THE CULTURAL CLASH BETWEEN THE BANGLADESHI DETERMINISM AND THE RATIONALISM IN BRICK LANE BY MONICA ALI

Abstract

This article analyzes the cultural clash betwen the rationalism, typical from european culture and the determinism (which is reduced to impotence) by Bangladeshi people, in the novel Brick Lane (2003), by Monica Ali. On the one hand, the determinism instilled in Eastern culture determines what the characters believe to be their choices. On the other hand, the European rationalism turns these characters, especially the female ones. Nazneen, a Bangladeshi woman in her 18 years, educated under the patriarchal mold is an example of determinism in the novel. Her background, her education and social situation in her homeland  determine her life. Thus, at first she is presented as a submissive person, unable to extricate herself from patriarchal heritage and the belief in faith, legacy of her culture. The purpose of this article is to verify how the determinism and the overcoming of faith are represented in this novel, observing the diaspora, process in which the characters from the East come into contact with the West and then with the rationalism. The research methodology consists in theoretical texts which discuss the determinism in opposition to racionalism. The break with tradition and culture, especially the struggle to overcome fate are effective tools for achieving the subjetification process of the female characters. Results show that to integrate into European culture, the characters chosen  for this analysis must leave the determinism and build their personal history or community one. Keywords: determinism; european rationalism; overcoming the destiny; BRICK LANE.