Why did Gogol break up with his father in namesake?
She and Gogol break up after the death of his father, when he is pulled back toward his family and begins to feel that she is an outsider, refusing to allow her to accompany them to India for Ashoke’s funeral. The The Namesake quotes below are all either spoken by Maxine Ratliff or refer to Maxine Ratliff.
Why does Gogol exclude Maxine from his mourning process?
Because Gogol has used the Ratliffs as an escape from his past for so long, he now sees them as an impediment in his journey to reconnect with his past. He excludes Maxine from his mourning process because she can’t understand it; and she can’t understand it because Gogol has never told her about it.
How does Gogol meet Maxine Ratliff?
Gogol meets a striking girl named Maxine Ratliff, who studied art history at Barnard, and they begin to flirt. The next morning... (full context) ...the house with a bottle of wine, he is stunned by its Greek Revival architecture. Maxine greets him at the door after a few minutes, looking carelessly alluring, and leads him... (full context)
Why did Moushumi and Gogol break up?
Like Gogol, Moushumi has just left a relationship that dissolved because of cultural differences. As a result, both of them are more open than they once would have been to their parents’ advice that marrying a fellow Bengali is the best way to build a lasting relationship.
What is Gogol's relationship with Maxine?
Gogol views his relationship with Maxine as the height of his “American-ness” so far in his life. Maxine and her parents represent what Gogol sees as the best of American culture: the interest in art and physical affection and relational openness that Gogol has never known with his own biological family.
Does Gogol marry Maxine?
Everything changes when Ashoke dies: Gogol embraces his family roots and breaks up with Maxine.
What does Maxine represent in the namesake?
Maxine Ratliff Maxine represents, for Gogol, a life very different from his own. She lives with her parents downtown, in a beautiful townhouse, and shares their intellectual, cosmopolitan life. Maxine does not always understand Gogol's family's traditions, but she tries to, and seems to care genuinely for him.
Who does Gogol end up with in the namesake?
MoushumiMoushumi and Gogol are attracted to one another and eventually are married.
When did Gogol and Maxine break up?
A few months after Ashoke's death, Gogol and Maxine break up.
Who is Maxine Ratliff?
Gogol's second significant girlfriend, a recent graduate from Barnard, where she studied art history. She lives with her parents in a beautiful apartment in New York. Gogol falls in love with her effortless beauty and elegant, old money lifestyle.
How does he meet Maxine Ratliff and how does his relationship with her transform his life?
How does he meet Maxine Ratliff, and how does his relationship with her transform his life? Gogol meets Maxine at a party in Tribeca. For the first time, Gogol feels effortlessly incorporated into another life. She shows him a different way of appreciating the world.
What ethnicity is Maxine in the namesake?
Answer and Explanation: Maxine Ratliff is Gogol Ganguli's rich girlfriend. She is the opposite of who his parents hope to set him up with in an arranged marriage: a nice Bengali girl who is respectful and modest.
How old was Gogol at the end of the namesake?
Gogol is now eighteen and about to attend Yale University, a prestigious school in New Haven, Connecticut. Before doing so, he goes to the courthouse alone and has his name legally changed to Nikhil. His parents begrudgingly accept their son's decision.
Why is Maxine no longer in Nikhil's life?
Why is Maxine no longer in Nikhil's life? What has he recently learned from her parents when he bumps into them in a gallery? They broke up because Maxine wanted to go with Gogol to wrap up his dads life but Maxine did not know his dad well. He learns that she in engaged to a new man.
What happened in the end of namesake?
Gogol Meets Gogol, Finally At the end of the novel, though, Gogol's not so anti-Gogol anymore. He has started to come to terms with his Indian-American identity. He doesn't try to ignore Bengali custom, and he doesn't envy the American ways of his ex-girlfriends.
What is Gogol doing at the end of the book?
The narrator switches to Gogol's perspective. For the final time in the novel, he rides the train from New York City to Boston. He knows that Ashoke will not be there to pick him up at the station.
Does Ashima love Ashoke?
Ashoke and Ashima have a relationship that begins with obligation and has no love at first. But by the time of Ashoke's death, Ashima knows that she has loved Ashoke deeply.
What ethnicity is Maxine in the namesake?
Answer and Explanation: Maxine Ratliff is Gogol Ganguli's rich girlfriend. She is the opposite of who his parents hope to set him up with in an arranged marriage: a nice Bengali girl who is respectful and modest.
Why does Maxine live with her parents and what does this tell you about her?
The fact that Maxine lives with her parents is one sign of how different she is from him – while he has been working to find independence from his family, hers is a source of stability and the affirmation of identity, something that Gogol will be intensely drawn to.
What is the cause of Ashoke's death?
The hospital official tells Ashima they have been trying to reach her directly, and that Ashoke has died in the hospital, of a heart attack.
What do the Ratliffs own?
Anyone could walk in. He thinks of the alarm system that now is installed in his parents’ house, wonders why they cannot relax about their physical surroundings in the same way. The Ratliffs own the moon that floats over the lake, and the sun and the clouds. It is a place that has been good to them, as much a part of them as a member of the family. The idea of returning year after year to a single place appeals to Gogol deeply.
Where does Maxine Ratliff live?
Gogol ’s second significant girlfriend, a recent graduate from Barnard, where she studied art history. She lives with her parents in a beautiful apartment in New York. Gogol falls in love with her effortless beauty and elegant, old money lifestyle. He is most entranced by the security ...
What does Maxine see in the window?
Through the window he sees that dawn is creeping into the sky, only a handful of stars still visible, the shapes of the surrounding pines and cabins growing distinct. A bird begins to call. And then he remembers that his parents can’t possibly reach him: he has not given them the number, and the Ratliffs are unlisted. That here at Maxine’s side, in this cloistered wilderness, he is free.
What does Maxine confide about the lake?
On one canoe journey across the lake, Maxine confides that this is where she lost her virginity, when she was fourteen. He thinks... (full context) ...He remembers that his parents do not have his number—that here in the wilderness with Maxine, he is finally free. (full context) Chapter 7.
What do the colored dots and icons indicate in Chapter 6?
The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance. Chapter 6. ...a few people are left in the Tribeca loft. Gogol meets a striking girl named Maxine Ratliff, who studied art history at Barnard, and they begin to flirt.
Where do Gerald and Lydia leave Maxine?
Gerald and Lydia leave for their annual summer trip to New Hampshire, leaving Maxine and Gogol alone in the hot New York house, which they quickly colonize, making love... (full context) ...and asks his girlfriend’s name. She is confused when he says “Max,” his nickname for Maxine.
Is Gogol and Maxine still together?
It has been a year since Ashoke’s death. Gogol and Maxine are no longer together—the argument that ended their unraveling relationship had to do with him... (full context)
What does Gogol study?
She studies French but her parents want to her to be a doctor or chemist. Gogol studies architecture and his family wants him to be a doctor and engineer.
Why did the girl become angry at Gogol?
They grew apart mentally; she became angry at the distance that Gogol was putting between them.
Where did Gogol pay the bill?
After drinks they go out to a French restaurant and Gogol pays the bill.
What does Maxine represent in the namesake?
Maxine Ratliff Maxine represents, for Gogol, a life very different from his own. She lives with her parents downtown, in a beautiful townhouse, and shares their intellectual, cosmopolitan life. Maxine does not always understand Gogol's family's traditions, but she tries to, and seems to care genuinely for him.
Why did Gogol and Maxine break up?
She and Gogol break up after the death of his father, when he is pulled back toward his family and begins to feel that she is an outsider, refusing to allow her to accompany them to India for Ashoke's funeral.
What does Gogol learn about Maxine?
Gogol views his relationship with Maxine as the height of his “American-ness” so far in his life. Maxine and her parents represent what Gogol sees as the best of American culture: the interest in art and physical affection and relational openness that Gogol has never known with his own biological family.
Why is Maxine attracted to Gogol?
At first, she seems like the answer to all Gogol's troubles, because Maxine fits the type that Gogol seems to be attracted to: she is all-American, she's artistic and sexually uninhibited – in other words, she's the complete opposite of the nice Bengali girl his parents would love him to marry.
Why did The Namesake of his son become so important for Ashok?
Ashoke tells his son this when he gives him the collected stories of Nikolai Gogol for his 14th birthday, which includes “The Overcoat.” He chose to name his son Gogol because his son represented the second miracle in his life, the first miracle being that he survived the accident.
Does Gogol marry Maxine?
A few months after Ashoke’s death, Gogol and Maxine break up. A year later, Maxine is engaged to be married. Gogol now visits home regularly; Sonia has moved in to take care of Ashima.
Why do Gogol and Maxine break up?
She and Gogol break up after the death of his father, when he is pulled back toward his family and begins to feel that she is an outsider, refusing to allow her to accompany them to India for Ashoke’s funeral.
What do Astrid and Donald represent to Gogol?
Once, Gogol hears Astrid slip up and call him Graham. The couple’s connection to Graham is a further hint that Donald and Astrid’s presence will be toxic for Moushumi’s marriage. They represent a part of her identity that she is unwilling to give up, and which she often finds more compelling than her life with Gogol.
Why is Gogol attracted to Moushumi?
Gogol is attracted to Moushumi because he shares a connection with her that he did not share in his prior relationships. Whereas Gogol views Maxine as an outsider who could not be part of his family, he understands that “Bengali friends [such as Moushumi] were the closest thing they had to family” (pp. 200–201).
Who is Ruth in the namesake?
Ruth is Gogol’s first serious girlfriend, but their relationship doesn’t last long in terms of pages. Gogol meets Ruth, a white fellow student at Yale when he takes the seat next to her on the train. They strike up a conversation and begin dating.
Why did Gogol and Moushumi not work out?
Moushumi and Gogol fall genuinely in love, but their relationship is beset by nagging problems, including Gogol’s self-centeredness, however well-intentioned, and Moushumi’s doubts about their intellectual and emotional compatibility.
