A Temporary Matter by Jhumpa Lahiri. Adaptation for a Short Film
A Temporary Matter
Thesis File
Hassam Mairaj
A Temporary Matter
Introduction
"A Temporary Matter" was originally published in the New Yorker in April 1998 and is the first story in Jhumpa Lahiri's debut collection, Interpreter of Maladies (1999). The collection won the 2000 Pulitzer Prize for fiction, a rare achievement for a short-story collection.
The story takes place over five days, beginning March 19, at the suburban Boston home of a married couple, Nadia and Ali. During this week, when they must cope with a one-hour power outage each evening, the grief and alienation that the two have suffered since the stillbirth of their child six months earlier builds to a climax.
Plot Summary
The story opens with Nadia, a thirty-three-year-old wife, arriving home at the end of a workday. Her husband, Ali, is cooking dinner. Nadia reads the newspaper to find a news that the government has announced that load shedding will commence from the current day and lights will be out for one hour six times a day.
Six months earlier they went through a hard time when their first child was stillborn and till the present time could not get over that grief.
Now, Nadia leaves early each morning for her job in an advertising company. After work, she goes to the gym. She also takes on extra projects for work that she does at home during the evenings and weekends. Ali stays in bed half the day. Because of the tragedy, he leaves his home rarely and works on his writing at home. Ali is a writer who spends most of his time reading novels and cooking dinner.
When Ali remarks that they will have to eat dinner in the dark because of the power outage, Nadia suggests lighting candles and goes upstairs to shower before dinner. Ali notes that she has left her bag and sneakers in the kitchen and that since the stillbirth Nadia has treated the house like a hotel. Nadia had stocked their freezer with homemade foods. After the stillbirth, she had stopped cooking, and Ali had used up all the stored
Thesis File
Hassam Mairaj
A Temporary Matter
Introduction
"A Temporary Matter" was originally published in the New Yorker in April 1998 and is the first story in Jhumpa Lahiri's debut collection, Interpreter of Maladies (1999). The collection won the 2000 Pulitzer Prize for fiction, a rare achievement for a short-story collection.
The story takes place over five days, beginning March 19, at the suburban Boston home of a married couple, Nadia and Ali. During this week, when they must cope with a one-hour power outage each evening, the grief and alienation that the two have suffered since the stillbirth of their child six months earlier builds to a climax.
Plot Summary
The story opens with Nadia, a thirty-three-year-old wife, arriving home at the end of a workday. Her husband, Ali, is cooking dinner. Nadia reads the newspaper to find a news that the government has announced that load shedding will commence from the current day and lights will be out for one hour six times a day.
Six months earlier they went through a hard time when their first child was stillborn and till the present time could not get over that grief.
Now, Nadia leaves early each morning for her job in an advertising company. After work, she goes to the gym. She also takes on extra projects for work that she does at home during the evenings and weekends. Ali stays in bed half the day. Because of the tragedy, he leaves his home rarely and works on his writing at home. Ali is a writer who spends most of his time reading novels and cooking dinner.
When Ali remarks that they will have to eat dinner in the dark because of the power outage, Nadia suggests lighting candles and goes upstairs to shower before dinner. Ali notes that she has left her bag and sneakers in the kitchen and that since the stillbirth Nadia has treated the house like a hotel. Nadia had stocked their freezer with homemade foods. After the stillbirth, she had stopped cooking, and Ali had used up all the stored