Portrayal of Religious Harmoney AMINA’S VOICE by Henna Khan

Abstract

Religious identity as portrayed in the Western media and in the media of US is paradoxical and Muslims living there are much worried because of it. On the one end peaceful and progressive identity is presented in the media by showing them worshiping peacefully and participating in social activities on a large scale. On the other hand, bearded Muslims are being presented as barbaric, uncivilized and inhumane. The few involved in criminal activities are presented as representatives of all the Muslims. Media do not bifurcate between the criminal segments of the society and peaceful and true followers of the religion. There must be some clear-cut bifurcation, which is very unfortunately missing. This paradox of identity portrayal is worrying Muslims and non-Muslim across the globe(Saeed, 2002). Both Muslims and non-Muslims find it difficult to assert the exact identity and the type of religious people.

Amina’s Voice is a novel written by Hena Khan. It takes place almost exclusively in the United States, and focuses primarily on people whose families have left their previous national cultures and moved permanently to the United States. The major theme of the novel is religious harmony and religious identity maintained in a very peaceful atmosphere. In this novel there is a message for human beings across the globe that one can and one should maintain his/ her identity and religious identity in particular but not at the cost of others. The novel dramatizes how this goal might be achieved through interfaith harmony and by respecting each other.