CONCEPT OF ISLAM IN NADEEM ASLAM’S MAPS FOR LOST LOVERS (2004)

Abstract

September 11, 2001 incident changed the entire scenario for the Muslims. It affected the lives of the westerners as well as the immigrant Muslims. It revived their ideas, thoughts and concepts about Islam. It brought changes in their attitudes regarding Islam. Islam has been looked down upon after the 9/11 event. Many Pakistani immigrants writers like Mohsin Hamid, Hanif Kureishi and Monica Ali have responded to the situation in their own way. They have discussed the major impact of the 9/11 that came in the lives of the immigrants. Nadeem Aslam was one of them. He has dealt with the same issue in his novel Maps for Lost Lovers (2004). Through this novel he has expressed his dissatisfaction over the representation of Islam by the immigrant Muslims after the event. In his novel he has shown the negative portrayal of Islam by the Muslims. Misrepresentation of Islam, the dual standards of the mullahs, the using of Islam for personal benefits, the robbing of innocent, the secular characters’ approach towards Islam and the disinterestedness in religion will be discussed in this research thesis with special reference to Maps for Lost Lovers. This research is qualitative and descriptive in mode. The specific areas and contents of the corpus will be analyzed in the light of the post 9/11 scenario.