Brick Lane Quotes

1273 Words3 Pages

Qadar is the concept in Islam that Allah has decreed what will occur in the universe. This concept is simplified in the novel, Brick Lane, to the common concept of fate, “that which is inevitably predetermined”. The book focuses on the fate of several characters and their view on fate itself. The novel has an epigraph by Heraclitus in it that follows this theme, “A man’s character is his fate.” The quote relates to the novel through the characters personalities. A person’s personality is something that is predetermined. A person cannot change their personality no matter how hard they try. This means that their life is ultimately based off a predetermined set of characteristics that define them. Nazneen, Chanu, and Hasina are both key examples …show more content…

She is obedient, strong, caring and family oriented. This brings her both pain and joy throughout the novel. Her obedience brings her much pain; her marriage is the main issue that arises out of her obedience. When her father tells Nazneen about the marriage he has arranged, she does not question the decision; even after she sees a picture of Chanu and finds his appearance distasteful, she says nothing and goes along with the marriage. Caring about her family also contributes to the fact she goes along with the arranged marriage. This is the beginning of her unhappy marriage, a marriage where she continues to be obedient. She believes that her pain is because women are meant to suffer, but ultimately it is her fate to suffer in the relationship because of her own obedience. If she was not obedient and was willing to challenge the arranged marriage her fate may have been different, but that is not part of her …show more content…

His self-importance makes him not develop as a character. He values himself too highly to realize that he can still grow; this allows Chanu to stay static during the novel. It is his fate to stay unhappy with his life but not do anything about it. Even though he could obtain a better job if he got a degree in England, he does not do so because he believes that his prior degree from Bangladesh and his intelligence should be enough. It is also hinted in the novel that Chanu knows that Nazneen is having an affair with Karim; instead of trying to fix the problems in their relationship, Chanu chooses not to bring the issue up and allows their relationship to stay an issue. This may be partially because he is a man of little action and because bringing up the issue would make it real; if the issue is made real then Chanu will not be able to save face anymore. His self-importance is also the reason he leaves his family. His own image is more important to him than staying with his family. He knows that he will never achieve any of the great things he wants to do in the United Kingdom, so he decides that it is best for him to leave. In Bangladesh, he believes that people will finally give him the respect he deserves and he can start a company to finally achieve something in his

More about Brick Lane Quotes

Open Document