class division: seeing central Paris Momo says he wished he’d lived in paris (he lived in poor area, which he perceived as not the ‘real’ Paris)
m Ibrahim – due to Orientalist, French colonialism was stereotyped and labelled as a simple corner shop Arab – he reveals he is Turkish and Sufi, and not a Wahhabi Arab. He lives content despite being fully aware of how incorrectly he is perceived – but it does not matter all that much to him as he knows what he is and the worth of that – and most importantly, he is willing to share that with those deserving and willing to listen and learn (momo). He carries his identity proudly, accepts even being called an Arab because he understands what it means to them – and he’s fine with it because he understands what it really means and why they really call him that (he is the owner of a very busy, well stocked shop with excellent opening times, different from those of white Parisians)
Ibrahim sees Momo when the adults in his life betrayed him and he was made to feel like too much or weird
Momo’s parents, although they both abandoned him, are also presented as complex – his dad, carrying the trauma of being the family’s sole survivor of Nazi concentration camps, in addition to having another older son with another woman, makes him believe he is a bad father to momo, abandons him, and ends his life symbolically by jumping in front of a train (his family being carried to the camps by train, the symbol of their death which, by claiming his life, frees him of his survivor guilt)
what triggers this? – once faced with Ibrahim’s understanding and acceptance, Momo changes – his father perceives this but does not know how to make sense of it. He sees him smile for the first time (also revealing what he sees as a crooked smile, which he instantly sees as an issue to be fixed while dismissing Momo’s smiles despite being struck with curiosity at first) and asking him uncomfortable questions about his religion and ethnicity. these make him question his own choices and lifestyle, realising he never really knew his son (or himself for that matter) not did he make an effort to.
his mum on the other hand, was confrtonted to leave her son with his dad, although she did desire to get to know him unlike his dad. both terrible parents, but both eventually show remorse in their own way and are above all else human in their emotional complexity and ambiguity
‘what you give, is yours forever. what you keep for yourself, is lost forever’ – the point of having anything (money, love, kindness) is actually to give – as even if not accepted, the intent as well as staying true to yourself and your heart give you real ownership of these things
Ibrahim longed for family – he adopted momo and returned to his homeland and wife (
all rivers flow into the one sea –
religious, multicultural acceptance -Through his conversations with Ibrahim, Momo gains the ability to see things for more than what they seem – whilst understanding both his fathers superifcial worldview and how it had shaped his own thinking until that moment
- sees Ibrahim is circumicsed as well – realises Christians, Muslims, Jews are all very similar and conflict is pointless and childish
I know what’s written in the qur’an-
the flowers and Abdullah –
papol- the older brother, a mysterious unseen figure representing both a role model and source of frustration for Momo who’d never even met him but yet constantly strained his relationship with his father
Momo did not understand what it was to be a Jew as neither did his father. However, he understood and felt what it meant to be Sufi Muslim thanks to his trip with Ibrahim – this is why, upon return, momo embraces the identity of Mohammed – initially enabled by his reluctance to reveal his true identity to his mother, under the guise of a mocking which he actually grew into.
Father’s unexplained trip to Marseille, where he takes his own life – puzzled police officers tell Momo that his father travelled all the way down to Marseille before committing suicide – Momo himself only ponders on this for a moment, before sardonically concluding that at least he showed remorse about abandoning his son. Momo then moves on from this, however his father’s final actions are significant – the trip can be seen as an analogy for his own life: mysterious, impulsive, long and complicated. His own search for meaning and self understanding, life choices and loneliness – culminating into an abrupt end, just like his decision to abandon his son (which was actually related to his own desire to end his life). He takes care of his son as he always did – in a cold, pragmatic manner. He leaves him money and contacts to ensure his son’s wellbeing, and leaves a somewhat abrupt, emotionally heavy but clumsy and overly formal farewell note. This was his own way of showing love to his son, but it was clearly not enough and in the end he sees this too. We do not know what kind of father he was to Papol, but the fact that he keeps talking about him could signal remorse or pride towards him. Perhaps he also abandoned Papol as well, perhaps he died, or maybe they just had a falling out. Regardless, the father cannot seem to take his mind off him. Therefore, the crossed out ‘Papo’ on the note may also be of significance – perhaps he finally realised he should no longer compare Momo to his other son. Or maybe he was just thinking ‘out loud’ as Papol was crossing his mind once more. Thus on his trip to Marseille, father could have tried to make amends – maybe he visited Papol (or his grave), maybe he tried to visit him but he was rejected. Maybe he also visited Momo’s mum and other former lovers. Maybe he tried to find meaning, a reason to live (but failed), or maybe his mind was made up from the start and these were his final arrangements. Regardless, the remorse in his heart was too much, and his tragic end was likely caused by a combination of factors – his traumatic childhood, his past mistakes (Papol, the women in his life), his shallow and cold relationship with Momo, his own loneliness, and the final two nails in the coffin: the realisation of what damage his lack of self reflection had caused in all of these, and the loss of his job (the only aspect of his life that kept him afloat and a shallow feeling of meaning – both as a provider for Momo and as a professional).
culture, belonging, identity can be earned and are not set in stone just because we’re born into them (all rivers flow into the one sea – we’re all the same in the end, the end goal, of kindness and fulfillment, is the same even if there are different paths)