Hello and welcome to the Discourse. ‘The Third and Final Continent’ is the ninth and the last story from the story collection ‘Interpreter of Maladies’ by Jhumpa Lahiri published in 1999. Interpreter of Maladies is noteworthy for its depiction of Indian immigrants to America. The book won the Pulitzer Prize (1999) and the PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Fiction (2000).
The story explores the thin line between ordinary and extraordinary. The same thing that can be usual and ordinary for someone, may appear to be magical and splendid to someone else. Though we live in an ordinary world, surrounded by ordinary people, the experiences and the life itself are a spectacular gift. Another theme of the story is isolation and connection. All the main characters in the story are lonely and out of place for various reasons, but the chance encounters allow them to find companionship with one another. The story has a specific mention of the 1969 moon landing and offers a parallel to immigrants and the astronauts who landed on the moon for the first time.
Characters of The Third and Final Continent:
The story is told by an unnamed Indian Bengali man. His father died when the narrator was a teenager, and his death drove the narrator’s mother “insane.” His elder brother was already married and hence he faced loneliness and became emotionally reserved. In 1964, he went to London for higher studies. Europe is the second continent. In 1969, when he was 36 years old, he got a job as a librarian in Boston, America. At the same time, his marriage is arranged by his elder brother to an Indian girl named Mala. He returns to India and after marriage, while his wife is still waiting for the green card, he decides to move to Boston, leaving his wife in Calcutta. Mala is the narrator’s wife. Unlike her husband, she is used to living in a closely knit family. At first, the separation from her family caused by her wedding saddens her. When she meets her husband in Boston six weeks later, she no longer cries but they are still strangers. Through time and shared experience, she becomes accustomed to her new country and new life. Mrs. Croft is the narrator’s elderly landlady. She is 103 years old widow who lives alone. She taught piano lessons for forty years to support her family. She might have been born during the American Civil War. She has seen the days when there was no electricity. Thomas Edison created a reliable electric light bulb in 1879. She is lonely and isolated in her own country because she is a person out of time. She is so old that she can no longer comprehend what is happening in the modern world. The 1969 moon landing seems astonishing to her, and the concept that men and women might talk to each other unchaperoned is unseemly. She berates her own 68-year-old daughter Helen for conversing with the narrator without a chaperone. When Helen asks Mrs. Croft how she would react if she saw a young woman in a miniskirt, Mrs. Croft snaps, "I'd have her arrested." In a way, there is a parallel to the moon landing and Mrs. Croft who has journeyed from the past into the present. Helen is Mrs. Croft’s 68-year-old daughter. She is more modern in dress and sensibility than her mother and also more practical and distant than the narrator. She visits and delivers groceries to her mother on Sundays.
Summary of The Third and Final Continent:
The unnamed narrator informs that he is an Indian from Calcutta Bengal. He left Calcutta in 1964 for higher studies in London where he attended lectures at the London School of Economics. In 1969, he was offered a full-time job as a librarian at MIT in Boston, America. Around the same time, his marriage was arranged by his elder brother and his wife, so he flew to his wedding in Calcutta. He spends a few nights with his bride, Mala. While Mala waits to receive a green card, the narrator flies to America alone, expecting Mala to be with him in Boston in a month or two. He reads a guidebook warning that America is less friendly than Britain. On the plane, he learns that two men have landed on the moon. While he is indifferent to the news, he notices some men cheers for it and a woman prays for the achievement. He arrived in Boston on July 20, 1969, the same day as the moon landing. In America, he must navigate his own new world, adjusting to changes in currency, driving patterns, shopping, and diet. He studies the differences and expectations and finds a cheap room at the YMCA in Central Square for his first weeks in the U.S. He finds it difficult to live there because of the noise and crowdedness. He comes across an ad for a room for rent and calls. He is told the room is only rented to boys from Harvard or Tech (MIT). He makes an appointment for the following day.
He meets the landlord, an elderly, eccentric lady named Mrs. Croft. She is dressed as if she lived at the turn of the century. They talk of the moon landing and Mrs. Croft demands that the man call it “splendid.” She further asserts that whenever they discuss the moon landing, he must respond to it as ‘splendid.’ The man is baffled, but clearly, she is impressed that he is punctual, that he declares the event “splendid,” and that he does indeed work for MIT. He is baffled by her several rules, one of which is “no lady visitors.” Still, the room is nicer than the one he has, so he rents it. Chatting with Mrs. Croft after work becomes part of his daily routine. She is touched by his attention to following her rules and how he places the rent money in her hands, instead of leaving it on the piano.
When rent is due, instead of putting it on the ledge above the piano as requested, he hands the envelope stuffed with dollar bills to Mrs. Croft. She is confused and doesn’t take it at first. That night, when he returns from work, she is still holding the envelope. They do not talk about the moonwalk. She tells him that what he had done was very kind. On Sunday, he meets Helen, 68 years 68-year-old woman, the daughter of Mrs. Croft. She talks to him and reveals that her mother thinks the narrator is “a gentleman,” an unusual compliment from her. She further informs that Mrs. Croft is 103 years old. This startles the narrator. He thought Mrs. Croft was younger due to her strong personality. Due to her age, he starts to see Mrs. Croft as more vulnerable. Helen informs that she lost her father at a tender age and Mrs. Croft continued to support her family by providing piano lessons to others. The narrator feels amazed by hearing this. His own mother was unable to bear the pain of losing her husband when he died and went insane. He realizes that Mrs. Croft is a strong person. He now understands why Mrs. Croft felt so amazed by the news of the moon landing. In her youth, there was not even electricity in homes. At her age, all these new technological advancements and innovations are no less than miracles for her. He begins being more polite, caring, and respectful towards Mrs. Croft.
After six weeks, Mala's passport and green card are ready, and she informs that she will soon be joining the narrator in Boston. The narrator thinks about his wife and remembers how after their wedding, she wept every night thinking of her family only five miles away. He wonders how Mala will behave in America, so far from her roots. Since Mrs. Croft doesn’t allow married couples in her house, nor does she allow any ‘lady visitor,’ the narrator decides to look for another apartment before Mala arrives. He moves out of Mrs. Croft’s room. Outwardly, she seems indifferent to his departure and the narrator is somewhat hurt. The narrator meets Mala at the airport, also without fanfare. He speaks to her in Bengali – the first time in America – and he takes her home. She presents him with two blue sweaters she has made him, but they fit poorly. It takes time for him to get used to having someone there, anticipating his needs. He and Mala are like strangers. He reluctantly gives her a few dollars, thinking only that it is a duty, and, when he returns, he finds more kitchen tools and a tablecloth. Mala is making the apartment their home. Still, they talk little.
One day, the narrator takes Mala to visit Mrs. Croft. Mala decides to wear a traditional Indian dress, a sari. The narrator feels a bit disturbed, feeling what Mrs. Crofts will think of her. She might not have seen a woman in Sari in her whole life. Helen answers the door and explains that her mother injured her hip in a fall and cannot move from the parlor. When he meets Mrs. Croft, he realizes that her strong personality is still intact. Mrs. Croft curiously looks Mala over, assessing her. This moment of evaluation causes the narrator to sympathize with Mala and her immigrant experience, which reminds him of his own. Mrs. Croft approves of her, calling her a “perfect lady.” The narrator laughs, and he and Mala share smiles. The barrier between them starts to come down. Mrs. Croft informs that she was able to call the police herself after her accident. When the narrator hears that, he exclaims splendid! Suggesting that it was a wonderful work. The courage and strength of Mrs. Croft to take care of herself at such an old age is no more miraculous than the first steps of men on the moon. The couple continue to explore the city together and tell each other stories. They grow closer and develop a strong between them. One day, the narrator sees Mrs. Croft's obituary in the newspaper. Hers is the first death he mourns in America, just as hers was the first life he had admired. Mala consoles the narrator.
Thirty years later, the narrator and Mala are American citizens, living in town outside of Boston. Their son goes to Harvard. They haven’t strayed much farther than Boston, living outside of the city and still remembering important landmarks from their lives despite the changing city. They still visit Calcutta and maintain some Indian rituals, but realize that as time passes, their son may not do so. The narrator feels worried about his son who will live alone in Harvard, away from his family. However, he feels there is no obstacle his son can’t overcome. He believes his son will succeed just as the narrator survived on three continents nearly 30 years ago, in the age when astronauts, "heroes forever," spent hours on the moon.
So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of Indian English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!
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