Mrs. Sen's

“‘Mr. Sen teaches mathematics at the university,’ Mrs. Sen had said by way of introduction, as if they were only distantly acquainted.”

This quote shows the distance between Mr. and Mrs. Sen, who have a materially functional but loveless and emotionally empty marriage. This introduction also reveals that Mrs. Sen defines herself in reference to her husband rather than by her own qualities.

“She wore a shimmering white sari patterned with orange paisleys, more suitable for an evening affair than for that quiet, faintly drizzling August afternoon.”

Eliot immediately notices the color of Mrs. Sen’s sari because she is dressed so differently from his mom. The colorful saris that Mrs. Sen wears are attached to her identity as an Indian American. She longs for occasions to wear her saris since she often only stays inside the apartment cooking for Mr. Sen.

“The mention of the word [India] seemed to release something in her. She neatened the border of her sari where it rose diagonally across her chest. She, too, looked around the room, as if she noticed in the lampshades, in the teapot, in the shadows frozen on the carpet, something the rest of them could not. ‘Everything is there.’”

The word “India” triggers nostalgia and feelings of homesickness in Mrs. Sen. She misses her life and loved ones in India and feels sad when thinking about her life in America with Mr. Sen. This quote shows how the mention of India causes a change in her mood and behavior, as the person who lived in India is a different person from the current Mrs. Sen.