Multicultural Ethos in Zadie Smith'sWhite Teeth

Abstract

White Teethby Zadie Smith tells the story of characters' problemsand the resolution to those problems while living in the contemporary British society. Immigrants cannot find the favorable circumstances to prove themselves who they are. There is a gapin understanding between the different families and alsowithin a family. This gap isfilled by acknowledging the differences through harmony and mutuality. For this purpose, theoretical concepts of Chris Barkerand Conrad WilliamWatson, Will Kymlicka, Keith Banting andJohnHotronare used as theoreticalinsightsforthe analysis and explication. The researcher comes to a finding that multicultural ethos is formed through understanding others to form one's cultural identity. The major finding of this research isthattoleration and accommodationare multicultural ethos in a contemporary multicultural society. Keywords: multiculturalism, multicultural ethos, toleration, authentic self, understanding others