Week 5/Blog 8: "Race, Class and Gender in Postcolonial/Multicultural Britain
The topic for this week was an intriguingly relatable one. Doing the opposite of what your family expects of you, specifically in My Son the Fanatic and The Sermon in the Guava Tree, is common in today's world, but was more taboo in the mid/late twentieth century. Usually the parent gets upset with the child when they decide they want to skip college and become a DJ, tattoo artist, or actor, for example, instead of becoming a doctor or lawyer. What's shocking is when the parent threatens to kick their child out of the house because of religion.
With My Son the Fanatic, by Hanif Kureishi, the idea of a child being more religious and morally aware than the parent(s) is surprising and fascinating. In my opinion, that is typically unheard of. What was fantastic about the way Kureishi wrote this story was how we knew Parvez was concerned about his son, for his actions, but you are confused as to why he is upset - at least I was. When Parvez saw that Ali starting throwing away all the materialistic and unimportant things in his life and left his girlfriend, he was pleased at first, then worried. Most parents would be ecstatic for their kid to be growing up and becoming more mature.
As the story goes on, Parvez realizes, despite the men's suggestion, that Ali is not selling his things for drugs and is, in fact, not doing anything wrong; he was merely improving his religion. This becomes a problem when Ali calls out his father on his drinking, eating pork, and other bad habbits, which Parvez took great offense to.
It is clear that Parvez is not a fan of his son becoming conscientious and abiding the rules of Islam; he feels as if he has been told off by Ali. After he tells Bettina he is willing to pray if that is what Ali wants, he says, "But what I object to is being told by my own son that I am going to hell." What becomes even more clear is why Parvez feels this way. For several reasons, he is not religious. This must guilt him, though not enough to do anything about it, especially when Ali tells him that the way he is living is wrong. Parvez feels that he has worked most of his life and did not get to enjoy many things, therefore he indulges in forbidden amusements. Considering his past experience when studying religion, Parvez is completely turned off. "After this indignity Parvez had avoided all religions." There is also no doubt that before living in England, he felt neglected of life's pleasures and has a resentment toward living as he did before England.
With a completely different perspective that I have not seen before, My Son the Fanatic was a great read that took me by surprise. Seeing the viewpoint of a parent who, in a way, seems intimidated by his own son was eye opening.
Thank you for reading!
- Shaddia
With My Son the Fanatic, by Hanif Kureishi, the idea of a child being more religious and morally aware than the parent(s) is surprising and fascinating. In my opinion, that is typically unheard of. What was fantastic about the way Kureishi wrote this story was how we knew Parvez was concerned about his son, for his actions, but you are confused as to why he is upset - at least I was. When Parvez saw that Ali starting throwing away all the materialistic and unimportant things in his life and left his girlfriend, he was pleased at first, then worried. Most parents would be ecstatic for their kid to be growing up and becoming more mature.
As the story goes on, Parvez realizes, despite the men's suggestion, that Ali is not selling his things for drugs and is, in fact, not doing anything wrong; he was merely improving his religion. This becomes a problem when Ali calls out his father on his drinking, eating pork, and other bad habbits, which Parvez took great offense to.
It is clear that Parvez is not a fan of his son becoming conscientious and abiding the rules of Islam; he feels as if he has been told off by Ali. After he tells Bettina he is willing to pray if that is what Ali wants, he says, "But what I object to is being told by my own son that I am going to hell." What becomes even more clear is why Parvez feels this way. For several reasons, he is not religious. This must guilt him, though not enough to do anything about it, especially when Ali tells him that the way he is living is wrong. Parvez feels that he has worked most of his life and did not get to enjoy many things, therefore he indulges in forbidden amusements. Considering his past experience when studying religion, Parvez is completely turned off. "After this indignity Parvez had avoided all religions." There is also no doubt that before living in England, he felt neglected of life's pleasures and has a resentment toward living as he did before England.
With a completely different perspective that I have not seen before, My Son the Fanatic was a great read that took me by surprise. Seeing the viewpoint of a parent who, in a way, seems intimidated by his own son was eye opening.
Thank you for reading!
- Shaddia