Fasting, Feasting

Chapter 14 switches the limited omniscient point-of-view from Uma in India to Arun in suburban Massachusetts. In the summer heat of July, Arun walks the streets of his college town observing countless objects but very few people. Wandering the suburbs, he comes to the home of the Pattons, a family he rents a room from during summer break from college. He finds Mrs. Patton putting away groceries and smells the odor of raw meat from Mr. Patton’s barbecue grill. Both vegetarians, Arun and Mrs. Patton worry over what to eat.

Chapter 15 portrays the Patton family barbecue as a botched ceremony presided over by Mr. Patton. Having come home early to barbecue steaks for his household, Mr. Patton seems determined to impose a “festive family barbecue” on everyone. While Arun and Mrs. Patton join him in the backyard and attempt to make the best of a forced family gathering, the two Patton children, Rod and Melanie, refuse to join them. When Mr. Patton attempts to hand a slab of meat to Arun, Mrs. Patton meekly reminds him that Arun is a vegetarian, a diet consistent with Hindu culture.