Of Promises Delivered and Failed: Post‑9/11 America through the Eyes of The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid

Abstract

Mohsin Hamid’s novel The Reluctant Fundamentalist offers an interesting voice in the discussion about post‑9/ 11 America and shows how a successful immigrant story changes to a racially charged case of ethnic discrimination. Despite the fact that Hamid’s protagonist may believe in his successful assimilation into American culture, the general feeling of xenophobia that gripped American society in the wake of the 9/11 attacks forces him to re‑evaluate his position. His personal dilemma, oscillating between the desire for material affluence and ethnic loyalty, is presented in a broader context that depicts the world divided along financial and political lines. The conflicting pull between the economic interests lying in the West – represented by the U.S. and the subaltern position of less‑developed countries, such as Pakistan – becomes a source of anguish for the protagonist. This paper examines how the borders of conflict shift from public to personal, complicating the issue of identity for Muslim immigrants. The discourse of the war on terror is presented from the perspective of an Other, offering a counter‑narrative to the hegemonic narrative of Western culture.