DeLillo’s Falling Man as the Counter Narrative against Islam and Terrorism

Abstract

This research work aims to trace the DeLillo’s orientalist representation of muslims in Falling Man. It is the critique of Islamic movements and terrorism. The novel captures the catastrophic events of 9/11 and its aftermath and creates a discourse against both Islam and terrorism connecting both of them together. Since major character Hammad, a Muslim terrorist who has involved in the attack, there is mockery in the tone of the novel against entire Islamic religiosit and terrorism. DeLillo, in Falling Man attacks both the Islam and terrorism as the typical American writing. The discourse of terrorism has become one of the dominant preoccupations of American literature since the terrorist attacks on 9/11. Being untouched with the depth of the incident, DeLillo’s narrative questions against the Islam and upcoming terror and horror in the world where human beings themselves are leading to their destruction. In doing so, DeLillo critiques both Islam and terrorism through his Western perspective as an orientalist representation of the non-west. This research work tries to observe his novel Falling Man through the perspective of anti-terrorism evoking DeLillo’s notion against war and horror through his counter narrative to terrorism and Islam.