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Bharati Mukherjee's Jasmine

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Abstract: Bharati Mukherjee started writing in the late 1970s and still proves her mettle through her novels and short stories. The middle man and other stories by Bharati Mukherjee focuses on the challenges of early immigrants. Bharati Mukherjee herself got involved so much that she went to the extent of developing one story “Jasmine” into a full - fledged novel. The collection of short stories helps the readers to gather valuable inputs about the struggle for survival and the ultimate triumph of early immigrants.
I. Introduction
Diasporic literature got a shot in the arm with the arrival of Bharati Mukherje in the 70s. Bharati Mukherjee is at her best in both her novels and short stories. The collection of short stories “The middle man …show more content…

They are mostly illegal immigrants. Jasmine is one such illegal immigrant.
In the story, Jasmine, Mukherjee immediately sets the ball in motion. Bharati Mukherjee straightaway gets into the thick of action.
Biographical elements are clearly visible in the beginning of the story. Just like Bharati Mukherjee, the protagonist also comes to the USA from Canada.
Illegal immigrants face problem at every stage in their lives. The protagonist in the story ‘Jasmine’ suffers throughout. Ever since her entry into the USA, till the very end she faces hardships. An immigrant has to be at one’s wit end all the time to dodge the officials at the border. The arduous journey of Jasmine from Canada to the USA is vividly explained by Bharati Mukherjee in the first two pages.
Survival is one of the main reasons, why an individual has to make an illegal entry into a developed country like the USA. The second reason for making an illegal entry into a financially better country is ambition. Bharati Mukherjee elaborates on this idea, when she writes:-
“Trinidad was too tiny. That was trouble. Trinidad was an island stuck in the middle of nowhere. What kind of place was that for a girl with ambition?

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