Feminism and Culture

Brick Lane is a modern take on the hardships placed upon a woman forced to marry someone whom she did not know. The very beginning of the movie shows just how difficult it can be for women to cope with the issues of unequal treatment in a male dominated society by showing Nazneen’s mother commit suicide. Shortly later, Nazneen finds herself in a situation all too similar to that of her mother. Her husband is portrayed as cruel and unfeeling, allowing her almost no happiness. She does, however, begin to find happiness by changing her lifestyle to a more ‘modern’ lifestyle by starting work, going out more alone, and even cheating on her husband. This shows how new freedoms created by western cultures can liberate women from some of the hardships they face elsewhere. Also, her husband changes throughout the film, also adapting to the culture and becoming more respectable. Is this film advocating the use of westernized cultures, arguing that they provide more freedoms and overall better lives for women? Throughout most of the movie Nazneen wishes to return home, but, when given the chance, chooses not to.