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Chapter 4
Themes
and Colors
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Family Matters, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Family and Happiness
Dishonesty
Religion
Money and Relationships
Forgiveness
Summary
Analysis
Meanwhile, Roxana and her family warmly joke with one another on the morning that the ambulance is bringing Nariman to their apartment. They don’t know he is coming or even about his broken ankle. Jehangir concentrates diligently while putting together a jigsaw puzzle, and Yezad gets ready to go to the sporting goods store where he works. Jehangir has an upset stomach, and Roxana tells him he should stay home from school. After Yezad leaves for work, Roxana does chores around the house.
This passage portrays the Chenoy family as loving and supportive. Jehangir and Murad seem to thrive in this environment, illustrated by the warm jokes the family tells as well as Jehangir’s diligent concentration while he puts together a puzzle.
Active
Themes
When the ambulance reaches Roxana’s apartment building, Jal has second thoughts. He worries that bringing Nariman to the apartment without telling Roxana first will cause irreparable damage to their relationship. Jal and Coomy then go up to Roxana’s apartment, leaving Nariman in the ambulance. At the apartment, Coomy and Jal tell Roxana that Nariman had an accident about a week ago and broke his ankle. Roxana is angry that they didn’t tell her about the accident sooner. Coomy and Jal also explain that Nariman’s depression is getting worse, and it’s hindering his recovery.
In this scene, Coomy displays a capacity for dishonesty, which she utilizes to try to get her way. Namely, Coomy has put Nariman in an ambulance and brought him to Roxana’s apartment building without even telling Roxana that Nariman hurt his ankle, much less that he is downstairs in an ambulance, waiting to be brought to Roxana’s apartment. In essence, Coomy has kept those secrets because she thinks that ambushing Roxana with the truth will give Roxana no choice but to take in Nariman.
Active
Themes
Jal and Coomy then broach the topic of Nariman coming to stay with Roxana and her family. Roxana says that their apartment is small and that she would have to check with Yezad first. Coomy says they’ll have to turn the ambulance around then. Roxana is shocked. She runs downstairs and finds Nariman in the ambulance. Nariman apologizes and says that Jal and Coomy told him they would talk to Roxana and Yezad before bringing Nariman to their apartment. Roxana says it’s not Nariman’s fault and eventually tells the men in the ambulance to bring Nariman upstairs to her apartment. Coomy follows with Nariman’s bedpan and medications. When she and Jal return home, they both feel bad about what they’ve done. But, Coomy says, they “had no choice.”
Active
Themes
