Identities hide in names

For all of my life, I have been called by different names by different people. Most of my friends call me “Sally”. And my family usually calls me by my Chinese name. It is very common for people to have two names in Hong Kong. The younger generation would like to have an English name. It is because English is one of the official languages along with Chinese. And I think that it is easier to be called by my English name, rather than Chinese name. Therefore, I have two names at the same time. These names do not represent different stages in my life.

A name represents a person and his characteristics. Although there are many “Sallys” in the world, people can tell it is “me” when they speak to Sally. In Mukherjee’s Jasmine, the main character has different names: Jyoti, Jasmine, Wife, Jazzy, Jase, Kali, and Jane. They represent different stages in her life. And they are all given by other people. She is passive in accepting her new namea. She was called Jyoti when she was small. It is given by her parents. After she was married with Prakash, he gave her a new name: Jasmine. “He wants to break down the Jyoti in Hasnapur and make her a new kind of city woman.” (p.77) The biggest dramatic change is she tries to get away from being an Indian village girl and become an American.

Jasmine went to New York after Prakash died. She met Half-Face in the first day she arrived in America. He wanted to take advantage of her, and she killed him. Then she met the family of Taylor, Wylie, and Duff. She helped Taylor and Wylie take care of Duff, their daughter. She was still called Jasmine, but with different variation like Jazzy and Jase. Taylor liked to call her Jase. She started feeling comfortable to live in America. After she stayed with this family for a while, Taylor fell in love with her. But she decided to leave them and went to Iowa. Then she met Bud and she was given a new name: Jane. Bud asked her to marry him afterwards. She described herself that, “I have had a husband for each of the women I have been. Prakash for Jasmine, Taylor for Jase, Bud for Jane. Half-Face for Kali.” (p.197)

Different names in Jasmine’s life represent different identities, which is different from my case. My Chinese and English names do not represent my totally different identities. Yet, they represent my different attitudes. It is because only my elder family members call me by my Chinese name. I show my respect to them. All my friends and colleagues call me by my English name. It is less formal when I talked to them. On the other hand, Jasmine is running away from her old identities. When she changed from Jyoti to Jasmine, she wants to escape from her Indian identities. Finally, she is called Jase again because she is going to California with Taylor. Although it is the same name which she was called before, it will be a different Jase from before. Every time she changed her name, it represented she started a new life.