Post Modernism / Interpreter of Maladies

          In the story, “Interpreter of Maladies” written by Jhumpa Lahiri, there are many samples of postmodernism. In the case of postmodernism, the writer must provide a sense of human flaw, emotion/thoughts, and fantasy. Lahiri incorporates character emotions that lead into thoughts, and also the fantasy of lust. Lahiri uses two characters in particular that represent the time period of postmodernism.
           Mr. Kapasi was captivated by Mrs. Das. When Mrs. Das showed an interest in his profession/career, Mr. Kapasi misinterpreted what he thought were feelings that she had for him. “Her sudden interest in him, an interest she did not express in either her husband or her children was mildly intoxicating” (Lahiri, 59). He created an entire scenario in which him and Mrs. Das would build a romantic relationship once she had left India. Mr. Kapasi was yearning for attention that his own wife would not give to him. His false view on reality shortly ended when his address written on a piece of paper vanished. Reality had set in, his imagination ran wild.
           Lahiri uses his character Mrs. Das to further the style of postmodernism. Mrs. Das is a women dealing with a massive lie, and guilt. The fact that one of her three children was not fathered by Raj, has been eating her up inside. She is very detached from her family, and is hoping that by confiding in Mr. Kapasi he could ease her internal pain. “It means that I’m tired of feeling so terrible all the time. Eight years, Mr. Kapasi, I’ve been in pain eight years. I was hoping you could help me feel better, say the right thing. Suggest some kind of remedy.” (Lahiri, 73) Her confession to Mr. Kapasi was almost like a cry for help.
Mr. Kapasi was looking for a relationship, while Mrs. Das was looking for a confidant. Lahiri’s characters were used to show his audience how people can misinterpret reality. Postmodernism can be easily seen through the characters Lahiri mentions.