In the novel The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri, the main character, Gogol, is forced to adapt to many different environments as he ages; including Calcutta, the various apartments he occupied throughout his studies and the house of his ex-girlfriend Maxine. Gogol's parents, Ashima and Ashoke, were born in India; However Gogol was born in America. Because of this difference in upbringing, Gogol and his parents shared very different definitions of home. The cultural clash between Gogol's Bengali heritage and the new American ideals caused him an internal conflict, as he struggled to decide where he truly belonged during his childhood and even into adulthood. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay From a young age, Gogol and his family made rare trips to Calcutta, India, where most of Ashima and Ashoke's family lived. They were either just going there for a visit, or they were making the trip because of a recent death in their family. Gogol never considered Calcutta his home, as his parents did. He and his sister dreaded trips there, including one they took for eight months when Gogol was in 10th grade. As they prepare to leave, Gogol expresses his disinterest in India being his temporary residence, "...labeled with the address of his father's house in Alipore." Gogol still finds the labels unsettling, the sight of them giving him the impression that his family does not really live on Pemberton Road. (147) However, Lahiri suggests that "In a matter of minutes, before their eyes, Ashoke and Ashima slip into bolder, less complicated versions of themselves, their voices louder, their smiles wider, revealing a confidence that Gogol and Sonia never see each other on Pemberton Road. “I'm scared, Goggles,” Sonia whispers to her brother in English, reaching for his hand and refusing to let go. (150) Ashima and Ashoke's transformation upon their arrival in India suggests that they consider themselves at home, while Gogol and Sonia are slightly skeptical and weary of this unfamiliar place. Ashima and Ashoke tried to keep Bengali customs and traditions alive while living in America, for example the two names given to their son, Gogol and Nikhil. Gogol, however, did not understand tradition and went against his parents' wishes; he stated that his “proper” name was the same as his “company name.” It is evident that Gogol never considered his place of inheritance in Calcutta as his home in the manner of his parents; he was born in America, surrounded by American ideals, which led him to consider it his home. After Gogol graduated from high school and was accepted into Yale, he moved into a dorm in New Haven with two roommates. In Chapter 5, while living in the dormitory, he frequently goes home on weekends to visit his family on Pemberton Road. However, on one particular weekend, he states that he considers his dormitory his home: "One weekend, Gogol makes the mistake of referring to New Haven as his home. “Sorry, I left it at home,” he says… Ashima is outraged by this remark and keeps coming back to it all day. “Only three months, and listen to yourself,” she says, telling him that after twenty years in America, she still can't bring herself to call Pemberton Road home. (193-194) This quote is another example of how his parents will likely always refer to India as home, while their children, especially Gogol, find comfort in different American and.