Bharati Mukherjee "Management of Grief"

"The Lady from Lucknow" and General Intro.   Related Links

The Event: "At 08:13 hours London time [June 22nd., 1985] Air India flight 182, which had left Toronto earlier and having taken on luggage and passengers from the Vancouver originating flight was about to start decent into London's Heathrow Airport. The captain radioed that all was normal. Moments later, at 31,000 feet Air India flight 182 exploded and crashed into the Atlantic ocean off the Coast of Ireland."  (source)		The Consequences: Three Hundred and twenty-nine      people died on board.    the story p. 162
	What does the title "Management of Grief" mean?    How do the characters deal with their, or the others', grief?    How is Canadian government criticized?

1. Rejection, 2. depression, (Depressed Acceptance) 3. Acceptance, 4. reconstruction (p. 170)

What is not considered?
guilt/regret,  p. , hope,
prefers ignorance, or their own versions  p. 163
mourning process: searching, waiting.

II. Characters:
-- The narrator (Mrs. Shaila Bhave),
-- Pam, escape, feeling neglected.  p. 161, 174
-- Kusum, accept fate, 163, 164, 173
-- Dr. Ranganathan, another kind of escape, while keeping the connection  p. 174
-- the elderly couple  leave it to their god; insist on their own way and believe themselves "strong."

III. The Moments:
-- mourning
-- release

IV. The Canadian government -- evasive 159, indifferent 160.
<--> Irish 163-164, 165, 166  giving flowers and showing sympathy
<--> not blaming on the whole group of people because of some individuals 167

Judith Templeton--considers them ignorant, a mess.

Related Work:
The Sorrow and the Terror: The Haunting Legacy of the Air India Tragedy

"in the photo gallery some relatives had trouble recognizing the marked faces and bloated bodies. . .They had an easier time recognizing the photographs of friends and neighbours."

"Fatalism was a temporary boon to government and insurance companies."

• Air India Bombing Disaster  Official site for the Air India investigation by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has a  history of the crime, the investigation and details on the million-dollar reward offered.
• Other related sites: from Current Events: Canada.