Postcolonial Spaces and Cultural (Dis & Re) Location : Production of Space in H.Kureishi’s The Buddha of Suburbia(1991) and M.Ali’s Brick lane (2004)

Abstract

The vast territories that the British Empire once colonized resulted in a fiction that reflects specific groups within the British metropolis known as Black British literature.Black British literature can be defined as the literature written in English by Caribbean, Asian, African and other people who originate from the former British empire.This project represents a closer examination of particular problematic issues that are dealt with in Black British Literature namely: cultural (dis & re)location and space production. It investigates the dilemmas of representation of South Asian ethnographic minorities living in the metropolitan city of London. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of changing places and mobility on the process of “space production”, taking into consideration shifts from periphery to centre. Furthermore, this study sheds light on the processes of cultural dislocation and later relocation along with their effects in the production of space. Hanif Kureishi’s The Buddha of Suburbia (1991) and Monica Ali’s Brick Lane (2004) portray hybrid characters that are seeking a sense of belonging. The struggle of these characters to find their own spaces in the post-imperial London is studied according to Henry Lefebvre Theories of “Production of space” as well as Soja & Bhabha’s “Thirdspace” To illustrate the possibility of the existence of a produced third space where all these characters can express and celebrate their hybrid identities.