A Search for Identity in Bharati Mukherjee's The Holder of the World

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Patel

Shalin Patel

Mrs. Sayago

Honors Lit & Comp

8 May 2002

A Search for Identity

        In Bharati Mukherjee’s The Holder of the World, the main character Hannah Easton

 is subject to many traumatic experiences.  From her childhood up until her adult life, she is forced to deal with many situations; these awful experiences are responsible for shaping her attitude towards life.  Although these occurrences affect her attitude towards life, she has not yet developed a true sense of herself.  By the closure of The Holder of the World, Hannah Easton is finally able to discover her true identity as a result of her experiences around the world.

        Hannah Easton, the protagonist in The Holder of the World, was born in Salem, Massachusetts in the 17th century.  At a very young age her father died from a bee sting and her mother deserted her to live with a Native American who she adored(a Native American lover).  After being orphaned, Hannah was adopted by a hard working Puritan family.  Hannah Easton married an English merchant by the name of Gabriel Legge and moves to England.  While in England Gabriel died during a sea voyage, and Hannah was forced to live alone.  After a few years Gabriel mysteriously returned to England, and he took up employment with the East India Company. Gabriel and Hannah moved to a city on the Coromandel Coast of India.  While in India Hannah observed the rich culture that is present in a land very different from her own.  Eventually Gabriel tells Hannah that he want to join French sailing crew and become a pirate.  Gabriel pursues his dream and Hannah is left alone in her isolated home for months at a time.  Ultimately Gabriel dies at sea,<(GET RID OF THE COMMA)and Hannah becomes the mistress of King Jadav Singh, a local Hindu Ruler.  At the end of The Holder of the World Hannah returns to Salem, Massachusetts and lives with her long lost mother.

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        Hannah Easton felt that she was never meant to live in the Puritan world, because she witnessed her mother abandon her for an Indian lover (DELETE)>(, she never felt worthy).  She tried desperately to keep this dark secret from the people of Salem. Hannah always looked at herself as a “…worthless sinner and the daughter of Satan’s lover” (Mukherjee 42).  The torment she felt fueled her yearning to leave New England and seek a new life elsewhere. “Orphaned when her widowed mother ran off with her Native American lover under the cover of massacre, Hannah nearly goes mad keeping her mother’s ...

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