More Subjects
Student name
Submitted by
Assignment
Date
Antigone and me
Part I. What are some of the migration themes you can identify in Clanchy's book? How is this connection revealed through Antigone’s experience?
Clanchy discussed many themes in her book. The theme presented in this book is related to immigration, reasons for migration what immigrant suffer after immigration. The character of Antigona is a refugee from Kosovo. She belongs to the upland of Drencice and as a woman of mountain her natural strength and coltish beauty appeal everybody she sees, and whose strong self-belief in her incredible and constant struggles. This book discusses the life of Antigona and what happened to her. Clanchy perceived all the Antigoa’s life event as she suffered all these by herself, and this changed her personality. “As it happened to me: as I heard it, as I researched it and imagined it; as it made me think; as it changed me”(Clanchy 3).
Antigona is an immigrant, from Kosovo. It was March 1999, when four armed Serbian policemen reached her house and claimed that her husband is involved in some unlawful activities and he gives information to the Liberation Army. Antigona told them that he is not here since long, but they did not believe what she told them. One of them put the gun at her children in the kitchen, and others dragged her thirteen years old girl and took Flora at the roof and asked her to shout for help. She did the same she was screaming, but no one came to help her and then one policeman throw her from the roof.
Antigona was a victim, of Kosovan war but also severely treated by society. It was the same society where she grew up. She came from the hilly area, the Malesi, that overlaps Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro and Macedonia, a backwards and remote place that folks live by their way of life. They have a code of life and system of the law came from Middle ages. Women had no position in society, and the worst thing is that a husband can kill his wife, and it is legal. In fact, at the time of marriage, the family of the bride gives a bullet to groom that if he ever wants, he can shoot it to his wife.
Clanchy tells Antigona’s dread experience of the war and her horrific escape to London. Antigone brings her three children with her .one girl of thirteen years old and two boys. From the societal point of view, she had six abortions and marital rape as well as it was normal in her society. Due to domestic violence, she has some abortions. Antigone’s journey became prosperous due to the kindness of strangers. One man at Victoria station gave her a £20 note and put them in the taxi. He told a taxi driver to drop them to the local church.
Clanchy has done a fantastic job by discussing the issues of an immigrant from a remote area and a woman with three children. She gave the voice to refugee and narrated her story in a way that the reader feels every moment. It is a sad tale of immigrant women who not only suffering in her country but also as an immigrant when she arrived in the UK. People saw her with hate and even thought that she is a prostitute they do not like to talk with her.
Part 2. How is this book about Kate? How does her relationship as friend and employer of Antigona change Kate's perspective on feminism and inequality?
Clanchy retells her audience both of the harmony that happens between females, and of how far feminism as a philosophy, but as an organization leading the financial deal. Clanchy discussed many themes in her book. The argument presented in this book is related to immigration, reasons for migration what immigrant suffer after immigration. The character of Antigona is a refugee from Kosovo. Clanchy show different connections in her story the connection of feminism, and how ordinary people think immigrants. The inequality is pervasive, and Clanchy proved that Antigona suffered not only in her society but also in the UK.
Kate, Clanchy meets Antigona, recently arrived in the UK during 2001. After a short talk with Clanchy, she offered Antigona a job as a cleaner. It was not an easy path it took nearly five years for Antigona to tell her story to Clanchy. She explained all about her life at Kosovo. She suffered a lot in her society where the woman is no more than a servant of men property, who must serve her family and produce his kids and experience everything, even marital rapes. And men are everything even they can kill their wives without any reason and above all the family of bride allow their groom by giving him bullet that he can use any time to get rid of his wife. It was shared that they can replace one wife with another if she was not able to produce sons. Domestic violence was widespread. But Antigone rejected that code by asking divorce from her husband.
Then story of her escape and how she reached in London and at this place where Clanchy offered her a cleaning job. For Kate, a juxtaposition to the Albanian family carries with it encounters to her expectations and opinions. Giving responsibility to Antigona makes her inquiry whether it is right that low-paid immigrants should be doing cleaning and day-care for other employed females and it leads her to discover the impractical prospects that current female’s status on themselves to 'have it all' and the letdown of feminism to make a healthier gender equilibrium within personal and professional life.
When Antigona’s brother reached London, he felt ashamed and terrible when he saw she was having coffee with some men or working at people’s houses as a cleaner. Another mishap happened to her when she was titled as prostitute and people and took all her money. Antigona is continually washing and cleaning: trying badly to remove the stain of disgrace from her life. So what is Clanchy was ashamed of her behaviour with Antigona, and she only offered her a meager job just as a cleaner with a low wage .even Antigone has a family and three kids that she needs to take care of. She is also embarrassed that -to steal money from Germaine Greer's The Female Eunuch - 'a vivid woman' can only shine in the world by hiding another 'brilliant lady ' - one whose skills will not ever be appointed. Yet as Clanchy acknowledges, that there is nothing wrong to have a friend from some other culture or a woman who is doing a low salaried job, but still she is a woman and having some feelings and duties.
It is merely excellent narrating with her meeting women from two diverse cultures. Clanchy's investigation of her cleanser/caretaker/friend/nun's experience of being an unlawful immigrant in the United Kingdom is outstanding. The novel, its language, an organization, is excellent and friendly. Clancy accomplishes to carry humour to some attractive terrible situation. One female's salvation can be domination of others.
Works cited
Clanchy, Kate. Antigona and me. Pan Macmillan, 2009.
More Subjects
Join our mailing list
© All Rights Reserved 2024