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Write what you think are the most important themes. Give relevant examples to support it and important quotes.

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"he spoke of stars and of the people of the world" p219
- Motif of stars throughout book but especially at start & end.
- Nadia admired Saeed for his optimism & enthusiasm before, he is now started to get this part of him back.
- Suggests that change is necessary to rekindle hope.
- Times where we are doubtful don't last forever.

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Phone (symbolism of hope):
"Deprived of the portals to each other and to the world provided by their mobile phones, and confined to their apartments by the night-time curfew, Nadia and Saeed, and countless others, felt marooned and alone and much more afraid" pg 55

Phones allowed the people to connect with the outside world ==> allow them to escape the harsh reality

However, the removal of the phone signals took away their hope as they felt lonely, scared, and isolated.

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Lemon tree (symbolism of life and hope)

pg 78: "When they reached home Saeed's father saw the lemon tree and smiled for what seemed like the first time in days"

Shows how the father felt more alive and joyful after seeing the lemon tree, as the plant symbolised life and hope.

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"Whether it was because they were impressed by her mettle in the face of danger or because they recalibrated their sense of who was threat and who was threatened [...] people on her shifts began chatting with her"
- Nadia characterised as strong & resilient, similar to start of book.
- People at work admire her for her courage.
- Hamid demonstrates danger migrants face, they are clear victims

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The narrative voice in the book is sometimes philosophical, uses the word "we" for universal truths
"But mostly there was little to report, just the day-to day goings-on of countless people working and living and ageing and falling in and out of love, as is the case every-where, and not so deemed worthy of headline billing or thought to be of much interest to anyone but those directly involved."  (page 176)

"and this loss unites humanity, unites every human being, the temporary nature of our being-ness, and our shared sorrow, the heartache we each carry and yet too often reuse to acknowledge in one another," (page 202)

"We are all migrants through time." (page 209)

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The theme of change is only evident towards the end of the book. It's a very general topic, where Hamid mentions changes in relationships or migration.
Important quotes:
"We are all migrants through time."
- things are always changing, people are never living in the same place forever. They move and settle down in other areas in order for a better quality of life. And our life never stays the same as well

"...slipping away...slipping away...slipping away"
- use of repetitions of the verb 'slipping' to inform audience that loss occurs, it impacts and changes your life but you can't get away from it

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The theme of relationships changes a lot throughout Exit West, as Hamid tries to create realistic characters with realistic a realistic love life. Hamid shows the ups and downs throughout Nadia and Saeed's relationship.

"Close to the preachers daughter" - a sense of losing his relationship with Nadia, he starts becoming uncomfortable talking to Nadia and becomes more comfortable with the preachers daughters.

"Nadia saw the head cook from the cooperative, a handsome woman with strong arms" - Nadia finding her true self, her relationship with Saeed fading away - falling in love with someone else.

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The theme "migration" appears in every chapter of the book. It is not only shown throughout Nadia and Saeed's journey but as well as the stories that happened in different parts of the world.
"One day she might go, she thought. But not today". (p225)
"We are all migrants through time". (P209)
"When we migrate, we murder from our lives those we leave behind."

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Drones throughout the story, in whatever location Nadia and Saeed were in, had monitored them, constantly checking to see what migrants such as Nadia and Saeed were doing. This shows that an assumption is already made that the migrants are possibly committing illegal crimes. They are also made to be seen as lesser than natives in the country they are in as they need to be constantly monitored.

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Nadia thinking she deserves to shower bc it is a human necessity
- Stands up for herself bc she is the only person who has in the past.
- Does not think any less of herself for being a migrant.

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everyone migrates, even if we stay in the same houses our whole lives, because we can’t help it.

we are all children who lose our parents, all of us, every man and woman and boy and girl, and we too will all be lost by those who come after us and love us, and this loss unites humanity, unites every human being, the temporary nature of our being-ness, and our shared sorrow, the heartache we each carry and yet too often refuse to acknowledge in one another

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"His mother used to pray in her bedroom, perhaps once a day, unless it was a particularly holy time, or there had been a death in the family, or an illness, in which case she prayed more often." (p199-200)
-Saeed is being nostalgic after leaving his country and his parents.
-at the beginning, Saeed was optimistic but after leaving his parents, his passion disappears

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Mohsin Hamid focuses on delivering the story omnisciently, meaning the reader knows all that happens (All seeing, All knowing ). However, he limits the amount a person knows of each character, as to not remove suspense and thrill and still make decisions somewhat unpredictable.

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"for when we migrate, we murder from our lives those we leave behind" pg 94

philosophical narrative voice

inclusive pronoun "we", shows the author's confidence in his claim, and creates connection with all the readers and make them relate to the fictional characters (and empathise them)

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"she was always clad from the tips of her toes...in a flowing black robe"
- Hamid characterises Nadia as defensive, conservative and vigilant through the use of symbolism of black robe. This shows that Nadia is independent and has to protect herself. It also reflects the unsecured feelings of her being away from her family and how strong she has to be.

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Nadias robe changing from something that protected her bc she fitted in to smth that sets her apart from everyone and makes her appear as a threat

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"As she stood her ground, looking at him, visor down, heart pounding, but with her grip firm on clutch and throttle." (p39)
- Nadia is calm, rational, she understands how to protect herself, even though the situation she was in was quite dangerous.

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When Saeed tells her to not stand in the hallway with a towel on her first day in London house, she immediately interprets his words as him trying to control her or critique her lack of modesty. This shows her rebellious