The Crisis And Reconstruction Of Changez's Cultural Identity In The Reluctant Fundamentalist

Mohsin Hamid's The Reluctant Fundamentalist is an autobiographical novellala that is drafted six times during seven years with the author's painstaking efforts. Since its publication in 2007, it has attracted much attention due to its unique narrative perspective and its writing feature. It not only crowns the lists of the international bestsellers, being valued as an annual good book by media, such as New York Times and Publishers Weekly, but also is translated into many languages and shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2007. Under the background of 9/11, the novellala tells a story of an aspiring Pakistan young man's pursuit and disillusionment of his American Dream and further sketches the crash and conflict between American culture and other ethnic cultures. Focusing on the two narrative spaces crisscrossed--Lahore and America, Hamid narrates the identity pursuit of Changez; the identity crisis after 9/11 and the later identity reconstruction.Though 9/11 has been more than ten years, it still arouses people's traumatic memory and reflection on it. Thus,9/11 literature on the ground of 9/11 is gradually appearing, which aims to reflect the themes on human fate, care as well as traumatic redemption. As one of the rare works telling in the perspective of the sufferer and Hamid's multiple cultural background and transnational identity, this thesis argues that searching for identity is of great importance to both the writer and the protagonist Changez. Based on Homi Bhabha's hybridity theory, this thesis aims to analyze the process from the crisis of Changez's identity to the reconstruction in view of the close interpretation of the text and the critical reading of the comments on this book.There are five chapters in this thesis. Chapter One briefly introduces Mohsin Hamid and The Reluctant Fundamentalist, literature review, cultural identity as well as the significance and layout of the thesis. Chapter Two depicts Changez's pursuit and worship of American identity both in work and love under the background of globalization. Chapter Three explores his identity crisis. His worship of American identity is gradually ceasing after 9/11 so that he begins to envisage his identity crisis: the alienation of his Pakistan identity both in work and love; his ambivalent process in identity formation and the consequence of his identity; Chapter Four interprets the reconstruction of his identity. He has to go back to Lahore to inspect all the past again after his disillusionment with his American identity and the finally arrives at the reconcilement of his hybrid identity. In addition, the possible reasons and reflection on the loss of his identity are also analyzed:Hamid's hybrid identity as well as the cultural conflicts under the background of globalization. The thesis concludes in Chapter Five, which gives an account that Changez' dynamic identity construction has a close relationship with social structure as well as national identity. It points out that the fluidity of identity needs not only the demarcation to self identity of the subjects in different contexts but also the mutual understanding for a harmonious society in face of cultural difference.