Re-Shaping Arab American Cultural Identity in Diaspora in Ward’s “How We Are Bound” and Darraj’s “The New World”

Year 2014, Volume: 11 Issue: 2, 285 - 295, 01.12.2014

Lamia Khalil Hammad

Abstract

This paper explores two short stories written by two Arab American women writers who expose

the varied experiences and reactions of Arab Americans in diaspora. Patricia Ward's “How We Are Bound”

(1996) and Susan Darraj's “The New World” (2004) are two stories that show how challenges such as

assimilation, generational differences, cultural diversity, and identity questioning are depicted and met by

the Arab American communities. These challenges are approached by relying on Homi Bhabha and Stuart

Hall, as a theoretical framework. This paper argues that the experiences and issues of Arab immigrants

varied from one ethnic community to another-Lebanese American and Palestinian American-yet they

shared the struggles of adapting and embracing a new shape identity due to their need to survive and live

in peace.

Keywords

Arab-American immigrants, diaspora, assimilation, alienation, cultural diversity, identity crisis

Re-Shaping Arab American Cultural Identity in Diaspora in Ward’s “How We Are Bound” and Darraj’s “The New World”

Abstract

References

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