In Deepa Mehta’s film, Fire, symbolism is used to show the struggle between tradition and new ideas. This struggle, which Radha defeats with her choice for lesbianism, is symbolical paralleled by the reoccurring scenes of her as a child. The film is a tale of two vital, beautiful women breaking their cultural obstacles and being reborn through the passion they express for each other. Their relationship is forbidden, but it is by giving into …showed first 75 words of 1103 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1103 total…inner child closes her eyes, open’s them slowly, sees the ocean beyond the flowers, and says, “I can see the ocean now.” This shows that she found her true self despite the oppressions of social traditions. She is now free and has become who she really is on the inside. In the end, the evolution of Radha’s true self is complete and the social norms in India are put into a new perspective.