ABSTRACT
This paper investigates the different points of view in seeing India as the root of identity portrayed in Jhumpa Lahiri’s novel The Namesake (2003) and its film adaptation that goes by the same name directed by Mira Nair (2007). Both the author and director of the two works are of Indian descents, but they come from different generations. Lahiri belongs to the second generation immigrants, whereas Nair comes from the first generation. By using essentialist and non-essentialist perspectives on the concept of identity, the analysis denotes that while the novel stresses identity as a fluid notion that always undergoes changes and transformations which suggest the non-essentialist point of view, its film adaptation accentuates India as the essence of identity that is unchanged, timeless, and stable from time to time, reflecting the essentialist point of view. By comparing on how the author and the director make use of two different media in portraying the same story, this paper highlights the difference of loyalty toward India as the root of identity for each diasporic generation.
