Through stories of American-Bangladeshi collision, Jhumpa Lahiri explores the nuances and complexity of cross-cultural relationships and desires. In her three distinct works, "Interpreter of Maladies," "Sexy" and "Hell Heaven," Lahiri examines how one's roots can lead to resentment and how people can be vehicles of cultural exploration. In each story, Lahiri tells each character's unique stories of cultural frustration and transition through the lens of lust, both sexual and platonic. Through this narrative of desire, Lahiri explains how, although lust is often the manifestation of cultural transition and dissatisfaction, it is also only temporary. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay In three distinct stories that examine American-Bangladeshi cross-cultural relationships, Lahiri uses lust to explore each character's intense desires to belong to a culture other than his own, whether American or Bengali. In “Interpreter of Maladies,” Lahiri immediately establishes this theme when Mr. Kapasi first describes Mrs. Das, the mother of the American tourist family. In a description of intense fascination, Lahiri notes that Mr. Kapasi “watched her. She wore a red and white checked skirt that reached above her knees, slip-on shoes with a square wooden heel, and a tight blouse shaped like a man's T-shirt” (“Interpreter of Illnesses” 2). In this description, Lahiri captures Mr. Kapasi's lust through detailed observation and fixation on the fit of Mrs. Das's blouse. Hardly describing the other characters in a similar way, Lahiri instead focuses on Mr. Kapasi's obsession with Mrs. Das to explore how his lust for Mrs. Das is also lust for America. Mr. Das's attention to the tight fit of Mrs. Das's blouse and her "red and white gingham skirt" blurs the line between Mr. Kapasi's attraction to Mrs. Das and his interest in "Americanness." that Mr. Das skirt and his other American attire represent. Lahiri once again conveys the longing for American culture as longing for a single person when Usha, a girl raised in a traditional Bengali family, idolizes Deborah, the white American girlfriend of her Bengali family friend. In contrast to Usha's traditional Bengali clothing that her mother imposes on her, Deborah's clothing is archetypal of American culture. Usha covets this look and the American lifestyle it implies, noting, “I loved her serene gray eyes, the ponchos, denim wrap skirts and sandals she wore, her straight hair that she let me manipulate into all the kinds of silly styles. I wanted his casual look” (Hell-Heaven 4). Usha's obsession not with Deborah's personality but rather with her appearance demonstrates Usha's specific infatuation with the American culture that Deborah represents. In contrast to the strict and formal lifestyle that Usha's Bengali parents impose on her, Deborah's "casual" appearance portrays the American freedom and ease that Usha aspires to. Similarly, in “Sexy,” Miranda longs for Dev to achieve the romantic exoticism she associates with her Bengali culture. Throughout the story, Miranda links Dev's Indian ethnicity to his being "worldly" and "mature" ("Sexy" 4), whether these conclusions are right or not. While sitting in her cubicle, Miranda fantasizes about taking photos with Dev at places like the Taj Majal, just like her Indian and more worldly deskmate Laxmishe has already done with her boyfriend: “Miranda started wishing there was a photo of her and Dev stuck inside her cubicle, like Laxmi and her husband's in front of the Taj Mahal” (“Sexy” 4) . The image of the Taj Mahal, a symbol of worldliness and Indian culture, underlines Miranda's desire to associate with this different culture. Miranda doesn't just want to be with Dev, she wants to be with Devil Taj Mahal, showing how her desire for Dev is not just for his love and companionship, but also for the Indian culture he represents. In all three stories, Lahiri weaves attractive characteristics with symbols and cues from other cultures to highlight how, regardless of the characters' awareness, their lust captures both interpersonal and cross-cultural attraction. Once this lust is established, Lahiri demonstrates how this desire stems from Mr. Kapasi and Usha's dissatisfaction with Bengali culture and Miranda's guilt towards her narrow American upbringing. In "Interpreter of Maladies", Mr. Kapasi's fantasies about Mrs. Das stem from his dissatisfaction with his own marriage. While his wife represents traditional Bengali culture, Mrs. Das is its antithesis; while his wife serves tea to her husband and dresses conservatively, Mrs. Das is self-centered, demanding, and her clothing exposes more skin. Lahiri notes this distinction and explains: "He had never seen his wife completely naked... He had never admired the backs of his wife's legs in the same way that he now admired those of Mrs. Das, who walked as if she were at her advantage alone" ("Interpreter of Diseases" 9). This juxtaposition contrasts Bengali and American culture and highlights Mr. Kapasi's attraction to the latter not only fuels the his culture, but also serves as a point of comparison that awakens Mr. Kapasi to this perceived “value” of American clothing and culture Likewise Usha loves Deborah because she is the opposite and enemy of her mother While her mother represents the Bengali culture through her traditional family values ​​and reserved behavior, Debora instead represents the American culture that Usha wishes to be a part of As Usha begins to associate herself with the American culture, her respect towards her mother and her Bengali lifestyle they falter: “I began to pity my mother; the older I got, the more I saw what a desolate life he led” (“Hell-Heaven” 11). Usha's pity for her mother symbolizing Bengali values ​​not only demonstrates Usha's disdain for Bengali culture but also her perceived superiority. Her choice of the word desolate further promotes this notion of perceived hierarchy between the two cultures by explaining how Usha's love for America can only be so strong because she compares America with her perception of empty Bengali culture. However, presenting a contrast to Usha and Mr. Kapasi, Miranda's lust does not stem from dissatisfaction, but rather from guilt. Miranda, born into American culture, is ashamed of how this upbringing has caused her to have racist misconceptions about Bangladeshis. As a child, when Miranda passed the home of the Dixits, a Bengali family, she “held her breath until she reached the next meadow, just as she did when the school bus passed a cemetery. Now he shamed her” (“Sexy” 10). In Lahiri's discussion of then vs. now, Lahiri explores how Miranda's past influences her present. In describing how Miranda is only now ashamed of her past cultural awareness, Lahiri links very white, American, and childhood culture.