Wednesday, March 18, 2009
This Real Happily Ever After
In the story "This Blessed House," the readers learn of an Indian-American couple who have rushed into marriage. Sanjeev decides to marry Twinkle because of his loneliness and their common appreciation of P.G. Wodehouse. Instead of being the normal Indian housewife, Sanjeev finds that Twinkle cooks without any recipes, does not rush to move in, and leaves her undergarments on the floor. Twinkle is curious to the world that surrounds her, a curiosity that troubles grounded Sanjeev. The rift between these two opposites grows as Twinkle finds a porcelain figurine of Christ left behind by the previous owners of their house. Although they are both Hindu, Twinkle does not get rid of the figurine and begins to find more and more religious objects throughout their new home. When Twinkle tells Sanjeev she hates him as she sits in the bath tub, her face covered in a blue mask, she has become the hard figurines that she collects. Lahiri displays through this story the struggle that occurs in marital relationships. The struggle that these two people experience as they begin their lives together will make or break their relationship. I believe that Lahiri's purpose is to show that no matter how stable a relationship may seem, the cracks will always begin to show. But, the journey of marriage is the discovery of the acceptance of the other individual and the realization that marriage continues after the actual wedding. No matter the people involved, marriage is work and will always be.
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I think this is a good point! With all the fairy tale ending books and movies about falling in love, it is important to be reminded that in order to maintain a marriage much work needs to go into it.
ReplyDeleteI like what you picked up on in the scene where Twinkle is sitting in the bathtub with "her face covered in a blue mask." You suggest she has become like the figurines she's been collecting (I assume because you see the vision of her in that mask as similar to what cracked plaster might look like). It's interesting, because the first thing that I compared her image to in that scene was that of the Virgin Mary statue she finds (because of the blue color of the mask...I didn't even think about the idea of plaster!!). Maybe we're on to something here, eh?...
ReplyDeleteI like the way that you bring up Twinkle's unique way of doing things. This seems to be the main conflict that exists between Sanjeev and his wife. Sanjeev is so concerned with his outward appearance and in staying true to his faith that he fails to be open minded to anything. Twinkle is first portrayed as a trophy wife, but we soon realize that she is not a pushover. She has found her identity and is not afraid of what others may think of her. It is great to be reminded that marriage is a struggle, and that no two people are the same. You can have an image in your head of the person that will be perfect for you, but n the end, it doesn't always work out that way. Sanjeev and Twinkle are doomed to fail if they cannot accept the differences that exist among them. Communication is key in any successful relationship, and is the main component lacking in this marriage.
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