Commonly found in Unaccustomed Earth are endings that
contradict against the structure of a typical fairy-tale. Instead of the girl
eventually finding her one true love or a family reuniting, many of the shorts
stories end on a depressing note, much to the reader’s chagrin. In fact, Lahiri
frequently concludes her stories in way that seem to directly oppose the
reader’s perception of a ‘happy ending.’ Lahiri creates moments that seem to
lead in one direction; however, by reaching a dead end or a rising conflict,
Lahiri’s plots take a sharp turn against the reader’s perceived path.
In the first short story
“Unaccustomed Earth,” Ruma explains how although she seems to have everything,
she feels nothing. To exemplify this, Ruman says, “By allowing her to leave her
job, splurging on a beautiful house, agreeing to having a second baby, Adam was
doing everything in his power to make Ruma happy. But nothing was making her
happy,” (Lahiri 7) Adam, Ruma’s wife, has willingly done many things to bring her
joy and bliss; however, only Ruma’s positive reactions to these instances will
bring her true happiness. The tale ends on a semi-sweet note for Ruma discovers
that her father, a widower, has fallen in love with another women by finding a
note in her house that her father wrote. Normally when a widower finds a soul
mate, it is known to be uplifting; however, this case reminds Ruma of her
genuine mother who lost her life to cancer. Ultimately Ruma sends the letter,
but it is unclear whether there is a fairytale ending. Does her father marry
his newfound love? Does Ruma
eventually discover what brings her joy in life? Lahiri uses common situations
to depict turning points in ones life; in spite of this, she leaves the reader
to imagine what the outcome might be.
During the continuation of the
novel, Lahiri does not only conceals what happens to her characters, but she
bluntly tells the truth in a way that seems to directly contradict what one
would hope it would be. In “A Choice of Accommodations,” husband and wife, Amit
and Megan, see a wedding and unveil some difficulties that have been buried in
their marriage. This wedding is on of complications because Amit admits that he
once loved the bride to be, Pam, “He (Amit) had loved her (Pam), yes it was true,
but because she’d never been his girlfriend there had been nothing to explain”
(Lahiri 88). Amit knows that there is more to the story behind him and Pam, yet
he says nothing. Lahiri continues to build the intensity of the story by having
Amit expose secrets through out the evening of the wedding. He says to a women
he met at the wedding, “Actually, it was after the second that our marriage
sort of disappeared,” (Lahiri 113-114). Megan also inquires if Amit and Pam
have ever had sex, which they have not. It is during the evening that the two
discover the underlying jealousies of their marriage: Megan is envious of other
women and Amit somewhat wishes that he had less children.
In the final section of Unaccustomed Earth, “Going Ashore,”
Lahiri places the foundation for the quintessential love story: two people who
met one another in their early life reunite and become intimate. Of course, the
tragic ending leaves the reader with teary eyes and the two not only separate,
but one passes away from a natural disaster.
Through all of these stories,
Lahiri uses real life circumstances with a touch of fantasy to create her
novel. As one discovers though, these perfectly crafted accounts commonly end
in a way that can seem anywhere from perplexing to depressing, and even to
repulsing.
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