Multiculturalism and Magic Realism in Zadie Smith’s novel White Teeth: Between Fiction and Reality

Hadjetian, Sylvia

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Multiculturalism and Magic Realism in Zadie Smith’s novel White Teeth: Between Fiction and Reality

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English Language and Literature Studies - Literature

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1. Introduction

Since the 1970s, there has been increasing concern with the impact of colonialism and

postcolonialism

on British

identities and culture and the influence that the former British

Empire

still has on people in the former colonies and in Britain today

. Novels like Salman

Rushdie's Midnight's Children

or The Satanic Verses

, Hanif Kureishi's The Buddha of Subur-

bia

, Meera Syal's Anita and Me

, Timothy Mo's Sour Sweet

, Sam Selvon's The Lonely Lon-

doners

and Monica Ali's Brick Lane

along with films like Bend it like Beckham

or TV series

like The Kumars at No. 42

and Da Ali G Show

exemplify this rather new phenomenon and its

world-wide

success. The books are representative of a large group of multicultural

novels and

productions created during the last few decades. Although multiculturalism is not new in the

media, there has been a special boom of writers of the "empire within"

during the last ten years.

The terms 'colonialism' and 'postcolonialism' will be discussed in more depth in chapters 2 and 3.1.

The word 'British' can be used in several different ways. Very generally speaking, it refers to the people of Great

Britain. In this book, the term shall refer to multicultural Britain and includes immigrants from the first genera-

tion who immigrated to Britain as well as to the second and third generations who were born in Britain and who

have British passports. Although they have no British origins, most members of the third and second generation

quite rightly consider themselves British.

The British Empire was the world's largest empire and first global power. By 1921, it ruled roughly a quarter of the

world's population and covered 24% of the world's land area (cf. "British Empire," Wikipedia. The Free Encyclo-

pedia, 17 July 2005, Wikimedia Foundation Inc., St. Petersburg, Florida, 2 Aug. 2005

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_empire>).

Cf. Michael Meyer, English and American Literatures (Tübingen and Basel: A. Francke Verlag, 2004) 144.

Salman Rushdie, Midnight's Children (London: Picador, 1981).

Salman Rushdie, The Satanic Verses (Dover and Delaware: The Consortium, 1992).

Hanif Kureishi, The Buddha of Suburbia (London: Faber and Faber Limited, 1990).

Meera Syal, Anita and Me (London: Flamingo, 1996).

Timothy Mo, Sour Sweet (London: Paddleless Press, 1999).

Sam Selvon, The Lonely Londoners, 19

ed. (New York: Longman Publishing Group, 2001). This novel, first

published in 1956, is one of the first multicultural novels ever written and is set in London, the centre of the

former Empire.

Monica Ali, Brick Lane (London: Black Swan, 2004).

Bend it like Beckham, writ. by Gurinder Chadha, Guljit Bindra, and Paul Mayeda Berges, dir. Gurinder Chadha,

perf. Parminder K. Nagra, Keira Knightely, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Archie Panjabi, and Anupam Khe, The

Works, 2002.

The Kumars At No 42, writ. by Richard Pinto, Sharat Sardana, and Sanjeev Bhaskar, dir. Lissa Evans, and Nick

Wood, perf. Sanjeev Bhaskar, Vincent Ebrahim, and Indira Joshi, Hat Trick Productions, 2001.

Da Ali G Show, writ. by Sacha Baron Cohen, and Dan Mazer, dir. Mark Mylod, prod. Peter Fincham Perf. Ali G,

Borat Sagdiyev, and Bruno, Teale Edwards Productions, 2000.

Although the multicultural novels and productions mentioned were based in Britain, they are also a huge success

in other countries like Germany or the USA as their topics have certain relevance for other multicultural coun-

tries. Another reason for its success is their wit and style; this will be discussed in greater depth in chapter 5.3.

The terms 'multicultural' and 'multiculturalism' will be explained in more detail in chapter 3.2.

This expression refers to the title of an essay by Rushdie (cf. Salman Rushdie, "The New Empire Within Britain."

Imaginary Homelands: Essays and Criticism 19811991 (London: Granta Books, 1991) 129-138).

Not wanting to be part of this trend, Zadie Smith, the author of White Teeth

, just decided

to write a comical novel whose protagonists were not solely white. As White Teeth combines

multiculturalism, magic realism

and the search for identity, the novel serves as the basis of this

book.

For Smith, multiculturalism in London is nothing new; it is the norm. As she explains her-

self: "I wasn't trying to write about race. I was trying to write about the country I live in."

However, the book became one of the best novels dealing with multiculturalism

. It was trans-

lated into more than twenty languages

and was adapted for the screen by Channel 4 for a

television series

. The novel won several prizes and awards, among them the Whitbread First

Novel Award, the Guardian First Book Prize, the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for Fiction,

two Ethnic and Multicultural Media Awards and the Los Angeles Times Book Awards, to name

but a few

Zadie Smith was born in the north-west London borough of Brent in 1975

. The daughter

of a black

Jamaican and a white English man, she grew up in the multicultural community of

Willesden Green and still lives in her home city

. Her novel is set mostly in this area which will

Zadie Smith, White Teeth (London: Penguin Books, 2000).

Cf. Nina Shen Rastogi, Zadie Smith's 'White Teeth' (New York: Barnes and Noble Books, 2003) 32.

Chris Jones, "From Willesden to Whitbread," rev. of White Teeth, by Zadie Smith, BBC News UK, 6 Jan. 2001,

BBC, London, 16 Aug. 2005 <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1102556.stm>.

Even before it was published, the novel was praised by Salman Rushdie as "astonishingly assured" (Jones).

Cf. Susanne Cuevas, "Ground-Breaking Fictions. Black British Novels at the Beginning of the New Millennium,"

Hard Times. Deutsch-Englische Zeitschrift 77 (2004) 19.

White Teeth, writ. by Zadie Smith, adapt. Simon Burke, dir. Julian Jarrold, perf. Omi Puri, Phil Davis, Archie

Panjabi, Naomie Harris, and Christopher Simpson, Company Pictures, 2002.

Cf. Claire Squires, Zadie Smith's 'White Teeth': A Reader's Guide (London: Continuum 2002) 80-81.

She studied English Literature at King's College, Cambridge (cf. Squires 10) and started writing White Teeth just

before her final exams (cf. Squires 14). The novel developed out of Smith's short story "Mrs. Begum's Son and

the Private Tutor" which is narrated by the private tutor Alex Pembrose in multicultural Willesden Green. Simi-

larities can be found between the novel and the short story. One of Alex's students is called Magid and his moth-

er's name is Alsana Begum which is the maiden name of Alsana in White Teeth. Both women have two sons,

Magid and self-named Mark, who is, like Millat in White Teeth, a lady-killer, anglicised and an Islamic funda-

mentalist (cf. Zadie Smith, "Mrs. Begum's Son and the Private Tutor." The May Anthology of Oxford and Cam-

bridge Short Stories, ed. Martha Kelly (Oxford and Cambridge: Varsity Publications Ltd and Cherwell Oxford

Student Publications Ltd, 1997) 89-113); Smith was inspired to write the novel by her father. When she got to

know that her parents met at a party, she could not imagine her father at a party. So she had to write about it

which became the scene where Archie meets Clara. The whole novel expanded from that event (cf. Eithne Farry,

"Cultural Forces," Amazon UK, London, 16 Aug. 2005 <http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/tg/feature/-

/25895/202-6917882-3809409>). Smith is now pursuing an academic career at Harvard University (cf. Cuevas

19).

Smith is sometimes labelled a Black British writer. The term stands for a literary and academic category of writers

who are British residents of the first or second generation with South Asian, African or Caribbean origins (cf.

John Clement Ball, Imagining London: Postcolonial Fiction and the Transnational Metropolis (Toronto, Buffalo

et al.: University of Toronto Press, 2004) 246). But Smith rejects this label because she wanted to write a novel

that went beyond her personal demographics (cf. Squires 77-78).

Cf. Squires 7. Although Smith denies autobiographical features in the novel, her character Irie is often compared to

her as both are half-English and half-Jamaican, live in Willesden Green and experienced the same problems.

Where obvious, remarks about similarities will be made in the analysis of the novel (cf. Squires 9).

be described in more detail in chapter 4.2. White Teeth is the first novel from this young writer

and has been praised by readers and critics alike for its themes, humour and magic, its various

characters and the multicultural presentation of Britain's capital.

The main protagonist of her second novel called The Autograph Man

is a Chinese-

Jewish autograph dealer. The novel is set in London and New York and deals with identity, idols,

pop culture and religion. Smith's third novel is shortlisted for the Booker Prize 2005. On Beauty

is the comic story of two very different families in Massachusetts. It deals with issues of class,

adultery, race, nationality, multicultural identity crises, interracial conflicts and religion. The

novel unites Caribbeans, Afro-Americans and Britons and resembles in its style the author's first

novel

White Teeth, which appeared in the spring of 2000

, is the story of three families from

three different cultural backgrounds, the British-Jamaican Jones', the Bangladeshi Iqbals and the

Jewish-Catholic Chalfens, set mostly in multicultural London and told mainly between 1974 and

1992 but also during the Second World War and before. In total, there is a time span of 143 years

in the novel

. The literary genre of White Teeth is magic realism

. As the plot of the novel is

quite complex and long, a summary of it is necessary to familiarise the reader with the main

events and the relationships between the characters.

The English Archie Jones wants to take his own life after the divorce from his Italian wife

Ophelia but is saved by the halal butcher Mo. Afterwards, he meets the Jamaican Clara Bowden

at a Jehovah's Witness party and marries her a short time later. Archie's friend Samad Iqbal from

Bangladesh, whom he met in a British tank during the Second World War somewhere in Bulgar-

ia, immigrates to London with his wife Alsana. Samad and Alsana have twins, Millat and Magid,

and the Jones' a daughter called Irie. The children become friends and share the experience of

growing up as second-generation immigrants in multicultural London. In the process of the plot,

Magid is sent to Bangladesh in order to become a good Muslim and Irie falls in love with Millat

who becomes a fundamentalist. The whole story gets even more complex when the white middle

class Chalfens who behave like colonisers with their arrogance and intolerance are introduced. In

the end, all three families are united by the project of the geneticist Marcus Chalfen and themes

like history, fate, religion and identity are intertwined.

Zadie Smith, The Autograph Man (London: Penguin Books, 2002).

Zadie Smith, On Beauty (London: Hamish Hamilton, 2005).

Besides the three novels, Smith has published short stories, an introduction to Lewis Carroll, has edited a

collection of erotica and has worked in journalism (cf. Squires 20).

Cf. Rastogi 1.

Cf. chapter 3.3.

The first part of this book provides an overview of the former British Empire, the Com-

monwealth and the history of Bangladesh, Jamaica and the Jews in England as relevant to White

Teeth. Following this, the role of the (former) centre of London

, also important for the analysis

of the novel, will be presented. Subsequently, definitions and postcolonial theories shall be

discussed which will be used in the following analysis.

The focus of this book is on life in multicultural London for first and second generation

immigrants as it is presented in the novel. The main aspects analysed in these chapters deal with

identity, the location where the novel is set and racism. A further aim of the book is a comparison

between the fictional world of White Teeth and reality. A chapter in its own is devoted to the

question of magic realism and the novel's position between two worlds.

In a summary of the most important aspects, the writer of this book hopes to convince the

readers of the fascination felt when reading the novel and when plunging into the buzzing streets

of contemporary multicultural London.

London continues to be the centre of immigration although the British Empire does not exist any more.

2. Britain and Immigration

Immigration to Britain is not a new phenomenon. The flow of ethnic groups, from which

the present British population originates, has a long history. The country has seen waves of

immigration of different ethnic groups for centuries. Invaders like the Anglo-Saxons and Nor-

mans successively populated the country as well as the Irish, for example, as a result of the

famines in Ireland in the 19th century. This has to be kept in mind when talking about immigra-

tion to Britain and its population as it is composed today.

The success of the novel considered in this book cannot be understood without any

knowledge of the history of immigration and certain ethnic minorities

in Britain, especially

since the end of World War II

, as the themes dealt with in the book are closely interlinked with

that period of British history. This chapter will give an overview of selected aspects of this

phenomenon

2.1 Britain and Colonialism

Because of its period of colonial expansion, Britain has had, for several centuries, a tradi-

tion of immigration which is reflected nowadays in its multicultural population

. But what

happened during the period of colonialism for it to result in cultural pluralism in Britain?

Colonialism refers to the seizure of foreign territories by imperial powers like Britain. The

inhabitants of these countries are either expelled or suppressed, the land populated with colonis-

ers and the economy exploited. The political power of the colonisers expands to their colonies

and the colonisers decide on political issues, the education system and culture. The traditions of

the local people are often forbidden or alienated.

Britain expanded its territories and colonies overseas from the 16

century with a climax

at the end of the 19

century

. Independence began mainly after World War II when most

British possessions were decolonised and then founded their own states

. As a consequence, the

A definition of this term will be given in chapter 3.2.1.3.

2.5 million people from India fought in the Second World War for the British Empire compared to 1.4 million in the

First World War. Many Punjabis fought for Britain who later decided to settle down in 'the mother country' (cf.

Britain and the Commonwealth. Central Office for Information Reference Pamphlet (London: HMSO, 1985) 79).

Only the most important events are mentioned as a detailed presentation of the former colonies' histories would go

beyond the scope of this book.

Cf. Rolf Bischoff, Gegenwart und Geschichte des englischen Schulsystems (Marburg: Tectum Verlag, 2001) 63.

Cf. Eberhard Kreutzer, "Kolonialismus," Metzler Lexikon. Literatur- und Kulturtheorie: Ansätze-Personen-

Grundbegriffe, 2

rev.,

ed. Ansgar Nünning (Stuttgart and Weimar: Verlag J. B. Metzler, 2001) 317.

Cf. Kreutzer, "Kolonialismus" 317.

Empire

came to a complete end in the 1960s

. But most of the former colonies now belong to

the Third World

and are members of the Commonwealth of Nations, a voluntary association of

49 independent states which has evolved from the former British Empire

. Its aims are to aid

these countries and to promote international understanding, mutual co-operation and consultation

among governments and scientific co-operation

. Although there are no obligations concerning

the education systems in the former colonies, there is a common tradition of English being the

language of instruction at school

2.2 White Teeth and Immigration

As White Teeth is mainly the story of immigrants from the former colonies Bangladesh

and Jamaica, which are both today Commonwealth member states, and of Jews from Poland, the

following chapter deals with a short overview of the history of these countries and of Jews in

England as relevant to the novel.

2.2.1 The History of Jamaica

Irie, one of the main characters of the novel, is half-Jamaican and half-English. Her Ja-

maican mother Clara, Jamaica itself, its history and people play a crucial role in White Teeth.

Jamaica is the third largest island in the Caribbean Sea with approximately 2.6 million in-

habitants and its capital is called Kingston

. The island became independent on 6 August 1962

Queen Elizabeth II is head of state in Jamaica

and due to the British influence during colonial-

ism, its official language is English

. Jamaican Common Law is also influenced by the British

The Empire consisted of Britain and its colonies.

Cf. Peter J. Marshall, "1918 to the 1960s: Keeping Afloat." The Cambridge Illustrated History of the British Empire,

ed. Peter J. Marshall (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001) 105.

'Third World' was a term originally used to distinguish nations that neither aligned with the West nor with the East

during the Cold War. Today, however, the term is used to denote nations with the smallest UN Human Development

Index in the world. Many Third World countries are located in Africa, Latin America, and Asia. They are often

nations that were colonised by another nation in the past. In general, they are not as industrialised or technologically

advanced as other countries and have a poor infrastructure (cf. "Third World," Wikipedia. The Free Encyclopedia, 15

July 2005, Wikimedia Foundation Inc., St. Petersburg, Florida, 2 Aug 2005

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_world>).

Cf. Britain and the Commonwealth. Central Office for Information Reference Pamphlet 1.

Cf. Jürgen Bellers, Die Auflösung des Commonwealth und die Entstehung der britischen Entwicklungspolitik (Siegen:

Universität GH Siegen, 2002) 4.

Cf. Britain and the Commonwealth. Central Office for Information Reference Pamphlet 21.

"Jamaika", Dtv Lexikon in 20 Bänden, vol. 9 (Munich: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag, 1999) 57.

Cf. Britain and the Commonwealth. Central Office for Information Reference Pamphlet 3.

Cf. Britain and the Commonwealth. Central Office for Information Reference Pamphlet 6.

Cf. "Jamaika", Dtv Lexikon in 20 Bänden 57.

system

. Over 97% of the population are Blacks and mulattos; the remainder are mainly Indians,

Whites and Chinese and the majority of Jamaicans are Protestants

The island was discovered by Christopher Columbus on 3 May 1494

but conquered by

the English under Admiral Sir William Penn in 1655

. It became one of the largest American

markets for the slave trade at the end of the 17

century but the slaves were liberated in 1834

After several mutinies, it became a crown colony

at the end of the 19

century

. The constitu-

tions of 1944 and 1953 set up complete self-government and in 1958, Jamaica joined the Federa-

tion of the West Indies

but opted out in 1961

. On 6 August 1962, the country became an

independent member of the Commonwealth

2.2.2 The History of Bangladesh

The Bangladeshi Muslim Samad and his wife Alsana, also from Bangladesh, along with

their twin sons, who were born in London, are major characters in the book.

Concerning the history of Bangladesh, one has to look first at India and Pakistan. From

about 1940 on, the Moslem League in India worked for the creation of Pakistan

. This was

especially the case in the mainly Moslem-inhabited parts of India and their aim was achieved

against the strong opposition of the Indian National Congress on 15 August 1947 when India was

partitioned

. The principally Hindu West stayed with India and the mainly Islamic part of

Bengal

came to Pakistan

and formed East Pakistan

. Starting in the mid 1960s, people

became dissatisfied with the central Pakistani government in West Pakistan and demanded

Cf. "Jamaika", Dtv Lexikon in 20 Bänden 57.

Cf. Sigfrid Henry Steinberg and I. H. Evans, eds. 2

ed. Steinberg's Dictionary of British History (Port Melbourne:

Edward Arnold Ltd., 1970) 189.

Cf. Steinberg 189.

A 'crown colony' is ruled directly by the British government and does not have its own government (cf. "Crown

Colony," Tiscali. Reference. Hutchinson's Encyclopedia, 2005, Tiscali UK Ltd, London, 4 Aug 2005

<http://www.tiscali.co.uk/reference/encyclopaedia/hutchinson/m0019907.html>).

Cf. "Jamaika", Dtv Lexikon in 20 Bänden 57.

The Federation of the West Indies existed from 1958 to 1962. It consisted of former Caribbean colonies of Britain. It

started to fall apart in 1961 when the largest province Jamaica opted out (cf. "Federation of the West Indies,"

Wikipedia. The Free Encyclopedia, 20 July 2005, Wikimedia Foundation Inc., St. Petersburg, Florida, 6 Aug 2005

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federation_of_the_West_Indies>).

Cf. Steinberg 189.

Cf. Steinberg 264.

Bengal is the area in the north-east of India and its inhabitants are called Bengalis. Politically speaking, the

Western part belongs to India, the East forms Bangladesh. In 1757, the region became British territory but British

business establishments have existed there since 1650 (cf. "Bengalen", Dtv Lexikon in 20 Bänden, vol. 2 (Mu-

nich: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag, 1999) 188).

After its independence, Pakistan became a member of the Commonwealth as well.

independence

. With the help of India, East Pakistan, which was then called Bangladesh,

seceded from Pakistan as an independent republic on 16 December 1971 and was recognised by

Britain on 4 February 1972

. It became a member of the Commonwealth on 18 April 1972

The official language is Bengali

but English is used for business. The state religion is Islam

and the capital is Dacca

. The country is often the victim of monsoons, tropical tornadoes and

floods

. The inhabitants are mainly Bengalis and the head of state is the president

. The country

has an important port in Chittagong

2.2.3 The History of Jews in Britain

Jews

from Eastern Europe also play an important role in White Teeth as the only white

family is Jewish-Catholic.

They started to arrive in England in 1700

. After 1850, immigration increased from East-

ern Europe although the Jews had to endure periods of anti-Semitism in England

. However, the

Jewish Relief Act in 1858 guaranteed them full emancipation

. The first mass emigration from

Eastern Europe took place between 1881 and 1914. Many Jews wanted to leave the Russian

Empire

after Czar Alexander II was assassinated in 1881 and pogroms started in Eastern

European countries against the Jewish population

. Most Jews went to the British capital and

began moving to north-west London

by the 1870s and later on to the East End

. Because of the

high immigration by Jews, the Aliens Immigration Act of 1905 was introduced to restrict the

Cf. "Bangladesch", Dtv Lexikon in 20 Bänden, vol. 2 (Munich: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag, 1999) 94.

Cf. "Bangladesch", Dtv Lexikon in 20 Bänden 94.

Cf. Britain and the Commonwealth. Central Office for Information Reference Pamphlet 4.

Bengali is a New Indian language spoken in Western Bengal (India) and Bangladesh by more than 100 million

people (cf. "Bengali", Dtv Lexikon in 20 Bänden, vol. 2 (Munich: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag, 1999) 188).

The Muslims conquered the region around 1200 and expelled the Buddhist religion (cf. "Bengalen", Dtv Lexikon

in 20 Bänden 188).

Cf. "Bangladesch", Dtv Lexikon in 20 Bänden 94.

Jews can be regarded as a race or as a religious community.

Cf. Vivian D. Lipman, A History of the Jews in Britain since 1858 (Leicester and London: Leicester University

Press, 1990) 4.

Cf. Lipman 12.

Cf. Steinberg 190-191.

Cf. Lipman 13.

Cf. Lipman 43-44.

Cf. Lipman 14.

Cf. Lipman xii.

numbers

. Due to anti-Semitism in central Europe, even more Jewish immigrants came to

Britain during the Second World War.

2.2.4 Reasons for Immigration

Britain and especially London, the former centre of the Empire, became multicultural

mainly by the arrival of immigrants who left their countries, mostly for political, demographic or

economic reasons, in the search for freedom and a better standard of living

. Some general push-

factors

were political suppression, war, persecution, poverty, bad working conditions and

natural disasters

. Pull-factors

included religious and political freedom, a larger job market and

financial gain

. People from former colonies were especially attracted by London and Britain in

general as they already had a special cultural, political and economic relationship to it.

The immigrants in White Teeth came to Britain mainly after World War II and reasons for

immigration after 1945 were various.

In the aftermath of the war, Britain itself encouraged

labourers from overpopulated and underemployed Commonwealth countries to immigrate

because it needed cheap workers to fill the heavy labour shortage in semi-skilled and non-skilled

vacancies, to rebuild the war-shattered economy and to reconstruct the country

. Most of the

immigrants worked in the National Health Service, public transport or in the manufacturing

service

. Many of them got only low-paid manual jobs

and became victims of discriminatory

practices

. Their influx was made increasingly difficult, when the voices against such immi-

grants grew stronger.

2.2.5 Effects of Immigration on Britain

British society has undergone a considerable change of its composition in the past fifty

years which is also one of the themes in Smith's novel.

Cf. Peter J. Marshall, "Imperial Britain." The Cambridge Illustrated History of the British Empire, ed. Peter J.

Marshall (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001) 333.

Cf. Tariq Modood and Richard Berthoud, eds. Ethnic Minorities in Britain. Diversity and Disadvantage (London:

PSI Policy Studies Institute, 1997) 83.

A 'push-factor' is something that forces someone to move out of a certain area.

Cf. Modood 83.

A 'pull-factor' is something that draws someone to a certain area.

Cf. Modood 83.

Cf. Sheila Patterson, Immigration and Race Relations in Britain 1960-1967 (London and Oxford: Oxford

University Press, 1969) 1.

Cf. Modood 82.

Cf. Modood 84.

One of the major reasons for the relatively sudden commencement of colonial immigra-

tion was the changing relationship between the centre of the former Empire and its periphery

due to the process of decolonisation and labour shortage in Britain. Unexpected high numbers of

immigrants came to Great Britain from the 1950s

. The traditional population, which had been

rather homogeneous until then, was confronted with people from former colonies whose identi-

ties seemed anything but British. Since then, the proportion of non-white Britons in the popula-

tion has risen steadily. The rise of foreigners has from the very beginning been regarded as a

problem

. This problem is called "an inheritance of empire"

. The Empire is said to be "striking

back"

and haunts Britain with its legacy. The negative reception which the immigrants experi-

enced can be explained by Britain's imperial past and the British feeling of superiority

. The

Empire affected Britain's identity and society as it helped to define Britishness

and the British

were proud of it

100

. Due to "the voyage in"

101

of thousands of immigrants, the national self-image

of a white British nation became increasingly problematic. At present, British self-understanding

is undergoing a shift away from the traditional viewpoint to an awareness of changed circum-

stances.

The British immigration policy since 1945 was subject to many changes during the fol-

lowing years.

In 1948, the British Nationality Act came into existence which provided free entry

to people from the former colonies but it was reconsidered in the 1950s. In 1962, a law that

restricted entry was passed by the British government, followed by a second one in 1968

102

Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, many different Race Relations Acts

103

were passed in order to

control immigration and to fight against discrimination. This led to a near standstill of immigra-

'Periphery' refers to the British colonies.

Cf. Marshall, "Imperial Britain" 318.

Marshall, "Imperial Britain" 318.

One quote by Robert Southey demonstrates well the British feeling of superiority: "A remarkable peculiarity is that

they

[the English] always write the personal pronoun I with a capital letter. May we not consider this Great I as

an unintended proof how much an Englishman thinks of his own consequence?"

(Robert Southey, Letters from

England, ed. Jack Simmons (London: Cresset Press, 1951), as quoted in Homi K. Bhabha, "Signs Taken for

Wonders: Questions of Ambivalence and Authority under a Tree Outside Delhi, May 1817." Europe and its

Others, vol. 1, ed. Francis Barker et al. (Colchester: University of Essex, 1985) 89).

Cf. Marshall, "Imperial Britain" 320.

100

Cf. Marshall, "Imperial Britain" 322.

101

Tobias A. Wachinger, Posing In-Between. Postcolonial Englishness and the Commodification of Hybridity

(Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang - Europäischer Verlag der Wissenschaften, 2003) 152.

102

Cf. Marshall, "Imperial Britain" 332.

103

The Race Relations Acts dealt with discrimination on the grounds of colour, race, ethnic or national group in

certain places of public resort, housing and employment etc. The latest act was passed in 2000. For a more de-

tailed description of the acts cf. Ian A. MacDonald, Race Relations and Immigration Law (London: Butterworths,

1969) and "Race Relations Act 1976 and Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000," Statistics, 4 Nov. 2003,

National Statistics, London, 21 Aug. 2005

tion but the number of non-white inhabitants did not decline due to the fact that more than half of

them were children and grandchildren of first generation immigrants born in Great Britain. But it

was these immigrants who started the transformation of Britain, especially of London, into the

multicultural society it is today.

<http://www.statistics.gov.uk/about/ethnic_group_statistics/key_acts/race_relations.asp>.

3. Definitions and Theories

Before going on with the main part of this book, some important concepts and definitions

shall be presented which are crucial to understanding the analysis of the novel. Like the societies

in the USA and France, which both had a colonial past, Britain's society has become multicultural

in the period of postcolonialism. Therefore, the concepts of postcolonialism and multiculturalism

shall be discussed as they go hand in hand

104

. Furthermore, two of the most important and

influential theorists of postcolonial studies and their ideas shall be presented, namely Homi

Bhabha and Edward Said.

Whilst the field of theories and ideas concerning postcolonialism is large, it is only possi-

ble to give a very short and general overview of the most influential representatives and concen-

trate on the ones most relevant to the novel.

3.1 Postcolonialism

Postcolonialism

105

is a literary, cultural, political and intellectual movement of the twenti-

eth and twenty-first centuries. Its theories and representatives form a vast and still relatively new

field of studies from which just a very small part can be dealt with in the following chapter

106

White Teeth can be read as a postcolonial novel as it speaks of race and multiculturalism

in postcolonial London

107

. Its characters are concerned with questions of history, inheritance and

identity which are commonly found in postcolonial literature

108

. Therefore, postcolonialism shall

be presented in the following.

3.1.1 The Development of Postcolonialism

As (post)colonialism still

109

influences the majority

110

of the countries in the world, it is

not surprising that a huge number of different theories exists that vary in their point of view, their

104

As multiculturalism is often a result of (post)colonialism, it will be discussed after the chapter on postcolonialism.

105

The term can be used as a synonym for 'postcoloniality' (cf. Eberhard Kreutzer, "Postkolonialis-

mus/Postkolonialität," Metzler Lexikon. Literatur- und Kulturtheorie: Ansätze-Personen-Grundbegriffe, 2

rev.,

ed. Ansgar Nünning (Stuttgart and Weimar: Verlag J. B. Metzler, 2001) 521) although others regard postcolonial-

ity as the condition postcolonialism (the theory) addresses (cf. Leela Gandhi, Postcolonial Theory. A Critical

Introduction (New York: Columbia University, 1998) 4).

106

It was in the 1980s that this field of studies became more and more popular. It combines cultural and literary

studies with history and sociology. Many approaches to (post)colonialism exist, some of them deal with litera-

ture, others with politics, history or economy (cf. Tiziana Zugaro-Merimi, "Heroic Hybridity: African American

Pop Culture in the 1990s," diss. (Freie Universität Berlin, 2002) 34).

107

Cf. Squires 41.

108

Cf. Rastogi 53-54.

109

Nowadays, neocolonialism exists which is still a form of colonialism. It means that stronger states show their

economic, military or political power over weaker ones.

cultural background and country of origin

111

. Therefore, it has become difficult to define the term

and it is better to regard it as a collective term for many different ideas.

But the popularity of this field of study is not so much attributed to its variety of theories

as to the impact colonialism still has on the contemporary world. This field of study is a reaction

to colonialism and wants to distance itself from this period

112

. Postcolonialism still exists and

aims for a world-wide emancipation from colonialism as the prefix post implies

113

. This prefix

reflects the period after colonialism as the Latin word post means 'after' or 'afterwards'. The term

with a hyphen is a temporal marker of the decolonising process and refers to the time of inde-

pendence from the colonisers

114

. However some critics regard the term without a hyphen as a

sign for a process which already started during colonialism, namely the constant attempt to come

to terms with the colonial system

115

. Without hyphen, it is more sensitive to the long history of

colonial consequences

116

Postcolonialism in general deals with the coming to terms with colonialism, with the dif-

ferences between the former metropolitan centre and its periphery as well as with the efforts

made by the former colonies in their struggle for independence

117

. The consequences of colonial-

ism and the colonial heritage like European languages, education systems, ways of thinking as

well as cultural elements are also dealt with in many postcolonial theories as "the country over

which the breath of the West, heavily charged with scientific thought, has once passed, and has,

in passing left an enduring mark, can never be the same as it was before"

118

Although more and more works on this topic are published nowadays, some of the theo-

ries dealing with postcolonialism date from further back. It can be said that this field of studies,

which developed in the 1960s and 1970s with a climax in the 1980s, was influenced by poststruc-

turalism

119

and showed affinities to postmodernism

120

. Edward Said's Orientalism

121

was

110

More than three-quarters of the people living in the world have been influenced by colonialism (cf. Bill Ashcroft,

Gareth Griffiths, and Helen Tiffin, eds., The Empire Writes Back. Theory and Practice in Post-Colonial Litera-

tures, 2

ed. (London and New York: Routledge, 2002) 1).

111

Theories can for example be based on the ex-colonisers' or ex-colonised peoples' points of view.

112

Cf. Kreutzer, "Postkolonialismus/Postkolonialität" 521.

113

Cf. Kreutzer, "Postkolonialismus/Postkolonialität" 521. Postcolonial literature criticises Eurocentrism and has

changed the traditional literary canon and ideas of culture. The literary canon consists of works considered to be

of importance and worthwhile reading. Eurocentrism refers to privileges of European culture and values.

114

Cf. Gandhi 3. In this book, no difference will be made between the term with or without hyphen. The spelling

without hyphen will exclusively be used in the following as both the consequences of the long process of coloni-

sation and the time afterwards play a crucial role in White Teeth.

115

Cf. Kreutzer, "Postkolonialismus/Postkolonialität" 521.

116

Cf. Gandhi 3.

117

Cf. Kreutzer, "Postkolonialismus/Postkolonialität" 521.

118

Evelyn Baring, Ancient and Modern Imperialism (London: John Murray, 1910) 118 and 120, as quoted in Edward

Said, Orientalism. Western Conceptions of the Orient

(London: Penguin Books, 1978) 213.

119

Poststructuralism emphasises the unstable linguistic basis of identity, meaning, knowledge and power. Because

everything is part of an unstable language system, textual and social meanings, which appear natural, are unstable

published in 1978 and he was influenced by the French philosopher Michel Foucault

122

. Another

early theorist, Franz Fanon

123

, published his first works in the 1960s

124

. Together with Said, the

literary critics Homi K. Bhabha and Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak

125

belong to the most influential

in this field of study

126

But besides these critics, there are also, as mentioned in the introduction, more and more

authors from the former colonies or with a (post)colonial background, who have a great influence

on world literature and are on their way to changing it by creating characters with (post)colonial

lives or problems just like the writers themselves. With works like The Empire Writes Back, it is

clear that authors from the other side of the world are trying to influence the European literary

canon

127

which has until now been dominant.

3.1.2 Different Aspects of Postcolonialism

Postcolonial literary theories and postcolonial writers differ in their field of interests and

from country to country

128

. Some emphasise the (anti-)colonial discourse

129

, others the phenome-

non of transcultural hybridity or the effects of colonialism on both the coloniser and the colonised

and problems of the individual in a constantly changing environment

130

. Another important

aspect is the independence of the colonies which has started a global migration, especially from

as well (cf. "Post-Structuralism," Critical Concepts. Some Media/Communications Theory Keywords condensed

from the Original Byaidan Arrowsmith, Filcommedia Filton College, Bristol, 12 Aug. 2005

<http://www.adamranson.freeserve.co.uk/critical%20concepts.htm>).

120

Cf. Eberhard Kreutzer, "Orientalism," Metzler Lexikon. Literatur- und Kulturtheorie: Ansätze-Personen-

Grundbegriffe, 2

rev.,

ed. Ansgar Nünning (Stuttgart and Weimar: Verlag J. B. Metzler, 2001) 485-486.

121

Edward Said, Orientalism. Western Conceptions of the Orient

(London: Penguin Books, 1978).

122

He became famous for his theories concerning power and the relation between power and knowledge as well as

for his ideas concerning discourse in relation to the history of Western thought (cf. "Michel Foucault," Wikipedia.

The Free Encyclopedia, 2 Aug 2005, Wikimedia Foundation Inc., St. Petersburg, Florida, 6 Aug. 2005

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michel_Foucault>).

123

Frantz Fanon, Black Skin, White Masks, trans. Charles Lam Markham (New York: Grove Weidenfeld, 1952).

Fanon is one of the most important anti-colonist writers of the earlier generation. Like Bhabha, he used a psycho-

analytic approach for his studies (cf. Zugaro-Merimi 35).

124

Earlier theorists had a different emphasis in their works, namely the economic exploitation of the colonies or

sociological effects on the colonised. More recent works are based on cultural studies (cf. Zugaro-Merimi 35).

125

One of her most famous essays is "Can the Subaltern Speak?" (cf. Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, "Can the

Subaltern Speak?" Marxism and the Interpretation of Culture, ed. Cary Nelson and Lawrence Grossberg (Urbana

and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1988) 271-313).

126

Most of these critics come from former colonies.

127

It consists of works that represent the ideas and values of European culture.

128

The literary works are nowadays united in the term "post-colonial literatures" or "new literatures in English" (cf.

Ashcroft, The Empire Writes Back 22).

129

According to Michel Foucault, a discourse is a system of ideas or knowledge with a specific vocabulary. They

legitimated the exercise of power over people by categorising them as particular 'types' (cf. "Discourse," Critical

Concepts. Some Media/Communications Theory Keywords condensed from the Original Byaidan Arrowsmith,

Filcommedia Filton College, Bristol, 12 Aug. 2005

<http://www.adamranson.freeserve.co.uk/critical%20concepts.htm>).

130

Cf. Kreutzer, "Postkolonialismus/Postkolonialität" 521.

the Third World countries whose citizens emigrated in particular to the former centres of the

empires, where they became ethnic minorities and changed the centres in a multicultural sense.

As a consequence, the conflicts that were found in the periphery before are brought to the centres

which then become postcolonial

131

. Other theories try to explain historical and other conditions of

its emergence as well as its consequences for the contemporary world.

As can be seen by these various aspects of postcolonial studies, it is difficult to give one

definition for postcolonialism that shares all thoughts or, as Ashcroft and his colleagues put it in

their book The Empire Writes Back: "This book is concerned with writing by those peoples

formerly colonised by Britain, though much of what it deals with is of interest and relevance to

countries colonised by other European powers, such as France, Portugal and Spain"

132

. Although

these countries share the same experiences, are labelled postcolonial, "emerged in their present

form out of the experience of colonisation and asserted themselves by foregrounding the tension

with the imperial power"

133

, it soon becomes clear that no single definition of postcolonialism for

all former colonies is possible due to the "special and distinctive regional characteristics"

134

each single theory and country. Theories and definitions differ as colonialism and its effects are

not uniform due to different colonial practices and processes of decolonisation.

Another reason why it is so difficult to define is that the expressions 'postcolonialism' or

'postcolonial literatures' are ambiguous and signify, very generally speaking, either the conceptu-

al or the temporal difference to colonialism in spite of the neocolonial conditions in some of the

cultures concerned

135

. Postcolonial theories analyse on the one hand the colonial presentations of

selves and others and their links to colonialism, and on the other the postcolonial representations

and the influence the colonial heritage has on them

136

To conclude, postcolonialism can have two meanings. Firstly, it refers to all nations and

cultures which have been influenced and changed by colonialism "from the moment of colonisa-

tion to the present day"

137

. Secondly, it refers to theories and "cross-cultural criticism"

138

that deal

with colonialism, resistance and independence of the former colonies. These critical approaches

are often but not exclusively written in countries that were once colonies and by people who have

a connection with colonialism or postcolonialism.

131

Cf. Kreutzer, "Postkolonialismus/Postkolonialität" 521.

132

Ashcroft, The Empire Writes Back 1.

133

Ashcroft, The Empire Writes Back 2.

134

Ashcroft, The Empire Writes Back 2.

135

Cf. Meyer 144.

136

Cf. Meyer 144.

137

Ashcroft, The Empire Writes Back 2.

138

Ashcroft, The Empire Writes Back 2.

3.1.3 Postcolonialism and Postmodernism

3.1.3.1 What is Postmodernism?

Postcolonialism is often linked with postmodernism which is a key term in many cultural

theories. It came into existence in the 1930s and 40s and was at its height at the end of the 1960s

when changes in art, literature, music, dance and architecture took place

139

. The term stands for a

variety of concepts that question the existing norms and values by refusing constant innovations

compared to Modernism

140

and by showing a new interest in traditions and history

141

. The

separation between Modernism and Postmodernism is not easy as some critics declare Postmod-

ernism the continuation of Modernism and others as its opposite. Postmodernism expresses a

mixture and pluralism of styles and literature becomes a playful element in which reality and

fiction are no longer separable

142

3.1.3.2 The Crisis of Authority

There are some characteristics, themes and styles that postcolonialism and postmodernism

share such as globalisation and identity, to name but a few. Their characteristics can be summa-

rised as

a "crisis of authority"

143

in European forms.

The following quotation clarifies this

Decentred, allegorical, schizophrenic ... however we choose to diagnose its symptoms, postmodern-

ism is usually treated, by its protagonists and antagonists alike, as a crisis of cultural authority, specifical-

ly of the authority vested in Western European culture and its institutions. That the hegemony of Western

civilisation is drawing to a close is hardly a new perception; since the mid-fifties, at least, we have recog-

nised the necessity of encountering different cultures by means other than the shock of domination and

conquest.

144

Undermining a universal authority of the Western world is the main message of postmodernism

and postcolonialism

145

. Postmodern writers aim for deconstruction

146

. They want to question the

139

Cf. "Postmoderne", Dtv Lexikon in 20 Bänden, vol. 14 (Munich: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag, 1999) 241.

140

Modernism is a new artistic and literary style and emerged before 1914 when artists rebelled against the late 19th

century norms. They wanted to present an emotionally truer picture of how people think and feel. Characteristics

are radical experiments with forms like free verse, stream of consciousness and elaborate language games (cf.

"Modernism," Wikipedia. The Free Encyclopedia, 28 July 2005, Wikimedia Foundation Inc., St. Petersburg,

Florida, 2 Aug 2005 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modernism>).

141

Cf. "Postmoderne", Dtv Lexikon in 20 Bänden 241.

142

Cf. "Postmoderne", Dtv Lexikon in 20 Bänden 241.

143

Ashcroft, The Empire Writes Back 160.

144

Craig Owens, "The discourse of Others: feminists and postmodernism." The Anti-Aesthetic: Essays on Postmod-

ern Culture, ed. Hal Foster (Port Toursont: Bay Press, 1983) 57, as quoted in Ashcroft, The Empire Writes Back

160.

145

Cf. Ashcroft, The Empire Writes Back 161.

146

'Deconstruction' is a strategy of critical analysis and was invented by Jacques Derrida. It deals mainly with

contradictions in the text itself and questions "the assumption that the system of language provides grounds that

are adequate to establish the boundaries, the coherence or unity, and the determinate meanings of a literary text"

(Meyer H. Abrams, "Deconstruction", A Glossary of Literary Terms, 7

ed. (Fort Worth, Philadelphia et al.:

Harcourt Brace College Publishers, 1999) 55). In postcolonial context, deconstruction dismantles the assumptions

given norms and reality, to deconstruct history, identity and reality that are taken for granted. By

deconstructing the world, new realities are created which offer different perspectives on certain

objects. As a consequence, the postmodernist has to deal with 'other' realities and with the

Other

147

. Reality becomes important as postmodernists prove that it can be constructed and

deconstructed. Because of this, the phenomenon of metafiction

148

is important when considering

postmodernism

149

3.1.4 Postcolonialism and White Teeth

But why is postcolonialism important for this novel? Is it justified to call White Teeth a

postcolonial novel and is Zadie Smith herself a postcolonial writer? Although she is half Jamai-

can, half English, she was born and raised in London and still lives there. With regards to her

origins, the culture and nation in which she lives, it is rather doubtful to see her as a representa-

tive of a typical postcolonial writer in the stricter sense but after reading the analysis of the novel

which is set mainly in postcolonial London, it becomes clearer to the reader why White Teeth

together with its setting, characters and themes is indeed a postcolonial novel.

As most postcolonial theories are linked with multiculturalism as well, the next chapter is

going to focus on this concept and its importance for the novel.

3.2 Multiculturalism

There are three aspects in White Teeth that make it a multicultural novel, namely its au-

thor

150

, its characters and its setting in London. But before the two latter points are analysed in

around notions of identity which circulate in society (cf. "Deconstruction," Critical Concepts. Some Me-

dia/Communications Theory Keywords condensed from the Original Byaidan Arrowsmith, Filcommedia Filton

College, Bristol, 12 Aug. 2005

<http://www.adamranson.freeserve.co.uk/critical%20concepts.htm>).

147

Cf. chapter 3.4 and 3.5. The Other always stands in a power relationship to the Self. It is different from the Self,

which regards itself as the norm, in a variety of senses: ethnicity, religion, gender, sexuality etc. (cf. "The Other,"

Critical Concepts. Some Media/Communications Theory Keywords condensed from the Original Byaidan Ar-

rowsmith, Filcommedia Filton College, Bristol, 12 Aug. 2005

<http://www.adamranson.freeserve.co.uk/critical%20concepts.htm>).

148

Metafiction is a genre of fiction that deals with its own fictionality and the process of narrating. It therefore does

not let the readers forget that they are reading a work of fiction (cf. "Metafiction," The Free Encyclopedia, 28

June 2005, Wikimedia Foundation Inc., St. Petersburg, Florida, 6 Aug 2005

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metafiction>).

149

Cf. Wendy B. Faris, "Scheherazade's Children: Magical Realism and Postmodern Fiction." Magic Realism.

Theory, History, Community, eds. Lois Parkinson Zamora and Wendy B. Faris (Durham and London: Duke

University Press, 1995) 175.

150

Smith herself is labelled a multicultural author because she has a mixed-race background and writes about

multiculturalism. She soon became a representative of multicultural Britain for the media and a symbol of a new

Britain (cf. Squires 15).

more detail, a definition of multiculturalism is necessary in order to clarify why Smith's London

and novel are multicultural.

3.2.1 Definitions

3.2.1.1 What is Multiculturalism?

Multiculturalism, which is the natural result of the process of migration

151

, is a concept of

ethnic

152

, social and cultural variety in a society and deals with the

relationship between dominant

cultures and their subgroups

153

A multicultural society consists of two or more cultures which are different in language,

religion, traditions and their systems of values and forms of living that live peacefully together

without discriminating or favouring one group

154

. Another definition for a multicultural society is

the following:

a society (which may or may not be a nation-state but may also include an empire) having two or

more ethnic groups, each having cultural traits that may have some overlap with the other group(s),

yet is distinctive enough to form a different cultural identity and community

155

Multiculturalism is a "philosophical position and movement that assumes that the gender,

ethnic, racial, and cultural diversity of a pluralistic society should be reflected in all of its

institutionalised structures but especially in educational institutions, including the staff, norms

and values, curriculum and student body"

156

For Roger Scrutun, multiculturalism is "a movement in schools, universities and political

institutions, to make room for 'other cultures'"

157

151

Cf. "Multikulturelle Gesellschaft," Wikipedia. Die Freie Enzyklopädie, 21 July 2005, Wikimedia Foundation Inc., St.

Petersburg, Florida, 23 July 2005

<http://de.wikipedia.org.wiki/Multikulturelle_Gesellschaft>. People migrate voluntarily or because of economic,

social or political reasons and expect to improve their living conditions by moving to another country. But their

high expectations are often not fulfilled as the migrants and the following generations have problems integrating

in the new society and experience displacement and a loss of their roots (cf. "Migration", Brockhaus. Die Enzyk-

lopädie in 24 Bänden, 20

ed., vol. 14 (Leipzig and Mannheim: F. A. Brockhaus, 1998)

617-618).

152

Cf. chapter 3.2.1.3.

153

Cf. Meyer 144. A 'subgroup' is a group of people who share the same interests, values, ethnicity or religion.

Sometimes they are formed as a reaction to marginalisation. Youth groups often want to provoke and fight

against social norms (cf. Ruth Mayer, "Subkulturen," Metzler Lexikon. Literatur- und Kulturtheorie: Ansätze -

Personen Grundbegriffe, 2

rev., ed. Ansgar Nünning (Stuttgart and Weimar: Verlag J. B. Metzler, 2001) 514).

154

Cf. Frank Dietrich, "Zusammenleben in einer multikulturellen Gesellschaft," Universität Duisburg, 19 Nov. 2001

<http://www.uni-duisburg.de/FB1/PHILO/Unterricht/kapitel2/2-mul/Multi.htm>.

155

Edward A. Tiryakian, "Assessing Multiculturalism Theoretically: E Pluribus Unum, Sic et Non," IJMS. Interna-

tional Journal on Multicultural Societies. UNESCO 5.1 (2003) 23, 9 Aug. 2005

<www.unesco.org/shs/ijms/vol5/issue1/art2>.

156

Carl A. Grant and Gloria Ladson-Billings, eds., Dictionary of Multicultural Education (Phoenix: Oryx Press,

1997) 182.

157

Roger Scrutun, "Oikophobia and Xenophilia." Stereotypes and Nations, ed. Teresa Walas (Cracow: International

Cultural Centre Cracow, 1995) 287.

Multicultural societies constantly take part in a process of transformation

158

and never

come to a standstill as they experience a daily immigration and a re-mixture of people from

everywhere

159

Culture is a process in multicultural societies as it is negotiated in the new

"contact zones"

160

of cultural encounters where intercultural exchange and mutual cross-cultural

influence take part.

3.2.1.2 Prescriptive and Descriptive Multiculturalism

161

In some countries, multiculturalism is still an ideal that has to be achieved, in others, it al-

ready is reality.

Multiculturalism is prescriptive or normative when it refers to government policy

162

. This

means that a norm that propagates cultural diversity exists in a nation and is supported by the

government. Each immigrant can preserve his or her culture as long as the different cultures

interact peacefully within one country

163

. These nations provide laws in order to engrave this

concept into their nation

164

. As a consequence, a "cultural mosaic"

165

of separate cultural groups

comes into existence which contrasts the "melting pot"

166

that mixes them

167

. Prescriptive

158

Cf. "Multikulturelle Gesellschaft", Brockhaus. Die Enzyklopädie in 24 Bänden, 20

ed., vol. 15 (Leipzig and

Mannheim: F. A. Brockhaus, 1998)

208.

159

The postmodern, heterogeneous societies are in direct contrast to the ones during Modernism that tried to create

homogeneous nations ("Multikulturelle Gesellschaft", Brockhaus 208).

160

The term was originally used for the zone of colonial encounters between colonisers and colonised people.

161

Besides the approach of multiculturalism, the government of a country has two other possibilities for dealing with

immigrants and their cultures. 'Monoculturalism' aims at the assimilation of the immigrants. In order to reach this

aim, policies support the social integration of immigrant groups to the national culture. Monoculturalism is often

found in nations that do not want to recognise the existence of other cultural groups in their country. The concept

of the 'Melting Pot' is another approach to multicultural societies. The term is especially linked to the United

States where all cultures are mixed without state intervention (cf.

"Multiculturalism," Wikipedia. The Free Ency-

clopedia, 31 July 2005, Wikimedia Foundation Inc., St. Petersburg, Florida, 7 Aug. 2005

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiculturalism>).

162

Cf. "Multikulturelle Gesellschaft", Brockhaus 206.

163

Cf. "Multiculturalism," Wikipedia.

164

Canada and Australia have official policies that support multiculturalism.

165

"Multiculturalism," Wikipedia. Another name for this concept is 'cultural pluralism' which accepts multicultural-

ism as a constant feature of society. Each culture is treated equally and the model does not aim at a monocultural

society like the melting pot. Assimilation is only demanded concerning tolerance and violence. If this is not the

case, the government can intervene (cf. Dietrich).

166

In a 'melting pot' society, all cultures are equal but cultures are expected to mix in order to form a new mono-

cultural identity. Problems arise when one group has more power or when certain groups do not take part in the

melting process (cf. Dietrich).

167

The term 'multiculturalism' can also be used differently. It can describe both the melting pot and the cultural

mosaic and refers to them as 'pluralistic' and 'particularist'. Pluralistic multiculturalism regards each culture in a

society as contributing unique cultural aspects to the culture of the whole country, whereas particularist multicul-

turalism is concerned with preserving the distinctions between the different cultures (cf. "Multiculturalism,"

Wikipedia).

multiculturalism has become an important political concept in many countries in the process of

forming their contemporary nation, especially in heterogeneous postcolonial societies

168

The term also has a descriptive aspect, as it describes the current situation in a country

such as Britain which has cultural pluralism due to a tradition

169

3.2.1.3 Ethnic Minorities and Ethnicity

Ethnic minorities, who play a crucial role in White Teeth as two of the three families in

the novel belong to this group, have evolved in Britain from the immigration from the former

British colonies in the South Asian and Caribbean subcontinent. The family members come from

Jamaica

170

and Bangladesh

171

and form ethnic minorities in the British society

172

. Therefore, the

term shall be explained briefly.

A minority group can either be a subgroup that does not form a majority of the population

or a group that is disadvantaged or has less political or economic power than a dominant

group

173

. An ethnic minority group is therefore a group of people who are fewer in population

than other ethnic groups. Most ethnic minority groups

174

are formed of indigenous and tribal

peoples, migrants and refugees

175

. People who are from a group share various similarities like

origins, language, nationality, religion, history, culture and customs

176

. The ethnic group normal-

ly expects loyalty and conformity from its members

177

Both multicultural and postcolonial theories have shaped the term 'ethnicity'

178

. 'Ethnicity'

is a key concept in postcolonial literary and cultural theory which has removed the term 'race'

179

168

Cf. Heinz Antor, "Multikulturalismus," Metzler Lexikon. Literatur- und Kulturtheorie: Ansätze-Personen-

Grundbegriffe, 2

rev.,

ed. Ansgar Nünning (Stuttgart and Weimar: Verlag J. B. Metzler, 2001) 459.

169

Cf. "Multikulturelle Gesellschaft", Brockhaus. 206. Tiryakian regards 'multicultural' as a demographic variable

and 'multiculturalism' as a normative variable (cf. Tiryakian 22).

170

The largest British ethnic minority groups are those of Caribbean and African descent (875,000 people) (cf. "Which

are Britain's largest ethnic minorities groups?" About Britain. Facts and Figures, 2001-2005, British Embassy,

Berlin, 30 July 2005 <http://www.britischebotschaft.de/en/britain/ab_1.htm>).

171

The second largest ethnic group are Indians (840,255 people) followed by Pakistanis and Bangladeshis (639,390

people) (cf. "Which are Britain's largest ethnic minorities groups?").

172

Ethnic minorities represent around 6% of the British population (cf. "Which are Britain's largest ethnic minorities

groups?").

173

Cf. "Minority," Wikipedia. The Free Encyclopedia, 22 July 2005, Wikimedia Foundation Inc., St. Petersburg, Florida,

30 July 2005 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minority>.

174

These groups are not homogeneous as certain members can face further marginalisation due to class, age, gender or

other factors (cf. "Who are Minorities?" Minority Rights Group International, London, 30 July 2005

<http://www.minorityrights.org/>).

175

Cf. "Who are Minorities?"

176

Homosexuals are sometimes also regarded as a subgroup or minority (cf. Georg Hansen, Fernstudieneinheit

Materialien zu 'Nation' (Hagen: Fern Universität Gesamthochschule Hagen, 1992) 5).

177

Cf. Hansen, Fernstudieneinheit Materialien zu 'Nation' 5.

178

Cf. Meyer 144.

179

Cf. Meyer 144. 'Race' refers to humans who are divided into fixed biological groups (cf. Ashcroft, The Empire Writes

Back 207).

In the majority of theories dealing with multiculturalism and postcolonialism, both terms are

regarded as "a significant cultural construction"

180

and deal with an affiliation to a certain race,

nation or culture

181

. The identification with a certain group is of importance for the construction

and definition of one's identity as well as for the placement of an individual in a historic, cultural

and linguistic area in the world

182

. In a postcolonial context, the search or re-finding of one's,

sometimes destroyed, identity plays a crucial role

183

3.2.2 Origins of Multiculturalism

The term 'multiculturalism' was introduced in the late 1960s in connection with the Cana-

dian society when the term 'bi-culturalism' came out of use to describe the coexistence of

francophone and anglophone citizens

184

. An official multiculturalism act was passed in Canada

which affirmed that it had become a multicultural nation and federal funds were distributed to

ethnic groups to help them preserve their cultures

185

. This policy was added to Canada's 1982

constitution

186

. Afterwards, the term spread quickly from Canada into other ethnically and

culturally heterogeneous countries

187

3.2.3 Implementation of a Multicultural Policy

In a country with a multicultural concept, it is the task of the government and of ethnic

organisations to provide equality and contact between the cultures. Multicultural policies of the

government can include the acceptance of a dual citizenship; help with a fast naturalisation if

wanted; programmes to encourage minority representation in the work force, in politics and

education; governmental support for television, newspapers and radio in the languages of the

immigrants and the support for cultural festivals, bank holidays and arts as well as the acceptance

of religious and traditional dresses in schools, the army and society in general

188

180

Meyer 144.

181

Cf. Heinz Antor, "Ethnizität," Metzler Lexikon. Literatur- und Kulturtheorie: Ansätze-Personen-Grundbegriffe, 2

rev.,

ed. Ansgar Nünning (Stuttgart and Weimar: Verlag J. B. Metzler, 2001) 161.

182

The ethnicity of certain minority groups can be used as a means for their re-centring in society (cf. Antor, "Ethnizität"

162).

183

Cf. Antor, "Ethnizität" 161.

184

Cf.

"Multiculturalism," Wikipedia.

185

Cf.

"Multiculturalism," Wikipedia.

186

Cf.

"Multiculturalism," Wikipedia.

187

Cf. "Multikulturelle Gesellschaft", Brockhaus 206.

188

Cf. "Multiculturalism," Wikipedia.

3.2.4 Multiculturalism: A Blessing or a Curse?

3.2.4.1 Positive Aspects of Multiculturalism

The main aims of a multicultural concept are to fight against discrimination, stereotypes,

separatism, racism and forced assimilation

189

and to create mutual respect and recognition

between races as well as to promote a peaceful living together of different ethnic groups, constant

communication between the cultures, racial harmony and multicultural tolerance. Assimilation is

not the aim of a multicultural concept as each culture should have the right to live its traditions as

long as a peaceful atmosphere can be guaranteed

190

. Its ultimate aim is equality

191

of all groups in

society without dominance or exclusion of certain citizens

192

. In these societies, all distinctions

between ethnic groups are abolished as well as dichotomies like us/them

193

. People must learn to

accept other cultures, to reflect their own culture and even to go beyond it and not to regard it as

superior. The first step to reach this aim is a policy of rapprochement even when differences

between the ethnic groups exist.

The concept of multiculturalism regards differences between cultures as a blessing and a

chance

194

for the whole society. When multiculturalism works, it leads to cultural exchanges

between the various cultural groups. Such exchanges can take place in politics, economy,

literature, philosophy or art as well as in the appreciation of variations in music, dress and new

foods in daily life

195

3.2.4.2 Criticism

Some theorists criticise the term as it has negative connotations for them and hides a cer-

tain risk for societies that are too tolerant

196

Instead of stressing similarity, cultural assimilation, social integration and inclusion, it

emphasises in their opinion difference and exclusion from mainstream society and symbolises

separation rather than integration.

189

In general, multiculturalist policies are against cultural assimilation. Nevertheless, there are some multicultural

nations like Canada that support a structured assimilation. Immigrants are encouraged to participate in the main-

stream society, learn the majority language and start working (cf.

"Multiculturalism," Wikipedia).

190

Cf. "Multikulturelle Gesellschaft," Wikipedia.

191

This principle stems from the equality law of the UNO (cf. "Multikulturelle Gesellschaft", Brockhaus 206).

192

Cf. "Multikulturelle Gesellschaft," Wikipedia.

193

Cf. Scrutun 287. A 'dichotomy' means the separation of things in two opposite groups. For a more detailed analysis of

dichotomies cf. chapter 3.4.

194

Multiculturalism is a chance for a society as it leads to cultural enrichment which is positive for national and

international relations, the market force, employment, openness and attractiveness of a country.

195

Cf.

"Multiculturalism," Wikipedia.

For Rushdie, the term has only become a euphemistic synonym for the malfunctioning

process of integration

197

. He gives the following definition:

And now there's a new catchword: `multiculturalism'. In our schools, this means little more

than teaching the kids a few bongo rhythms, how to tie a sari and so forth. In the police training pro-

gramme, it means telling cadets that black people are so `culturally different' that they can't help but

make trouble. Multiculturalism is the latest token gesture towards Britain's blacks and it ought to be

exposed, like 'integration' and 'racial harmony', for the sham it is

198

Multiculturalism hides certain problems caused by cultural variety, such as discrimina-

tion, social, political and juridical injustice, criminality, unemployment and housing problems

199

As Rushdie's quotation shows, the term emphasises only cultural pluralism, traditions, language,

multicultural events and exotic

200

aspects of other traditions and does not go deep enough. This

superficial interest in other cultures is also described as 'culinary-cynic'

201

multiculturalism as

people are willing to accept and profit from foreign restaurants, food

202

, musicians, shops etc. but

do not want to be confronted with the negative aspects and the problems the immigrants have to

face in their society

203

Rushdie also criticises the fact that "the mainstream never sees itself as part of the equa-

tion as one of the multi's. The pot itself never melts, only the ingredients as they get chopped

up"

204

. This means that the mainstream group firstly has to accept the ethnic groups and secondly

has to be willing to take part in the process of transformation into a multicultural society as every

ethnic group is part of it. If multiculturalism can work, both sides have to assimilate and integrate

into this new environment, both have to give and take at the same time.

Confrontation in general with other cultures can have a negative effect and is not always a

blessing as many multicultural programmes claim. Some people think that multiculturalism is a

196

Criticising multiculturalism can lead to accusations of xenophobia and racism (cf. chapter 4.3).

197

Integration is a long and difficult process. Trying to integrate immigrants so that they become completely assimilated

is an illusion as even the children of the immigrants born in Britain have difficulties with integrating completely. On

the one hand, they do not know where they belong, on the other, it is the society that still regards them as foreigners.

198

Salman Rushdie, "Imaginary Homeland." Imaginary Homelands: Essays and Criticism 1981 1991 (London: Granta

Books, 1992) 137.

199

Cf. "Multikulturelle Gesellschaft", Brockhaus 206.

200

Cf. chapter 3.4.4.

201

Cf. Klaus J. Bade, ed., "Einleitung: Grenzerfahrungen die multikulturelle Herausforderung." Die multikulturelle

Herausforderung. Menschen über Grenzen Grenzen über Menschen (Munich: Verlag C. H. Beck, 1996) 18.

202

Foreign Secretary Robin Cook said that Britain's multicultural success was shown by chicken tikka masala

becoming the country's most popular dish. This statement caused a rethinking of the multicultural concept in

Britain (cf. J. F. O. McAllister and Helen Gibson,

"The Importance of Being British," Time Europe, Time Inc.

and Time Warner Publishing B.V., New York, 19 Aug. 2005

<http://www.time.com/time/europe/eu/magazine/0,13716,128988,00.html>).

203

Cf. "Multikulturelle Gesellschaft", Brockhaus 207.

204

"Excerpt from Salman Rushdie's 'The New Empire Within Britain'," Department of English Language and

Literature, Fu Jen Catholic University, Taipei, 9 Aug. 2005

danger for the stability of national identity

205

. Moreover, the experience of foreignness can lead

to reflecting one's own culture which can cause insecurity

206

. The concerned person no longer

knows where he or she belongs because he or she stands in-between cultures and is not even sure

about the culture he or she was born in.

People who feel insecure are not open-minded to others and when this feeling becomes

extreme, it can turn into separatism and fundamentalism on both the migrant's and the local's

side

207

. This means a strong emphasis of one's alterity and a retreat from the multicultural society

that tries to create equality. Consequences can be the creation of stereotypes, prejudices and

racism towards different ethnic groups and a sometimes voluntary segregation between the

cultures

208

. This is the reason for the creation of ethnic parallel worlds that are in some countries

hidden behind the concept of multiculturalism. It is therefore important that both sides, the

immigrants and the locals, are willing to create equality, to work together and to form a unity.

Some conservative parties are against multicultural politics as they regard it as a potential

for conflict and tensions due to cultural differences and contradictions and fear the expansion of

terrorism as a consequence of a too tolerant multicultural society

209

. In their opinion, the fears of

the "original" society about the change of their country are not taken into account enough as the

main emphasis lies on the migrants and not on the locals

210

Other critics argue that multiculturalism has only been successful because politicians win

the votes of immigrants

211

. Federal funds for cultural festivals as well as for television or news-

papers can encourage immigrants to support the political party that stands for a multicultural

policy

212

<http://www.eng.fju.edu.tw/worldlit/india/rushdie3.html>.

205

It must be mentioned here that the national identity of all countries with a large number of immigrants becomes

more and more unstable. This is not necessarily negative but a certain feeling of community and belonging to-

gether is necessary for a multicultural society to function.

206

Cf. "Multikulturelle Gesellschaft", Brockhaus 207.

207

Cf. "Multikulturelle Gesellschaft", Brockhaus 207.

208

Cf. chapter 4.3.1.

209

Cf. Paul Scheffer, "Das Scheitern eines Traums. Die multikulturelle Gesellschaft ist eine Illusion. Der Aufstieg

von Populisten wie Haider, Fortuyn und Berlusconi zwingt, über die Grenzen des offenen Europas nachzuden-

ken," trans. Gregor Seferens, 11 July 2002, RI Renner Institut, Vienna, 23 July 2005 <http://www.renner-

institut.at/download/texte/scheffer.pdf>.

210

Cf. "Multikulturelle Gesellschaft", Brockhaus 207.

211

"Multiculturalism," Wikipedia.

212

"Multiculturalism," Wikipedia.

3.2.5 The Current Situation of Multiculturalism in Britain

It is widely accepted that Britain is an immigration country and its society multicultur-

213

. Organisations like the Commission for Racial Equality

214

or The Parekh Report

215

are proof

of the acceptance and importance of a multicultural policy in Britain

216

Nevertheless, the concept of multiculturalism has been the subject of many debates over

recent years. Under the Conservatives

217

, multicultural policies were limited to left-leaning

councils

218

. But since the election of the Labour government in 1997, these ideas have been

accepted in government policies

219

Many Britons support the government's multicultural

approach that on the one defends the rights and the cultures of ethnic minorities but on the other

hand tries to integrate the immigrants into British society without forcing their assimilation

220

They are proud of Britain's multiculturalism as "cultural syncreticity is a valuable as well as an

inescapable and characteristic feature of all post-colonial societies and indeed [...] the source of

their peculiar strength"

221

But the debates came to a negative climax after the terrorist attacks in London on 7 July

2005 and the events that followed. Critics say that the multicultural policy failed because a

society which is too tolerant becomes vulnerable and this is the case in London now. Critics

plead for more assimilation of the immigrants as a very small number of citizens can, in the worst

213

In Europe, only Britain and the Netherlands aim for a multicultural society (cf. Christa Schwab, "Integration von

Moslems in Großbritannien und Frankreich," diss. (University of Vienna, 1997) 111).

214

The Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) is a non-governmental organisation in Britain which fights against

racial discrimination. Its aim is to promote racial equality. It was founded under the Race Relations Act 1976 (cf.

"Commission for Racial Equality," Wikipedia. The Free Encyclopedia, 12 May 2005, Wikimedia Foundation

Inc., St. Petersburg, Florida, 9 Aug. 2005

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commission_for_Racial_Equality>).

215

This report analysed the current state of multi-ethnic Britain and proposes ways of fighting against racial

discrimination. It rethinks what it means to be British, tries to promote equality and a pluralistic human rights

culture. The report deals with social policies concerning employment, the media, housing, religion, education,

health, the arts, immigration and asylum and with the role of government in providing direction and resources. As

it covers all minorities, the conclusions and recommendations of the report will form government policy for the

next 20 years which will affect everyone in Britain (cf. The Runnymede Trust, ed., The Future of Multi-Ethnic

Britain (The Parekh Report) (London: Profile Books, 2000)).

216

Signs for the multicultural British society of the 21

century are the Kenyan film director Gurinder Chadha, the

British Indian dancer Shobana Jeyasingh, the former rugby player Rory Underwood who is half-Chinese, Paki-

stani artist Rasheed Araeen and the half-Jamaican singer Javine Hylton who sang for Britain in the Eurovision

Contest of 2005, to name but a few.

217

They were in power between 1979 and 1997.

218

Cf. "Multiculturalism," Wikipedia.

219

Cf. "Multiculturalism," Wikipedia. For an in-depth analysis of Blair's attitude on multiculturalism cf. Tony Blair,

"The Network's Annual General Meeting," 2000 Speeches, 28 November 2000, 10 Downing Street, Directgov,

London, 9. Aug. 2005 <http://www.number-10.gov.uk/output/Page1550.asp>.

220

Cf. "Multiculturalism," Wikipedia.

221

Ashcroft, The Empire Writes Back 29. This strength was also seen after the attacks on 7 July 2005 when all ethnic

groups in Britain stood together in the fight against terrorism. There were of course exceptions but these were

still in the minority.

case, turn into ethnic time bombs who preach hatred against Britain instead of integrating into

society

222

. Britain never had an assimilation policy and "accepted as natural what you may call

cultural and religious tribalism"

223

which now turns against British society. The country has

confused tolerance with negligence

224

There are not only negative consequences and danger for the "local" British citizens but

also for British Muslims. The old

225

conflicts between Britons and their Muslim neighbours

become tenser, not only in Britain but world-wide

226

. Direct and indirect racism will continue and

even get worse along with the division of society into Muslims and non-Muslims. There is again

the danger of converting every Muslim into a suspect and one of the great religions into a cult of

death because these terrorists claim to act in the name of their religion. All this is another step

away from multiculturalism

227

3.2.6 Multiculturalism and Postcolonialism

Multiculturalism is also a key term in postcolonial studies as it is a typical phenomenon of

the colonial heritage

228

. In postcolonial literature, the term is often used in connection with plural

hybridity

229

in contrast to monocultural assimilation to the dominating cultural norms

230

. Multi-

culturalism deals with and affects the difficult process and mechanism of finding one's personal

identity or the collective identity of an ethnic group in the multicultural societies of the postcolo-

nial period

231

It is one of the aims of this book to show whether or not multiculturalism is presented as a

blessing or a curse by Zadie Smith and if the novel is realistic or not about this phenomenon of

British society. The analysis will also deal with actual events that took place in London on 7 July

222

It does not make a difference if these people have grown up in Britain or are immigrants as some of the terrorists

in London were born and raised in Britain but hated this country nonetheless. This fact shocked British society.

223

Ken Dilanian, "Muslims in Britain blame attacks on British government and praise Al Qaeda. Islamic radicals

find British haven," Militant Islam Monitor, 10 July 2005, 9 Aug. 2005

<http://www.militantislammonitor.org/article/id/774>.

224

Another country that faces the same problems as Britain now is the Netherlands. After the killing of Theo Van

Gogh by a Muslim, who wanted to go to Paradise afterwards, heated debates about the failing of multiculturalism

in the Netherlands have arisen with negative consequences for the Muslim population in the Netherlands and

world-wide.

225

Cf. chapter 3.4 and 5.2.

226

The Rushdie affair and the Iraq war have already tensed before the relations between these groups.

227

The dichotomy Muslim/non-Muslim unfortunately equates to bad/good and other/self. For a more detailed

explanation cf. chapter 3.4. It should not be forgotten that Muslims are also among the victims.

228

Cf. Antor, "Multikulturalismus" 458.

229

Cf. chapter 3.5.

230

Cf. Antor, "Multikulturalismus" 459.

231

Cf. Antor, "Multikulturalismus" 459.

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Multiculturalism and Magic Realism in Zadie Smith’s novel White Teeth: Between Fiction and Reality

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Sylvia Hadjetian (Author)

Year

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, 2014, Multiculturalism and Magic Realism in Zadie Smith’s novel White Teeth: Between Fiction and Reality, Hamburg, Bedey Media GmbH, https://www.anchor-publishing.com/document/312705

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