"This Blessed House"

    The short story “This Blessed House” by Jhumpa Lahiri is about a newly married couple. They are settling into their new home when Twinkle, the wife, starts finding different Christian objects of worship. Sanjeev, the husband, finds himself to hate these artifacts because “[they’re] not Christian,” (137).
     I find Twinkle to be a very interesting character. At the beginning of the story, she seems to be very obedient, in some sort. She just goes along with whatever Sanjeev says and doesn’t put up much of a fight. Then, when Sanjeev tells her that he’s going to throw the Virgin Mary they found in the yard away, Twinkle finally stands up to him and wins. I think this is significant because Sanjeev realizes that Twinkle will stand up for something she believes in and that he can’t just control her.
    I also found Twinkle very interesting because of her fondness of these Christian objects. She curious about them but she’s also grown a bit attached to the collection of them. To me, it kind of seems as though she doesn’t really care much about her own religion. When Sanjeev points out to her that they are not Christian, she replies to him, “We’re good little Hindus,” (137). This sarcastic comment, to me, showed that Twinkle may not really take her religion serious. I just found it fascinating because Hindus are usually very devout and all about their religion and culture.