Sibling Constellations in "White Teeth" (2000) and "Britz" (2007)

Intermediate Examination Paper from the year 2011 in the subject English - Literature, Works, grade: 1,7, University of Tubingen, course: Literature PS II - Extremism in Recent British Fiction and Film, language: English, abstract: In the end of White Teeth and Britz, the respective sibling pairs are at the same time at the same place, each opponent fighting for his or her conviction and against the sibling. But the fact that in the end they are together in the same situation doing the same, reveals that siblings are connected to each other, no matter what conflict they are fighting out. The novel White Teeth by Zadie Smith from 2000 and the movie Britz by Peter Kosminsky from 2007 are both dealing with the motif of opponent siblings and their conflicts. Although this constellation is used as a starting point in both works, the realization and development of the stories is interpreted differently. This paper shall show the parallels and differences of the two sibling pairs amongst each other and their conflicts, and be compared to the tradition of the motif of sibling constellations in literary history, to show the development of facets of this motif. It is accepted to be a fact that both sibling pairs are geared to the literary motif of rivalling siblings, but in White Teeth, the more traditional form of two brothers, in this special case actually twins, is discussed and enhanced, whereas Britz seizes a brother-sister-constellation, which traditionally can be seen as harmony endowing and less rivalling. To get a basis for analysing and comparing the special cases in the chosen works, the motif history and its development will be revised with some examples, which is followed by the argumentation part. 2. Analysis of Sibling Constellations