My Son the Fanatic by Hanif Kureishi - Essay Example

My Son the Fanatic by Hanif Kureishi The story My Son the Fanatic by Hanif Kureishi brings out the conflicts between parents and their children. In particular, the main aim of the author was to show how the relationship between a child and a parent gets tense when there is a clash of ideologies or beliefs. The author wanted to show how Ali had suddenly changed and started to disobey his father Parvez who had done a lot for him. The tensions in the relationship between Parvez and his son Ali, who has newly converted to Islam, are significant.

Throughout the story, the author portrays Parvez as the sympathetic character because his efforts to understand his son are met with resistance and confrontation. A closer reading of the text however reveals that Ali is more sympathetic. Parvez’s portrayal as a sympathetic character by the author is well captured at the beginning of the story when he notes that despite Parvez having “worked long hours and spent a lot of money” on him, Ali was “throwing his possessions out” (Kureishi, 99).

Here, the author attempts to show how Ali was simply trashing everything his father had done for him, including paying his school fees. However, by reading the story carefully, one sympathizes with Ali more because whatever he is doing is as a result of his devotion and commitment to Islam. His actions are not in disobedience to his father but rather his dislike of the western culture based on the teachings of Islam. Unfortunately, it is this culture that his father has embraced. The author also attempts to show Parvez as being more sympathetic by highlighting his efforts in trying to understand the behavior of his son.

For example, Parvez brings out this topic with friends one night, and even asks them why his son was “torturing him” (Kureishi, 100). Clearly, the author wants the readers to sympathize with Parvez and see how his son was simply impossible to understand, forcing him to seek advice from colleagues. Unfortunately, Parvez’s friends, including the prostitute Bettina, gave him the wrong advice which painted Ali badly. Readers therefore sympathize with Ali because his father never took time to understand him, and in the end, wrongly suspected him of dealing in drugs.

This reading therefore shows the importance of parents taking time to fully understand their children and talk to them as opposed to seeking advice from outside which may turn out to be the wrong one. Finally, when Parvez takes his son for dinner, Ali confronts him, and this is further used by the author to create the sympathy. For instance, even before Parvez could speak to him, Ali was confrontational; “‘don’t you know it's wrong to drink alcohol'” (Kureishi, 103). Here, the son is portrayed as being disobedient to the father.

In the end, Parvez lost his temper, and couldn’t stand for his child “telling him the difference between right and wrong” (Kureishi, 103). However, Ali is more sympathetic because he appears to be wiser. He knows the importance of not taking alcohol, and he takes this opportunity to advise his father over the same. He is basing his arguments based on the teachings of Islam. Unluckily, the father is not taking it positively. In the end, Parvez ends up beating up his own son who doesn’t reiterate.

In conclusion, this story best highlights the importance of religious tolerance and understanding, especially considering the events in Paris recently. Throughout the story, the fact that Parez did not understand his son’s religion and his subsequent change of lifestyle resulted in tensions and violence. Works CitedKureishi, Hanif, “My Son the Fanatic.” Faber & Faber, 1998. Pp. 98-112.