The Futility Of Suraya's Siren Song

Amidst the glittery throng of South-Asian Literature, Nadeem Aslam’s Maps For Lost Lovers rises to a stature of its own. Aslam, in his novel, builds characters whose lives revolve around a plethora of symbols. These symbols not only help in deciphering all of his characters, but it also adds depth and substance to their personalities. The three-dimensional nature of these characters, uncovers their complexity. Interestingly, these abstract symbols and signs can be linked to the ancient tradition of folklore and mythology. Suraya, one of Nadeem Aslam’s characters, is of an elusive, intangible and mysterious nature. She tempts Shamas and Charag with her beauty; and it is precisely this attribute of her character that can directly be linked to mythology itself. Thus, the main premise of this response is to proclaim Suraya as the Siren in Nadeem Aslam’s text.

Like the swerving sirens, which are alluring creatures in Greek Mythology, Suraya meanders into the lives of the men in Dasht-e-Tanhaii. Suraya’s first encounter with Charag is that of a naked woman dripping of water, like a Siren. It is one of the many beautiful symbols in this novel. There are two essential aspects of this encounter, which should be viewed in juxtaposition with Greek Mythology. First, Sirens lived on an island and were beautiful creatures with wings, who had the bodily form of women. Their sole purpose was to lure any passing sailors by their mesmerizing songs. Their enthralling songs primarily enchanted the sea men in a state of intoxication, and they crashed into cliffs which were located around the water body of the island, leading them to destruction. Similarly, Suraya, like a siren, met Charag and Shamas, in the guise of a temptress, around the flowing...

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...he water in many ways is the home of a siren and by returning to the darkened waters, Suraya wishes to dislodge her darkened act.

The question remains, how successful is Suraya? The sirens do not always win, in the end. Suraya may be like the sirens who call Ulysses to the rocks in order to destroy him, but it was Odysseus who bound to a mast by a rope, ended up, escaping the realm of the Siren. Suraya, like a special constellation of stars, disappears in the brightness of reality. Her glittery existence sparks momentarily, but then vanishes into the folds of truth and reality. Suraya’s song, remains, somewhere engrained in the tainted and tattered parchments of maps, reminiscent of all those lovers, who love with a passion and get lost somewhere along its intoxication.

Works Cited
1. Aslam, Nadeem. Maps for lost lovers. New York: Vintage Books, 2006. Print.