Identity In The Reluctant Fundamentalist

Who Are You?

When it comes to the topic of identity, what comes up to your mind? To be honest, the concept of identity is really complex. Some might have one, others might have two or more. Everyone is born into different families, communities and cultures with certain values that are naturally inherited. So what defines an identity? This interesting topic is discussed in the 2007 award-winning novel The Reluctant Fundamentalist, written by Mohsin Hamid. Born in Pakistan, Hamid received an education at the Princeton University and got a job from a management decisions evaluating company in New York after he graduated. Hamid chooses to tell his own story by writing the semi-autobiographical novel and names himself Changez. Along with the use

of frame story technique, Changez addresses a dramatic conversation about his migration experience from Pakistan to the states with an American stranger in an ordinary cafe one evening in Lahore, Pakistan. Throughout the novel, Changez struggles from the torment between two cultures, not sure if he should keep both identities–Pakistani and American–or give up one of them; however, towards the end, Changez regards himself as a foreigner and suffers from loneliness.
At the beginning of the novel, Changez feels the excitement when he arrives Princeton University, which is the basic first stage of the cultural adjustment curve.

He tries hard to identify himself as an American by starting off the monologue confidently and tells the stranger that, “I am a lover of America,” (1) where a strong patriotism has been shown here. Furthermore, Changez reveals that he has a strong understanding of the Americans by commenting on the stranger’s appearance and behavior: “your hair, short-cropped and your expansive chest…are typical of a certain type of American; but then again, sportsmen and soldiers of all nationalities tend to look alike. Instead, it was your bearing that allowed me to identify you.” (2) As we continue to read, Changez even emphasizes that he does not feel out of place and separates New York from America, because he finds out the similarities between New York and Lahore, where this connection he feels comfortable: “I was, in four and a half years, never an American; I was immediately a New Yorker.” (33) Even though both statements sound resonant, it contradicts his reactions to 9/11 later in the novel. “I stared as one–and then the other–of the twin towers of New York’s World Trade Center collapsed. And then I smiled. Yes, despicable as it may sound, my initial reaction was to be remarkably pleased.” (72) The italic word ‘smiled’ indicates significantly that Changez is actually still an alien in the United States. Different people

might have different reactions upon 9/11, but Changez’s is an unusual one, and this can be proved from the stranger’s resentment, “Your disgust is evident; indeed, your large hand has, perhaps without your noticing, clenched into a fist.” (72) After 9/11, Changez realizes the changes on other’s attitude towards him, where he starts to be confused about his own identity. He feels criticized from several humiliating experiences because the country seems hostile to him. For instance, “at the airport, I [Changez] was escorted by armed guards into a room where I was made to strip down to my boxer shorts.” (74). Even though Changez spends most of his life time in New York, he flies there and feels “guilty” as people there are no longer treating him well like in the past. Along with all the changes, New York sounds strange to him. He can see that New York is not itself anymore. The people there proclaim that, “We are America–not New York, which, in my opinion, means something quite different–the mightiest civilization the world has ever known; you have slighted us; beware our wrath.” (79) Changez feels frustrated about this and gradually grows discomfort towards America. He recognizes that the city is replaced by another culture–full of judgments and criticisms.
After years of staying in America, Changez returns to Pakistan and becomes a professor at a university at the end of the novel. He escapes from the stereotypes and limitations and finally gets his own freedom, where he finds his true happiness. Even though he is familiar with America and does not seem to be out of place at some point, he reflects upon his unique identity and his perspectives on America:
“I had changed; I was looking about me with the eyes of a foreigner, and not just any foreigner; but that particular type of entitled and unsympathetic American who so annoyed me when I encountered him in the classrooms and workplaces of your country’s elite. This realization angered me; staring at my reflection in the speckled glass of my bathroom mirror I resolved to exorcise the unwelcome sensibility by which I had become possessed.” (124)
Changez describes himself as ‘a foreigner’, which tells the fact that he is not fully into the place because he feels more distant from the country after 9/11 when other’s perspectives have changed. He spends a night considering what he has become after the journey in America: “I was a modern-day janissary, a servant of the American empire at a time when it was invading a country with a kinship to mine and was perhaps even colluding to ensure that my own country faced the threat of war.” (152) Since Changez has a strong bond with Pakistan, he decides to give up his job in New York and return back to his hometown with confidence, using all of his knowledge and experiences gained from Princeton University and his company, Underwood Samson, to save his country. He is proud of his decision because he makes good use of what he learns from education and business, and shares his learnings to his fellow citizens as part of a contribution.
Experiencing the cultural adjustment curve is something normal for a foreigner traveling from one country to another, especially to those need to stay behind for a while.

When encountering multiple identities of oneself, people start to get lost, whether they belong to this and that or in between them. As reflected from the title of this novel, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, ‘reluctant’ means unwilling and hesitated. It is clearly seen that Changez, throughout the whole novel, goes through a couple of striking experiences, where he starts to feel getting farther from the place he stays. This common migration journey is also written in another controversial but inspiring novel, Lucy, written by Jamaica Kincaid in 1990. Similar to Changez, the protagonist, Lucy, is a migrant from the West Indies to America. Both of them have different experiences at first, but they end up identifying themselves as a foreigner and suffer from loneliness. The reason behind this is because the original identity will not be replaced, it could be only added on. Since Changez and Lucy lives in other countries before coming to the United States, some beliefs and values have been naturally formed and inherited to them. This is the core of shaping their true identities. Although they somewhat get used to the American culture, including the people surround them, all of their families and friends are left behind in their home country. Whenever Changez and Lucy are reflecting their own past and future,

they will think of and consider their most important people back in Pakistan and West Indies respectively. Showing the significance of their beloved ones, this is where they could find their true happiness. From the migration experiences, they have grown up a lot and become more mature, and they are always reminded of what their core values are and what are their true identities.