However, during a series of psychologically confronting events, Changez’s understanding of his inner world is gradually transformed, and he eventually accepts that he belongs in Pakistan. His love affair with the"dream"-America is over. Nevertheless, it is a long and arduous task for Changez, as he seeks to discover a sense of his own self and of the internal connections between his personal and political ideology. Changez's life journey encompasses his understanding of the need for spiritual development.As a"reluctant fundamentalist", Changez is forced to strip back the layers of his personal and professional life to see his situation with more clarity. This new clarity also reveals something fundamental about America that he, and perhaps readers, must come to terms with in the course of the novel.
Lastly, Equality 7-2521 achieves free will by going on his journey of self discovery. Ayn Rand’s “Anthem” is a novel that follows an individual’s journey from living in a collective society, to self discovery. Firstly, Equality 7-2521’s journey to free will is set in motion by his desire to know, by deep thought and questioning widely held truths of his collective society. Equality 7-2521 blames his desire to know on a curse. He believes that he is cursed when he falls into deep thought, and questions the ways of the collective society (Rand, 21).
The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Moshin Hamid is a dramatic monologue that, is half-conversation and half story, this allows a complex and engaging puzzle which challenges readers about the very nature of fundamentalism. At the beginning of his personal life journey, and as a self professed lover of America, Changez sees his newly adopted home as a place of possibility and ‘magical vibrancy’, his loyalty to America is the catalyst to his personal American dream. However, during a series of psychologically confront events, such as 9/11, Changez’s understanding of his inner world is gradually transformed, and he eventually accepts that he belongs in Pakistan. His love affair with the dream is over. Changez initially places his identity within the context of fulfilling his personal American Dream.
So, in conclusion, ‘Romulus, My Father’ is a text that deals with Romulus’ pursuit of belonging to a new country and belonging in a family. Each character is used in the novel to convey the these themes in their own ways, and narration is used to direct the reader to these values, as well as to add philosophical
One of the greatest questions that has been posed about human beings is whether we are the way we are because of the traits with which we were born or the social and environmental factors to which we are exposed through our life experiences. This is a recurring theme in literature about identity and the most common answer suggested in texts such as the poetry of Bruce Dawe, the film Rabbit Proof Fence, directed by Phillip Noyce and the article Veils and Vegemite by Randa Abdel-Fattah is that the two inevitably work together to forge our identities. The way, in which our natural personalities are tempered by elements such as family, the culture from which we originate as well as factors such as the materialistic society in which we live will be explored as they are discussed in the three above named texts. Dawes agreement with the fact that a person’s natural personality is quickly affected often negatively, by the social conditioning that is provided by society, is clearly demonstrate in his poem Enter... The title of the poem immediately launches these ideas by suggesting that the child enters the world in an unconventional manner, without acknowledging the
living the American dream, after all, the whole reason why he departed to America is to perhaps help heighten himself and his family’s social prestige back in Lahore. Although, all of this is intervened with Erica’s problems in the end. Erica is also a
Mohsin Hamid’s dramatic monologue, The Reluctant Fundamentalist tells the story of a young Pakistani man who is consumed by the status of America and becomes immersed in the American way of life. The narrator, Changez is unsure of who he is, and whilst certain personality traits remain, his sense of identity is changed significantly by the novel’s conclusion. America is the country that Changez becomes enamoured and then disillusioned with. This turbulent emotional journey is reflected in Changez’s professional and personal relationships. At first, he is enchanted by the beautiful Erica, with whom he attempts to pursue a romantic relationship; likewise, he is enticed by the career and status opportunities that elite valuation firm Underwood Samson offers.
PROMPT: “The novel is presented in the form of one man’s monologue. Discuss the effects of the narrative technique.” The ‘Reluctant Fundamentalist’ has a mesmerizing monologue which interprets the point of view of a Muslim and the situations he encounters whilst in America before and after the events of 9/11. The novel takes place in a café where the Pakistani protagonist; Changez confesses to an American his experience whilst living in America. Mohsin Hamid’s (the Author) monologue allows the reader to emotionally connect with the text as it addresses the reader indirectly through the American. Hamid’s narrative technique of silencing all other characters besides Changez is a unique method which allows the reader to feel as if they are a part of the scene.
“ I was never an American. I was immediately a New Yorker” How is Changez’s sense of identity altered over the course of the novel? In Mohsin Hamid’s novel “The Reluctant Fundamentalist” the narrator Changez is confronted with the public’s perception of his identity of whether he is a Pakistani man or an American. He exhorts some particular characteristics all the time while others only come to the surface towards the end. With the novel being written as a monologue we discover how Changez feel throughout his life experiences in America as a Pakistani man.
The Reluctant Fundamentalist Prompt: In what ways does Hamid use symbolism and setting to explore the main themes of the novel? ‘The Reluctant Fundamentalist’ by Mohsin Hamid is a dramatic monologue in which Changez, a Pakistani man recounts the tale of his brief and torrid love affair with America to an anonymous American whose responses can only be heard through Changez’ verbalized perceptions. The novel revolves around Changez’s changing identity as he struggles with his fluctuating allegiances to America and Pakistan during the aftermath of the terrorist bombings on September 11, 2001. Hamid uses setting as a tool to demonstrate the different stages in Changez’s personal development and discovery of his own identity. He also created a symbolic connection between Erica, Changez’s love interest and America, partnered with his purposeful use of setting in order to demonstrate the destructive nature of nostalgia.