There are many characters in Zadie Smith's White Teeth, but there are two main families. Clara, Archie and Irie make up the Jones family. Samad, Alsana, Millat and Magid are the Iqbal family. The two families interact throughout the story, changing each other's lives. Family is an important part of a person's identity. Archie has recently divorced his first wife, Ophelia, when he meets Clara. They had been married for thirty years but the relationship had never been happy. Clara also has a story. She just left a serious relationship after her boyfriend converted to Jehovah's Witnesses. His own parents did not set a good example. His father does little besides sit in an armchair and watch television while his mother participates intently in church events. Without an example of a happy relationship it is not surprising that Clara and Archie's marriage is not a happy one. Their wedding ceremony was little more than a legal agreement. The only guests were the Iqbals and Clara met them on her wedding day. It isn't long before Clara is disappointed. They are unpacking boxes after moving to a new house and Archie is struggling with boxes that Clara could easily lift three at a time. Looking at him Clara realizes that, although he is not a knight in shining armor, he is a good man, and that is good enough. It doesn't take Archie long to move on either. Clara notices that he doesn't look at her the same way he looked at her when they first met. He no longer looks at her with love, but with a certain bored acceptance. The relationship between Samad and Alsana is of a completely different nature. Their marriage is arranged. They meet for the first time on their wedding day and Alsana doesn't seem to mind. She clearly...is at the center of the card...for her own mistakes and ends up disappointed. Alsana and Clara are stuck in unhappy relationships, married to men much older than them. Irie ends up with a white man and another man's son. Millat and Magid end up on opposite sides of the argument over animal experiments and both end up doing community service after Millat accidentally shoots Archie in the leg. Irie is following in the footsteps of her mother, grandmother and great-grandmother by going to another land and dating a white man. Millat is following the example of his ancestor Pande by protesting. Magid is following Samad's example in fighting for a country that is not his. As much as everyone wants to think they are escaping their past, they are only following in the footsteps of those who came before them. You can no more escape your past than you can have rootless teeth.