In his story “One Out of Many,” V. S. Naipaul follows the first-person narrator, Santosh, as he moves from Mumbai (then Bombay), India, to Washington, D.C. The cultural encounters that shape Santosh’s experience of trying to feel at home in a foreign country include the physical transformations that he undergoes, like his effort to get used to wearing American clothes. His experiences are strongly shaped by encounters with other Indian immigrants, especially his new boss, Priya, and with the Americans he meets, especially African Americans. He must embrace the paradox that feeling at home includes accepting the racism in American society—a crucial element of which is confronting his own racist ideas.

As living in the United States doesn't seem appropriate for a servant in India, Santosh finds that he has almost no buying power. Unprepared for the racist attitudes that he would encounter as a dark-skinned foreigner, Santosh decides that he should try to fit in by wearing American clothes. By choosing a green suit, however, he demonstrates his lack of understanding of dress-related customs and ultimately finds himself unable to wear the suit.

Santosh’s decision to leave his embassy job for higher earnings brings him into contact with a new boss, Priya. This experience teaches him the limits of solidarity among Indian immigrants as well as acquaints him with Mexican immigrant co-workers. Making a home include moving into new living quarters, which introduces him to African Americans. Santosh initially encounters black people as an anonymous mass of his supposed inferiors, but he comes to acknowledge that despite discrimination they are far more at home there than he can ever be. A casual encounter and a sexual relationship with one woman is transformed into the marriage that will enable him to pursue his dream of freedom.