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The Third and Final Continent
"I left India in 1964 with a certificate in commerce and the equivalent, in those days, of ten dollars to my name..."
The Third and Final Continent was one of nine stories that were collected in Jhumpa Lahiri's 'The Interpreter of Maladies', which was published in 1999. The story collection won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction.
Jhumpa Lahiri (1967-) was born in London but brought up in South Kingstown, Rhode Island. Brought up in America by a mother who wanted to raise her children to be Indian, she learned about her Bengali heritage from an early age. She is most celebrated for her works 'The Namesake' (2003, 'The Interpreter of Maladies' (1999), and 'Unaccustomed Earth' (2008).
The Third and Final Continent was one of nine stories that were collected in Jhumpa Lahiri's 'The Interpreter of Maladies', which was published in 1999. The story collection won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction.
Jhumpa Lahiri (1967-) was born in London but brought up in South Kingstown, Rhode Island. Brought up in America by a mother who wanted to raise her children to be Indian, she learned about her Bengali heritage from an early age. She is most celebrated for her works 'The Namesake' (2003, 'The Interpreter of Maladies' (1999), and 'Unaccustomed Earth' (2008).
19 pages, Unknown Binding
First published April 20, 1999
About the author
Jhumpa Lahiri
109 books14.8k followersNilanjana Sudeshna "Jhumpa" Lahiri is a British-American author known for her short stories, novels, and essays in English and, more recently, in Italian.
Her debut collection of short-stories, Interpreter of Maladies (1999), won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the PEN/Hemingway Award, and her first novel, The Namesake (2003), was adapted into the popular film of the same name. The Namesake was a New York Times Notable Book, a Los Angeles Times Book Prize finalist and was made into a major motion picture.
Unaccustomed Earth (2008) won the Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award, while her second novel, The Lowland (2013) was a finalist for both the Man Booker Prize and the National Book Award for Fiction.
On January 22, 2015, Lahiri won the US$50,000 DSC Prize for Literature for The Lowland. In these works, Lahiri explored the Indian-immigrant experience in America.
In 2012, Lahiri moved to Rome, Italy and has since then published two books of essays, and began writing in Italian, first with the 2018 novel Dove mi trovo, then with her 2023 collection Roman Stories. She also compiled, edited, and translated the Penguin Book of Italian Short Stories which consists of 40 Italian short stories written by 40 different Italian writers. She has also translated some of her own writings and those of other authors from Italian into English.
In 2014, Lahiri was awarded the National Humanities Medal. She was a professor of creative writing at Princeton University from 2015 to 2022. In 2022, she became the Millicent C. McIntosh Professor of English and Director of Creative Writing at her alma mater, Barnard College of Columbia University.
Her debut collection of short-stories, Interpreter of Maladies (1999), won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the PEN/Hemingway Award, and her first novel, The Namesake (2003), was adapted into the popular film of the same name. The Namesake was a New York Times Notable Book, a Los Angeles Times Book Prize finalist and was made into a major motion picture.
Unaccustomed Earth (2008) won the Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award, while her second novel, The Lowland (2013) was a finalist for both the Man Booker Prize and the National Book Award for Fiction.
On January 22, 2015, Lahiri won the US$50,000 DSC Prize for Literature for The Lowland. In these works, Lahiri explored the Indian-immigrant experience in America.
In 2012, Lahiri moved to Rome, Italy and has since then published two books of essays, and began writing in Italian, first with the 2018 novel Dove mi trovo, then with her 2023 collection Roman Stories. She also compiled, edited, and translated the Penguin Book of Italian Short Stories which consists of 40 Italian short stories written by 40 different Italian writers. She has also translated some of her own writings and those of other authors from Italian into English.
In 2014, Lahiri was awarded the National Humanities Medal. She was a professor of creative writing at Princeton University from 2015 to 2022. In 2022, she became the Millicent C. McIntosh Professor of English and Director of Creative Writing at her alma mater, Barnard College of Columbia University.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
September 10, 2023
Truly Splendid!!
Calcutta born narrator travels from India, to England, and lastly United States, in an attempt to study and establish abroad. Barely with enough money to support himself, and struggling to settle and adapt to western customs and way of life. Trying to earn enough so he can finally find his own place, and bring his arranged marriage wife, who he barely knows.
This is part of ”Interpreter of Maladies” and one of those uniquely wonderful examples for which I love short stories. This little gem of mere 19 pages that you can read in a flash makes the word “Splendid” acquire a whole new meaning for me. I had forgotten why I liked this one so much and, rereading it, nearly ten years later, I can now recall the reason. And why this handful of pages truly deserves a place in my best of short literature shelf.
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PERSONAL NOTE :
[1999] [19p] [Fiction] [Highly Recommendable] [“Mother, it's 1969. What would you do if you actually left the house one day and saw a girl in a miniskirt?" Mrs. Croft sniffed. "I'd have her arrested."]
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★★★★★ The Third and Final Continent
★★☆☆☆ Interpreter of Maladies
★★★☆☆ Unaccustomed Earth
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¡¡Verdaderamente Espléndido!!
Un narrador nacido en Calcuta viaja desde la India, hasta Inglaterra, y por último a Estados Unidos, en un intento de estudiar y establecerse en el exterior. Apenas con suficiente dinero para mantenerse, y luchando por asentarse y adaptarse a las costumbres occidentales y su estilo de vida. Tratando de ganar lo suficiente para finalmente encontrar su propio lugar, y traer a su esposa de un matrimonio arreglado, a quien apenas conoce.
Esto es parte de ”El Intérprete del Dolor” y uno de esos maravillosamente únicos ejemplos por los que amo los cuentos cortos. Esta pequeña joya de meras 19 páginas que se lee en dos patadas hace que la palabra “Espléndido” adquiera un significado totalmente nuevo para mí. Había olvidado completamente por qué me había gustado tanto, y releyéndolo, casi diez años después, ahora vuelvo a recordar la razón. Y por qué este puñado de páginas verdaderamente merece un lugar en mi estante de lo mejor de la literatura corta.
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NOTA PERSONAL :
[1999] [19p] [Ficción] [Altamente Recomendable] [—“Madre, estamos en 1969, ¿Qué pasaría si un día salieras de la casa y vieras a una chica con minifalda? La señora Croft dio un bufido y respondió: —Haría que la detuvieran”]
-----------------------------------------------
Calcutta born narrator travels from India, to England, and lastly United States, in an attempt to study and establish abroad. Barely with enough money to support himself, and struggling to settle and adapt to western customs and way of life. Trying to earn enough so he can finally find his own place, and bring his arranged marriage wife, who he barely knows.
This is part of ”Interpreter of Maladies” and one of those uniquely wonderful examples for which I love short stories. This little gem of mere 19 pages that you can read in a flash makes the word “Splendid” acquire a whole new meaning for me. I had forgotten why I liked this one so much and, rereading it, nearly ten years later, I can now recall the reason. And why this handful of pages truly deserves a place in my best of short literature shelf.
-----------------------------------------------
PERSONAL NOTE :
[1999] [19p] [Fiction] [Highly Recommendable] [“Mother, it's 1969. What would you do if you actually left the house one day and saw a girl in a miniskirt?" Mrs. Croft sniffed. "I'd have her arrested."]
-----------------------------------------------
★★★★★ The Third and Final Continent
★★☆☆☆ Interpreter of Maladies
★★★☆☆ Unaccustomed Earth
-----------------------------------------------
¡¡Verdaderamente Espléndido!!
Un narrador nacido en Calcuta viaja desde la India, hasta Inglaterra, y por último a Estados Unidos, en un intento de estudiar y establecerse en el exterior. Apenas con suficiente dinero para mantenerse, y luchando por asentarse y adaptarse a las costumbres occidentales y su estilo de vida. Tratando de ganar lo suficiente para finalmente encontrar su propio lugar, y traer a su esposa de un matrimonio arreglado, a quien apenas conoce.
Esto es parte de ”El Intérprete del Dolor” y uno de esos maravillosamente únicos ejemplos por los que amo los cuentos cortos. Esta pequeña joya de meras 19 páginas que se lee en dos patadas hace que la palabra “Espléndido” adquiera un significado totalmente nuevo para mí. Había olvidado completamente por qué me había gustado tanto, y releyéndolo, casi diez años después, ahora vuelvo a recordar la razón. Y por qué este puñado de páginas verdaderamente merece un lugar en mi estante de lo mejor de la literatura corta.
-----------------------------------------------
NOTA PERSONAL :
[1999] [19p] [Ficción] [Altamente Recomendable] [—“Madre, estamos en 1969, ¿Qué pasaría si un día salieras de la casa y vieras a una chica con minifalda? La señora Croft dio un bufido y respondió: —Haría que la detuvieran”]
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September 12, 2025
A very short but complex and to-the-point story that showcases great writing. But it was a "forced" read for my literature courses.
May 4, 2026
To write a story about an ordinary somewhat dull man , a recent orphan , who migrates from Bengal to England then , without much intent, to Massachusetts demands a writer on top of their craft .
It's the time of the moon landings and , while the story pivots on this drama of exploration , it isn't overplayed and we are left to explore the parallels ourselves . Instead we have as our central focus the relationship between the man and his extraordinary landlady in Cambridge , Massachusetts.
There is little angst or anger as he navigates the exotic culture of a strange land and her cheap but singular accommodation is hardly welcoming . But as the story unfolds and his life moves away from his initial first steps and into the norm of an arranged marriage she plays a vital role in the couples adaptation and transformation.
It's the time of the moon landings and , while the story pivots on this drama of exploration , it isn't overplayed and we are left to explore the parallels ourselves . Instead we have as our central focus the relationship between the man and his extraordinary landlady in Cambridge , Massachusetts.
There is little angst or anger as he navigates the exotic culture of a strange land and her cheap but singular accommodation is hardly welcoming . But as the story unfolds and his life moves away from his initial first steps and into the norm of an arranged marriage she plays a vital role in the couples adaptation and transformation.
November 29, 2024
his son attending Harvard university is a dream come true of every immigrant parent lmao
May 15, 2022
Torn between thinking this was almost too optimistic (and maybe unrealistic) but also knowing that not all stories of migration have to depict endless challenges and oppression. I'm just like woah this is pretty positive considering it's set in the 60s? But then again maybe that's just because I'm so used to reading about terrible immigrant experiences. Sometimes it's just nice to read something more hopeful. Idk, argue with the wall.
November 11, 2023
Read the Interpreter of Maladies a year prior and reread this specific story this summer. Jhumpa Lahiri's ability to create worlds and characters with depth in a matter of pages is absolutely unreal to me.
This particular story stood out to me because it was a world that I was not alive for, but am inextricably apart of. 5/5 every time I reread.
This particular story stood out to me because it was a world that I was not alive for, but am inextricably apart of. 5/5 every time I reread.
October 13, 2021
I just can’t stand stories that portray the (APIDA) immigrant story as a success. These inadvertently perpetuate the model minority myth, especially coming from incredibly decorated authors like Lahiri.
December 14, 2021
Ended up crying after reading this... as a child of immigrants, the story felt familiar. Others would probably only view it at surface level, but this is one of those situations where if you know, you know.
October 8, 2020
Nice short story. Takes longer to think about afterwards than it takes to read it.
August 23, 2025
The Third and Final Continent by Jhumpa Lahiri
One thing I like about the stories of Jhumpa Lahiri is the frequent reference to India or in the case of When Mister Pirzada Came to Dinner – to Bangladesh.
This is a fascinating, if distant world.
When we say India, we think of a country, but the people in that single country are more numerous than Europe and North America put together. We must not think of a single culture, since there are a multitude of languages, habits and religions.
The politics have also been complicated and Ms. Lahiri writes about that.
Mister Pirzada, for instance was very affected by the events that took place after the partition of India. Bangladesh became a country and one of the poorest alas, only after a brief war which had caused massive migration and chaos. India helped what was a region of Pakistan to gain its independence.
One of the most dangerous places on earth is the border between India and Pakistan, which have a long dispute over Kashmir and are both nuclear powers, being able to annihilate one another and some other countries in the process.
Reading about the ordeal of so many people caught in this massive historical conflict is thought provoking. We empathize when we read about the suffering of one individual, but we can’t help but become overwhelmed when we read about the long suffering of millions of people who had to abandon their homes, travel thousands of miles, many killed along the journey forced by the partition of India from Pakistan, which happened along indiscriminate lines.
And that conflict has never been off, Indian and Pakistani soldiers die at the border, the Pakistani Secret Service supports the Taliban who attack the Indian Embassy in…Kabul and they even provided training to some mad men who killed hundreds of people in a raid on New Delhi, some years ago.
All this bloody conflict has had a huge impact on the writer, even if or because she lives in The United States. Her view is conciliatory and in a respected Indian tradition about which I have read also in The Life of Pi, the characters in these short stories are very tolerant and even embrace other religions, not always but most of the time.
Although the style is simple and the people in the stories seem normal, the narrative catches you on and suggested to me a kind of pleasant, Buddhist humility, a care for the other, for the reader…a kind of respect for feelings and people who are common, but that is just the point:
We do not have to read only extraordinary events, involving Ethan Hunt in Mission Impossible…we should know more about real human beings, and not just James Bond, Iron Man, Borne and the Spiderman. You may like X –Men, True Blood, The Avengers, but I will never watch these movies, or indeed read the bande dessinées which brought these mutants to life.
www.realini.blogspot.ro
One thing I like about the stories of Jhumpa Lahiri is the frequent reference to India or in the case of When Mister Pirzada Came to Dinner – to Bangladesh.
This is a fascinating, if distant world.
When we say India, we think of a country, but the people in that single country are more numerous than Europe and North America put together. We must not think of a single culture, since there are a multitude of languages, habits and religions.
The politics have also been complicated and Ms. Lahiri writes about that.
Mister Pirzada, for instance was very affected by the events that took place after the partition of India. Bangladesh became a country and one of the poorest alas, only after a brief war which had caused massive migration and chaos. India helped what was a region of Pakistan to gain its independence.
One of the most dangerous places on earth is the border between India and Pakistan, which have a long dispute over Kashmir and are both nuclear powers, being able to annihilate one another and some other countries in the process.
Reading about the ordeal of so many people caught in this massive historical conflict is thought provoking. We empathize when we read about the suffering of one individual, but we can’t help but become overwhelmed when we read about the long suffering of millions of people who had to abandon their homes, travel thousands of miles, many killed along the journey forced by the partition of India from Pakistan, which happened along indiscriminate lines.
And that conflict has never been off, Indian and Pakistani soldiers die at the border, the Pakistani Secret Service supports the Taliban who attack the Indian Embassy in…Kabul and they even provided training to some mad men who killed hundreds of people in a raid on New Delhi, some years ago.
All this bloody conflict has had a huge impact on the writer, even if or because she lives in The United States. Her view is conciliatory and in a respected Indian tradition about which I have read also in The Life of Pi, the characters in these short stories are very tolerant and even embrace other religions, not always but most of the time.
Although the style is simple and the people in the stories seem normal, the narrative catches you on and suggested to me a kind of pleasant, Buddhist humility, a care for the other, for the reader…a kind of respect for feelings and people who are common, but that is just the point:
We do not have to read only extraordinary events, involving Ethan Hunt in Mission Impossible…we should know more about real human beings, and not just James Bond, Iron Man, Borne and the Spiderman. You may like X –Men, True Blood, The Avengers, but I will never watch these movies, or indeed read the bande dessinées which brought these mutants to life.
www.realini.blogspot.ro
February 18, 2021
A story that shifts on different structures and tropes, passing through struggle after new struggle into final moments of clarity with a sort of matter-of-factness that was impossibly real. The drama of the day-to-day is more so lived moment-to-moment, the finale laid in the next moment but repeatedly renewing itself — rather than culminating to grand payoffs. Every line that in our reading came as suggestive (coded by the ways we read storied drama), dismissed in the real, decades-rich passage of life. And in the in-between, we have a quiet, cinematic relationship between an immigrant and a centennial with Alzheimer’s, a stranger wife who learns to face off against the animals of a new country, and a man who comes to us in frank, real, elegant words — from changing homes & changing eyes.
July 23, 2021
I love Lahiri's short stories, though her longer works tend not to be for me. "The Third and Final Continent" is an excellent example of this, telling the tale of migrants who have moved from India, to the UK, to America (the third and final continent - get it?) and his relationships with a landlady and a new wife.
I'd recommend reading this story and then giving yourself a break before hopping into whatever you're reading next. Let yourself sit and marinate with this one, it'll really stay with you.
I'd recommend reading this story and then giving yourself a break before hopping into whatever you're reading next. Let yourself sit and marinate with this one, it'll really stay with you.
August 25, 2024
i really enjoyed this short story. i was fascinated by the customs of the bengali protagonist, and amused by his attitude and motivation to travel to establish himself in a new western country for work. i felt myself agreeing with him through the entire story. the old lady was very dear to me, she was a strong women. i loved how he got closer to his wife. it was quite an optimistic story but made me feel positive. the story was not more than 30 pages but his ability to create characters in worlds realistic to us is very commendable. the straightforward tone of the author was very entertaining
December 15, 2020
The tale as told by an unnamed protagonist as he shares his time spent on three different continents as he tries to find his station in life. Moving from his birth country of India, on to London, and finally to America where he lived his life into his senior years. He shares his most memorable memories when when rented a room from a woman who was 103 yrs old, after securing a job at MIT.
March 28, 2024
This is one of the most beautiful short stories I've ever read, and I've gone back to it many times. The final paragraphs always move me very deeply. It is about so many things. It is about one version of the immigrant experience, yes, but it is also more universally about the depth and breadth of a life well and bravely lived.
December 13, 2021
I was a little disappointed by this. It seemed unrealistic to me and it seemd like the protagonist's life was too easy. The story had a very happy ending that turned out too perfectly. It would have been more interesting if the protagonist faced more challenges during his immigration to America.
December 14, 2022
This is a re-read, and I have to say I still enjoyed it. In fact, reading it on its own (without the other short stories in the collection) might have made it stand out more.
I keep telling myself to read more Lahiri. I really need to make that one of my new year's resolutions.
I keep telling myself to read more Lahiri. I really need to make that one of my new year's resolutions.
March 8, 2024
Maybe a bit too sappy, but otherwise this felt like a real lived experience. Mrs. Croft feels like some echo of the elderly individuals I've known in my own life.
These old shorts are probably the best content New Yorker publishes.
These old shorts are probably the best content New Yorker publishes.
September 4, 2024
“Still, there are times I am bewildered by each
mile I have travelled, each meal I have eaten, each person I have known, each room in which
I have slept. As ordinary as it all appears, there are times when it is beyond my imagination.”
SO CUTE I cried
mile I have travelled, each meal I have eaten, each person I have known, each room in which
I have slept. As ordinary as it all appears, there are times when it is beyond my imagination.”
SO CUTE I cried
November 6, 2024
I loved this, she made such an on the nose metaphor work by not being heavy handed w it and work well it did!!!!! she always tugs on my heartstrings w her depictions, such a clever little unassuming story.
January 18, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25
A beautiful reflection on life and new beginnings. Read this while sipping authentic Bengali chai and you're sure to go back to another time where life was simpler and less moments taken for granted.
A beautiful reflection on life and new beginnings. Read this while sipping authentic Bengali chai and you're sure to go back to another time where life was simpler and less moments taken for granted.
October 21, 2021
gute short story für ne schullektüre
May 10, 2022
This was a reread for me having read it first in “ The interpreter of maladies”.
This short story is everything in Jhumpa Lahiri’s literature that stands out for me always.
This short story is everything in Jhumpa Lahiri’s literature that stands out for me always.
September 17, 2022
Splendid!
February 19, 2023
Read this for school and 45% interesting.
April 16, 2023
"still, there are times i am bewildered by each mile i have travelled, each meal i have eaten, each person i have known, each room in which i have slept."
July 22, 2023
Very nice short story of a new life inAmerica touched by a long life in America
May 28, 2024
The attention to detail of the characters makes this story great. Splendid, really.
Read
October 28, 2024I enjoyed this, an uplifting story that encapsulates many immigrants' experiences
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews