree in the United States of America. Udayan the younger brother is unlike him. He embraces the Naxalite Movement because of his political beliefs against the government to support peasants rights. Udayan during his political activities falls in love with a girl. Gauri, who meets Udayan through her brother. She grows up in a large extended family with her relatives, because her parents died when she was small. Gauri interested in Philosophy. She always had a debate with Udayan in philosophical issues and also the Naxalite Movement. As time passes they decide to marry. Since Udayans marriage is against his parents willing, his parents treat Gauri as a stranger. The sense of strangeness brings some conflict for her. Regarding Simmels notion this paper by a combination of two Simmels theories try to show how the Simmelian conflict has the traces in the sense of strangeness on the protagonist. Upon Simmels view, the conflict is an inseparable segment for each person because the conflict provokes people in heart of the society to communicate with another social member by controlling his/ her conflict to adapt with others. Regarding this idea, the stranger is another Simmelian concept which the sense of the strangeness carries the conflict . He/ she by action and interaction relationship with others try to communicate with them. In fact, the stranger tries to become the social member, so he/ she attempts to control the conflict. Gauri is a person who carries two Simmelian theories. Gauri as the stranger arrives in Udayans parental house, but their unrespectable treatments bring some conflict to her in the sense of strangeness. That is why agrees to Subhashs proposal after Udayan death. As a result, Gauri, The Lowlands main character conveys the Simmelian conflict and the stranger.

کلیدواژه ها:

Stranger ، Strangeness ، Conflict ، Society ، Action ، Interaction