Challenging Post 9/11 Stereotypes In Lorraine Adams' Harbor (2004)

Abstract

Post 9/11 American fiction is highly characterized by Orientalist stereotyping which is most apparent in key American novels of that period. Although Islam and Muslims have often been viewed in stereotypical ways by Western literature, it seems that the 9/11 events have strengthened the old Orientalist discourse. In the light of Edward Said’s Orientalism, this article seeks to elaborate on the positive image of the Muslim characters in Lorraine Adams’ Harbor (2004). By referring to key novels in post 9/11 American fiction such as John Updike’s Terrorist, Don Delillo’s Falling Man and Sherry Jones’ A Jewel of Medina, we would like to demonstrate that Lorraine Adams’ Harbor opposes the demonization of Muslims extensively set in the Western imagination in the aftermath of 9/11