Structure

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Beginning

Ruth Prawer Jhabvala’s short story “The Aliens” begins in medias res, with an exposition presenting Peggy waking up to the sound of people fighting (ll. 1-3). The beginning also introduces the other characters during breakfast: Dev (Peggy’s husband), Sarla (Peggy’s sister-in-law), Suraj (Peggy’s brother-in-law), Peggy’s nephews, and Peggy’s m…

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Middle

Flashbacks are introduced when Peggy recalls a conflict she had with her mother-in-law when she decided to clean a window, instead of asking the servants. Then, she recalls happier times, before getting married, and thinks about the illusions she had of an exciting and romantic life (ll. 143-144). Readers get to know more about Peggy, such as the fact that she misses working and socializing.

A tension point comes when Sarla bursts into Peggy’s room. As Sarla complains about her difficult relationship with Sur…

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Ending

In the falling action, tension drops, at least for Sarla and Suraj, who are in a better mood after making love (ll. 484-488). However, as Peggy notices that Dev is also staring at Sarla “with those nasty sort of eyes with which he looked at other women” (ll. 490-491), the tension still remains for her, and the conflict between her and her husband is not resolved.

The ending reveals Sarla’s decision not to leave her husband’s side and Peggy deciding …