ENGLISH WRITTEN TEST I

OPTION “A”

CORRECTION:

The “Reluctant Fundamentalist” is a novel written in 2007 by Mohsin Hamid. The term “fundamentalist” recalls the word “fundamentalism”: a strict adherence to the basic principles of any doctrine or subject. The adjective, juxtaposed to the word “reluctant”, creates suspense, because the reader wants to know why a Muslim is a reluctant fundamentalist, and so he is motivated to read Hamid’s product.

The work is organized into twelve parts, each with a precise function.

The first part, obviously, introduces the main character, Changez, and the story background. From the second part, the reader starts to know  more about the protagonist, like his relationship with an American woman: Erica.

The third and the fourth parts have the function to narrate the storyline development, from Changez’s feelings about America (“this is a dream come true”), to his relationship with Erica.

From the fifth to the tenth part, the 09/11 attack and its consequences on the characters are told. The attack reminds to Erica of her boyfriend’s death: she starts to become mad, and so she is brought to a mental hospital.

The eleventh and the twelfth parts draw the story conclusion: Changez lets his beard grow (recalling his country costumes) and then he is fired by his boss. After that, he returns to Pakistan to work as a lecturer in a college.

The entire novel unfolds through the narrative strategy of the “dramatic monologue”, which permits to report the conversation between Changez, who narrates hi s story, and an interlocutor (probably an American), who is not able to respond, in the district of Old Anarkali (Pakistan).

On one side, the narrative strategy makes the reader feel the same emotions of the protagonist, because of the presence of only a point of view of the narration.

On the other hand, this narrative strategy doesn’t permit to report the American interlocutor’s point of view, and so, in my opinion, the narrator doesn’t want to give voice to entire America.