Subversion of Conventional Gender Roles in Mohja Kahf’s The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf

Abstract

This research analyzes the issue of subversion of gender roles by a Muslim girl, Khadra Shamy in the novel The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf by Mohja Kahf. More than a novel this is a Bildungsroman written by Kahf, who is a diasporic writer living in America. The protagonist of the novel, Khadra Shamy migrates along with her family from Syria to Indiana, America, where she is groomed in a devout Muslim family and taught to follow norms and values of the Quran. However, she rejects conventional notion of gender roles assigned by her religious community and succeeds to achieve her dream as a photographer. The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf accounts the journey of Khadra from a girl to mature woman who revolts against the patriarchal values and proves herself as the capable one to live her life freely. In this journey she encounters hardships but her perpetual courage and confidence takes her to desired life. Khadra Shamy, by rejecting the conventional notion of gender role subverts the role and makes her identity as a successful woman. This research project applies the ideas of Judith Butler and Simone De Beavoir presented in Gender