RETHINKING MOHSIN HAMID'S THE RELUCTANT FUNDAMENTALIST THROUGH A TRANSNATIONAL IDENTITY: THE PROTAGONIST'S SHIFTING SENSE OF BELONGING
Abstract
A transnational approach to individual
identity has come to the fore front recently. This approach is what Mohsin
Hamid is concerned with in his novel The
Reluctant Fundamentalist, in which he presents a transnational character
displaying the Pakistani experience of migration to America. The protagonist of
the novel, Changez, has bicultural characteristics and his idea of home changes
in accordance with time and space. In the first half of his story, America is
the place where Changez feels "at home." However, there is a
particular turning point of life for him, which is the 9/11 attack to the Twin
Towers, and this experience functions as an agent of self-awareness, shifting
his sense of belonging from the host country, that is America, to the homeland, which is Pakistan. Thus,
Changez spiritually returns to the homeland in the second half of his story.
While, prior to the 9/11 attack,
Changez enjoys his “Americanness,” represented by the
American education, the American girl, and the American business, his shifted
identity after the event brings a consciousness of his “origin,” and in the
end, the “Pakistani Changez” overwhelms his American self. Thus, Hamid displays
how fragile and fragmented identities might become in modern times.
References
- 1. Bhalla, T. (2012). Being (and feeling) Gogol: Reading and recognition in Jhumpa Lahiri's The namesake. MELUS: Multi-Ethnic Literature of the U.S., 37(1), 105-129.
- 2. Bradatan, C., Popan A., & Melton R. (2010). Transnationality as a fluid social identity. Social Identities, 16(2), 169-178.
- 3. Friedman, M., & Schultermandl S. (2011). Introduction. In M. Friedman & S. Shultermandl. (Eds.), Growing up transnational: Identity and kinship in a global era (pp. 3-18). Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
- 4. Hamid, M. (2008). The reluctant fundamentalist. London: Penguin Books.
- 5. Hartnell, A. (2010). Moving through America: Race, place and resistance in Mohsin Hamid’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist. Journal of Postcolonial Writing, 46(3-4), 336-348.
- 6. Kumar, S. (2013). Culture re-contextualized: A contemporary study of Jhumpa's The namesake and Jaishree's The ancient promises. American International Journal of Research in Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, 2(1), 01-09.
- 7. Lahiri, J. (2004). The namesake. London: Harper Perennial.
- 8. Levitt, P., & Schiller, N.G. (2004). Conceptualizing simultaneity: A transnational social field perspective on society. International Migration Review, 38(3), 1002-1039.
- 9. Morey, P. (2011). “The rules of the game have changed”: Mohsin Hamid's The reluctant fundamentalist and post-9/11 fiction. Journal of Postcolonial Writing, 47(2), 135-146.
- 10. Sandu, A. (2013). Transnational homemaking practices: Identity, belonging and informal learning. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 21(4), 496-512.
- 11. Schultermandl, S., & Toplu Ş. (2010). Introduction. In Erin K., & Schultermandl S. (Eds.), Contributions to transnational feminism Vol. 2. (pp. 11-24). Wien: LIT VERLAG.
- 12. Vertovec, S. (2004). Migrant transnationalism and modes of transformation. International Migration Review, 38(1), 970-1001.
Abstract
References
- 1. Bhalla, T. (2012). Being (and feeling) Gogol: Reading and recognition in Jhumpa Lahiri's The namesake. MELUS: Multi-Ethnic Literature of the U.S., 37(1), 105-129.
- 2. Bradatan, C., Popan A., & Melton R. (2010). Transnationality as a fluid social identity. Social Identities, 16(2), 169-178.
- 3. Friedman, M., & Schultermandl S. (2011). Introduction. In M. Friedman & S. Shultermandl. (Eds.), Growing up transnational: Identity and kinship in a global era (pp. 3-18). Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
- 4. Hamid, M. (2008). The reluctant fundamentalist. London: Penguin Books.
- 5. Hartnell, A. (2010). Moving through America: Race, place and resistance in Mohsin Hamid’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist. Journal of Postcolonial Writing, 46(3-4), 336-348.
- 6. Kumar, S. (2013). Culture re-contextualized: A contemporary study of Jhumpa's The namesake and Jaishree's The ancient promises. American International Journal of Research in Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, 2(1), 01-09.
- 7. Lahiri, J. (2004). The namesake. London: Harper Perennial.
- 8. Levitt, P., & Schiller, N.G. (2004). Conceptualizing simultaneity: A transnational social field perspective on society. International Migration Review, 38(3), 1002-1039.
- 9. Morey, P. (2011). “The rules of the game have changed”: Mohsin Hamid's The reluctant fundamentalist and post-9/11 fiction. Journal of Postcolonial Writing, 47(2), 135-146.
- 10. Sandu, A. (2013). Transnational homemaking practices: Identity, belonging and informal learning. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 21(4), 496-512.
- 11. Schultermandl, S., & Toplu Ş. (2010). Introduction. In Erin K., & Schultermandl S. (Eds.), Contributions to transnational feminism Vol. 2. (pp. 11-24). Wien: LIT VERLAG.
- 12. Vertovec, S. (2004). Migrant transnationalism and modes of transformation. International Migration Review, 38(1), 970-1001.
Details
| Primary Language | English |
|---|---|
| Journal Section | Makaleler |
| Authors | |
| Publication Date | December 1, 2015 |
| Submission Date | July 1, 2015 |
| Published in Issue | Year 2015 Volume: 4 Issue: 2 |