Chapter 2 Summary

The baby is born early the next morning. A name must be chosen for the child, but Ashoke and Ashima have decided to give this honor to Ashima's grandmother who has named all the children in her family. They are not concerned that they have not received the letter the grandmother mailed a month ago because in the tradition of Calcutta, they believe they have several months to wait. However, they soon learn that the child must have a name for his birth certificate before he leaves the hospital. In their tradition, they decide to give the child a nickname that will work for the birth certificate and then change his legal name when the letter arrives from the grandmother. Ashoke decides the nickname should be Gogol, after the author of the story he was reading the night of the train wreck. Ashima...