Discussion Question #1: In the final scene of the film, Sam and Mustafa’s restaurant, through a communication error, is named American East instead of American Middle East. What does American East, or American Middle East, mean in relation to the film’s plot and characters? Do any of the characters reach perfect an equilibrium between their two cultures? Who are they and how is this shown in the film? Are there any examples of a character unable to find peace with being an Arab-American in modern society? Response: The semantics of American East compared to American Middle East does not have a substantial significance in relation to what the name means, the union of two cultures. In relation to the film’s plot and characters, Mustafa and his family encounter difficulty with understanding who they are in America. Mustafa feels tied and ultimately weighed down by his culture since he carries the burden of purchasing the land his father sold instead of prospering. In addition to running his business, trying to launch another, and raising his son, Mustafa took the responsibility to find his younger sister a suitor. He takes on and imposes this role without asking his sister for her opinion of the matter. Through his sister, however, Mustafa learns that he should let go of his guilt and try to find happiness in …show more content…
Both characters are racially profiled and seen as terrorists without a second thought. Mustafa receives a small redemption with the federal agent. After he was arrested for the second time, the reason for his arrest in unclear, he confessed as to why he sent money to his cousin overseas, which was to repay a debt instead of sending money to a terrorist organization. During this meeting, the federal agent questions why Mustafa did not communicate this to anyone earlier when it is a cultural thing most Americans would not be able to
The movie, Soul Food, is a story about an African-American family, the Joseph’s, from Chicago that gets together every Sunday for soul food dinners. The story is told by Ahmad and he talks about the issues that face his family once the matriarch of the family, Big Mama, is in the hospital. Big Mama has three daughters: Teri, Maxine, and Ryla. Teri is a successful lawyer who is married to Miles. Miles was Teri’s former boyfriend. This caused a strained relationship between Maxine and Teri. Maxine is married with three children. Ryla is the youngest and is newly married to an ex-convict named Lem. Ryla also just opened up her own barbershop/hair salon. Cousin Faith is the cousin that comes and goes from the family. She always comes home and finds a way to take money and then leaves for a couple of years. Big Mama is having severe complications with her diabetes. The doctors tell her that she has to get her leg amputated in order to survive. During the surgery she slips into a coma and that is when the family begins to become dysfunctional.
Clearly, Amir hears how his father compares the two, and unlike Hassan who manages to meet Baba’s expectations, Amir grows bitter towards Hassan. He is unable to fight off his envy which later causes him to sacrifice his best friend’s innocence: “Maybe Hassan was the price I had to pay, the lamb I had to slay, to win Baba” (82), and this is all because he realizes “his shame is complicated by his own realization that in part he doesn’t help his friend precisely because he is jealous of him” (Corbett, 2006). From here, Amir develops strong feelings of guilt that induces him to perform even more destructive acts, such as having Hassan and his father evicted from the house. Amir not only loses a close friend, but now he has to continue to live with remorse as he dwells on these memories.
To help my peers and I become a more culturally competent we chose to watch the movie “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape” in hopes to become more aware and knowledgeable about the differences of values and beliefs in our society. What’s Eating Gilbert Grape; a film produced in 1993, address many issues everyday people face in society such as socioeconomic struggle and mental or physical discrimination.
Critics have already begun a heated debate over the success of the book that has addressed both its strengths and weaknesses. The debate may rage for a few years but it will eventually fizzle out as the success of the novel sustains. The characters, plot, emotional appeal, and easily relatable situations are too strong for this book to crumble. The internal characteristics have provided a strong base to withstand the petty attacks on underdeveloped metaphors and transparent descriptions. The novel does not need confrontations with the Middle East to remain a staple in modern reading, it can hold its own based on its life lessons that anyone can use.
“Araby” tells the story of a young boy who romanticizes over his friend’s older sister. He spends a lot of time admiring the girl from a distance. When the girl finally talks to him, she reveals she cannot go to the bazaar taking place that weekend, he sees it as a chance to impress her. He tells her that he is going and will buy her something. The boy becomes overwhelmed by the opportunity to perform this chivalrous act for her, surely allowing him to win the affections of the girl. The night of the bazaar, he is forced to wait for his drunken uncle to return home to give him money to go. Unfortunately, this causes the boy to arrive at the bazaar as it is closing. Of the stalls that remained open, he visited one where the owner, and English woman, “seemed to have spoken to me out of a sense of duty” (Joyce 89) and he knows he will not be able to buy anything for her. He decides to just go home, realizing he is “a creature driven and derided with vanity” (Joyce 90). He is angry with himself and embarrassed as he...
Amir notes the change he and Baba experienced in American—“For me, America was a place to bury my memories. For Baba, a place to mourn his” (129).
Orientalism is the way that the Middle East is depicted by its’ friendly acquaintances over in the West. In other terms, it is a “racist discourse which constructs the orient for Western aggrandizement.” The way that the Afghans are depicted in the film alongside Rambo makes the audience sympathize with them. The little boy also looks up to Rambo. He looks up to him a masculine father-figure. Using th...
Movies, one can argue, are one of America’s greatest pastimes. Unfortunately, after 9/11, films have become increasingly prejudiced against American Muslims. In movies Muslims are frequently portrayed negatively. According to James Emery, a professor of Anthropology, Hollywood profits off of “casting individuals associated with specific negative stereotypes”. This is due to the fact that viewers automatically link characters with their clichéd images (Emery). For Muslims, the clichéd image is of the violent fundamentalist, who carried out the terroristic attacks on 9/11. As a result, the main stereotypes involved in movies display Muslims as extremists, villains, thieves, and desert nomads. An example of a movie that has such a negative character role for Muslims in film is Disney’s cartoon Aladdin, depict...
War establishes many controversial issues and problems within society and can often expose an individual to many economic and sociopolitical hardships; thus creating an altercation in the way they view life. Amir, from the novel The Kite Runner and the novel’s author Khaled Hosseini, both saw the harsh treatment toward the people of Afghanistan through a series of wars, invasions, and the active power of a Pashtun movement known as the Taliban. Amir, much like Hosseini, lived a luxurious and wealthy life in Kabul. He is well educated and immerses himself in reading and writing. After transitioning from a life in Afghanistan to a life in the United States, both Hosseini and Amir faced obstacles in order to assimilate to American society. In The Kite Runner, written by Khaled Hosseini, the protagonist Amir parallels the experiences and hardships that Hosseini endured in his own lifetime.
Shaheen, Jack. “The Media’s Image of Arabs.” Writing on the River. 3rd ed. Boston: McGraw,
In the first scene we observe a Muslim man inside a firearm store, attempting to buy a gun. The owner is a white Caucasian male that presents a negative attitude towards the customer because of his Muslim background. This feeling triggers in the owner, negative attitudes based on the assimilation and stereotypes with the Muslim race. Being immediately associated with the Al Qaeda terrorist group, which was responsible for suicidal bombers that have killed thousand of Americans.
...ent wants to maintain a dominance and superiority over the Oriental. While the desire for dominance may be a true motive in regard to the Occidentalism of Europe in an earlier century, America’s concern appears to be based more on the fear that the Arab wants to take over the world. The oppressive and violent depiction of the behavior of the Arab male stands in total opposition to the American ideals of freedom and liberty. Having fought the attempts of world domination by Germany and Japan, as well as weathering the Cold War, which threatened the world with Communist domination, the Arab appears to be the next enemy on the horizon who threatens freedom and world peace. If the American viewer of Not Without My Daughter believes this movie is an accurate portrait of the Muslim, the viewer probably feels that the Arab is a real threat to world peace and stability.
The narrator alienated himself from friends and family which caused loneliness and despair, being one of the first themes of the story. He developed a crush on Mangan's sister, who is somewhat older than the boys, however he never had the confidence to confess his inner-most feelings to her. Mentally, he began to drift away from his childlike games, and started having fantasies about Mangan's sister in his own isolation. He desperately wanted to share his feelings, however, he didn't know how to explain his "confused adoration." (Joyce 390). Later in the story, she asked him if he was going to Araby, the bazaar held in Dublin, and he replied, "If I go I will bring you something.' (Joyce 390). She was consumed in his thoughts, and all he could think about was the upcoming bazaar, and his latest desire. The boy's aunt and uncle forgot about the bazaar and didn't understand his need to go, which deepened the isolation he felt (Borey).
The historical drama, Lawrence of Arabia, is a reflection of one man’s interpretation of Arab culture during World War I. In Lawrence of Arabia, the director, David Lean, shows the journey of T.E. Lawrence and how he helped defeat the Turkish forces. He uses imagery and specific scenes to convey this idea of British superiority throughout the movie. The direct and indirect use of wells in the movie shows Lean’s interpretation of Arab culture.
In addition, he decided to stay in his hometown Gaza with his family instead. As soon as the reader starts reading the letter in which the narrator addresses Mustafa, it feels as if one is reading a private correspondence between the friends. The narrator is well aware that he may strike Mustafa “as rather odd” (Kanafani 984) when he informs him of the decision not to move to California. The narrator makes up his mind to never leave his homeland despite the fact he is well aware how hazardous it may turn out for him and what opportunities he rejects with his