Characterisation of Gurpreet

Gurpreet is the second main character in the story. Like Parminder, he is a developing character because he changes as a result of the plot.

Outer characterisation

His outer characterisation presents him as a Punjabi man who lives in the UK. He is married to an Irish woman and has two daughters with her: “He’d met Aisling after uni. Her red hair, green eyes and soft Irish accent were exotic. Five years later they had children named Sophie and Hannah.” (ll. 14-15)

The fact that Gurpreet and his wife can afford to change the furniture yearly and buy their children new clothes every season (ll. 33-34), suggests they are relatively well-off financially.

As with Parminder, his physical appearance changes as a result of the changes in his character. In the beginning, we can assume Gurpreet dresses like a Westerner. Towards the end of the narrative, he adopts a more traditional look: “Gurpreet started to grow his hair and beard in the traditional Sikh way. One night the kids walked in on him attempting to tie a pugri.” (ll. 126-127)

Inner characterisation

Gurpreet’s inner characterisation mirrors Parminder’s. Initially, he comes across as a man who rejects Asian women and Indian culture: “Gurpreet didn’t like to admit it but he had a type: anything but Asian. To be more specific, anything but South Asian. Absolutely no Indian, Pakistani or Bengali women.” (ll. 9-10)

He is a sophisticated man, who enjoys cooking and eating Western food: “The highlights of Gurpreet’s family evenings involved investigations of the works of Jamie Oliver, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, and Nigella Lawson: each recipe a performance” (ll. 25-26).

Like Parminder, ...