Twentieth International Conference on New Directions in the Humanities

Abstract

This paper studies the notion of diaspora as a term, as an identity, and as a cultural connotation to explore the ways in which it is represented across The Inheritance (2005) by Sahar Khalifeh and Crescent (2003) by Diana Abu-Jaber. Writing under the genre of contemporary, women’s, Arab-American literature, Abu-Jaber and Khalifeh offer an intriguing re-examination of the influences of (old) diaspora on contemporary or new generations of Arab-Americans by revisiting some of the details and discussions that take place within the private spheres i.e., the household, to highlight the impacts of some of the conversations that occur at home on new Arab-Americans’ integration within the larger American society. Among the battles that the authors emphasize on are those around self-worth, self-identification, and belonging. New Arab-Americans are shown to be constantly surrounded by cultural and ideological clashes due to the binaries across [their] Arab and their American identities. This paper tries to focus on narrative features such as dialogue and characterization, features that are unfortunately usually neglected but are crucial in understanding Arab-American communities and possibly other sub-communities. The reason behind studying these features is to signify the power of the private domain and its ability to affect new Arab-Americans and perhaps other cross-cultural individuals, in their ability to truly develop an identity, access a sense of belonging, and build a home.