The research aims at exploring the homelessness and sense of belonging, depicted in the book, and its impact on the characters. It also endeavors to explore the liminal experiences of the people residing on the Baluchi-Irani border. It also endeavors to analyze the façade of the civilized world by juxtaposing the Structure and Communitas. This scope of the study is the border-zone lives of tribal communities in Pakistani society. The focus of the study will be the border of Pakistan where Baluchistan, Iran and Pakistan meet. The research will focus on the 20th century but importance will be given to the 1970s, the decade in which the book was composed, along with the political chaos which was widespread. The study will highlight the homeless, liminal, existences of the people living on the border zones and how this liminal existence sometimes prove to be beneficial for them.
The concept of border has always been associated with geography and law. The geographical concept of border visualizes border as a physical or visible line of division between provinces especially countries. But in the last few decades the concept of border has undergone a change, in academic studies, they are progressively seen as constantly changing phenomenon that can emerge, disappear and re-emerge. They are no longer perceived as barriers but contact zones. So in our society border zones can be seen as no man’s land or inhabited places. Jamil Ahmad is a Pakistani novelist and story writer. He is known for his book “ The Wandering Falcon” which was short listed for Man Asian Literary Prize in 2011. He was a civil servant who was appointed for 18 years in the tribal areas of Pakistan. He was a political agent in Quetta, Chaghi, Malakhand, Khyber and finally in Baluchistan. The book was composed in 1970s but it was published in 2011, three decades after its composition.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Literature Review
Chapter 3: Research Methodology
Chapter 4: Discussion and Analysis
Conclusion
Research Objectives and Themes
This research aims to analyze the concepts of homelessness and liminality in Jamil Ahmad's novel The Wandering Falcon, using Victor Turner's theoretical framework to juxtapose tribal and urban communities and reveal the complexities of border-zone existence.
- Exploration of homelessness and sense of belonging within the tribal border-zone.
- Application of Victor Turner’s theory of liminality to the novel’s characters.
- Juxtaposition of "Structure" and "Communitas" to critique urban civilization.
- Analysis of different forms of boundaries and the liminal existence of natives.
- Examination of the survival mechanisms and identities of tribal communities.
Excerpt from the Book
Chapter 4: Discussion and Analysis
Jamil Ahmad’s The Wandering Falcon become a testament of his “ability to combine a clear affection and respect for this world of tribal discipline with a clear eyed look at its harshness” (The Observer). The socio-political environment of the novel displays the turmoil the people, residing on the border of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran, experienced since the inception of administrative borders. The novel seems to be Jamil Ahmad’s attempt to apologize for the wrongs committed to the beautiful landscape by the government. Through his novel Ahmad attempts to depict the people, doomed to wander by the political supremacy, in their border-line world. The liminal existences of these forgotten people, considered to be barbaric and uncivilized, is depicted, by Ahmad, with integrity, principle and honor, the qualities with the so called civilized world attaches with itself and with such an approach the land, previously associated with bloodshed and bombs become humane and civilized, sometimes more than the world outside the tribal world.
The novel is the depiction of this mountainous world from an insider’s eye. The novel is comprised to nine stories connected with each other through a recurring character Tor Baz.“The simplicity of the narration gives a fable-like effect to the storytelling. Its elegiac voice mourns the lot of the characters yet refuses to judge the laws that trap them” (The Independent). Within these nine stories all the characters create a liminal space for themselves. Ahmad encourages his readers to shun all sorts of misconception about the tribal world. In one of his interviews he said: “Brutality exists. But how the tribe deal with it is clean and clear. There is a clean dividing line between right and wrong…and each one of us has a tribal gene inside us”. He encourages the readers to relate themselves to the characters in the novel as all of us has a “tribal gene inside us”. He urges the world outside Baluchistan to re-evaluate its perception about the Baluchi tribal people or culture.
Summary of Chapters
Chapter 1: Introduction: This chapter provides the socio-political context of the 1970s in Pakistan and outlines the study's aim to explore homelessness and liminal experiences in the border-zone.
Chapter 2: Literature Review: This section reviews existing critical perspectives on Jamil Ahmad's work and establishes the theoretical framework based on Victor Turner’s concepts of liminality and structure.
Chapter 3: Research Methodology: This chapter describes the qualitative nature of the research and the primary and secondary sources used to analyze the novel's thematic concerns.
Chapter 4: Discussion and Analysis: This chapter analyzes the novel’s characters and settings, focusing on how the liminal existence of the tribal people contrasts with the structured, often corrupt, world of the government.
Conclusion: This final section summarizes how the novel exposes the flaws of civilization through the lens of liminality and advocates for a re-evaluation of the rights of those living in the border-zones.
Keywords
Liminality, The Wandering Falcon, Jamil Ahmad, Homelessness, Border-zone, Communitas, Structure, Tribalism, Post-colonialism, Victor Turner, Tor Baz, Baluchistan, Identity, Survival, Narrative.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the fundamental focus of this research paper?
The paper focuses on the analysis of homelessness and liminality in Jamil Ahmad's novel The Wandering Falcon, specifically examining how characters navigate their existence in the Baluchi border-zones.
What are the primary themes discussed in the work?
Central themes include the clash between government-imposed structures and tribal communitas, the concept of borders as contact zones rather than barriers, and the search for identity and belonging.
What is the central research goal or problem?
The research seeks to analyze how the concept of liminality serves as a coping mechanism for dislocated people and uses it to reveal the "façade of civilization" in urban societal structures.
Which scientific methodology is applied in this study?
The research is qualitative, utilizing Victor Turner’s theory of liminality and his concept of the "Ritual Process" (Structure and Anti-structure) as the primary theoretical framework for literary analysis.
What topics are covered in the main body of the work?
The body covers a detailed analysis of the protagonist Tor Baz, the portrayal of female characters, the critique of government administrative borders, and the symbolic significance of tribal law versus modern law.
Which keywords best characterize this academic work?
Key terms include Liminality, Post-colonialism, Communitas, Border-zone, Identity, and Tribalism.
How does the novel portray the relationship between the government and the tribal people?
The novel depicts the government as a corrupt, manipulative, and intrusive force that complicates the lives of the tribal people, who are portrayed as more humane and honorable despite being labeled uncivilized.
What is the significance of the character Tor Baz?
Tor Baz serves as the recurring, thematic protagonist who embodies the "liminal persona." His survival and lack of fixed tribal affiliation make him a universal figure representing those who live between worlds.
Why is the concept of "liminal space" central to the analysis of the borders in the book?
Liminal space is analyzed as an "in-between" state where traditional hierarchies and social statuses are blurred or reversed, allowing characters to define their own existence outside of government control.
- Citation du texte
- Inbisat Shuja (Auteur), 2017, Homelessness and sense of Belonging. A Liminal Analysis of Jamil Ahmad’s Wandering Falcon, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/369717
