In the present text I am going to analyse the character of Mr. Changez, the protagonist of Mohsin Hamid’s “The Reluctant Fundamentalist”.

The narrative technique adopted by the novelist is the dramatic monologue: the narrator, Changez himself, is speaking directly to an anonymous American interlocutor, who has been silenced, so the reader is able to identify with the character and to understand his deep thoughts. Moreover, the first person narrator enhances the protagonist’s  psychological development, which is one of the main features of the novel.

Changez is indeed a round character, since he undergoes a meaningful evolution facing different situations: starting as a Princeton student full of dreams and hopes, he ended returning back to his motherland, Pakistan.

From the very beginning of the story he appears to be a polite man, who always refers to his interlocutor using a formal register (“Excuse me, sir, but may I be of assistance?”). What strikes most the reader is his smartness: he is an acute observer who analyses the reality surrounding him, and an excellent student. Nevertheless, beside his marks at Princeton university, he was selected to join the Underwood Samson firm because of his attitude: he was “hungry”, decided to work hard in order to gain a relevant position in the American system.

Changez came to the US to the purpose of redeem his status (his family was pretty poor indeed), and in fact he managed to conquer a place in the prestigious Underwood Samson, becoming a respected and well-paid man. He had the feeling of finally be part of America’s society, but after the World Trade Centre attack the scenario changed: he realised that even if he worked in a relevant American firm, he would always be a stranger. People started looking at him in a suspicious way, and his family suggested him to shave in order to not be associated to a terrorist. As a sign of protest he decided to let his beard grow, and eventually he returned back to Pakistan with a more wise and sensible attitude, denying the occidental system he wanted desperately to join when younger.