In "The Third and Final Continent," the protagonist is a young Bengali man lodging with an ancient American woman in New York, and her repeated comments to him are at once evidence of extreme ethnocentrism and yet spur the protagonist on to the development of his own identity within the confines of his adopted culture. One of the things his American landlady repeats to him on an almost daily basis is, "there's an American flag on the moon, boy." It is through repetitions of supposed cultural dominance such as this that the protagonist at once develops an appreciation for the culture of his adopted home country and also clearly demarcates his difference and "otherness" within the framework of this culture. Thus, it is through his interactions with his landlady that much of the protagonist's cultural and personal identity is formed and shaped...

Like Bibi Haldar, this individual must encounter other individuals who attempt to limit his identity in order to grow beyond these limitations and carve out his own identity, sense of self, and path for personal progress in his world.
Finding identity in the postcolonial world is often an action that takes place in the negative; it is a series of rejections and of asserting that one is "not" the specific labels designed by society to encapsulate their identity. This is clearly shown in many of Jhumpa Lahiri's short stories, including "The Treatment of Bibi Haldar" and "The Third and Final Continent."