TRF Flashcards
Whilst ch temporarily fit in on superficial level, deep down he “was X a citizen where [he] belonged”
so he “took on the person of Chris bc [his] own ID was so fragile”
- ch desperate to fit in/ to navigate his SOB Ch must take on the persona of Chris / mirrors ch struggle w nationalism - has to pretend to be someone for E + Am to accept him
- instability in his ID threatens the idea of belonging ☞ remains conflicted / alienation
Ch attempts to create peace by reassuring anonymous Am that he “is a lover of Am” bc Am = fearful of his muslim presence
- implies AM’s has an embedded stereotypical attitude of fear for muslim image
- sense of cultural divide ☞defined as terrorist
- proves that Ch. response is natural and instinctual bc he has experience racial discrimination in past
E fathers’ stereotypical understanding of Pakistan is “typically AM undercurrent of condescension”
-those who seek to belonging in AM must adhere to strict set of ideals or X be accepted
-Ch X escape his RE t/f seen as ▼ in society bc of AM stigma
- “typical” = excuse for the embedded racism + discriminatory behaviour pf AM culture = unavoidable
Mocked w a series of “unintelligible noises”, Ch is accosted by an AM in a parking lot @ work which rebuts him as a “Fucking Arab”
- enraged derogatory remarks to muslim culture= strip CH of SOB to own culture t/f forced to adopt + blend into AM set of standards to avoid foreign labelling
- stereotypical racist Am stigma and personal bias affects how Ch X be accepted in society
- beard = terrorist stereotype ☞ aggravated by a climate of prejudice that manifested from 9-11
E, struck by the nostalgic death of her ex-boyfriend Chris, for Ch consummate his r/ship w her, he must “pretend” to be Chris
- take on persona of CH to feel accepted by E/symbolic to his materalistic ideals of am
- E = nostalgic + fantasied by her r/ship w Chris / symbol AM obsessive return back to Christian values
- CH = buried behind superficial materialistic mask
ch expresses how the AM ideals of equal opportunity is truely realised as yet all his fellow peers at Underwood Samson are seemingly “marvellously diverse” yet they are not, as they all “hailed from the same elite universities”
- elite background bc uni = attended by wealthy/priv/upperclass
- UWS entrance = X a true rep of Am bc have a snobbish/entitled/merit-based stigma
Vice Pres Sherman bolstered appraisal of Underwood Samson who “believe in doing the best” as they are “a meritocracy’.
- am ideal of equal opportunity is rarely truly realised
- claim to be a meritocracy but only recruits from ivy league = unfair
- systems where power is afforded to ppl according to merit ☞power/control/success is awarded to ppl on the basis of talent/ effort of achievement
Shocked with Ch fellow Princeton grads behaviour in Greece, such as the “ease for which they parted w money” and their entitlements which allowed them “conduct themselves as tho they were its ruling class”.
- material process ☞arrogance and greed
- rude/ disrespectful/ ungrateful / entitled
- X have to work for success bc inherited priv & $$
following the destructive attacks on 9/11 ch was drawn to Ams resort to arrogance and self assertion as they proclaimed “we are America […] the mightiest civilisation”, rather than focusing on applying reason to tackle the challenges it now faces
- imperialist ideals are incompatible w espoused values of democracy,freedom and acceptance
- reveals AM= X worthy of admiration but fearful of national takeover - extending its national power
following ch last few days in NY, he recognises how Am “retreated into myths” of their “own superiority”
- when attacked on 9/11 am responded w nostalgia, paranoia and arrogance / X in accordance w the reason AM claims to value
- myths contrast reason - an ideal Am claims
- superiority claims reasonable judgement + promotes exclusion of immigrants and minorities
despite changes desperate attempts to fit into America he still felt “so much closer” to the “Philippine driver” than to his own American colleague - it was if he was “play acting”
- Ch x see himself as am
- recognises light eyes am colleague as foreign ☞ conflicted bc trying to take on x2 Dif personas = foreign to own ID
- ‘play acting’ suggests he constantly has to pull on a fake facade to be accepted into Am = focus should be on accepting himself
INTRO
G/S/T
(G) HISTORY has witness migrant inferiority which has been dominated by prejudice, threatening America.
(S) TENSE yet thought - provoking, Reginald Roses Twelve Angry Men, a drama-filled judicial play, and Mohsin Hamids contemporary novel, The Reluctant Fundamentalist exposes the difficulty to being into Americas materialistic standards.
(T) NOT only do the authors reveal the impact of prejudice and discrimination of minorty groups, they also suggest that this threatens personal identity in society.
