Mohsin Hamid in his novel “The Reluctant Fundamentalist” highlights how religion can become a bone of contention between different racial groups and nationalities. Hamid explores the theme of racism and discrimination in this novel by highlighting the mistreatments the Muslims all over the world were given after the attack on the Twin Tower in America on September 11, 2001.
Hamid starts his novel by
explaining or pointing out to his audience how people are judged based on their
religion, race, creed, and appearance. When Changez saw an American he was able
to tell that the stranger was from America based on his “bearing” and similarly
the stranger was alarmed by Changez based on his “beard”. Changez narrates to
the stranger about his stay (four and a half years) in America. The writer very
artistically highlights the prejudices and mistrust between Changez and the
stranger when the stranger feels hesitant to drink the tea Changez offered. “Beard”
is a symbol of religiousness and the stranger judges Changez based on his
religion thinking that he might be a potential terrorist. Hamid criticizes such
as prejudices in his novel in the later parts when he points out:
This article is copy protected!
|
“You should not think that we Pakistanis are all
potential terrorists just as we should not think that you Americans are all
undercover assassins”.
Hamid highlights how in America, Changez was treated as an exotic pet by his friends and even Erica liked him because he was “different”. Changez in his stay noticed how the Americans “were devoid of refinement” and they “conduct(ed) themselves in the world as though they were its ruling class”. Changez noticed that the so-called “cosmopolitan nature of New York” was just a show-off, a cover disguising American Fundamentalism and American Sovereignty when he spent time in the Underwood Samson. This “soft racism” changed and became more human and brutal after the collapse of the Twin Tower in New York.
Read also,
Depiction of Pakistani Culture in Nawabdin Electrian
Changez witnessed many
cases of discrimination. Firstly, he was harassed by the airport security
officers when he came back to New York after completing a project in Manila. He
was accused to be a “terrorist” for him being a Muslim and was detained. When
he came back to New York he witnessed the changing behavior of people around
him. Secondly, he had a verbal fight with an American who accused him of being
a terrorist. Even the attitude of his colleagues changed after seeing him in a
more eastern appearance. Changez after witnessing this discrimination wanted to
preserve his identity by keeping the beard:
“(The beard) was, perhaps, a form of protest, a
symbol of my identity”.
Lastly, he also noticed
the discrimination the Muslims all over America were facing. Some of them were
being detained, some of them arrested and some of them being deported to their
home countries. As pointed out by Changez:
“I had heard of the tales of discrimination Muslims
were beginning to experience in the business world”.
The writer very
artistically points out different ways by which religion can become a reason
for r racial prejudice. The historic attack on the Twin Tower was done by a
Muslim terrorist Osama bin Laden, which caused all of the world to believe that
all Muslims are potential terrorists. The racial prejudices were present before
this attack as justified by Changhez’s feeling ecstatic and happy after knowing
the incident of 9/11:
“Someone had so visibly brought America on her
knees”.
This nationalistic
fundamentalism was present on both sides which were triggered after the
incident of 9/11.
The writer incorporated
certain symbols to point out this discrimination and the whole concept of
fundamentalism. Erica, the love of Changez was a symbol for America that
Changez could never attain. Erica’s love for her dead boyfriend Chris can be
interpreted as America’s love for Christianity or Christopher Columbus (the
founder of America) which forces her to reject the life of Changez who is a
symbol for Muslims. Erica like America attracted people to her:
“She attracted people to her, she had a presence, an
unknown magnetism”.
In short, one may say that
the novel ‘The Reluctant Fundamentalist' by Mohsin Hamid demonstrates the
different ways by which religion can become a factor for religious and racial
prejudices among different communities. These prejudices were portrayed by many
writers such as Rudyard Kipling (who coined the term the Whiteman’s Burden),
E.M. Foster in “A Passage to India”, Joseph Conrad in “Heart of Darkness”, and
Bapsi Sidhwa in “Ice-Candy Man” and Mohsin Hamid in “the Reluctant
Fundamentalist Hamid focuses on how these prejudices cause identity crisis and
injustice as pointed out by Changez:
“I lacked a stable core. I was not certain where I
belonged- in New York, in Lahore, in both, in neither”. Hamid like the other
writers criticize this notion of prejudice and racism and reject it in the
same way Voltaire did:
“Prejudice is an opinion, not a judgment”. Continue Reading
This article is produced by, Syeda Areeba Fatima, a permanent contributor to the SOL Community.
