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Part 1, Chapter 11: Eight Minutes
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Marginalization and Belonging
Time, Memory, and Transition
Gender and Power
Tradition and Change
Religion, Political Conflict, and Identity
Summary
Analysis
Zaynab122 is a little person, born in a remote village in Lebanon where dwarfism is common due to generations of intermarriage. While her siblings are of average height, her parents are also little people, and Zaynab122 shares a close bond with them. One day, a photojournalist visits their village to document the lives of female dwarfs in the area, and Zaynab agrees to be one of his subjects. She quickly falls in love with the handsome photographer, though she keeps these feelings a secret from him.
Zaynab122 falls in love with the photojournalist because, for perhaps the first time in her life, she feels interesting and admired—the journalist not only centers her small stature but celebrates it. These feelings awaken a restlessness in Zaynab, one that her doting parents had always tried to contain in order to shield her from the world’s cruelty.
Themes
Later that same year, Zaynab122 learns the art of tasseography (the practice of reading tea leaves and coffee grounds) during a trip to Beirut, discovering an untapped skill and newfound passion. With her parents’ blessing, Zaynab122 leaves her village behind for Istanbul, determined to carve out her own path—and perhaps find the handsome photographer in the process. After working in a hair salon for over a year, one of the salon’s regular customers, Bitter Ma, offers her a cleaning job at her brothel. She promises better hours, better pay, and better treatment, and Zaynab122 is quick to accept her offer.
Unlike Leila, Zaynab didn’t leave home to escape oppression or abuse, but to pursue a more fulfilling life on her own terms. She sought independence from her parents, siblings, and small, remote community—and was fortunate enough to have her family’s support. Bitter Ma’s softer side is revealed in her decision to offer Zaynab work at the brothel, proof that she cares more about her employees than she lets on.
Themes
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