Abu Sufian | Chittagong Independent University (original) (raw)

Papers by Abu Sufian

Asiatic, 2023

This paper offers a literary analysis of Zia Haider Rahman's novel, In the Light of What We Know ... more This paper offers a literary analysis of Zia Haider Rahman's novel, In the Light of What We Know (2014), from the theoretical perspective of transnationalism. Drawing on insights from the evolving theoretical lens of transnationalism, and off and on from nationalism, the paper examines how the novel's narrative explores the themes of cultural identity, migration, and subjectivity within the context of a rapidly globalising world. It identifies and analyses the ways in which transnationalist concerns are expressed in the protagonist's diasporic experience and the socio-political milieu in which the novel is set. The paper explores, to be precise, how the protagonist's transnational subjectivity is shaped by experiences of migration, exile, and translocality, and how it is informed by the cultural contexts in which he operates. It argues that the novel's exploration of transnationalism offers valuable insights into the complex and multifaceted nature of contemporary identity, and contributes to ongoing academic debates about the relationship between globalism, localism, nationalism, and transnationalism. Overall, this paper offers a fresh perspective on the intersection between nationalism and transnationalism, and highlights the potentials of transnationalism as a theoretical framework for understanding contemporary cultural phenomena as depicted in In the Light of What We Know.

Galaxy Journal , 2014

The postwar disillusionment of the 1920s led many literary figures to voice out the predicament a... more The postwar disillusionment of the 1920s led many literary figures to voice out the predicament and moral dilemma that modern life faces. Of many poets of war, T.S. Eliot is a distinguished figure and a leading voice in picturing the crises of the time known as ‘age of worry’. His groundbreaking poem, The Waste Land (1922) appears like an earthquake and deconstructs the structure of modernism and everything it offered. It portrays a claustrophobic world where regeneration and hopefulness seem far-fetched. This ‘disease of the age’ becomes the core issue of the poem. Eliot follows the ‘mythical method’ in the poem and connects existing panoramic setbacks of modern life to antiquities. Thus, it implies a reproachful question on modernism. Exposing a picture of mundane wasteland that symbolically suggests the spiritual death of modern men, Eliot ties the malaise with the eternal human problem and looks East for a possible remedy.

Journal of Islamic Law and Culture (Vol 15, Issue 1), 2014

Shelina Janmohamed’s debut novel, Love in a Headscarf (2009), represents a new voice of a British... more Shelina Janmohamed’s debut novel, Love in a Headscarf (2009), represents a new voice of a British Muslim woman which was rarely heard before in the contemporary British literary landscape. It is a novel voice that defines Muslim women and their choices in an uplifting and liberating manner, going beyond the cliched and timeworn perceptions of Muslim women living in the West. What is more, residing in a Muslim minority country, Janmohamed upholds her faith traditions, rituals, customs and contextual societal bonding, while simultaneously, she obdurately critiques her own community and societal misdeeds and prejudices. None of the existing social or familial prejudices could hold her back from what she intends to achieve in her life, be it her educational pursuit or choosing a life partner.

The Criterion, Jun 2014

Diasporic Muslim women living in the West undergo a series of labels and stereotypes for a long t... more Diasporic Muslim women living in the West undergo a series of labels and stereotypes for a long time. The humiliation further developed ever since 9/11 and 7/7 incidents. In literature too, Muslim women are being caricatured and misrepresented by the dominant literary figures that include Muslim writers such as Salman Rushdie, Hanif Kureishi, Monica Ali, and so on. Apart from this well-known and dominating group, in the past decade of the current century, a new genus of contemporary British Muslim writers seems to have come into sight with an impressive list of novels. This burgeoning group of writers explores their experiences and choices in a unique manner that was rarely heard before. While living in the sturdily Islamophobic Western society, they uphold religious beliefs and practices in a sharp contrast to the prevailing group of British Muslim writers who arguably participate in the neo-Orientalist venture of distorting and misrepresenting their religion and culture.

The Criterion, Apr 2014

Eugene Gladstone O’Neill’s (1888-1953) Long Day’s Journey into Night (written in 1941-42 but publ... more Eugene Gladstone O’Neill’s (1888-1953) Long Day’s Journey into Night (written in 1941-42 but published in 1956) is strictly autobiographical drama. Many critics claim that this drama is the best and finest creation of O’Neill, similarly, other claim the drama to be the masterpiece of the author. The play has been published posthumously, and it represents O’Neill’s last words to the horizon of the literary world. From all 32 full-length plays of O’Neill, three plays are there, namely The Iceman Cometh (1939), A Moon for the Misbegotten (1943), Long Day's Journey into Night (1941),where O’Neill adds and mingles his personal life, family and experiences.

Newspaper Articles by Abu Sufian

Priyo Australia, 2018

As a writer and social activist, Rokeya worked for nearly three decades: from 1902 to 1932. She c... more As a writer and social activist, Rokeya worked for nearly three decades: from 1902 to 1932. She can be singled out as a unique feminist in the history of women liberation movement; because she produced literature to advocate a gender egalitarian value, wrote essays to educate man and women on the importance of a gender-equal society, created educational institute to materialize her dream and formed social organization to create awareness among mass people on the importance of girl’s education. To my knowledge, I have not heard of any other individual who fought for women emancipation in the society did all four necessary and brave initiatives that Rokeya took to help progress the condition of women. It may sound a bit overstatement, even the most notable feminists like Virginia Woolf (1882–1941) and Simone de Beauvoir (1908–1986) will not be a match for Rokeya’s activities.

Shelina Janmohamed’s literary debut Love in a Headscarf can be considered as a counter-narrative ... more Shelina Janmohamed’s literary debut Love in a Headscarf can be considered as a counter-narrative to conventional cliché-ridden narrative practised largely by many Muslim writers in Britain and beyond. The memoir introduces the readers with a new depiction of Muslim women living in Britain and West at large. The author notices that, books available in bookstores notably failed to portray true images of Muslim women. This conventional, dull and lifeless representation of Muslim women induced her to produce Love in a Headscarf. Many critics acclaimed her memoir as being an iconoclastic narrative that portrays Muslim women positively. Claire Chambers, one of the preeminent scholars of Muslim women’s writings in Britain and beyond, contends that, while most auto/biographies about young Muslim women mainly centered on her discovering ‘freedom’ and secular life, Janmohamed’s narrative is unusual in describing a human being’s journey towards Islam as a civilization or a religion.

Banglanews24.com, Nov 17, 2015

Since the new wave of Paris attacks on last Friday, the mainstream media plunged into Paris and c... more Since the new wave of Paris attacks on last Friday, the mainstream media plunged into Paris and covered the heinous terrorist attack that took away 129 civilian lives. The media covered the attacks with utmost importance, making headlines after headlines. This is something we all should appreciate. What is shocking is that the same media ignored a massive terrorist attack in Lebanon's capital Beirut just a day earlier. Literally, the mainstream media had ignored the Beirut attack.

The Daily Observer, Mar 20, 2015

Of all human beings, children are the most innocent and vulnerable; therefore, they warrant the g... more Of all human beings, children are the most innocent and vulnerable; therefore, they warrant the greatest safeguard and utmost care due to their helplessness and innocence. The year 2014 witnessed the cruelest wars against children and schools. These attacks, starting from Israel's Operation Protective Edge (OPE) in Palestine to recent Army School slaughtering at Peshawar, stigmatized human sanctity, morality and responsibility.

As regards Rohingya crisis, however, international media have been very vocal and show their resi... more As regards Rohingya crisis, however, international media have been very vocal and show their resilience to solving the crisis. But the local and international leaders seemed to be irresponsible and did almost nothing until recently to save those stranded people in the wilderness of Indian Ocean. This suggests the end of our shared morality and humanity. We have nothing left to be proud of. As human beings, we are not modern/post-modern, I think we are more barbaric than some medieval monarchs and more heartless than the cruel Roman Empire rulers. This is high time we reckon with the fact that our collective morality and humanity have almost died since we failed to prove it time and again.

New Age (Bangladeshi Daily), Mar 11, 2015

The latest research report of UNICEF, titled ‘Ending Child Marriage: Progress and Prospects’ (201... more The latest research report of UNICEF, titled ‘Ending Child Marriage: Progress and Prospects’ (2014), displays that the rate of child marriage in Bangladesh is alarmingly high. The report contends that 74 per cent of women aged between 20 and 49 in Bangladesh, were married before their 18th birthday. Of these 74 per cent women, around 39 per cent of them were wedded before the age of 15. Child marriage rate in Bangladesh is higher than average, compared with other South Asian countries, which is 56 per cent.

Published Poetry by Abu Sufian

Here two poems ("The Silent Tears" and "Vanity") published are of romantic kind. And "Vanity" is ... more Here two poems ("The Silent Tears" and "Vanity") published are of romantic kind. And "Vanity" is on the illusion of time.

The Criterion: An International Journal in English, Dec 2014

I saw a cigarette’s butt-end on top of a green leaf, How nature and destruction mingle, How can... more I saw a cigarette’s butt-end on top of a green leaf,
How nature and destruction mingle,
How can this combination be explained?
A rare scene, one reflects life, and the other Death.

Book Reviews by Abu Sufian

Asiatic, 2024

Umme Salma’s Bangladeshi Novels in English: Cultural Contact and Migrant Subjectivity is an impor... more Umme Salma’s Bangladeshi Novels in English: Cultural Contact and Migrant Subjectivity is an important scholarly work that addresses migration and diaspora through the lens of eight selected novels written in English by authors of Bangladeshi heritage. The book examines migration, cultural contact, women’s agency, and identity formation, focusing on narratives that span the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. These texts portray the experiences of Bangladeshi Muslim migrants against the backdrop of their struggles and adaptations in host societies.

The value of motherhood transcends civilizational boundaries and cultural differences. Motherhood... more The value of motherhood transcends civilizational boundaries and cultural differences. Motherhood is adored and celebrated, though changes in social structures are slowly undermining its importance and many mothers are nowadays distracted from their role of childrearing and are engaged by other activities and feel stressed out at work outside the house. Those mothers who selflessly devote themselves to looking after their children are in constant struggle and have many stories to tell. Mothers who patiently bear all the ordeals involved in bringing up their children are often portrayed as passive, submissive entities who are presumably ‘oppressed’ by husbands and confined within the boundaries of homes.
This idea is so prevalent that mothers who decide to speak up and share their struggles with the world often shock many people. For decades, Muslim women have always been represented by others who talk and write about them. Their own voices are not commonly heard. Readers are consistently fed with stories of abuse, discrimination and subjugation of Muslim women in so-called Muslim patriarchal society. Against such a cultural backdrop, alternative narratives of Muslim women speaking up seem far-fetched in the mainstream literary canon.

It is more than sure, as evidence suggests, the Rohingya Muslim community from Myanmar is going t... more It is more than sure, as evidence suggests, the Rohingya Muslim community from Myanmar is going through the ‘Final Stages of Genocide’. Indeed, the de facto leader of the country and Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi’s silence and inaction over the continuous killings of Rohingya Muslims in her country is not pardonable. I think it is high time for Suu Kyi to consider handing back the Nobel Prize. Otherwise, the Nobel committee should seriously consider and take the initiative to confiscate the prize as she continuously fails to uphold the peaceful values and speak out for the marginalized Rohingya Muslim community in her country, despite staunch international condemnation over her inexcusable silence.

Thesis Chapters by Abu Sufian

IIUM Press, 2016

Creative works – especially life writings – by female writers with Muslim names that can be categ... more Creative works – especially life writings – by female writers with Muslim names that can be categorized as "misery genre" are quite prominent in current literary discussion. Such literary texts portray Muslim women as victims of domestic abuse, forced/child marriage, rape, marginalization, societal discrimination and lack of freedom and educational opportunities under Muslim patriarchy. In contemporary British postcolonial literature, there is a tendency among certain writers with Muslim backgrounds to caricature and misrepresent Muslim women and thus misrepresent Muslim societies. Conversely, another group of writers seem to counteract such narratives and show unconditional allegiance to their faith and culture. Based on this observation, this thesis explores the major issues in Monica Ali's Brick Lane (2003) and Shelina Janmohamed's Love in a Headscarf (2009) and investigates their perception and representation of diasporic Muslim women in Britain using postcolonial criticism. It also focuses on major contemporary issues involving the Muslim diaspora in Britain and the religion of Islam as portrayed in the two novels.