Displaced Identities: Migration, Nostalgia and Cultural Memory in Leila Aboulela's Minaret

Abstract

This paper discusses the portrayal and depiction of Western Muslims in Leila Aboulela's novel "Minaret." Using diaspora factors, the study examines how the novel's protagonists deal with their nostalgia and cultural memory as Muslims living in a Western society, while taking into account the constraints imposed on them by Western society due to the stereotypical image produced by political Islam. Through a focused and careful reading of the novel, the paper argues that Aboulela presents a comprehensive and very accurate portrait of Muslim immigrants. This portrayal emphasizes immersion in the community and the diversity of productive and interconnected experiences with the other society. The characters in the novel are portrayed as struggling and exerting effort with a set of issues related to identity, migration, and nostalgia for the homeland, forcing them to choose between preserving their identity or embracing tradition and modernity. The research discusses prejudice, discrimination, and negative portrayals of Islam in the media, as well as so-called Islamophobia in the West, regarding the reality of Muslims.  Through a sense of cultural memory and nostalgia for moral considerations as Muslims, we forge an identity that challenges the reality of the dispossession of our old identities. Abu Al-Ala emphasizes the importance of belonging, the diversity of experiences, and Islamic identity in light of the global campaign against Islam and Muslims in the West. She also emphasizes the need to move forward in preserving their culture and identity, which must influence their social roles.