Michael O’Connor When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine Jhumpa Lahiri, a well-renowned author from London and of Bengali descent, offers the most down-to-earth short story about modern day immigration and the struggles they face in “When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine”. Throughout the duration of the story the narrator Lilia, a ten year old girl whose parents migrated from India, talks about a man who comes to their home. He comes to their home to enjoy a warm meal and to view the evening news. Over the course of the story, Lilia progresses quite well in the aspect of emphasizing with other people and heightens her sense of knowledge of her heritage. From her experiences with Mr. Pirzada, Lilia expands her knowledge of the world around her and learns to communicate and function with other people. Through the entirety of the story, Lilia matures in many aspects of life, most importantly the knowledge of her heritage. During this time, Pakistan is engaging in a civil war. Mr. Pirzada comes from the city of Dacca, which is being invaded by the Pakistan army. During these invasions, teachers were murdered and women dragged into the streets and raped. By summer’s end, three hundred thousand people were pronounced dead. Mr. Pirzada has a wonderful wife of twenty years and seven daughters, all of which are currently residing in Dacca. Week after week Mr. Pirzada sends letters to his wife and comic books to his daughters to keep in touch with them in some way, yet the postal system in Dacca, due to the war is collapsed. Due to this collapse, Mr. Pirzada has not been in contact with his family in several months. Mr. Pirzada, who comes to America on a grant awarded to him by the Pakistani government to study the foliage of New England, attends their home for a warm meal and to catch a glimpse of the evening news regarding his home country’s current affairs (Lahiri, 1). Lilia’s father meets Mr. Pirzada by going through the university directory and locating names he recognizes from...