Changez’s Identity: Phoenix Rising from the Ashes Lev Vygotsky, a notable Soviet psychologist, once said, “Through others, we become ourselves” (“Vygotsky’s Revolutionary Theory of Psychological Development,”2010). Such a telling statement describes the journey of Changez, the narrator in The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Moshin Hamid. Changez is a young and impressionable Pakistani who struggles with being a stranger in America. When Changez reflects on the events of his life before and after the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001, the reader is invited not only to explore the evolving complexities of Changez’s relationship to America, but his personal identity as well. By utilizing a narrative monologue and allusion to Plato, Hamid invites …show more content…
The budding relationship between Changez and Erica symbolizes Changez’s relationship to America. The failed relationship is a parallel to the spirit of the weathered love Changez has towards America. However, through these heartaches and disappointments, America allows him the opportunity to forge a culturally aware identity, one that is mindful of the deleterious and beneficial features of cultural differences. With the use of a monologue narrative, Changez’s experiences of integration into American society are instrumental in fashioning an American identity. Changez’s American identity is synonymous with being a proud custodian of America’s inimitable ideals: individualism, liberty, opportunity, democracy, equality, and justice. Whilst reflecting on his time at Princeton University, Changez says, “This is a dream come true. Princeton inspired in me the feeling that my life was a film in which I was the star and everything was possible” (Hamid 3). In Changez’s reflection, the reader gains some insight into his American identity during his time at Princeton. At that time in
The focus and emphasis on reaching the American Dream is involved in the American Identity. When David Hayden introduces the setting of
In this memoir, the meaning of language is intertwined with the search for self-identity. This book was focused on an experience of perusing her own heritage by the use of DNA and genomics. In Raquel’s instance, or Rachael as her friends refer to her as, language has become a force of conflict and discrimination. Raquel wants to fit in with her peers and uses language as a means to relate. “Rachael, if you call me nigga one more time, I’m going to have to fuck you up” (pg. 71). It is this conversation that causes racial tension between Raquel and her friends. She tries to explain that they are all women of color, regardless of how much darker their skin is than hers. Her friends can’t seem to understand why she likes all that “black shit” (pg. 71) referring to her like of hip hop music. Another issue regarding culture and ethnicity occurs with Raquel’s encounter with Simon, who uses discriminatory comments as a joke. Raquel, who finds great offense to it, takes this use of vulgar language personally. The role of language within this novel displays the hardships and struggles of growing up as an immigrant adolescent in the United States. It emphasizes the racial discrimination and adaptation aspect as well. However, despite all of the hatred and uncertainty Raquel possesses, she begins to develop resilience,
...it but try to make a change. Through Chris Jaynes, Johnson expresses to his readers the importance of taking a stance on the issue of Whiteness by making it a very prominent ideal in his novel. Johnson furthers his agreement against Whiteness by expressing the fact that the issue not only needs to be identified but that there needs to be more of a push to change the issue. Sticking to the normal ways of trying to fix the issue of Whiteness, such as using a diversity committee, are no longer acceptable in the fight against Whiteness as it has proved to be unsuccessful. Instead Mat Johnson challenges the reader to notice the practices that keep American literature segregated and consider how effective the methods put in place truly are in advancing American literature.
Many people are become and are shaped by their country, beliefs, and values. Zia is an international student from Pakistan who is studying to be able to join the civil service in Pakistan. His ultimate goal is to teach political philosophy. Because he is from Pakistan he has certain different beliefs and values, from Americans, that model his behavior and interactions with others, but I won’t be talking about the person he is in Pakistan. No, I will be writing about the person Zia is here at Concordia College-Moorhead and the impact he has had on those around him.
Many immigrating to the United States develop ideas of themselves and their own identity in order to fit the form of America they have been coaxed into believing. In “A Thousand Years of Good Prayers”, Mr.Shi displays these expectations and false prophecies of character when he naively concludes, “America is worth taking a look at; more than that, America makes him a new person, a rocket scientist, a good conversationalist, a loving father, a happy man”(189). Mr.Shi not only perceives America as a place of pure prosperity and freedom, but also anticipates a society where he can recreate himself. Arguably, these limited ideas of America can foster one 's desire to improve as an individual, however this often results in a further loss of identity because they are unwilling to accept their true self. He longs to exist within the form of American society he fantasizes because he envisions himself as a more developed and well rounded person that he feels communist China has kept him from
Kinsella, Kate , Colleen Stump, Joyce Carrol, Kevin Feldman, and Edward Wilson. The American Experience. California ed. Monrovia, California: Prentice Hall, 2002. print.
The tone of the short story “America and I” changed dramatically over the course of the narrative. The author, Anzia Yezierska, started the story with a hopeful and anxious tone. She was so enthusiastic about arriving in America and finding her dream. Yezierska felt her “heart and soul pregnant with the unlived lives of generations clamouring for expression.” Her dream was to be free from the monotonous work for living that she experienced back in her homeland. As a first step, she started to work for an “Americanized” family. She was well welcomed by the family she was working for. They provided the shelter Yezierska need. She has her own bed and provided her with three meals a day, but after a month of working, she didn’t receive the wage she was so
Plato. "Apology." The Longman Anthology of World Literature. Ed. David Damrosch and David L. Pike. Compact ed. New York: Pearson, 2008. 559-75. Print.
We are initially introduced to the dangers of nostalgia through Erica, Changez’s love interest and a symbolic representation of America. Erica is depicted from the get go as a rather emotionally unstable character who’s spiritually disintegrating and left mourning after the death of her former soulmate Chris. Although appearing assertive on the surface, she is slowly deteriorating from within, as Changez describes “i met her eyes, and for the first time I perceived that there was something broken behind them, like a tiny crack in a diamond” (Hamid: 2007, p. 59). As the relationship between the two characters grows stronger, Erica is drawn into a notion of guilt, encrypting her to believe by moving on with her life, she is betraying the memory of Chris. The memory of Chris a...
Many families move to America, leaving behind parts of their culture, history, friends. In Dinaw Mengestu’s “Home at Last” and Lorraine Ali’s “Do I Look Like Public Enemy Number One?” we see two very different methods of adapting to the big move to the United States. Dinaw’s family is very tied to their home back in Addis Ababa, Ethipoia, making the move punishing. Meanwhile, Lorraine is a child of an Arabic father and white mother.
One aspect of the novel that highlights this struggle is its setting, as it takes place during four time periods, each at a different stage in Afghan history. Throughout these unstable decades, the country’s government went through continuous upheavals with each new government advocating different
A main theme in this novel is the influence of family relationships in the quest for individual identity. Our family or lack thereof, as children, ultimately influences the way we feel as adults, about ourselves and about others. The effects on us mold our personalities and as a result influence our identities. This story shows us the efforts of struggling black families who transmit patterns and problems that have a negative impact on their family relationships. These patterns continue to go unresolved and are eventually inherited by their children who will also accept this way of life as this vicious circle continues.
This symbolizes post 9/11 politics of assimilation, a process in which Muslim Americans acquired social and psychological characteristics of the American culture. Hamid illustrates Changez identity through the lens of post 9/11 politics of assimilation when he characterizes Changez as an intelligent man who earned a degree from one of the most prestigious schools in America. Changez degree from Princeton represents his ability to obtain an elite education similar to every other privileged American. In this part of his life he succeeds in assimilating to America’s culture. His job at Underwood Samson symbolizes the United States and the power it possess. Changez feels like he is apart of America when he lands the job and is given the top position because of his outstanding credentials. When Changez visits Pakistan for Christmas he tells the American stranger how “There are adjustments one must make if one comes from America; a different way of observing is required. I recalled the Americanness of my own gaze, when I returned to Lahore” (p.124). During his trip to Lahore, Changez is described as an assimilated immigrant who begins to look down at his roots because of the success he has achieved in America. However, Changez soon realizes that while he may have succeeded and been apart of America, after the attacks on September 11 he was viewed as nothing
Changez begins to acclimate to business culture thereby assimilating American culture. For example, while on vacation in Greece before he officially starts his job at Underwood Samson, he was a little annoyed at “[t]he ease with which they [his companions] parted with money,” but once he begins his job he “felt empowered” and “all manner of new possibilities were opening up” like expense accounts (Hamid 21 & 37). This is just a minor example, but it does escalate from there. While on a business trip in Manila he “attempt[s] to act and speak, as much as [his] dignity would allow, more like an American” (Hamid 65, emphasis in original). He even goes so far as to begin saying that he is from New York instead of saying he is Pakistani; however, he is ashamed of himself for doing this. Underwood Samson causes him to adjust his mannerisms and values but, he still maintains loyalty to, and pride in, his Pakistani identity. The closer he becomes to Erica the more of himself he loses. Erica epitomizes America and she destroys and recreates his identity.
The Reluctant Fundamentalist is a taut and engaging piece of fiction, exploring the growing chasm between the East and the West. Mohsin Hamid has used a rather unique narrative mode- the dramatic monologue –and used it skillfully to weave an account of a young Pakistani’s class aspirations and inner struggle in corporate America. Throughout the novel, Hamid maintains a tense atmosphere, an atmosphere of imminent danger and radical violence. What results from the two devices is an allegorical reconstruction of post-9/11 tensions, and an inflective young man’s infatuation and disenchantment with America.