Chutney By Carne Vasios

Fruits, vegetables, spices and sugar: that is what chutney is made of, that is what life is made of. In Chutney by Carne Vasios, it is shown that humanity is precious and fragile; it can often be transformed, destroyed even, as a consequence of circumstances. The use of powerful metaphor, and simile both help in the characterization of the narrator and Mrs. Caziz, which supports this central idea and establishes the notion that in order to maintain a grip of humanity, one must always see the positive. Humanity is breakable, yet when one remains positive they become harder to break, in this story the characterization of the narrator reveals an example of that person, the one who stays confident. The narrator, that voice heard, that name unknown,

The voice of the narrator helps to establish the fragility of humanity, and the role of circumstance in molding it. The narrator is established as innocent, her descriptions prove as much. When first describing the Cazizs, the narrator illustrates their chutney store, calling it, “A store with was-white walls splotched with colors that spin together like amoebas dancing” (1). This description, this simile comparing a colorful wall to amoebas dancing, shows the imagination of the narrator and establishes her ethos. It shows how when one sees the good, the positive, even the mundane can help to brighten life, to strengthen one's grip on their humanity. The narrator is a product of circumstance though, and circumstance is not on her side. Her mother might be called crazy, her situation seems grim. She, as a young girl, has to take a job in order to keep herself fed, alive. Her mother’s mouth, one that is not very controlled, is personified in the

Caziz. She is a tragic character, she traveled from India to America with her abusive husband. She does not have any family, save him. As the narrator puts it, “She is nowhere has nothing and nobody” (2). This characterization of Mrs. Caziz, one of a tragic lonely woman who has lost all grasp of her humanity is a melancholy one. Through the metaphor of saying that she is ‘nowhere,’ the idea that she has nowhere to go, no home, not even a family is made obvious. Circumstance, that invisible force that defines everyone, is not on Mrs. Caziz’s side. She has lost her humanity, her confidence and control over her life. Mrs. Caziz is so unsure of herself, she is so embattled in trying to find an identity that she cannot face other people. The narrator describes a woman who comes into the chutney store, “with a voice that sparkles like champagne. Her eyes are blue like every ocean colliding with an April sky. Mrs. Caziz takes one look at her and disappears down the stairs… When she is gone, Mrs. Caziz comes back” (2). Her humanity has been robbed of her, her confidence as well, by her husband. She is unable to stand the sight of a woman, confident, beautiful, and carefree. She is unable to think of herself as that person, a different person. She has been so beaten down by life and abuse that she cannot even stand in the same