Setting

Time period

The novel Brick Lane by Monica Ali has a very clear time setting which is marked at different points throughout the narrative. The events span a duration of 35 years. The first chapter begins in 1967 on the day of Nazneen’s birth. While the exact date is not specified, the first line of the novel begins “An hour and forty-five minutes before Nazneen’s life began” (p. 5). This line highlights not only the fact that the novel maintains a very accurate and specific time setting throughout but also that the events of the novel revolve around Nazneen. However, only the first few pages present Nazneen’s childhood, as most of the action revolves around Nazneen’s time in London. As such, it can be said that t...