Resumo de The Inscrutable Americans

The Inscrutable Americans by Anurag Mathur

New Delhi based Indian journalist/writer Anurag Mathur?s The Inscrutable Americans is a hilarious novel that describes the experiences of Gopal, an Indian student on a small University campus in USA.
Who is Gopal ?
Gopal Kumar is from a town called Jajau in Madhya Pradesh. His family has been in the hair oil business since decades. Gopal gets admission to do a one year in depth course in Chemical Engineering in a small town university. The comic situations start right from the time Gopal boards the flight to New York. The novel starts with his description of his flight and his arrival at New York in a letter to his brother. He is very careful to eat only vegetarian food as per his mother?s instruction which is to eat food ?cooked by Brahmins? and to keep away from beef. So on board Gopal eats only nuts and bread and drinks 37 glasses of Coca-cola. Gopal?s use of the present continuous in his English evokes laughter. American expressions ?How is it going??, ?Watch your ass? is taken literally by him. His naïve reaction in New York against the sophisticated backdrop is very amusing. His cousins in New York feel very protective towards him when they see him off at New York airport to fly to Eversville where he will be spending one year for his studies. In the midst of all this Gopal tries to project a good image of India as he says ?every one of us is serving as Ambassador of our beloved motherland?.
Life at Eversville
Gopal?s life at Eversville is full of surprises. He finds it very difficult to understand the American ways, introduced to him by his all American friend Randy. But he takes everything in his stride. However, Gopal?s native wit and thinking goes far beyond his linguistic limitations. His attempts to bargain at a supermarket and succeeding at it fascinates Randy. In studies Gopal is among the top students as the Dean compliments him. His description of American girls and how they mature from gum chewing girls to effusive housewives is very funnily described.
The conflict in the novel
The novel portrays conflict at different levels. The obvious level is the difference Gopal feels in the life style of the Americans. The way in which it is shown is hilarious. The conflict Gopal personally experiences is when he has to force himself to enter a party where he painfully feels he stands out because of the color of his skin. The fear that will he be accepted is always there in the back of his mind. Americans keep people like him out of their social circle and only just patronize them, feels Gopal especially at parties. Towards the end of his stay in the US Gopal feels the conflict whether he should stay in this land of comfort and opportunities as an alien or go back to his India. However he chooses the latter.
Gopal and sex
After coming to know that Gopal is still a virgin, Randy makes it the mission of his life to get Gopal to lose his virginity. Many attempts are made. Several situations are created but all in vain. The novel reaches its climax on Gopal?s return flight to India.
The Inscrutable Americans is fun filled adventure of this naïve 20 year old boy all alone in the US. It doesn?t preach but beneath the laughter there is an acuteness and a depth of meaning.

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