A temporary matter info PDF

Preview

Summary

Download A temporary matter info PDF

Description

A temporary matter info -Lahiri has stated that much of her writing is concerned with communication and its absence. Miscommunication or unexpressed feelings weigh on several characters, destroying their wellbeing. A Temporary Matter is the best example of secrecy taking its toll on a marriage. Shukumar and Shoba, lost in their own grief, cease communicating with one another. Blackouts allow them the freedom to share secrets they have never shared. They are unfailingly honest and can no longer maintain the illusion that their marriage is still viable. -The modern short story is often concerned with making an emotional impact -The story is told from the 3rd person limited point of view. It may seem at first to be purely third person, but there is some free indirect discourse with Shukumar’s character. The reader is given occasional glimpses into his mind as evidenced by his flashbacks. Although there are several flashbacks, there is a very well developed and important present action narrative. -The irony in the story is that the more the couple communicated with one another, the further the wedge between them settled. -A Temporary Matter is a story about grief and the secrets people keep from one another -The importance of communication within a marriage is a prevalent theme in Interpreter of Maladies. Here the sorrow of the lost child causes a communication breakdown in the relationship of Shukumar and Shoba. This silence between them eventually destroys them because, in their grief, Shukumar and Shoba grow to become different people. Since they no longer share experiences, the couple grows apart. -A Temporary Matter is told from the third-person perspective of Shukumar. Though the narrator is omniscient, we understand the events in the story through his experiences. The story unfolds largely in memory as each item Shukumar touches triggers a memory to a happier time in the couple’s life together. For instance, the birthday candles used during the blackout remind him of a surprise party Shoba threw for him. Only through Shoba’s confessions do we fully appreciate her point of view in this story about the end of a marriage. -Food, an important part of Indian culture, also plays a significant role in this story. Shoba’s trips to the market are exhilarating for Shukumar in the beginning of their marriage. In happier times, Shoba would prepare lavish meals and a particular gourmet cake for his birthday. Shoba would buy in bulk and prepare meals and chutneys that could be warmed and served in the matter of moments. In this way, their home was always open to others and always filled with love. After the baby’s death, Shukumar started running through the provisions prepared by Shoba. This is a symbol of their dwindling affections and the unpredictability of life. Ultimately, Shoba is unable

to control or prepare for the worst. -Shukumar’s nostalgic stories about the past show that he longs for what he and Shoba used to have. His sentimentality suggests that he might hold out hope that his marriage can be fixed, and it also provides context for Shukumar’s eventual enthusiasm to participate in Shoba’s game of confessions. -Lahiri provides the detail that Shoba and Shukumar have all but stopped entertaining guests as evidence of the couple’s overwhelming grief. Shoba’s mother’s comment to Shukumar, “But you weren’t even there,” puts an end to Shukumar’s attempt to discuss the dead baby. Her comment posits that Shukumar’s absence from the birth negates his right to talk about the baby, and Shukumar’s responsive silence affirms that he agrees with this position. -Again, Shukumar emphasizes how prepared Shoba was before the death of the child, adding additional depth and significance to her comparative lack of preparedness after the baby’s death. His memory of the couple’s former intimacy reinforces how shockingly distant the couple has become since the baby’s death. -Shukumar realizes that the game is more than the mere exchange of jokes and stories Shoba first presented it to be. The couple uses the game not simply to pass the time, but to confess to the ways they’d “hurt or disappointed each other, and themselves.” The couple uses the game to communicate with one another, offering the possibility that their relationship can be saved. Still, Shukumar’s excitement to confess to Shoba that night shows that this renewed communication is limited to the constraints of the game -Shoba’s anecdote causes Shukumar to think about their stillborn baby, but he doesn’t voice these thoughts aloud. Shukumar’s silence reinforces his guilt, and also highlights the couple’s inability to communicate vulnerably with each other. -Shoba and Shukumar open up to each other, but only within the constraints of Shoba’s game, and in the safe, comforting anonymity of darkness. Lahiri leaves the reader uncertain as to whether the game will lead to the couple’s reconciliation. On one hand, the couple’s openness seems to suggest an attempt at renewed communication; on the other hand, it’s clear that they aren’t comfortable speaking to each other candidly outside the context of Shoba’s game. -When Shukumar states that he withheld the baby’s sex from Shoba “because he still loved her then,” he insinuates that he no longer loves Shoba. Shukumar’s statement adds to the artificiality of the couple’s confessional game. Shukumar seemed enthusiastic to grow closer to Shoba, but only within the false confines of the game—he doesn’t love her once the lights go on. Besides this, Shukumar’s retaliating confession shows that his hurt (or, his vulnerability) counteracts his guilt. When, caught off guard by Shoba’s news, he tells her the baby’s sex, he’s finally able to

address the tragedy out loud. -The fact that Shoba and Shukumar have finally revealed their deepest, most vulnerable secrets to one another points in an optimistic direction, but their ultimate decision to turn away from one another and weep in darkness shows that they remain uncomfortable with vulnerability. Lahiri’s ending leaves the reader uncertain as to whether Shoba and Shukumar have improved their communication enough to move beyond their grief, together, with the lights on. -Mrs. Das tries to unburden herself by telling Mr. Kapasi the secret of Bobby's conception. But only Mr. Das can absolve her of her guilt. At the end of the story, nothing has changed in their marriage because she is not able to communicate her lack of love for her family to anyone other than a stranger. Twinkle and Sanjeev have different outlooks on life which cause initial discord between the newlyweds. Communication is necessary to healthy relationships.

What connections are formed or broken between the characters because of these stories? What is the purpose of them telling each other stories? Is the timing of when they choose to tell a story significant? What do the stories reveal about them as characters? What does it tell you about how they feel?...