We'Re Not Jews

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‘’We’re not Jews’’ – a short story by Hanif Kureishi During the 50’s, racial discrimination was a huge problem. After WW2 many immigrants have fled their country and moved to another hoping to create a better life for themselves and their children. But not all of them was welcomed to their ‘’new home’’. They are often repelled from the society simply because they looked a little different and had other beliefs. Many had problems with getting jobs because they had yet to learn the language properly. In the short story ‘’We’re not Jews’’ by Hanif Kureishi we meet a young boy and his mother, who married a Pakistani man, and how these two people deals with racial discrimination that happens upon them. The theme itself in the story is prominent and will let us know how these two deal with it. In this story we get introduced to a young boy, whose name is Azhar and his mother, Yvonne. Azhar’s life is very different from other boys’, because he has a Pakistani father and a British mother. He got bullied daily in school by a boy named Little Billy. His mother tried to teach him to be polite and gets a bit irritated when he forgets. ‘’Say please,’’ whispered his mother, making a sign of exasperation’’ On their way from their shopping trip, they met Little Billy and his father, Big Billy on the bus. As soon as the Billy’s sat down, they started to make fun of Azhar. Azhar feels very uncomfortable, because his mother now knew what’s going on with him outside their home. ‘’NOW she knew what went on and how it felt. How he wished he’d said nothing and protected her (…)’’ This quotation shows us a little boy who didn’t want his mother to know what’s going on. He wanted to protect his mother from the thing he had to endure on a daily basis. It’s very unusual for a young boy his age to protect his mother from the mocking and insults. It’s supposed to be the other way

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