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Explanation and Analysis:
The Namesake is a Bildungsroman ("education" or coming-of-age novel) as well as a family drama. The novel contends with experiences specific to Bengali families living in America and can thus also be classified as a work of American immigration literature. This genre is a broad one, including watershed novels such as Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club and Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner. The Namesake, like its peers within the genre, seeks to juxtapose American culture with the culture of its characters' home country (in this case, India/Bengal).
There is often significant overlap between coming-of-age literature and American immigration literature, simply because the latter often contends with parent-child relationships. Parents who immigrate from another country to the United States often have perspectives and experiences that differ significantly from their American-born children. These differences are both cultural and generational, at times resulting in misunderstandings, conflict, and resentment. As the American-born children grow up, they must learn to deal with these feelings and empathize with their parents—a natural coming of age. In The Namesake, Gogol's personal growth and development from childhood to adulthood centers on cultural identity and his relationship to Ashoke and Ashima. This makes the novel a perfect example of the organic overlap of Bildungsroman and American immigration narratives.
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