University of Tehran Research in Contemporary World Literature 2588-4131 18 1 2013 03 21 Identity and Multiculturalism in Zadie Smith’s The Autograph Man Identity and Multiculturalism in Zadie Smith’s The Autograph Man 129 147 50912 10.22059/jor.2013.50912 FA Seyed Mohammad Marandi دانشگاه تهران 0000-0003-3600-1008 Hossein Pirnajmuddin 0000-0001-8349-2626 Zahra Taheri Journal Article 2013 09 17 <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: FA; mso-no-proof: yes; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Traditional Arabic';">This article focuses on Zadie Smith’s The Autograph Man<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: FA; mso-no-proof: yes; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Traditional Arabic';">in an attempt to see whether Smith is for the multiculturalist discourse or criticizes it. To this end, two major themes of “identity” and “space” are examined. It is argued that Smith offers a counter-narrative to oppose rather than support multiculturalism. In fact, what is known as multiculturalist aspects of Smith’s work is just a mere reflection of the hybrid, postmodern world. By foregrounding the role of capital, race, religion, and gender, Smith tries to unmask the very policy this discursive practice tries to hide. She attempts to expose multiculturalism as a kind of “micro-colonialism” or a new version of capitalist imperialism by casting light on contradictions inherent in it. However, this is complicated by the fact that Smith herself is by and large under the impact of liberal humanism which has affected multiculturalism in different ways. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: FA; mso-no-proof: yes; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Traditional Arabic';">This article focuses on Zadie Smith’s The Autograph Man<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: FA; mso-no-proof: yes; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Traditional Arabic';">in an attempt to see whether Smith is for the multiculturalist discourse or criticizes it. To this end, two major themes of “identity” and “space” are examined. It is argued that Smith offers a counter-narrative to oppose rather than support multiculturalism. In fact, what is known as multiculturalist aspects of Smith’s work is just a mere reflection of the hybrid, postmodern world. By foregrounding the role of capital, race, religion, and gender, Smith tries to unmask the very policy this discursive practice tries to hide. She attempts to expose multiculturalism as a kind of “micro-colonialism” or a new version of capitalist imperialism by casting light on contradictions inherent in it. However, this is complicated by the fact that Smith herself is by and large under the impact of liberal humanism which has affected multiculturalism in different ways.

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