A Temporary Matter: Genre 1 key example

The realism in the story comes across in a few different ways. First, Lahiri captures the realistic ways that people respond to grief—rather than bringing people closer, grief can often lead to loneliness and alienation. In the story, Lahiri showcases two common ways people respond to grief: avoiding their feelings by staying busy (as Shoba does) and descending into apathy and depression (as Shukumar does).

Lahiri also realistically captures the Boston setting where Shoba and Shukumar live. Take the following passage, for example, in which she describes the couple visiting Haymarket, a well-known open-air market in Boston near the North End:

There were endless boxes of pasta in all shapes and colors, zippered sacks of basmati rice, whole sides of lambs and goats from the Muslim butchers at Haymarket, chopped up and frozen in endless plastic bags. Every other Saturday they wound through the maze of stalls Shukumar eventually knew by heart. He watched in disbelief as she bought more food, trailing behind her with canvas bags as she pushed through the crowd, arguing under the morning sun with boys too young to shave but already missing teeth.

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Here Lahiri helps readers to picture the sights that visitors to Haymarket would, in real life, be able to experience themselves: the “endless boxes of pasta in all shapes and colors,” “whole sides of lambs and goats from the Muslim butchers,” and “boys too young to shave but already missing teeth.” By including realistic details like this, Lahiri brings readers more closely into the setting and encourages them to take her characters’ experiences (and pain) more seriously.