Cultural Hybridity as Perpetuation of Americanization: A Study of the Selected Novels of Mohsin Hamid and Kamila Shamsie

Abstract

Cultural hybridity has prevailed by penetrating its roots in the globalized world. It has influenced the identity of people especially migrants of various countries. Identity in the case of cultural hybridity leads to conflict. Migrants wish to grow by absorbing influences from their own 'roots' but new 'routes' also inspire them. Homi K. Bhabha is of the view that migrants' cultural world changes after crossing the borders; they have an experience of living in an alien culture and thus learn new ideas. He criticizes the idea of a fixed identity which is developed by the migrants' native culture. Bhabha argues that identity is 'hybrid'; it is always in a state of flux because it is constantly in motion, pursuing unpredictable routes. However, Aijaz Ahmad believes that the identity of people does not develop independently. He does not consider cultural hybridity as synonymous with cultural differentials. Bhabha's celebration of hybridity ignores unequal relations of cultural power. He also ignores cultural and historical specifics in his theorization of hybridity. The study is qualitative and is based on interpretive analysis of the novels The Reluctant Fundamentalist and The Burnt Shadows which celebrate hybridity in cultures.  The study unveils unequal relations of cultural power in hybridity.