Saturday, March 7, 2009
Setting
The setting of the book is in India. However the location and time in the book is constantly changing. Aziz moves from Kashmiri to Amritsar. Kashmiri is a simple country town. It is at peace and there are no political distractions that are dividing the city. Amritsar is very different. It is a large bustling city with many people wanting to separate from the British. The time is also changing in the book. It jumps from Aziz's story to the present and then back to Aziz. The book also has a tendency to jump from one story of Aziz, back to an earlier time to tell another story about him. When the story changes to Saleem's mother, Mumtaz, the setting again changes. Mumtaz moves away from her father to live with her new husband in Delhi. There is trouble in Delhi too. There is a group called the Ravana that seems to be causing trouble in town. I think that when a character changes cities in India, it represents a change in the character. When Aziz moved away from Kashmiri he gets involved in politics and is no longer carefree because he is constantly fighting his wife. When Mumtaz moves away from her father she is changed because she has to try and help her husband and is trying to get used to the new city. She tries to leave everything about her previous husband behind her.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
"I think that when a character changes cities in India, it represents a change in the character."
ReplyDeleteI think that's an interesting comment. I guess it's like when people move from place to place, they're starting a new chapter in their lives. But sometimes, people move because they change, like Mumtaz got married and then went to Delhi, not the other way around.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI agree with both Christin and Marcella. In Aziz's case, changes in his character caused him to move to Amritsar. He was outgrowing the traditional simplicity of Kashmir. However, living in Amritsar also caused further changes in his character as he became more involved in revolutionary politics.
ReplyDeleteI agree that setting can both represent a character's personality and change a character's personality. Another example is when Aziz changes a lot when he goes to Germany and then comes back to India
ReplyDeleteI agree with both Christin and Marcella because I think that it really depends on the character whether they change because they have moved or whether they moved because they have changed. I think there's a little bit of both in the book so far. I also really like Chrisitn's example because I had forgotten about that and how Tai especially notices Aziz's change right away and didn't like it at all.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how the book will ultimately portray the European culture that Aziz assimilated to during medical school versus traditional Indian culture. Tai seems to be the source of wisdom, so it would make sense if his anti-European sentiments prevail. However, as many people have mentioned, Aziz ignored much of what Tai said.
ReplyDeleteNice analysis of moving, Christin. I would never have thought of that, but now that you mention it, it makes complete sense. Every time a main character moves, their personality or view change dramatically.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the whole "character moves=new chapter" idea. On one hand, sometimes the move is encouraged because of the character's want for change (or to leave the past behind). They also change when they enter a new habitat, regardless to whether they intended to or not, because one has to adapt to it's surrounding, and change builds character.
ReplyDeleteI also agree. As the settings change the characters change along with them. they always seem to move in a direction of tension and chaos though. when Aziz moves he loses some of himself. likewise when Saleem's mom moves she to changes due to this new chaotic environment.
ReplyDelete