Character Analysis: The Reluctant Fundamentalist

While I previously viewed the Muslim form of veiling as misogynistic and compulsory; however, Tamira Stephens describes that certain American Muslims see it as empowering (Stephens pg. 5). Furthermore, despite the common belief as veiling being particular to Muslims, Tamira Stephens also reports through her essay that even “more American” subcultures (the Amish) have a form of this practice much closer to my perception of misogyny (cite). Though Stephens’ comparison of the Amish and American Muslim veil serves as a means to subdue any negative stereotypes surrounding the Muslim practice, Stephens’ description of this Islamic practice of veiling can also serve as a testament to the positive effects of pluralism and equality in the United States.

For Najmah, the Taliban has indirectly made her shave her head in order to become a “boy” so she wasn't targeted. Nusrat was thinking about all that Najmah has had to go through and says “it's hard to imagine the terrible things she has seen. It is too difficult to visualize a girl of this age making her way to Pakistan alone on foot, dressed as a boy” (208). The Taliban has put horrible and unimaginable images into Nur’s head that he won't ever forget. Nur describes what happened to Baba-jan and says “we heard gunshots- very close together” (254).

The assigned reading for chapter 6, Testimony by Sonny Singh is a firsthand account of the author as he fell victim to the prejudice towards certain racial and ethnic groups that followed the events of September 11,2001. Sonny Singh belongs to an ethnic group called Sikhs which are very identifiable because of their appearances. Most Sikh men wear a turban and have beards. This is a religious requirement for them and they consider it a matter of faith and prestige. In this article, the author has mentioned various instances where he has faced prejudice by strangers even years after the 9/11 attack and how it affects his everyday life as an educator and musician.

Samira Ahmed’s realistic fiction novel, Love, Hate, and Other Filters, takes place in modern-day Chicago where a suicide bombing has engrossed the attention of America. Maya Aziz, a Muslim teenager, is targeted for her heritage while attempting to lead a life free of high school drama, controlling parents, and difficult relationships. As Maya copes with Islamophobia, prejudice against Muslims, she begins to understand the horrors and shortcomings of violence. One lesson the story suggests is that hatred is an infectious and blinding motive. From the very beginning of the story, readers are familiarized with the source of terrorism through thorough description and sentence structure.

The National Honors Society places a strong emphasis on the cornerstone traits of character, leadership, and service within the school and outside of school. I have met, and exceeded these qualities by being honest, assisting others, and participating in school activities. My character has always been an important aspect within my life. This is because character is comprised of honesty, selflessness, and compassion. No matter what the situation is, it has always been important to me to be honest with not just those around me, but with myself.

He is the first person to read and praise Amir’s stories, something that has great impact on Amir. Through simple yet genuine remarks, Rahim is able to “encourage [Amir] to pursue writing [more] than any compliment” has done, indicating the value of his words in Amir’s eyes, and the strong bond that the two share (Hosseini 14). As Amir transitions into adulthood, Rahim’s role in the friendship shifts into someone who must push Amir to do what is best. He understands that the only way to convince Amir to go back to Afghanistan is through painful reminders of the past, demonstrated through telling Amir that “there is a way to be good again”, and by questioning Amir’s courage, accusing Amir of being a “man who can’t stand up to anything” (Hosseini 2, 233). In contrast, Rahim also exhibits a sense of tenderness and caring when needed.

I was at a soccer game in Ghazi Stadium in 1998 . . . and by the way, the players weren’t allowed to wear shorts . . . Anyway, Kabul scored a goal and the man next to me cheered loudly. Suddenly this young bearded fellow who was patrolling the aisles, eighteen years old at most by the look of him, he walked up to me and struck me on the forehead with the butt of his Kalashnikov’” (Hosseini 199).

This discrimination has become built into society and effects everyday life. As Pashtuns, Amir and Baba have the opportunities to receive an education and start their own business. While the Hazaras, Hassan and Ali, may only work as servants. This discrimination brought on by social hierarchy causes isolation, violence, and guilt, to those surrounded by it throughout the book. These ideas are caused by discrimination and are explored through Amir’s experiences in the book.

Stephanie Plum, Morelli, and Ranger are three main characters in the book, One for the Money, by Janet Evanovich. Stephanie is a young woman struggling to get by in the city of Trenton, New Jersey. After losing her job, she goes against her family’s request and gets the dangerous job of a bounty hunter. She gets assigned Joe Morelli, who was accused of murder and who happened to be a childhood enemy. Stephanie is very inexperienced and receives help from a professional bounty hunter, Ranger.

Religion has been the cause of different outbreaks such as ‘The Crusades’ and several terrorist attacks which date not very far away from today and more relevant to this topic the Iranian Revolution, but how can this “collection of beliefs” be the reason for someone to change their way of thinking, especially in such a religious country like Iran. The story of Persepolis, written by Marjane Satrapi tells us the story of her life in Iran before and after the revolution showing us the different ‘personalities’ she goes through, from innocent girl to a disaffected teenager. In this story Satrapi exploits different themes such as the heterogeneity in regions with Iran and the rest of the world, warfare and politics but one that stands out and is presented through the whole book is religion. Religion is portrayed as an excuse to start a conflict and it shows the personal development of characters, in this case the protagonist Marji.

Therefore, Islamophobia has reached a point where people start discriminating non-Muslims because they look like they are Muslim! Recently, Islamophobia researchers interviewed non-Muslim, South Asian men with beards about their experiences of Islamophobia. According to one of them,

Changez grows out his beard in an unconscious way to show pride of Pakistan, and he shows aggression towards the people who confront him with rude comments on the street. Towards the conclusion of the novel, Changez returns to Pakistan and teaches in an Anti-American way, which ends his internal struggle that was presented since he arrived in the United

It is possible to say that a stereotype is nothing more than a weapon. It exists merely in thought, but is able to hurt a person as well as a nation. Yet, it is what many people believe to be true, even despite the overwhelming lack of evidence. One of the more accepted stereotypes are those of the people of Iran, in Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis, the author tries to redefine Iranian stereotypes by illustrating that when individuals and their hopes are taken into account, stereotypes are not as simple as they seem. Throughout the book, Satrapi portrays, dispels, confirms, and challenges stereotypes all to show that people are much deeper than stereotypes and to get to that truth, sometimes rejecting stereotypes is necessary.

3: Characters The characters in the book, The Unspoken, by Thomas Fahy, are all very important to the book. Without each of the characters, the book wouldn 't be as good as it is. Some of the people in the book that were important were Jacob, one of the antagonists. Allison, the main character and protagonist, and The Doctor, a hidden man gone bad.

The readers can see the transition of cultural background by noticing details within the image, for example, character’s clothing and how they dress themselves up. The transition of clothing and fashion represent cultural backgrounds that create struggles for Marjane and her search in self identity. The necessity of Iranian girls wearing veils indicates the regime taking over Iranian society further effect Marjane’s belief towards her identity. The first part of the book presents the background history of this graphic novel by saying, “In 1979 a revolution took over place.