Sarfraz Manzoor

Outer characterization

The main character and narrator of the autobiography Greetings from Bury Park is Sarfraz Manzoor. The events in the book are real stories from the author’s life. Sarfraz was born in Pakistan: “I was born in the summer of 1971 at my mother’s home in Paharang” (My Father’s House, 21%). He is the son of Mohammed Manzoor and Rasool Bibi Manzoor and has three siblings – Navela and Sohail, who are older – and Uzma, who is four years younger.

In 1974, Sarfraz, together with his mother and older siblings, immigrated to Britain to join Sarfraz’s father, who had been living and working there for the last eleven years. Before his father learned about his birth, Sarfraz was already named Javed by his mother. However, his father decided to change his name to Sarfraz : “When my father read the letter he was unhappy with the name. In a hastily written response sent to my mother he told her his boy would be called Sarfraz” (My Father’s House, 21%).

Sarfraz describes himself as an extremely skinny child who could not put on weight no matter what: 

I wished I could have been more like my brother who could walk around with only a shirt. I would secretly do press-ups and sit-ups in my bedroom, borrow my brother’s Bullworker, load my bag with more books than I needed to make it heavier on the walk to school. It made no difference. (The Ties That Bind, 26%)

Sarfraz’s hair is curly and reminds him of his father: “My hair was the most visible reminder of my father; I hated my hair” (My Father’s House, 72%). As he grows up, Sarfraz adopts a carefree hairstyle which mirrors his desire to detach himself from the traditional views of his parents. After college, he wears “dreadlocks tied in a pink bobble” (My Father’s House, 4%) and has a ring in his nose. While he claims that his new appearance is not a sign of rebellion, ...

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