Parents are the most important factor in the upbringing of a child. They lay the emotional foundation and basis for their children, especially when it comes to basic trust, love, appreciation and the right way of dealing with problems. Whether a child was raised by its biological/foster parents, adopted or in an orphanage, parents always play an immense role in the life of a child. The physical or emotional absence of one parent or both parents inevitably influences a child as well as the background its parents come from and the role their parents played in their lives. In his short stories “With Your Tongue down My Throat”, “My Son the Fanatic” and “Goodbye, Mother” Hanif Kureishi illustrates the major influence, which parents and their way of upbringing have on their children, which will be analyzed in this paper.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Theoretical Perspectives on Parenting and Immigrated Parents
3. The role of parents in “With Your Tongue down My Throat”
4. The role of parents in “My Son the Fanatic”
5. The role of parents in “Goodbye, Mother”
6. Conclusion
Objectives & Key Themes
This term paper explores the profound impact of parental upbringing on the lives of children as depicted in selected short stories by Hanif Kureishi. By analyzing the protagonist's development in three specific narratives, the work examines how parental presence, absence, and behavioral patterns shape the personal, emotional, and social trajectories of the offspring.
- Parental influence on child development and emotional stability.
- The challenges of immigrant families navigating new cultural environments.
- The consequences of dysfunctional parent-child relationships and absent father figures.
- The role of cultural background in shaping parenting values and traditions.
- Character evolution and the reconciliation of past childhood trauma.
Excerpt from the Book
The role of parents in “With Your Tongue down My Throat”
In Hanif Kureishi’s short story “With Your Tongue down my Throat” a girl, called Nina, is on a path of trying to look back on and reappraise her past and dealing with the consequences this brings along. It begins with a scene of Nina’s experience in an abortion clinic. Nina worked as a prostitute, got raped, was a drug addict and had two abortions. She now lives in a rather poor part of London, with her mother Deborah, where every Friday her mother’s boyfriend Howard comes over to take her mother out for dinner and then ends up having sex with her, like teenagers, as Nina describes it. Nina’s mother Deborah is a Drama teacher at a Catholic girls’ school, who looks like a 1950s teenager and has a longing for men to simply love her and fill her demands. Therefore, men have hurt Deborah many times, especially Nina’s father. He left her, because “[she] was too strong a woman for him” (62/63) and went back to his wife and two daughters in Pakistan, leaving Deborah behind: pregnant and alone.
A few days after, he got his wife in Pakistan pregnant and Nadia, Nina’s Pakistani sister, was conceived. Deborah tells Nina about her half-sister on her eleventh birthday. She dislikes Nadia from then on for having the life Nina had always wanted: a father and a loving family. This is until a moment of despair, when she writes her father to let his sister come to England for a visit. When Nadia arrives, Nina immediately falls in love with her “new” sister and cares for her as if she was her own daughter. But Nadia poses a danger to Nina and her mother because she is getting very close with Deborah’s boyfriend Howard, who she finds interesting, talks to about political and other “academic” topics and kisses in a moment, when Nina leaves the two of them alone. She also tells Nina what her own father thinks of her and how he wishes he could shoot Nina, like a wild animal, to put her out of her “misery”.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: The introduction outlines the central role of parents in a child's upbringing and introduces Hanif Kureishi's short stories as the primary analytical focus.
2. Theoretical Perspectives on Parenting and Immigrated Parents: This chapter establishes a theoretical framework by discussing societal educational goals and the specific challenges faced by immigrant families in Western countries.
3. The role of parents in “With Your Tongue down My Throat”: This section analyzes the influence of Nina’s absent father and her mother’s unstable lifestyle on her development and struggles with identity.
4. The role of parents in “My Son the Fanatic”: This chapter examines the breakdown in communication between Parvez and his son Ali, illustrating how the father's choices contribute to the son's radicalization.
5. The role of parents in “Goodbye, Mother”: This chapter explores Harry’s efforts to break free from his mother’s negative influence and how reflection on his past allows him to redefine his role as a husband and father.
6. Conclusion: The conclusion synthesizes the findings, confirming that parental influence is a fundamental factor in shaping an individual's past, present, and future.
Keywords
Hanif Kureishi, Parenting, Upbringing, Short Stories, Immigrant Families, Father-Son Conflicts, Child Development, Family Dynamics, Cultural Background, Identity, Radicalization, Emotional Stability, Trauma, Paternal Absence, Literature Analysis.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this paper?
The paper focuses on analyzing the impact of parental upbringing on the protagonists of three specific short stories by Hanif Kureishi: “With Your Tongue down My Throat”, “My Son the Fanatic”, and “Goodbye, Mother”.
What are the central themes discussed in the work?
The work explores themes such as parental influence, the dynamics of immigrant families, the consequences of absent fathers, family dysfunctions, and the psychological effects of childhood on adult life.
What is the main research objective?
The objective is to demonstrate how parenting styles and parental behavior shape the emotional foundation and life choices of children, using Kureishi’s narratives as a practical case study.
Which scientific methods were applied?
The author uses a literary and qualitative analysis approach, examining character relationships and behavioral developments within the provided texts, supported by theoretical sociological perspectives on parenting.
What is examined in the main section of the paper?
The main section provides a detailed character analysis for each story, focusing on the interactions between parents and children, how these interactions drive the plot, and how they define the protagonist's personality and struggles.
Which keywords best characterize this academic work?
Key terms include Hanif Kureishi, parenting, upbringing, family dynamics, cultural background, identity, and emotional development.
How does Parvez influence his son Ali in “My Son the Fanatic”?
Parvez fails to confront his son's radicalization early on and maintains a façade of a perfect family, which drives Ali further towards extremist groups to find the structure and limits he feels are missing.
What motivates Harry in “Goodbye, Mother” to change his perspective?
Spending a day with his mother and confronting his past frustrations allows Harry to realize how much he has adopted her negative traits, which ultimately motivates him to seek a happier, more independent life for himself and his family.
Does the paper consider the end of the story “With Your Tongue down My Throat”?
The author explicitly states that the ending of this specific story is excluded from the analysis to keep the focus strictly on the upbringing presented throughout the main narrative.
- Quote paper
- Melanie Pongratz (Author), 2015, The role of parents concerning their children in Hanif Kureishi’s short stories “With Your Tongue down My Throat”, “My Son the Fanatic” and “Goodbye, Mother”, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/454901
