Reflection on characters

So far in the novel I find myself constantly unimpressed by the actions and reactions of Lahiri’s characters. Gogol frustrates me to no end, he has little to no personality, and so to compensate, he simply lives vicariously through the women he encounters. Gogol never stands up for himself or states his desires simply because he does not know what he wants in life. Moushumi only worsens Gogol’s timid nature. For Moushumi and Gogol completely foil each other in their personalities. Moushumi, a direct and ambitious woman, uses Gogol as she pleases. Instead of standing up for himself, Gogol readily follows Moushumi around no matter how miserable he feels. He seems to prefer living in misery with Moushumi than living alone, simply because he fears solitude. Moushumi’s affair with Dimitri disappointed me, but did not surprise me. I figured that something along the lines of an affair would occur; Lahiri foreshadowed the downfall of the relationship from the beginning. I find myself wanting Gogol to finally discover Moushumi’s affair; mostly because I want Gogol to end his relationship with Moushumi and finally stand up for himself, but also because I completely disagree with Moushumi’s actions.  Though Lahiri provides insight into Moushumi’s side of the relationship, I have hard time feeling sympathy for her given that she chose to marry Gogol. I understand her motive to a point, Gogol is almost a non-entity in their marriage, but I do not believe that justifies her actions. At this point, I see Moushumi revealing the affair on her own, due to her suspicious nature at home and from the guilt she tries to delude even from herself. I do not see Gogol trying to figure it out on his own.