Family's influence on the integration of second-generation immigrants in Le thé au harem d'Archi Ahmed and The Buddha of Suburbia

Abstract

Postcolonial writing, centered on immigration led to the emergence of a subgenre known as "migrant literature," which focuses on the narratives of immigrant communities. These immigrants' and particularly their children's struggle to integrate into their host society is a recurrent theme in the novels of the writers like Mehdi Charef, Hanif Kureishi, etc, who are coming from migrant backgrounds. How families could influence and be involved in the integration process of the second-generation immigrants is selected as the primary objective of this research. The study focused on two migrant literature novels: the French novel, Le thé au harem d'Archi Ahmed (1983) by Mehdi Charef and the English novel, The Buddha of Suburbia (1990) by Hanif Kureishi. A comparative study was carried out to answer the question, "In the novels Le thé au harem d'Archi Ahmed and The Buddha of Suburbia, how does the family influence the integration of the second-generation immigrants?" Taking place in the 1970s in the suburbs of Paris and London, these stories revolve around the lives of two teenage boys, named Madjid and Karim, descendants from Pakistan and Algerian origins. The family situations of the two protagonists were carefully examined employing qualitative methodology and studying secondary sources. The findings of the research revealed that the integration of the two protagonists is affected by two main family-related aspects: parental roles and family culture. Due to the parents' various personality defects, their behaviors caused a significant mental disruption in their children's integration effort. Study on the family cultures indicated that these adolescents gradually assimilated into the European culture by disassociating from their parents' culture. In conclusion, the study demonstrates that the psychological stability required for a successful integration and the sense of belonging of the two adolescents are significantly affected by their families.