Analyzing the Informative Novel the White Teeth - Essay Example

? WHITE TEETH ANALYSIS White Teeth Analysis The White Teeth is an increasing informative novel that has received enormous praises. It examines the roots and main causes for certain human behavior through the life of two culturally different men – Samad and Archie. The primary narration of the book spans the years 1975 to two thousand, but in flashback, the novel goes back to about 1906 or beyond. Zadie, in hysterical realism style, cuts between events, perspectives, opinions, and periods with a film like deftness, joining such isolated narratives into a single story. In her writing, the past is no longer a prologue but something hardly different from the current, (John and Smith, 2001, p.56). Smith’s novel is a whirlwind multiculturalism and immigration investigation and their impacts on individuals and the ways such cultural events get into London life. The tale begins with the Second World War and ends before the start of the millennium, taking about fifty years, a period that witnesses the change of all aspects of life. In exploring story about the reformation of the contemporary London, the novel joins Archie and Samad lifestyles, a click of colleagues whose friendships is established on common experiences in the last days of the struggles. Additionally, addressing issues to do with race, culture, and generation gaps with irony and brevity, White Teeth focuses on the relationship between Archie, Samad and their families. This bond was formed during the last days of the WW11 when they met at the main tank mishap survivors, (Kavc?ic? and Maver, 2007, p. 45). After the incident the two parted their ways with Samad going back to his country to attend college and Archie pursing his daily struggles in England. Almost 30 years later, the blue-collar Briton and the educated Muslim meets again. This happened when Samad immigrated to England with his family and tried to look for his ancient day’s friend, Archie. After a successful reunion of the two families, the two men form a bond that keeps them the rest of their lives. Through Archie, Samad, and their families, the author shows the challenges that are evident in the evolution of the English society to its modern state. The author gives a narrative of the “century of aliens, brown, white, and black, a real century of fundamental experiment of immigrants. The story begins with Archie in his vehicle, with sealed shut windows and a running vacuum hose from the exhaust pipe of the car. Depressed because of a divorce, and very confused, he rests on an unremarkable street side, selecting a location across butchery - halal. As the smoke mixes up his thoughts, a reader gets a figure of a person who will serve as their protagonist. This depressing moment has occurred to Archie about 20 years back when he saw Daria’s smile that made him shed tears of joy. Archie has seen Daira in thoughts – a pretty girl in a doorway very attractive – and he discovered that he regretted not leaving her. If he had another opportunity of having such a sight again, Archie wished for a second chance and an extra time, (Smith and Sterlin, 2001, p. 63). Therefore, a burcher man saves his life and the story begins. Mostly, Zadie Smith’s story is just an investigation of how Archie uses his leisure time. He falls for a pretty, black woman, Clara Bowden, who has a London origin and a backslidden Jehovah’s Witness believer with roots from Caribean. Archie and Samad, who had recently a girl less young than him, feel the generation gap among their wives and themselves, and this gap broadens even when their kids are born. The two men do not understand each other, but all through the narrative, their bond keeps them together. Similarly, the two men understand not their partners, children, or their universe, but they clearly comprehend each other, even though their behavior and actions show a parting of fervent insanity to the outsiders. Although, Archie is the protagonist of the story, the author orients the audience between characters regularly, mainly in the past chapters. Additionally, the novel tumbles relentlessly towards the end, for instance, in different incidence, the audience view the world through the eyes of Archie, Samad, Alsana (Samad’s wife), Irie (the daughter of Archie) and through their eyes of the children of Archie’s friends. The writing of Zadie moves along at a speed of befitting the contemporary world. In the writing, religious, literary, pop culture, historical events, and transition from thought to thought references are evident. Most often, the author begins with the ideas which appear to beget a critical cliche only to arrive at totally unique ending. The two men – Archie and Samad establish their relationship through fixing a tank and the viewers hopes to learn something concerning respect of culture, only to learn about Archie instead. Samad discreetly coughed as his friend’s little finger strayed to the correct item direction, this appears awkward, an Indian correcting and advising an Englishman – but to some extent, the silence and the gentleness of the action got the two men over it. This experience helped Archie to learn something new about “do-it-yourself and how use of a hammer and nail serves to substitute adjective and nouns and permits communication – a lesson he maintained throughout his life. In a certain incidence, Smith explains the relationship between Samad and Archie and reinforces the role of Archie as an emotionally inarticulate fundamental of England, (Smith, 2001, p. 45). Archie makes some attempts but he is disturbed by the new order of the world, whereby both English and Indian men are equal. There is a progressive development and growth between Archie and Samad, as Indian and English cultures progress representatives. In some chapters, Smith wants to outline some themes in her work through the lives and experiences of Archie and Samad, (Squires and Smith, 2002, p.10). For instance, the theme of cultural differences and experiences is outlined in Samad and Archie’s conversation when Archie states, “According to his culture a bloke would like to know a woman before he gets married to her”. Samad dismisses Archie’s believe telling him that where he comes from – Archie- it is a tradition to cook vegetables until they break and this does not imply that this is a better idea”. This shows cultural differences that exist between the two cultures and their beliefs. Similarly, through the immigration theme, Smith wants the viewers to question the stories of immigration. Although, the novel focuses more on the experience of English people movement from colonizers to destinations of migration, it triggers viewers to think of the new models of the world, too, the challenges and the strengths. Additionally, Smith advances the multiculturalism theme through the relationships of Samad’s children with his English friends. For instance, their relationships and stories makes the entire part of the novel, which mainly emphasize on different displacement degrees faced by multicultural characters dominating the ethically and culturally diverse post-imperial neighborhoods of London. For example, Samad tries to maintain his self-identity in a society extensively distinct from his country, (Smith, 2001, p.24). Forced to earn means of survival as a curry restaurant attendant, he decides to send his children for better Muslim education in Bangladesh, unfortunately, he can only send one because of his financial problems, therefore, he sends Magid. Samad’s daughter grows up as a duo racial full-figured teenage with curly hair and she nurtures biff on Millat and struggles for identity in a society that honor and treasure thin, Caucasian blonde-haired people. The mixed up Millat, resultantly, develops a fascination with fundamentalist Muslims that encourages him towards acts of terror. To complicate the matter more, Magid comes back to England extremely Anglicized and this extensively distresses Samad. Through the life of Samad and his family, Smith exposes the problems of labeling others and shows the shared strive to retain the self-identity and personality in a pluralistic modern community, irrespective of cultural heritage or origin. Smith through her writing demands that the viewer to think out of the box. Smith’s writing is about hope and impossibility, salvation and damnation, it focuses more on race, cultural experiences, the spirit of togetherness, and crucial stands that people should make that unite them. Various critics praise Smith for her astute aspect on social harmony between different races, class, and religious backgrounds. In conclusion, therefore, the novel is all about what it means to be an England immigrant, now, when one is not an affluent intellectual but an ordinary man from the London middle class or an Eastern Indian lost child trying to find a living place in a strange land. Although smith was not part of the story, she managed to reinforce various themes and give some insight about the tradition and origin of the contemporary society. White Teeth is nothing but a depiction of the contemporary society, its challenges, and means of solving such challenges. Although, there are various challenges to live, man must live and devise various means of survival through various life experiences. Bibliography Johns, L., & Smith, Z. (2001). White teeth by Zadie Smith: notes. Melbourne, Council of Adult Education. Kavc?ic?, P., & Maver, I. (2007). The other in White teeth by Zadie Smith and Maps for lost lovers by Nadeem Aslam: diplomsko delo. Ljubljana, [P. Kavc?ic?]. Smith, Z., & Sterlin, J. (2001). White teeth. Prince Frederick, MD, Recorded Books. Smith, Z. (2000). White teeth: a novel. New York, Random House. Squires, C., & Smith, Z. (2002). Zadie Smith's White teeth: a reader's guide. New York, Continuum. Read More