An Analysis On Lahiri's 'Interpreter Of Maladies'

In the short story by Lahiri, “Interpreter of Maladies,” Lahiri’s portrayal of Mrs. Das illuminates how guilt can physically and mentally change a person through a cynical and resigned tone. This tone expresses not only how inevitable Mrs. Das’s guilt is, but also how likely it is to happen to others. Lahiri uses physical description in order to portray how drastically guilt can alter a person’s fundamental personality and appearance. Mrs. Das is described as a plump woman, which is a direct result of the weight she has gained by giving birth to three children. This physical change outwardly shows the mental changes she has gone through as a result of not only having children and being married, but also the guilt she feels from her infidelity. Her added weight provides a visual contrast from the woman she was before had an affair, and the woman she was afterwards. Prior to getting married and having an affair, Mrs. Das was a sociable …show more content…
After getting married and having an affair, Mrs. Das was in relative isolation, had no career, and no longer loved her husband. This simple description of having a “plump” figure describes not only the physical change guilt has caused, but the mental one as well. In addition to her figure, Lahiri also describes Mrs. Das as having pale, drowsy eyes. The state of her eyes reveal that Mrs. Das is so completely numb to the world due to her guilt that even her eyes appear dull and lifeless. Mrs. Das’s drowsy eyes symbolize how exhausted she is living a life consumed by guilt. Mrs. Das is not only physically drained from living with this guilt, she is emotionally and mentally drained as well. Lahiri also describes Mrs. Das wearing a shirt that has a strawberry on the center of her chest. This is an allusion to The Scarlet Letter, whose character, like Mrs. Das, is forced to display her adultery outwardly. Unlike Hester