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Chapter Eleven Stephanides
Sourmelina Zizmo is Lefty and Desdemona’s cousin, Jimmy’s wife, and Tessie’s mother. Also born in Bithynios, she immigrates to the U.S. before Lefty and Desdemona, and immediately takes to life there. It is revealed that the reason why she was sent away from the village is because her parents discovered she was a lesbian. It’s for this reason that Lefty and Desdemona trust Sourmelina to keep the secret of their illicit relationship as brother and sister. In the U.S., Sourmelina marries Jimmy Zizmo and has one child with him, Tessie (who is conceived at the same time as Desdemona’s son, Milton). She is a bold, brash, unconventional person with an obvious vitality and love of life. When Jimmy dies (or, as the reader learns later, fakes his own death), Sourmelina never remarries. The fact that she is a lesbian eventually becomes more of an open secret, particularly after she moves to New Mexico to live with her girlfriend, Mrs. Evelyn Watson. However, people do not discuss Lina’s lesbianism openly until after her death.
Sourmelina Zizmo Quotes in Middlesex
The Middlesex quotes below are all either spoken by Sourmelina Zizmo or refer to Sourmelina Zizmo. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Book 2: Henry Ford’s English-Language Melting Pot Quotes
My grandparents had every reason to believe that Sourmelina would keep their secret. She’d come to America with a secret of her own, a secret that would be guarded by our family until Sourmelina died in 1979, whereupon, like everyone’s secrets, it was posthumously declassified, so that people began to speak of “Sourmelina’s girlfriends.” A secret kept, in other words, only by the loosest definition, so that now—as I get ready to leak the information myself—I feel only a sight twinge of filial guilt.
Sourmelina’s secret (as Aunt Zo put it): “Lina was one of those women they named the island after.”
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Lefty and Desdemona have successfully immigrated to the U.S. and have arrived in Detroit via train. There, Lefty greets their cousin, Sourmelina, and informs her that he has married Desdemona. In this quotation, Cal explains that Sourmelina was a closeted lesbian. During Sourmelina’s life, this remains a secret (although it seems like more of an open secret that something that was truly unknown). However, after Sourmelina’s death, people begin to discuss the truth of her sexual orientation. This quotation emphasizes the idea that secrets have a kind of force of their own, and will always eventually make themselves known. While Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaq
Book 2: Minotaurs Quotes
This once-divided city reminds me of myself My struggle for unification, for Einheit. Coming from a city still cut in half by racial hatred, I feel hopeful here in Berlin.
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Cal has described the moment when Sourmelina and Desdemona realized that they were pregnant at the same time, and when they told Lefty this news after he graduated from the Ford English school and was immediately fired. This moment tied to Cal’s own experience as an intersex man so many decades later, since Cal has explained that, like a lot of intersex people, he can’t have children himself. This is part of the reason why he joined the Foreign Service: it means he is never in one place for very long, and theoretically won’t be able to form long-lasting relationships Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum.
Parents are supposed to pass down physical traits to their children, but it’s my belief that all sorts of other things get passed down, too: motifs, scenarios, even fates.
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Cal has explained how the “Simultaneous Fertilization” happened after Lefty, Desdemona, Jimmy, and Sourmelina went to see a racy production of The Minotaur at the theater. Although Desdemona’s objections meant that they left halfway through, in reality all four of them were turned on by the production, which led to both couples having sex and conceiving children (Milton and Tessie) at the same time. Here, Cal reflects on the nature of ancestry, inheritance, and fate. Indeed, his words constitute one of the main messages of the novel. While physical conditions and characteristics are obviously passed down from parents to children Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusanti
Book 2: Clarinet Serenade Quotes
If Sourmelina had always been a European kind of American, a sort of Marlene Dietrich, then Tessie was the fully Americanized daughter Dietrich might have had. Her mainstream, even countrified, looks extended to the slight gap between her teeth and her turned-up nose. Traits often skip a generation. I look much more typically Greek than my mother does.
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The narrative has jumped ahead from Tessie and Milton’s childhood to their late teenage years, when an unexpected “intimacy” develops between them. Cal has noted that while Milton was unattractive, Tessie was beautiful. Here, he mentions that Tessie looks very American, whereas both Sourmelina and Cal himself look “typically Greek.” This quotation challenges common assumptions about heritage and immigration, including the idea that assimilation and “Americanization” works in a unidirectional manner. Tessie’s distinctly American looks suggest that her children will look equally American (if not more so), but in reality Cal looks more Greek than his mother. Assimilation and integration—whether Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necess
Book 4: Gender Dysphoria in San Francisco Quotes
If one of the guys had a girlfriend there would be a girl around for a while. I stayed away from them, feeling they might guess my secret.
I was like an immigrant, putting on airs, who runs into someone from the old country.
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Cal has run away and eventually landed in San Francisco, where he befriends a young man named Matt and his crew of homeless kids who live in the park together. Cal adapts to life in the park, learning how to survive there from his new friends. In this passage, Cal notes that when one of the kids gets a girlfriend for a while, Cal distances himself. He explicitly links his gender transition to an immigrant’s experience of self-reinvention. This underlines one of the main messages in the book, which is the similarity between gender transition, migration, and other forms of Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labor
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Sourmelina Zizmo Character Timeline in Middlesex
The timeline below shows where the character Sourmelina Zizmo appears in Middlesex. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Book 1: Matchmaking
Bithynios’s already small population has dwindled in recent years. Desdemona and Lefty’s cousin Sourmelina recently moved to “a place called Detroit” in America. Of the hundred people still living...
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Book 1: An Immodest Proposal
...come back and seek “revenge.” He says they’ll go to America to join their cousin Sourmelina, taking the route via Smyrna, which is said to be the safest. Initially reluctant, Desdemona...
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Book 1: The Silk Road
...It helps that Lefty and Desdemona have a sponsor in the form of their cousin Sourmelina. Lefty notes that she won’t come to meet them in New York; instead, they’ll get...
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Book 2: Henry Ford’s English-Language Melting Pot
...the marble Corinthian pillars, and feels he has arrived in “the future.” He searches for Sourmelina, whose maiden name is Papadiamandopoulos, but whose surname is now Zizmo. She is 28, and...
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Sourmelina asks about Lefty’s wife; he says she’s still in the bathroom. Sourmelina laments how hard...
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Sourmelina’s husband, Jimmy Zizmo, came to America when he was 30, in 1907, changing his name...
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...deprivation and anti-black racism that hint at what’s in store for Detroit in the future. Sourmelina drives them to her quiet neighborhood on the East Side. Jimmy is a macho former...
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That night, Jimmy asks Sourmelina if they can have sex because they’ve been married for five years and still don’t...
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...wedding in order to be accepted as members of the church. When the priest leaves, Sourmelina and Desdemona confess to each other that they are both struck by an intense smell....
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...slip indicating that he is being fired. They explain that Jimmy has a criminal record. Sourmelina and Desdemona then approach Lefty, and Sourmelina tells him in English that she and Desdemona...
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Book 2: Minotaurs
...pass on physical characteristics to their children, but also “motifs, scenarios, even fates.” Desdemona and Sourmelina’s menstrual cycles were synced, and once they both get pregnant they start throwing up in...
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...looking more and more like Euphrosyne. She feels intimately connected to all her female ancestors. Sourmelina, meanwhile, worries about the way she herself is physically changing, concerned that her “breasts will...
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One fall morning during the Desdemona and Sourmelina’s third trimester, Dr. Philobosian appears at their house. Inside, he tells them that he contracted...
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...tend to be caused by intermarrying. Desdemona is horrified. Later, she shares her concerns with Sourmelina, who insists that the danger isn’t really that great, and that “if families marrying each...
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...and tighter control over the bootlegging business in Detroit. Desdemona performs her spoon-swinging test over Sourmelina’s belly to tell the baby’s gender; Sourmelina is delighted to hear that it’s a girl....
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...metallic from the car, while Zizmo asks why Lefty never mentions to other people that Sourmelina is his cousin. He then asks why Lina left Bithynios, and Lefty explains that there...
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Zizmo continues to accuse Lefty of being the father of Sourmelina’s child, but by this point the car is so unsafe that Lefty just leaps straight...
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Book 2: Marriage on Ice
...in the house for mourners to view. Despite not having liked her husband at all, Sourmelina sinks into an intense grief. She curses Zizmo for leaving her as a single mother...
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...at which point Zizmo’s spirit is thought to leave earth for heaven. During this service, Sourmelina changes into a bright orange dress, violating the norm that widows should wear black for...
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...the funeral rites for Zizmo are completed, both Milton and Theodora are baptized. Desdemona asks Sourmelina how it is possible to prevent oneself from getting pregnant again; Lina replies that women...
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...his and Zizmo’s bootlegging days, and teaches himself to be a barman. Upstairs, Desdemona and Sourmelina share the duties of raising their two children. Sourmelina is uninterested in babies; her caring...
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...Zoë and loves pretending to be her mother. With so many children in the house, Sourmelina and Theodora move to a new apartment right next door.
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...Lefty ends up telling Desdemona that she has to find a job. The next day, Sourmelina and Desdemona search through the listings until they find a mysterious post advertising for a...
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Book 2: Tricknology
...people in general, even as she comes to respect those at the temple. She tells Sourmelina that American women could use the kind of conservative influence propagated by the Nation of...
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...that he could dedicate himself to liberating his “people.” He indicates that he knows about Sourmelina’s lesbianism and Lefty and Desdemona’s incest. After this, Fard disappears from Detroit and meets a...
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Book 2: Clarinet Serenade
...is completely American, partly due to the fact that American women helped raise her while Sourmelina worked in a florist’s shop. In defiance of her boisterous, heavy-drinking, unconventional mother, Tessie is...
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Book 2: Ex Ovo Omnia
...gambling. Milton is busy with the diners, Tessie is caring for baby Chapter Eleven, and Sourmelina has moved to the Southwest with her girlfriend, Mrs. Evelyn Watson.
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Book 3: The Mediterranean Diet
All members of the family try to get Desdemona out of bed, including Sourmelina, who calls from New Mexico. She refuses, and instead starts dividing up her and Lefty’s...
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...has started masturbating, which he does secretly in the bathroom. Years pass. During this time, Sourmelina’s girlfriend, Mrs. Watson, dies, and Lina moves back to Detroit. Among the Stephanides’ neighbors are...
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