Genre
Novel, comedy
Setting and Context
The events take place in the slums of Montreal in the end of the 20th or in the beginning of the 21th century.
Narrator and Point of View
The narrator is an Arab who flees to Montreal to start a new life. The novel is written from the first point of view.
Tone and Mood
The tone changes from agitated to sarcastic whilst mood is dark.
Protagonist and Antagonist
The narrator is both the protagonist and the antagonist.
Major Conflict
The major conflict is person vs. self.
Climax
The last meeting of Shohreh and Shaheed is the climax of the story.
Foreshadowing
“Okay, let’s talk about your suicide.”
This quote foreshadows the events of the story and gives readers to understand that the protagonist has serious issues.
Understatement
“When she left a room for a moment, I opened her pursue and stole her lipstick.”
Allusions
The story alludes to the Iranian Revolution.
Imagery
See the imagery section
Paradox
“I despised them; they admired me.”
Parallelism
N/A
Metonymy and Synecdoche
“My eye shall not spare.” (An eye is metonymy that means attention.)
Personification
“The pipes that gurgle with thirst and hollowness.”
