Parvais vs. Polyneices/Eteocles
When I began reading Antigone, one of the first things I noticed was the similarities in each characters names. I was obvious from the start which character from Home Fire lined up with which character from Antigone, but the addition of the names even being similar made my literary heart happy. Everything seemed to line up perfectly, until I reached the part about Polyneices and Eteocles killing each other. I recognized Polyneices' name to be similar to Parvaiz; they're places in the novels were also extremely similar. But, then I thought, so where does this Eteocles guy fit in?
Two brothers killing each other would have been slightly too shocking for a contemporary, realistic fiction novel. So, I think I see how Shamsie may have morphed this into something that would've fit in better in modern-day London. Eteocles is praised for being a patriotic hero, while Polyneices is scorned for being a traitor and low-life. Throughout the novel, we see Parvaiz before he joined ISIS. He was kind and caring towards his sister, did what they asked of him, and mainly kept to himself. As the only male in the family, that can be hard and some may even say his role in their family was heroic in a small way; he had to make many sacrifices for them and sometimes bits of his "manhood" in order to sustain their life. After Parvaiz joins ISIS he is seen as a traitor, is killed, and his body is allowed never to return in London. In some way, maybe pre-ISIS Parvaiz is Eteocles and post-ISIS Parvaiz is Polyneices. Although this could be a far-off theory, I think it makes sense within the context and explains why Shamsie chose not to include another brother in the Pasha family.
Hi Eloise! I was also wondering why Shamsie chose not to directly parallel the character os Eteocles. Your theory about a pre-ISIS and post-ISIS Parvaiz being represented in 2 characters is really cool, and I definitely see where you are coming from! I wonder if later in the play we will receive more context about either of the two brothers, so we can see maybe more how Eteocles was/wasn't incorporated in Home Fire.
ReplyDeleteEloise,
ReplyDeleteI was also confused with Eteocles in Antigone and the fact that his character isn't directly in Home Fire. I think your theory totally makes sense! It actually sounds much more interesting than having two separate characters in Home Fire. At the moment, we have little context on Polyneices' actions, other than what he did, so Eteocles serves as a comparison to Polyneices at the moment. I'm interested in seeing how Eteocles and Polyneices will be portrayed in Antigone and how it compares to pre- and post-ISIS Parvaiz.
Hello Eloise! I was wondering the same thing. That is a very interesting perspective of your take on how Shamsie took the the two brothers and morphed them into different times of Parvaiz's life.
ReplyDeleteHi Eloise, this is such an interesting take. Thank you so much for sharing! I hadn't thought of the brothers and Parvaiz this way before, but I, too, had wondered where Eteocles fit in to the Home Fire cast. I definitely think your analysis makes sense and it's making me reconsider how I'm comparing the two stories!
ReplyDeleteHey Eloise! I agree that Parvaiz's role in Home Fire was extremely similar to Polyneices's role in Antigone. Both brothers abandon their respective states and die in conflict. Also in both stories, Parvaiz and Polyneices aren't allowed to have their bodies buried on their homeland.
ReplyDeleteHi Eloise, I never really thought of that connection between Parvaiz and the two brothers in Antigone in that way. I was wondering why there was no character like Eteocles in Home Fire while every other character we've seen in Antigone has a person like them in Home Fire besides the chrous.
ReplyDeleteHi Eloise, I loved reading your theory! The character of Eteocles was also a figure I wondered about, especially since his name doesn't really translate to any of the character's names in Home Fire. I think your theory makes a lot of sense, since in my mind, Parvaiz has two sides or stories (pre ISIS and post ISIS).
ReplyDeleteI really like your interpretation of Parvaiz being both brothers when he is pre and post ISIS. Although it is completely a different context, I do think that it is interesting that Farooq is constantly being described as Parvaiz's brother and is the one who ends up killing him. While it does have a different impact than in Antigone, I do think there could have been some intention there.
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