Table of Contents

1. Introduction………………………………………………………………………………….3

2. The Arab Spring revolutions……………………………………………………...…………6

2.1. Tunisia……………………………………………………………………..………8

2.2. Egypt……………………………………………………………………….…….11

2.3. Libya………………………………………………………………………...……13

3. Western stereotypes about the Muslim world…………………………………………...…16

4. Literary analysis……………………………………………………………………………23

4.1. David Lender: Arab Summer…………..…………………………………………23

4.1.1. David Lender’s Arab Spring uprising………………………………….24

4.1.1.1. Realistic features……………………………………………...24

4.1.1.2. Terrorist Spring……………………………………………….31

4.1.2. America’s involvement……………………………………………...…36

4.1.3. The role of mass media…………………………………………………40

4.2. G. Willow Wilson: Alif the Unseen………………………………………………44

4.2.1. Uprising in the City………………………………………………….…45

4.2.2. Religion ………………………………………………………………..56

4.2.3. Cyber War……………………………………………………………...66

5. Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………………75

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Works Cited…………………………………………………………………………………80

Word count: 25732

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1. Introduction

For ages, politics, violence and war have been appealing themes for literature.

Although many works on these subjects are purely fictional, this is certainly no requirement.

Historical events are equally fit to form the basis of a literary work. From very early on,

Greek authors such as Herodotus wrote about the Greco-Persian wars and of course,

American literature has its representatives in this tradition too. We only need to think about

Ernest Hemingway’s novel For Whom the Bell Tolls about the Spanish Civil War or Tim

O’Brien’s The Things They Carried, concerning the Vietnam War, to verify this. The tendency to write about conflict and social disturbances has not vanished yet. On the contrary, on the occasion of the First World War centenary, articles, novels, lectures and audiovisual material about the Great War are receiving even more interest than before.

This master’s thesis will focus on more recent events, namely the events in the North-

African and Middle Eastern regions known as the Arab Spring uprisings. Although these revolutions started not so long ago in December 2010, a great deal has been written about them already, mostly journalistic texts, but also prose with literary allure such as Boualem

Sansal’s tribute to Mohamed Bouazizi, whose self-sacrifice triggered the Arab revolutions.

Other examples are Nawal El Saadawi’s “The Egyptian Revolution Won’t Be Fooled”, which captures the first days of the Egyptian uprisings, Laila Marouane’s “Is this How Women

Grow Up”, about Algerian misogyny and oppression and Fadhil Al-Azzawi’s “Founding

Fathers”, a story about a theme park for deceased dictators. In this master’s thesis, however, the focus will lie on how the events of the Arab Spring are portrayed in the works of

American authors.

In the United States exist a couple of negative prejudices when it comes to Islam and the Muslim world, prejudices which might also be reflected in American authors’ work. In

- 3 - what follows, two very different American novels, which both treat an Arab Spring uprising, will be looked at. On the basis of those two works, I will try to demonstrate how some

American literary works are more influenced by Western stereotypes than others. American culture advocates liberal values. Equal opportunities, freedom and democracy are key concepts in the US. These are also the sort of rights which were demanded by the protesting

Arab populations during the 2011 uprisings. Consequentially, one might think that American novels concerning the Arab Spring would approve of the democratic revolutions. However, due to a series of unfortunate conflicts between the US and Muslim communities, various negative stereotypes concerning the Muslim world have influenced a substantial part of the

American population. Many American people started associating Muslims with terrorists and rich oil suppliers. Hence, in this master’s thesis, I will examine whether the discussed

American authors portray the Arab Spring revolutions realistically, as a struggle for values which are also deemed respectable in the US or whether the authors’ novels are still subjected to typical Western stereotypes, resulting in a literary work that is neither realistic, nor informative. Western stereotypes can enter the Arab Spring novels in various ways: a distorted picture of the Arab revolutionaries, depicting the Arab Spring revolutions as Islamic revolutions, a narrow-minded description of Islam itself or a glorification of the US’s role as mediator. It will be necessary to adopt a critical attitude towards the American novels in order to detect and review the preconceptions about Arab individuals and their culture. Therefore, I will discuss Edward Said’s work Covering Islam and Ibrahim Kalin’s essay “Islamophobia and the Limits of Multiculturalism”. These works treat how Western media particularly spread the negative aspects of the Muslim world and almost completely ignore the honorable facets of the Orient, which prevents the Western world from overcoming its prejudices.

On top of these research questions, the influence and importance of Internet and the media during the Arab revolutions will also be talked over. Nowadays, mass media have a key

- 4 - role in modern society. Next to television, radio and news papers, social platforms such as

Facebook and Twitter have proven their value as means of communication. Because of the omnipresence of the social media in our Western society, we do not need to be surprised that they are also represented in contemporary literature. In the American novels about the uprisings, both authors mention the undeniable importance of the mass media in the Arab world during the revolutions. I will discuss how the American authors present the Internet and older media as weapons, wielded by the revolutionaries. The oppressed Arab citizens used the mass media in order to counter censure and send out complaints about the social malaise behind the backs of their authoritarian regimes. Furthermore, social media enabled the Arab people to quickly organize and recruit people for public protests. Freedom of speech is a right that Western societies keep close to the heart, so communicative tools such as Facebook, which help to ensure this right, are generally depicted positively in the American novels.

Nonetheless, both authors also acknowledge that mass media can be used to mislead citizens or gain information about them. News reports can bend the truth and influence public opinion.

The Internet, moreover, contains a lot of personal information about people, information that can be sought out by governments around the world. Therefore, I will not exclusively focus on the authors’ depiction of the usefulness of mass media, but address the limitations and dangers, as they are represented in the novels, too.

I will start this master’s thesis by providing some background about the Arab Spring; where did the uprisings take place, when did they start and maybe most important, why did they occur? This information will help to make out whether the American narrations are more or less comparable with the actual events. Thereafter, I will discuss the works of Edward Said and Ibrahim Kalin in order to reveal the Western stereotypes and adjust the negative image of the Muslim world. Once these aspects are treated, we can start the examination of the relevant literature. In this work, the focus will lie on prose, more specifically two American novels.

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The first novel is David Lender’s Arab Summer, a novel which is clearly subjected to Western stereotypes. Lender lives in New Jersey, is a former Wall Street investment banker and has not extensively studied Arab culture. His novel displays various images which are without a doubt prototypes of Western bias. The next novel is G. Willow Wilson’s Alif the Unseen. Not only did Wilson study Arab language and literature, but she has lived in Caïro herself.

Standing much closer to Arab culture and habits, she provides her reader with a more open- minded view on the Arab Spring than Lender. I chose to discuss these two novels because they embody two completely different ways of representing Arab conflicts. While Lender’s novel confirms narrow-minded Western prejudices, Wilson’s work provides the reader with a broader view on the revolutions and Muslim culture in general. By examining these works I will try to demonstrate how contemporary American literature represents the modern day crises of the Arab Spring, that the representation can be realistic, but also a model of typical bias. Unfortunately, only a small selection of literature about the Arab Spring is represented in this master’s thesis, but it should be enough to convey the idea that one should be careful when reading a literary work because writers, too, can be affected by the societies they live in.

Furthermore, we will take a look at the novels’ treatment of mass communication, which has highly influenced the course of the Arab uprisings. I will discuss how the usage of the mass media is represented in Arab Summer and Alif the Unseen, making a distinction between, on the one hand, the advantageous aspects of mass media, and, on the other hand, the dangerous and manipulative side of mass media. Ultimately, this study should give us a strong notion about which themes and motifs are recurrent in American works about the Arab Spring.

2. The Arab Spring revolutions

Before starting the examination of the literature a brief survey of the Arab revolutions will be presented. The spark that ignited the Arab Spring uprisings was Mohamed Bouazizi, the desperate Tunisian vendor who killed himself as a protest action against the ruling regime.

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The large-scale protests that followed Bouazizi’s death not only resulted in the overthrow of the Tunisian regime, but the civilian opposition also blew over to neighboring countries.

Starting 17 December 2010, people in the Arab world from Mauritania in the west to Saudi

Arabia and Syria in the east, rose against their patriarchal, dictatorial governments

(Lambrecht 2013:19). What started in Tunisia continued later in Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Syria,

Bahrain and numerous other North-African and Middle Eastern countries (Eikelboom

2011:7). People in these countries protested against their authoritarian leaders who were holding sway for a long period of time. In Tunisia President Ben Ali was in power for 23 years, Egyptian President Mubarak reigned for 30 years and Libyan Colonel Gaddafi for 42 years. In Syria, Bashar al-Assad succeeded his father Hafez al-Assad. The dynastic idea also appealed to the eighty-two year old Mubarak, who wanted his son Gamal to govern Egypt after his departure (Eikelboom 2011:7).

For the last couple of decades, the West considered the Arab world as a place where progress and enlightenment were nonexistent. The establishment of a theocracy in Iran in

1979, religion’s important role in politics, the sectarian civil war in Lebanon, the exodus of religious minorities, the rich and authoritarian monarchies in the Gulf and religious terrorism all contributed to the image of the Arab world as a conservative, medieval region (Lambrecht

2013:20). Hence, the recent demand for emancipation and democracy, the distinctive mark of the Arab revolutions, is generally considered positively in the Western world. However, it is important to note that Western governments rarely called Ben Ali or Mubarak dictators during their tenure. It was only after their downfall that they were publically depicted as the dictators they were (Lambrecht 2013:21). Before, rulers like Mubarak did not need to fear sanctions or repercussions from the United States. In exchange for their help in the American war against terror, the former Arab leaders received money, weapons and on top of that, the United States turned a blind eye towards the repression of the population. Arab leaders like Mubarak

- 7 - repeatedly uttered the catchphrase “Me or the chaos”, meaning that if it was not for Mubarak,

Muslim fundamentalists would seize power, making Egypt a safe haven for terrorist organizations such as al-Qaida. Similar agreements existed in Tunisia and as long as Syria did not attack Israel or intervene in the war in Iraq, Assad would not be condemned for his crimes against humanity. These kind of arrangements are examples of realpolitik, politics based on practical rather than ideological considerations (Eikelboom 2011:7). Knowledge of these questionable relations between the United States and the Arab dictators might be useful when we take a look at American literature about the Arab Spring.

The extent and the success of the revolutions vary from country to country. Some populations succeeded in overthrowing the authoritarian regimes, sometimes smaller compromises were made. In Morocco, for instance, King Mohammed VI was not forced to abdicate, but instead the constitution was revised. King Abdullah II of Jordan had to make political concessions and King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia made economic concessions and was forced to grant women the right to vote (Lambrecht 2013:22). In order to discuss all countries involved in the Arab Spring, I should need another master’s thesis fixed only on the topic. So unfortunately, I will only briefly discuss the revolutions that resulted in the overthrow of a regime and consequentially received the most media attention in the past few years: the ones in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. By examining the course of a couple of the Arab revolutions it should be easier to make out the extent to which the American novels are realistic and it will already give us an idea of the role of mass media during the Arab Spring.

2.1. Tunisia

The beginning of the Arab Spring was prompted by the suicide of Mohamed Bouazizi.

Bouazizi lived in the small town Sidi Bouzid and worked as a fruit vendor in order to support his family. During his daily routine selling fruits in the streets of his town, Bouazizi often had

- 8 - to endure harassment from local police officers. Although street vendors did not need a license to sell on the street, the local authorities kept illegally confiscating Bouazizi’s goods.

The only way he would get his goods back was by bribing the officers. That is how things went in Sidi Bouzid. The only way to make progress in life was by bribing the authorities; not only officers, but also the mayors, the judges, teachers, et cetera. Without any money to bribe anyone, Bouazizi was stuck in a desperate situation. On 17 December 2010, another police officer confiscated his fruits and hit him in the face. At least, that is what eyewitnesses said; colleagues of the officer denied it. Sick of this maltreatment, Bouazizi went to the town hall to complain about the power abuse of the authorities. However, when he understood the officials did not want to hear his complaints, he grabbed a can of gasoline and set himself on fire in protest. Heavily injured, Bouazizi was brought to the hospital where he died the fourth of

January (Eikelboom 2011:17-22).

In Tunisia, authorities held all power and money while the population was starving.

During the nineties, many government-owned corporations were privatized and fell in the hands of Leila Trabelsi’s family, wife of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. The Trabelsi family suddenly owned the national airline, a radio station, a car factory, a real estate company, various shops, a bank and some hotels. Tunisia was widely plagued by corruption; not only within the Trabelsi family but also police officers, customs officials and ministers were bribable. Hence, in a land where the average annual salary was a meagre 1300 euro, the first lady’s family had more money than they could spend (Eikelboom 2011:19-20). The existence of widespread corruption and the neglect of basic human rights were known abroad.

A report from the American State Departement, for instance, described these matters in great detail. Nonetheless, due to Ben Ali’s pro-western stance and his strict actions against Muslim fundamentalists, the US undertook no actions against his regime. Instead Ben Ali’s Tunisia received 349 million dollars in defence aid (Eikelboom 2011:27). In the end, however, the

- 9 - unfair distribution of wealth and corruption in Tunisia were the main causes for the outbreak of what we now know as the Jasmine Revolution.

The discontent about the Tunisian government among the population was not new, but

Bouazizi’s sacrifice incited the country in a way nobody could have foreseen. The first protests on the streets started 19 December and immediately the government tried to appease the villagers from Sidi Bouzid by promising 10 million dollars for employment programs. The officer who hit Bouazizi and the governor who ignored his complaints were suspended.

Nonetheless, the protests persisted. Two days later a new protest march took place and another man killed himself to make a statement. On 23 December, two people got shot by official authorities during riots in Menzel Bouzaine. A protest that had taken place two years earlier in Gafsa did hardly reach the outside world, because the few journalist who dared to write about it ended up in jail. With new social media such as Facebook and Twitter, however, the news of the Tunisian revolution spread quickly. On 25 December, people in

Sfax, Kairouan and Ben Guerdane joined the protests and on 27 December, the capital Tunis pleaded for change. Even tourist resorts Hammamet, Monastir and Sousse could not escape the rage of the population. At first, President Ben Ali tried to frighten his people and warned them that he would undertake harsh measures. Later, small concessions were made: he fired governors, ministers and declared that he would not run for president in 2014. His concessions did not have the hoped-for results and therefore he ultimately chose the way of violence. He ordered police officers and even snipers to shoot at demonstrators, which once again resulted in more protests. On 14 January, Ben Ali announced a state of emergency, his last act as president of Tunisia because the military rejected Ben Ali’s order to continue shooting the protesters. Hence, after twenty-three years, Ben Ali was forced to flee Tunisia, resulting in the end of his dictatorship (Eikelboom 2011:20-22). Very soon after the Tunisian revolution, the question surfaced whether similar uprisings would take place in neighbouring

- 10 - countries such as Algeria, Libya or Egypt. These countries were also inhabited by a discontent youth who had to face poverty, desperation and were ruled by a repressive regime (Eikelboom

2011:29). As it turned out, the Tunisians, indeed, served as an example for their oppressed neighbours.

2.2. Egypt

As in Tunisia, official Egyptian institutions were characterized by corruption.

Prominent members of President Mubarak’s National Democratic Party (NDP) received special treatment. If these men were suspected of committing a crime, journalists were not allowed to report on them and although there was often enough evidence to convict these people, they frequently escaped severe penalties (De Cock 2011:55-56). There was also the crooked, fraudulent political sphere Mubarak controlled. With the parliamentary elections of

November 2010, more liberal parties tried to campaign, but barely got the chance. Secret agents arrested liberals trying to put up campaign posters and during the elections, no independent, neutral overseers were present. Furthermore, the official government chose its own opposition. Only persons functioning within a political party were allowed to run for parliament, but since the parties could only be recognized by the NDP, Mubarak de facto controlled the political world. The Muslim Brotherhood, for example, has much support in

Egypt, but was officially illegal at the time. Small wonder that Mubarak’s party came out as the big winner in the elections of 2010. Human rights organizations spoke of “the most fraudulent Egyptian elections ever” (De Cock 2010:62-69). Another factor that contributed to the discontent of the population was the cessation of grain supply from Russia. Due to drought and forest fires, prime minister Putin decided to feed his own hungry citizens first.

The mix of corruption, hunger, poverty, unemployment and an authoritarian government would prove deadly for Mubarak’s regime, as it did for Ben Ali’s in Tunisia (De Cock

2010:57-58). The new social media also played their role in the outbreak of the revolutions. In

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Egypt too, various young bloggers were spreading the message that Egypt needed to change, that Mubarak needed to disappear (De Cock 2011:61). Due to the lack of freedom of the press and freedom of speech, however, exclaiming such statements could be very dangerous.

Therefore, many young Egyptians used pseudonyms such as El Shadeed (The Martyr), who founded the immensely popular Facebook group “We are all Khaled Said”, a reference to

Khaled Said, the twenty-eight year old man who was beaten to death by local authorities after he posted a film showing the police’s involvement in drug trafficking (De Cock 2011:58-59).

Blogs, Twitter and Facebook were thus the ideal tools to utter complaints against the regime and at the same time discover that many other people strove for change in Egypt. The more aggressive public demonstrations, however, only started on 25 January 2011.

On this 25 January, “We are all Khaled Said”, in cooperation with other Facebook groups such as the “April 6 Youth Movement”, organized the “Day of Rage”. Approximately twenty thousand people trod the streets shouting “Tunisia” and “Away with Mubarak”. At this point, the Muslim Brotherhood did not yet participate. The next day thousands of people resumed the anti-government protests in Cairo, but unlike the day before, the police officers did not hesitate any longer to react violently. As in Tunisia, the government tried to restrain the protests with violence, which resulted in even more protests. People in Alexandria and

Suez were gathering in the streets too (De Cock 2011:114-117). Apparently, the regime learned to estimate the possible dangers of mass media because on 27 January the telephone lines and Internet were out of service throughout Egypt (De Cock 2011:119). On Friday 28

January still more protesters participated, heavy fights between demonstrators and riot police took place, and the headquarters of the NDP went up in flames. Moreover, this day was the first day the Muslim Brotherhood participated in the revolution. That night Mubarak made his first public appearance since the protests started. On national television he declared the dissolution of his government. Mubarak himself, however, did not yet intend to relinquish his

- 12 - post. This did not appease the Egypt citizens. Christians as well as Muslims joined the revolution in the name of democracy. Even the Muslim Brotherhood did not speak of an

Islamite revolution, or plead for sharia law (De Cock 2011:120-122). The word on everyone’s lips was democracy and this could not happen as long as Mubarak held his position. Hence, the protests continued, forcing Mubarak to make new concessions. On 1 February 2011, the

Egyptian president announced that neither he nor his son would run for president during the elections in September (De Cock 2011:130). After only one week of protest more than 150 people died for their cause. The regime employed the so-called baltagiya -local ruffians who functioned as an improvised and brutal police force- in order to break the protesters’ spirit by using violence. Furthermore, demonstrators who left Tahrir Square were arrested and carried off (De Cock 2011:130-134). But the people persisted and Mubarak had to leave. On 10

February Mubarak partially ceded power to Vice-President Omar Suleiman, but it was not until the next day that hundreds of thousands of protesters finally heard that Mubarak had resigned as president (De Cock 147-150).

2.3. Libya

The next country I want to discuss is Libya, the land of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi. In

2011, Gaddafi had been in power for 42 consecutive years. The Libyan Colonel knew both supporters and opponents. While many were sick of the international isolation, caused by

Gaddafi’s politics, many Libyans respected their leader for his (feigned) ideology of equality, his resistance to American imperialism, the suppression of Muslim fundamentalists and the support for Palestinians (Eikelboom 2011:93). In 1969, a twenty-seven year old Gaddafi became the head of the nation by means of a coup. As a new leader, Gaddafi abolished just about everything that could be abolished. He started with the constitution, which was not replaced by a new one. British and American military bases were closed and with it all western influences were prohibited. Alcohol, night clubs, western churches, Latin scriptures,

- 13 - et cetera were all prohibited in Gaddafi’s new Libya. Above that, all twelve thousand descendants of Italian colonizers were banned from the country, along with the Jewish community. All their possessions were confiscated by the state. People who dared to object ended up in jail or worse. Furthermore, he abolished parliament, all political parties and every kind of administrative or legal infrastructure along with it. There were no more town councils, unions, business associations, even the Rotary and the Lions Club were forbidden. Everything in Libya was centered around Gaddafi, who regarded every organization as a possible threat and therefore shut everything down. Gaddafi officially announced that he wanted to give the power to the Libyan population, resulting in the foundation of people’s committees which were represented in the annual National People’s Congress. In practice, however, it was always Gaddafi who laid down the law. Although he eventually proclaimed that he did not even want to be called president any more, the Libyan people had to know and obey

Gaddafi’s social doctrine written down in The Green Book (Eikelboom 2011:97-110).

Gaddafi’s coup initially resulted in an economic boom because of the increase of oil exports.

All the same, questionable economic experiments and construction projects in combination with international isolation and sanctions due to his dreadful foreign policy, ultimately ruined

Libya’s economy. Even after Gaddafi’s reconciliation with Western governments, the consequences of his economic mismanagement were still tangible. Corruption, the black market, inflation, unemployment and the falling standard of living were all factors that left the population disillusioned and demoralized (Eikelboom 2011: 124-127). Consequently, after 42 years of Gaddafi’s rule, a sizeable amount of the population was ready for change in 2011.

As in Egypt, the protests against the Gaddafi regime were supposed to start on the

“Day of Rage”, organized through the Internet. The first protests, however, started two days earlier, on 15 February, on the occasion of the arrest of a human rights lawyer who was treating the murder of circa 1270 detainees in the Abu Salim prison in Tripoli. This first

- 14 - protest was quickly shut down, but the uprising had just started. The next day, not hundreds, but thousands crowded the streets of Benghazi, Darnah and Al Bayda (Eikelboom 2011:114-

115). Then, everything proceeded very quickly. Within the first week the rebels gained control over the east of the country and some parts in the west. It quickly became clear that

Libya’s revolution would be an extremely violent one. Gaddafi’s peacekeepers did not wield sticks, but shot to kill. Human rights organizations reported that more than two hundred people died in less than a week (Eikelboom 2011:92). Alongside elite units such as the

Khamis Brigade, Gaddafi also employed foreign mercenaries and even used the air force to fight the rebels. The rebels organized themselves, establishing the National Transitional

Council (NTC). In this council, many former allies of the regime were involved, some out of idealism, others out of opportunism (Eikelboom 2011:104-110). Both sides of the conflict realized the importance and the potential danger of the public and international opinion. One of the first actions of the NTC was establishing a media centre in order to get the outside world on their side (Eikelboom 2011:111). Gaddafi, too, sought out good publicity. Many images of demonstrations in favor of the Libyan leader were sent out. If we can believe the various witnesses and people involved, these demonstrations were orchestrated by Gaddafi himself, threatening and blackmailing the people he wanted the world to believe to be his supporters (Eikelboom 2011: 161, 168). During March, rebel areas such as Bin Jawad, Ras

Lanuf, Brega, and others were recaptured by regime troops. The NTC warned of the probable massacre that would take place if the rebel capital Benghazi were recaptured. This all resulted in resolution 1973, in which the United Nations declared a no-fly zone in Libya and allowed all means necessary to protect the Libyan population. Two days after the adoption of resolution 1973, foreign involvement became a fact when French airplanes launched an attack on Gaddafi’s troops (Eikelboom 2011:133-142). Furthermore, foreign countries were involved in the arms supplies and the military training of the Libyan rebels (Eikelboom

- 15 -

2011:161, 169). The conflict continued and it was not until 20 August that the rebels attacked the capital Tripoli. Due to the effectively coordinated attack, the efficient cooperation between the rebels and the NATO, Tripoli fell relatively quickly. Gaddafi lost his power base and although many feared chaos and lynching after the fall of the regime, there were hardly any reprisals by the rebels and little plundering. Instead, the citizens worked together to maintain the peace and prisoners were generally treated in a humane way (Eikelboom

2011:165-175). Gaddafi himself was on the run. He managed to hide from the rebels for some time but ultimately, he was found and killed by rebels in Sirte on 20 October 2011 (Noueihed and Warren 2013:186).

3. Western stereotypes about the Muslim world

Before proceeding to the literary analysis, I will address the Western bias concerning

Muslims, Islam and the Middle Eastern World. In his work Covering Islam, Edward W. Said explains how many people in the West have a limited view of the Arab world. Many regard the globe as if it is divided in two spheres of influence: “our” Western or Occidental world and “their” Eastern or Oriental world. The origin of this feeling is found in the ancient anxiety of Islam as a major concurrent and challenger of Christianity, the main Western religion.

During the Middle Ages and the early Renaissance, Islam was considered a demonic religion with Mohammed as a false prophet and agent of the devil. The fact that Islamic armies and navies also attacked and colonized European territories only raised apprehension of the

Muslim world. And although Islam also knew periods of decline, it never fully submitted to the West (Said 1997:4-5). Hence, the mutual distrust between East and West goes back several centuries.

This distrust of Muslims was once again boosted when oil prices in the 1970s increased drastically. Moreover, Islamic terrorism from the 1980s and 1990s deepened

- 16 -

Western anxiety towards the Orient (Said 1997:5). In the last few decades, many Western people started associating Muslims with long-bearded, turban-wearing, power-hungry extremists. Naturally, due to colonialism and immigration, there are also a lot of Westerners who are familiar with and accept various facets of Islam instead of condemning it, but nonetheless, there definitely exists a substantial amount of people who are subjected to these stereotypes. The East is, furthermore, considered primitive because the prominent role of religion in the region. Islamic law is seen as medieval and as a threat to democracy (Said

1997:55). The West, on the other hand, is no longer dominated by Christianity and therefore is regarded as modern and better (Said 1997:10).

In an essay on multiculturalism and Islamophobia, Ibrahim Kalin states that a non-

Western religion such as Islam is not easily accepted because the liberal political system in the West attaches a lot of importance to secularization, which is regarded as “the only emancipatory power in the modern world” (Kalin 2011:5). Within this secular framework, faith has become an individual choice, beyond religious institutions. In Europe and the United

States, many still view Islam as an oppressive force, which influences but also determines individual and collective thinking and behavior of Muslims (Kalin 2011:6). Defining Muslim individuals through their culture and using Islam as an explanation for virtually everything they say or do is an example of what Kalin calls “cultural racism”. While some cultures are identified as “modern, civic, civilized, liberating and rational”, others, such as Muslim culture, are said to be “retro, violent, bigoted, irrational and obscurantist”. Cultural racism arises out of monolithic notions of religions and cultures, without considering diversity, individual views or personal interpretations (Kalin 2011:6). Therefore, Kalin emphasizes that the majority of Muslims, in fact, advocates essential and universal moral values which are shared by both Muslim and Western societies. One of the foremost authorities of Sunni Islam,

Abdullah bin Bayyah, believes in the existence of values that transcend cultures. According to

- 17 -

Abdullah bin Bayyah, the best proofs for this belief are reason and language. He states that every rational mind recognizes justice, truth, liberty, tolerance, integrity and many other respectable concepts. Moreover, all cultures praise these concepts and every language has words that positively express these concepts (Kalin 2011:7-8). By hearing a renowned

Muslim utter such argumentations, it becomes harder to believe that Muslim culture is exclusively violent and irrational. Nevertheless, as long as there are Western people who keep exaggerating cultural differences to the point of moral incompatibility, Muslim culture will not be able to fully integrate in Western civilizations (Kalin 2011:7).

Edward Said, too, tries to clarify that the monolithic and stereotypical image of

Muslims should be rejected as the prevailing depiction of the Islam world. According to Said, representations of Muslims as anti-Western terrorists or oil suppliers are instilled in people’s minds by the Western media, who fail to capture the whole Islamic world, but instead only focus on the hostile, frightening aspects. It is remarkable that most news providers in the

United States stick to stereotypical imagery. An example of this were the reports about the

Iranian revolution that took place in 1979. Before the revolution, Iran was ruled by the pro-

Western Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Most information about Iran that was brought over to the US was information that supported the Shah’s regime. American reporters did not take the effort to get to know the country, the common citizens nor the opponents of the Shah

(Said 1997:23). The Shah adopted a pro-Western stance, which was enough for Americans to depict him positively, unlike the Iranian revolutionaries. During and after the revolution, the media failed to make much of Ayatollah Khomeini, the new leader of Iran, except that he was

“obdurate, powerful, and deeply angry at the United States” (Said 1997:6). All eyes were fixed on angry mobs, the capture of the US embassy in Teheran, American hostages and newspapers drowned in words such as “Islamic revolution” or “anti-Western sentiments”

(Said 1997:6). However, very little time was spent in assessing the Shah’s regime or

- 18 - examining the cause of the opposition against him. According to Said, only Hamid Algar, a scholar from Berkeley, was able to estimate the contemporary political force of Iranian religious feelings (Said 1997:20). Instead of researching these Iranian religious feelings and presenting the opposition’s perspective, the American media focused a great deal more on frightening and stereotypical images of angry Muslims shouting anti-American slogans.

Said’s criticism of the one-sided media coverage is partly justified, but harsh actions such as the capture of the American embassy obviously need to be reported and it is inevitable that the Western media will condemn such events. Although hostage situations and anti-

Western protestations are bad publicity for the Middle East, we cannot expect the Western media to conceal these affairs in order to avoid Western hostility towards the East.

Nonetheless, Said is right when he argues that reporters should have opened up to the views of the Iranian people in order to grasp what drove them to take such inexcusable measures against the US. Then it would, at least, have been easier to begin to understand their frustration with the US and the Shah’s regime. Exclusively depicting Muslims as people who loathe the West, without paying attention to their opinions about the conflict, creates an atmosphere of alienation and will not lead to solutions for the unstable relationship between

East and West.

The Western media function within a certain framework, the framework “America” or

“the West”. Therefore, news channels and newspapers stick to the dominant vision that

America and its military is a force for good that tries to modernize the primitive Muslim world. In turn, these Muslims are depicted as violent and resentful towards the West (Said

1997:50-54). It is, however, rarely noted that according to the inhabitants of these Eastern countries themselves, modernization is often related to “foolish spending, unnecessary gadgetry and armaments, corrupt rulers and brutal United States intervention in the affairs of small, weak countries” (Said 1997:30). The American media diligently point out the errors

- 19 - and wickedness of the Oriental world while the Occident maintains its good image. Brutality committed by the Israeli military –which relies heavily on United States support- remains in the background, but at the same time, the atrocities of Palestinian militants are widely disseminated (Said 1997:78). The Islamic community is, furthermore, strongly criticized for its medieval punishments, jurisprudence and status of women, but remarkably similar views are shared by Israeli rabbis (Said 1997:75). Nonetheless, it is the Arab world that remains the evildoer in Western media. As a result, Muslims unwillingly acquired the bad reputation they have today.

Although Said wrote his work in 1997, the suspicion of Muslims as religious extremists has stayed the same, if not worsened. Earlier this year, for instance, the Malaysian flight MH370 disappeared. Although there was no evidence for it, many articles and theories appeared in which possible involvement of Islamic terrorist organizations was discussed. One of them was published in The Telegraph, with title “Malaysia Airline MH370: 9/11-style terror allegations resurface in case of lost plane” (Mendick 2014). Said, however, argues that the systematic distrust of Muslims is unjustified because Muslim terrorism is just a marginal fraction of the complex Islamic world (Said 1997:77). Nowadays, however, when bombings take place or airplanes disappear, people quickly suspect a Muslim. It would be an overstatement to declare that there is no American source whatsoever that gives a more nuanced portrait of Islam. There are books, journals and documentaries available that give a more complex exposition about the Orient, but all the same, the strongest media distribution is governed by a handful of organizations (Said 1997:54). These are the organizations that mainly influence public opinion about Muslims, mostly in a negative way. Muslims are practically reduced to caricatures, terrorists or oil suppliers, and because of this superficial representation the gap between East and West keeps widening.

- 20 -

The problem of the one-sided Western media coverage is also recognized by Ibrahim

Kalin. In his essay, he notes that it is remarkable how the Western media primarily focus on conflicts that take place in the Muslim world. Continents such as Africa, Latin America, and

Asia are also plagued by conflicts, but due to Western news reporting, the general impression is that the bloodiest clashes always happen in Muslim countries (Kalin 2011:14).

Additionally, Kalin remarks that while most conflicts are analyzed as political conflicts, most disputes in the Muslim world are analyzed in connection with Muslim beliefs. The Protestant-

Catholic conflict in Northern Ireland, for instance, is both religious and political, but religion is not brought up as an element of political analysis. The tension between Protestants and

Catholics is mentioned as a fact among others, but no further meaning is attached to it. When a conflict takes place in the Muslim world, however, various religious and cultural explanations are put forward in order to explain how and why Muslim culture brings forth violence and conflict (Kalin 2011:15). British media, for instance, diplomatically refer to

Northern Irish terrorists as “Northern Irish-born individuals participating in terrorist activities”, but at the same time, Muslims who are involved in terrorism are defined as “home- grown terrorists” (Kalin 2011:15), as if they were destined to become fundamentalists.

Furthermore, there is notable asymmetry between coverage of conflicts and coverage of everyday life in Muslim countries. A media survey conducted in twenty-four countries in

2007 demonstrates that the Western media cover political conflicts and communal violence in

Muslim-majority lands more than ten times as much as topics about education, culture, economic development, citizenship, religion and ethics. While Christians and Jews were most often depicted in a context of religious activities, Muslims were mostly associated with political, militant or extremist activities (Kalin 2011:14). The whole complex Muslim world is thus reduced to a malevolent, unthinking and violent essence by the Western media (Said

1997:8). People barely get access to informative sources about Islamic communities. We hear

- 21 - about Muslim fundamentalism, terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaida and the Taliban, but how much do Western people know about Islamic literature, music or cinema? How many human interest stories about Pakistani water sellers or Egyptian peasant families are reported by the Western media? The more accessible and enjoyable aspects of the Muslim world are lost amidst the sensational news that makes people believe the Orient is a region shrouded in violence and anti-Western sentiments (Said 1997:16).

Both Edward Said and Ibrahim Kalin try to clarify that Islam as it is presented by the

Western media is only a marginal part of the Islamic world. Edward Said himself does not like to use the word “Islam” because it is rather a collective term for a large group of different religious interpretations. Each of these interpretations finds its way in the daily lives of

Muslims and manifests itself in institutions and social realities (Said 1997:57-59). In this wide range of various interpretations of the Quran, some Islamic movements are orthodox, others are rather progressive. Followers of the latter often condemn the same outdated principles that are condemned in the Occident (Said 1997:68). Western sources have a way of presenting

Muslims in a uniform -particularly hostile- way. Consequently, many people cannot tell or are not even aware of the difference between, for instance, Shiite and Sunni Islam (Said 1997:73).

There are so many Islamic sects and movements, which are often mutually contradictory, that it is mistaken to depict Muslims as a uniform group of people that can pose a threat against

Western values. We cannot deny that some Islamic movements have anti-Western ideas, but we should not generalize this, which happens far too much in Western reports about the

Orient. Such generalizations only results in a reduced, stereotypical portrait of Islam that, because of its inaccuracy, should be rejected.

Although the Western media often depict the Muslim world negatively and tend to link Arab conflicts to Muslim beliefs, the Arab Spring revolutions were generally regarded positively by the Western nations. When it became clear that the various protests in the Arab

- 22 - world were not minor incidents, but full-scale revolutions, several Western world leaders communicated their opinions about the situation to the international community. Nicolas

Sarkozy, for instance, spoke out in favor of the popular revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt and pleaded for mobilizing “considerable aid” (Bryant 2011). The Telegraph published David

Cameron’s statement that the Western nations would support the revolting people in North

Africa and the Middle East who want “greater democracy, greater freedom [and] greater civil rights”. However, Cameron also expressed his apprehension of an increase in extremism if the

Arab Spring would not be guided in the right direction (Porter & Spillius 2011). Although the

Cameron believed in the good cause of the Arab revolutions, the concerns about extremism in the Arab world remained present. President Barack Obama called the revolutions a demand for basic human rights, a longing for freedom and a step towards democracy. He even compared the Arab Spring to historic events such as the Boston Tea Party and Rosa Park’s refusal to give up her bus seat (Poonawalla 2011). But Obama, too, included typical Western imagery concerning the Muslim world. In his speech about the Arab Spring, he reminded the world once more that Muslim communities have attacked the US by hostage taking, violent rhetoric and terrorist attacks that have killed thousands of American citizens (Poonawalla

2011). As president of the US, Obama obviously needs to react against act of terror which are directed at America. Nonetheless, it is remarkable how these frightening images consistently keep penetrating Western media, even in a speech which applauds the Arab populations’ steps towards democracy.

4. Literary analysis

4.1. David Lender: Arab Summer

The first novel I will discuss is David Lender’s Arab Summer. For 25 years Lender worked as a Wall Street investment banker and for his books he draws on the knowledge he

- 23 - gathered during this career. Lender specializes himself in the thriller genre and has a penchant for international settings and financial intrigues in his novels. Regarding his characters, the author frequently depicts obsessively driven personalities and misfits, as is the case in Arab

Summer (Lender 2011-2014). The protagonist in the novel is former CIA agent Sasha Del

Mira, a character who also appears in two other Lender thrillers, namely Trojan Horse and

Sasha Returns. These three Sasha novels are all set in the Middle East; Arab Summer, however is the only novel treating an Arab Spring uprising (Lender 2011-2014). This third part of the Sasha Del Mira series is mainly set in Saudi Arabia in a period of social disquiet.

Analogous to the 2011 Arab protests, Saudi people crowd the streets, exclaiming anti- government slogans and pleading for change. A special role in this uprising is reserved to the fictional terrorist organization al-Mujari. The head of the organization, Saif Ibn Mohammed al-Aziz, is responsible for the assassination of Sasha’s husband. That is why Sasha takes it upon herself to take out Saif, who wants to unleash a major Arab revolution. The following discussion of Lender’s novel will focus on the realistic features of the fictional uprising, but will also address the American prejudices about the Middle East which are clearly presented in this novel. Furthermore, the United States’ involvement in the events will be discussed. In the narration, the US is depicted as mediator and global police force, a role which is glorified.

This depiction contributes to my statement that Arab Summer is a novel which is based on typical American ideas and preconceptions. The final part will treat the mentioned news channels and social media in the novel, which are presented as means to effectuate social change, but also as tools to influence and manipulate public opinion.

4.1.1. David Lender’s Arab Spring uprising

4.1.1.1. Realistic features

- 24 -

The uprising described in Arab Summer is partly in accord with what is actually happening in the Arab world since December 2010. Naturally, Lender’s novel contains various elements that do not correspond with reality, the fictional events and individuals to begin with, but what is really striking is his major emphasis on the involvement of terrorist organizations in the Arab Spring. I will address this point later. Firstly, I will state which elements of the Arab revolution in Arab Summer are, in fact, highly similar to the revolutions in our non-fictional world. We noticed that the 2011 Arab Spring revolutions were very contagious. The protests in Tunisia were followed incredibly quickly in other North-African and Middle Eastern countries and this contagiousness also troubles the mind of the fictional

Saudi royal Yassar: “He saw the other Arab nations being forced to adopt more democratic approaches as a harbinger of troubles to come in Saudi Arabia” (Lender 2013:34). The Saudi population in Arab Summer is, indeed, incited by the wave of protests and comes together in the streets to exclaim their frustrations.

Very early in the novel, 70.000 Saudi protesters attend the funeral of Faisal Ahmed

Abdul-Ahad, one of the organizers of the “Day of Rage”, a day of protest against the regime.

Faisal had been shot during that protest by government security forces (Lender 2013:17).

Neither the “Day of Rage” nor the person Faisal are merely invented elements to carry

Lender’s story. The “Day of Rage” took place in various Arab countries and was also organized in Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, Faisal was, indeed, one of the Saudi organizers and shot by the authorities (Essop 2011). As the Tunisian people started revolting after Mohamed

Bouazizi’s suicide and the Egyptian people started protesting to denounce the execution of

Khaled Said, Saudis in Arab Summer start walking the streets after Faisal’s funeral, shouting

“Down with [King] Abdul”, “Terrorist!”, “Criminal!”, “Butcher!” and stomping on photographs of their monarch (Lender 2013:17). King Abdul in the novel is clearly a reference to Saudi Arabian King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. Obviously the names are

- 25 - similar, but the narrator also mentions Abdul’s family has reigned for over 90 years (Lender

2013:46), approximately the same period of time the royal Saud family has been in charge in

Saudi Arabia (Frontline 2005). In the process of the revolution, new organizations are often called into life, for instance, the National Transitional Council (NTC) in Libya. In Saudi

Arabia too, the Umma Islamic Party was founded (Laessing 2011), a party which is accurately depicted in the thriller, demanding the end of the Saudi absolute monarchy and the establishment of a representative government (Lender 2013:18). The public agitation is thus accurately represented.

The causes of the public discontent, as they are depicted in Lender’s thriller, are also in accord with reality. When describing Saudi Arabia, the narrator talks about “Suppression of the Shiite minority”, “The fact that people still disappear in the middle of the night”, “Torture of dissenters” and “Corruption [of] the royal family in every major corporate or government position” (Lender 2013:24). In Saudi Arabia, which is dominated and ruled by Sunni

Muslims, the Shiite minority clustered in the east has been plagued by discrimination and lack of civil rights for a long time. During the demonstrations in 2011, this minority gathered in the streets to demand political and religious freedoms (Ghosh 2011). Furthermore, the widespread corruption and the arbitrary detention of dissenters without any kind of trial were pressing items on the agenda of the protesters. And then, there were also the uneven distribution of wealth and unemployment in Saudi Arabia (Alsharif & Laessing 2011). David

Lender succeeds in presenting this gap between rich and poor and the many unemployed

Saudis as the main causes for the agitation. “The kingdom […] [is] treating the country’s oil income as the cash flow from a family business. [There is] even more profligate spending by the royal family, less money for social programs, virtually ignoring […] job creation programs for the average Saudi” (Lender 2013:34). In Arab Summer, the Saudi royals only pursue profit, starting their own oil equipment importing businesses. On top of that, there is

- 26 - the influx of foreign workers who are willing to work for low wages, occupying all the available jobs and thus leaving Saudis out of work (Lender 2013:92). The main antagonist

Saif becomes frustrated because he cannot find a job. His frustration with Saudi income inequality eventually becomes the main reason he turned to terrorism. Saif calls Saudi Arabia a “class system” (Lender 2013:216), “a nation of haves and have-nots” (Lender 2013:127).

Corruption, discrimination, poverty and authoritarian rule are among the causes of the revolution. Not only in Saudi Arabia, but all over the Arab World, in Ben Ali’s Tunisia,

Mubarak’s Egypt and Gaddafi’s Libya, inter alia. The following quote from Arab Summer gives a realistic view about the situations in Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries before and during the Spring:

The al-Asads [= the fictional Saud dynasty] still

have their gold-domed Royal Palace, Boeing

jets and diamond rings for their multiple wives

and concubines. Half the workforce in the

country is still foreign workers, a third of the

populace is illiterate, most Saudis are out of

work. They’ve still got over $100 billion in

debt and they’re running deficits every year to

pay for their social welfare programs to keep

the Saudi people from blowing the lid off the

country. But their grip is slipping. Protests over

labor rights, release of prisoners, and for equal

representation in key government offices have

been held in a half dozen cities, some with

100,000 protestors. Saudi Secret Police have

- 27 -

used live rounds in containing some of them

and a number of protestors have been killed.

Women have protested for voting rights and the

right to drive, and have gotten arrested and

flogged for it. Add to it the Shiite versus the

Sunni Muslim thing. Blood hatred going back

centuries (Lender 2013:47).

In the excerpt, the narrator mentions the suppression of protesters. The public utterances of discontent in the Arab countries resulted in an aggressive and repressive stance by the official regime. The Saudi authorities proclaimed an official ban on public demonstrations (Ghosh 2011). They also deployed security forces, manning key locations across several cities in order to put off the people who dared gathering in the streets anyway.

Additionally, Saudi clerics sermonized against the protests, stating that public agitation is not permitted by Islamic teachings and only breeds chaos (Hasan 2011). Likewise, Arab Summer makes mention of a fatwa (a legal interpretation on issues concerning Islamic law) that allows arresting and holding people who foment dissent. It is represented as an effort to reduce social tension (Lender 2013:141). Both reality and Lender’s novel demonstrate that religion can be used as a means to preserve public order, hoping people will refrain from revolution out of a religious conscience. However, this did not suffice. Incited by the other Arab Spring uprisings and out of deeply rooted frustrations with the status quo, both the fictional and non-fictional

Saudi population started protesting anyway. When this happened, the Saudi monarchy switched to a repressive approach. The authorities already had a reputation of arbitrarily detaining dissenters and continued this practice, for instance when they arrested the founders of the above mentioned Umma Islamic Party (Hashimilion 2011), an event that is also briefly mentioned in David Lender’s novel (Lender 2013:84).

- 28 -

In comparison with countries as Egypt, Libya or Syria, we can state that the confrontations between the authorities and the opposition in Saudi Arabia were relatively small. However, for the sake of suspense, which is an important element in the thriller genre,

Lender enlarges the conflict in his work. He writes: “The other Arab Spring revolutions [in]

Egypt, Libya and Syria had been particularly brutal. Saudi Arabia would be worse” (Lender

2013:157). When the narrator speaks of the people throwing rocks to security forces (Lender

2013:17), the security forces manhandling the protesters (Lender 2013:19) or even the search for the leaders of the revolution (Lender 2013:136), it still resembles the real situation in

Saudi Arabia anno 2011. In Arab Summer, however, the situation escalates completely. The novel mentions heavy firefights between rebels and Secret Police (Lender 2013:137-138), the rebel occupation of the Grand Mosque in Mecca and the subsequent attempts of the Royal

Army to liberate it with armored vehicles (Lender 2013:208-211) and military helicopters

(Lender 2013:217-219). On top of that, the novel mentions international military support to bring the fictional uprising to an end, American support in particular (Lender 2013:244) The descriptions of such destructive confrontations and international military aid are exaggerated and do not correspond with the 2011 Saudi Arabian protests. Nonetheless, they are not unrealistic. During Libya’s revolution, for instance, both the security forces and the rebels shot to kill. Gaddafi employed the air force to fight the opposition and in the end the uprising resulted in the intervention of the NATO. Hence, David Lender did not entirely depict the

Saudi uprising as it really happened, but generally speaking, it is not unthinkable that another

Arab Spring uprising could have taken a similar turn of events. So far, we can still regard

Lender’s depiction of an Arab revolution as realistic.

Another aspect of the revolutions that Lender captures in Arab Summer is the desolation that conflict brings with it. The Arab Spring uprisings are mainly caused by the population’s pursuit of ideals such as freedom, equality and democracy. The people believe in

- 29 - the goodness and necessity of their cause, but we may not forget that next to the high spirits caused by the prospect of emancipation, revolutions also generate a lot of misery. Because of the chaotic circumstances it is hard to estimate the number of people fallen during the revolts.

One source says 300 people in Tunisia, 900 in Egypt and as many as 30.000 in Libya (Rettig

2011). This aspect of the revolutions is recorded in Lender’s thriller as well. A lot of attention goes to Saif’s enthusiasm to break free from the grip of the Saudi royals, but Lender’s characters mention the many wounded and dead as well. Saif’s men have to operate amidst the “smell of blood” and the “stench of death”, frightened and exhausted by the revolution

(Lender 2013:228-229). The members of the al-Mujari terrorist organization in Lender’s novel are voluntarily involved in the conflict, but there are still the people who just happen to live or dwell in the conflict zone. When Saif occupies the Grand Mosque in Mecca, he takes the pilgrims hostage. “The main prayer hall was jammed with pilgrims huddling and crying, their faces showing fear and horror” (Lender 2013:219). There are those who did not ask for a revolution but are caught in it nevertheless. Moreover, due to the long duration and dangers of the revolutions, many people have to evacuate their hometowns or even the country. Syria, for example, already counts 6.5 million people who are on the run in their own country and 2.4 million Syrians who fled to the neighboring countries (UNICEF 2014). The need to evacuate conflict zones is also addressed in Arab Summer when the inhabitants of Mecca are forced to leave their homes to seek safety in the desert (Lender 2013:224).

Finally, apart from destroying spirits and lives, conflict also destroys surroundings and cultural heritage. This may seem less important, but nevertheless, it is a fact that the Arab

Spring revolts endangered many UNESCO world heritage sites (Besheer 2012), a regrettable aspect the narrator brings to mind when he describes the ruination of Mecca’s Grand Mosque:

“Debris and the wreckage of battle were everywhere […]. The columns and walls were pockmarked with bullet holes, and bits of stone and marble crunched under her feet as she

- 30 - walked” (Lender 2013:251-252). In conclusion, the Arab countries and especially the Arab people had and still have to endure appalling conditions in order to reach their goal of emancipation and change, a truth that is presented in Arab Summer.

At the end of David Lender’s thriller, Saif’s terrorist organization does not succeed in its plan to overthrow the Saudi government. However, Lender’s story ends with the prospect of negotiations between the Saudi regime and the opposition parties. “The Saudis will come up with some real reforms to make [the protests] go away. They have to realize now that these guys are serious, and some extra food stamps aren’t gonna get it done” (Lender 2013:267-

268). Two concessions are mentioned in Arab Summer. The first is the royal decree allowing women to enter the private sector workforce (Lender 2013:32), and the second is the commencement of social programs and job creation (Lender 2013:268). These are also the official concessions of King Abdullah: financial support in order to drive back unemployment and concessions to Saudi women (Lambrecht 2013:22). The novel’s narrator expresses the need for reforms in order to maintain the peace. Fortunately for the Saudi royal family, both in the fictional and the real world, the concessions sufficed to appease the population, at least for now.

4.1.1.2. Terrorist Spring

David Lender accurately depicts various aspects of the Arab Spring. What is most striking about his novel, however, is the depiction of the opposition against the government.

The novel briefly mentions the common Saudi people who are angry with the regime, but the driving force behind the uprising in Arab Summer is al-Mujari, a fictional terrorist organization led by Saif Ibn Mohammed al-Aziz. However, we should keep in mind that Arab

Summer is a thriller. In his work about popular fiction, Ken Gelder mentions that thrillers are characterized by melodramatic events and a sequence of sharp climaxes (Gelder 2004:61).

- 31 -

Furthermore, the genre relies heavily on suspense, intensity and escalation, “exaggerating the events by transforming them into a rising curve of danger, violence or shock” (Gelder

2004:62). However, thrillers are often informative too (Gelder 2004:62). Arab Summer, indeed, gives us an idea of the social malaise in Saudi Arabia and, moreover, discusses the ambivalent relationship between the US and the Saudis, but as the story proceeds, the longer and descriptive sentences are replaced by a clipped style, shorter chapters –some chapters consist of less than five pages- and a sheer pace in order to heighten the suspense, which is typical of the thriller genre (Gelder 2004:61). I mentioned that the conflict in the novel escalates for the sake of suspense. A dangerous antagonist also contributes to this suspense and intensity, which is probably one of the reasons why Lender chose to include a terrorist organization in the narration. In general, it is unlikely that Muslim organizations will be depicted positively in American popular fiction, because they are regarded as dangerous by a substantial part of the population. Likewise, most thrillers about World War II will represent the Germans as villains. When popular fiction authors are in need of antagonists, many of them will use persons who are already considered as dangerous by the target audience. A genre such as the thriller is thus not the ideal medium to fairly depict Islam or the Muslim community. The presentation of the opposition as terrorists might be for the sake of sensation that the thriller genre requires, but it stays all but accurate and even irresponsible to depict the people driving the Arab Spring as Muslim terrorists, especially in a country as the United

States, where, as Edward Said states, there still prevails a hostile attitude towards the Orient based on the stereotype that all Muslims are fundamentalists.

It would be wrong to deny any participation of terrorist groups in the non-fictional

Arab Spring revolutions whatsoever, but al-Qaeda and other global jihadists found themselves excluded by the wave of liberal protest (Gardner 2011). In Libya and Yemen, some rebels were suspected of having ties with al-Qaeda. Nonetheless, the British ambassador in Sana’a

- 32 - said that al-Qaeda and other extremist organizations took advantage of the instability of the transition process to spread their influence or consolidate their presence instead of being the driving force behind the revolution. He also added that he believed that “it’s pretty clear that what is happening in the Arab Spring is actually a rejection of the ideology and values that al-

Qaeda attempts to propagate” (Gardner 2011). People in Tunisia overwhelmed Dutch journalist and eyewitness Jan Eikelboom, shouting “We are no fundamentalists! We are no terrorists! We are no al-Qaeda! We are no Bin Ladens! We are Tunisians who are very developed and rooted in the norms and values of modern times and democracy” (Eikelboom

2011:29).

In the thriller, al-Mujari is depicted as a terrorist organization that has been operational for over 20 years. Two years before the events in Arab Summer, al-Mujari tried to take over the world’s oil business (Lender 2013:20), an industry deemed indispensible by the United

States. We see thus that the Arab Spring rebels are also associated with the other stereotypical image of Muslims as oil possessors from whom the US is dependent. If the fictional uprising in Saudi Arabia should be a success, it would result in “the al-Mujari [taking] over[,] oil

[industry being] disrupted, then the price goes $200, maybe $300 a barrel. The Saudis either take over or annex Iran. The Saudis become a fundamentalist Muslim terrorist regime funded by 25% of the world’s oil reserves, armed by Iranian nukes” (Lender 2013:50), in other words

America’s worst nightmare. Lender does not focus on the man in the street who feels disadvantaged in his own country and strives for social justice, but puts the emphasis on a well organized, well-trained and heavily armed group of terrorists (Lender 2013:72-73). On top of that, he mentions al-Mujari’s ties with other Islamic dissident groups such as the

Muslim Brotherhood (Lender 2013:48). Nowadays, there is a lot of discussion about whether or not the Muslim Brotherhood is to be regarded as a terrorist organization. Depicting it in an alliance with the fictional al-Mujari, however, will most likely have a negative effect on the

- 33 - public opinion, to the detriment of the Brotherhood. Hence, most of Lender’s Muslim organizations correspond to American stereotypes.

Al-Mujari does not flinch to kill or take hostages to reach its goal, the overthrow of the

Saudi government. They are portrayed as a cruel and bloodthirsty gang, believing that “with the taste of blood in their mouths they could not help but be more passionate” (Lender

2013:163) and saying that “the blood of [their] enemy will purify [their] souls” (Lender

2013:147). The Arab Spring rebels in Arab Summer commit acts of terror, publically executing security police and deserters (Lender 2013:147-148) and even endangering the innocent pilgrims, who are used as human shields (Lender 2013:251). Furthermore, al-

Mujari’s leader Saif does not pursue democracy. Saif plans to be prime minister after the fall of the Saudi royals, to serve as long as he chooses to (Lender 2013: 157-158). He even dreams of a male heir (Lender 2013:198), showing his personal ambition to establish a new dynasty.

After al-Mujari’s uprising, Saudi Arabia will not be more democratic, but it will fall from one dictatorship in another. This fictional Arab Spring is not led by people striving for freedom and equality, but by Saif, a power-hungry criminal: “You don’t believe in your country. You only believe in what you want for yourself. Power. Your own ambition, your self-deluded notion that you might have a place on the world stage” (Lender 2013:264).

As Edward Said argues, the Orient is often depicted as a region dominated by anti-

Western sentiments, a notion that originates in the belief that Islam and Christianity are rival religions. Said rejects this stereotypical notion, stating that not all Muslims feel enmity towards the Occident and that it is, in fact, a marginal fraction of the Muslim world that is occupied with the expulsion and destruction of the West. We need to relinquish this stereotypical idea in order to bring East and West closer together. David Lender, though, completely confirms the hostility between Orient and Occident in Arab Summer. Not only does Lender present the opposition as terrorists, but he portrays the entire revolution as “a

- 34 - holy war against the already rotting flesh of the […] royals, who have defiled the two holiest sites in Islam with their decadent alliance with the infidel West” (Lender 2013:146).

Throughout the novel, the lack of civil rights and the authoritarian rule in Saudi Arabia as the causes of the protests fade into the background. Instead, the advent of the Mahdi -according to an ancient Islamic prophecy the promised savior- is presented as the main trigger for the upcoming revolution. It is, in fact, Saif who orchestrates the fulfillment of this prophecy.

Although Saif is not a devoted Muslim himself, the reader is made to believe that the whole

Saudi population will rise with the coming of the Mahdi. He will inspire the faithful to revolt

(Lender 2013:62-63). In this scenario, the revolution is not about social injustice anymore but about a country of religious followers who will “overthrow the Saudis and all the other

Western puppet regimes in the Muslim world [and] bring the infidels to their knees” (Lender

2013:40), because their Islamic redeemer tells them so. The participants of the Arab Spring uprising are thus reduced from emancipating people looking for a better life to misled believers who will start a holy war against the West on the basis of a prophecy. Sheiks are inciting the people by pronouncing the arrival of the Mahdi (Lender 2013:224) and it seems that millions will follow the holy revolution as soon as the Mahdi is revealed (Lender

2013:168).

Ibrahim Kalin claims that people in the West often link political conflicts in the East to

Muslim beliefs and religious motives. This is exactly what happens in Arab Summer; the outbreak of the revolution is associated with the fulfillment of an Islamic prophecy. In reality, however, the Arab Spring uprisings were not primarily triggered by religious motives, but by deeply rooted disappointment and frustration with the governments and the quality of life. As

I mentioned before, the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt did not plead for an Islamic revolution, but instead worked together with Egyptian Christians in order to establish a democracy.

Furthermore, in Saudi Arabia, the Islamic clerics did not encourage, but tried to dissuade the

- 35 - people to revolt, to no avail. The Arab Spring revolutions are not Islamic revolutions. All the same, that is how the uprising is depicted in Arab Summer. Saif encourages the Saudis to unleash the revolution in order to return to “greatness and holiness under the Mahdi” (Lender

2013:163), to get rid of “the greedy crocodiles of the West, and […] expel all non-Muslims from Saudi Arabia” (Lender 2013:185) and “to restore the one true Islam to the Muslim world, to exalt the righteous and punish the infidels” (Lender 2013:146). This is a depiction of the revolution that can only drive uncritical Western readers further from the Orient and thus exactly the kind of stereotypical coverage of the Islamic world Said and Kalin warn us about.

We can conclude that although David Lender makes mention of realistic features concerning the Arab Spring uprisings, he mainly expires in stereotypical imagery. He talks about social tensions, public discontent and the suppression of the population. Additionally, he describes the Saudis’ efforts to realize social reforms, but the overall impression that keeps lingering in the readers’ mind after reading Arab Summer is that the Arab Spring revolution is orchestrated by a terrorist organization and that it largely emanates from a religious motive, the advent of an Islamic savior. The Arab world is presented as a major threat, inhabited by people who will rise against the West the moment an ancient prophecy is fulfilled. All the while, the struggle for a more democratic state -the factual motive for the Saudi and the other

Arab uprisings- becomes a side issue. Hence, Lender’s thriller does not leave the reader with an accurate representation of the uprisings but instead confirms already existing prejudices about the Muslim world as a violent and intolerant region, dominated by religion and driven by oil suppliers and power-hungry terrorists.

4.1.2. America’s involvement

As an American author, writing mainly for an American audience, Lender spends some time detailing the involvement of the United States in Saudi Arabia. When the non-

- 36 - fictional Saudi protests started, Washington was put in an awkward position. On the one hand, the Saudi royals are important allies of the US, which has political and economic interests in

Saudi Arabia. On the other hand, the protesting Saudi population advocated democratic ideals, the same ideals that the American nation keeps close to its heart. The US could hardly forsake its own ideology of freedom in order to help out their authoritarian allies (Lambrecht

2013:292). America’s ambivalent position is also mentioned in Lender’s thriller. When the

American bigwigs discuss the depositions of authoritarian rulers Ben Ali and Mubarak, the fictional Secretary of State describes these events positively (Lender 2013:45). He exclaims that the US has a moral responsibility to help improve the lives of the Saudi citizens, not by means of military intervention, but through diplomacy (Lender 2013:51-52). In Arab Summer, the White House and the Secretary of State are depicted as institutions that take it upon themselves to secure the humane living conditions in the Arab countries. In reality, however, the White House was certainly acquainted with the excessive misrule in countries as Tunisia which is, inter alia, described in reports of the American State Department (Eikelboom

2011:27). Due to political and economic factors, the White House turned a blind eye towards the needs of the population and even supplied the Arab countries with money for military purposes. It was only after the fall of Ben Ali and Mubarak that the US openly portrayed them as dictators. In Lender’s novel, it is not the White House that participates in such realpolitik, but the CIA. A fictional CIA agent states it as such:

All the crap the White House spouts about

human rights agendas and moral imperatives is

something we can’t let divert us from our real

focus. We start letting [the president] poke his

finger in the Saudi royals’ eyes and we’re

looking at a major problem that could cascade

- 37 -

into the economy with paralyzing implications

(Lender 2013:24)

Lender does not entirely deny the US’s involvement in this kind of realpolitik, but he tries to explain away the former relations between the US and the Arab dictators by stating that it is not the White House but, in fact, the CIA that puts politics and economies before humanitarianism. The CIA conceals the full extent of social repression in the Arab countries

(Lender 2013:24), and on top of that it operates behind the back of the president. The CIA does not have the presidential fiat to intervene in Saudi Arabia because the White House wants to solve the threat of the revolution by means of diplomacy. However, the menace of a coup by Muslim fundamentalists and a consequential disturbance of the oil industry are pressing matters, so the CIA cannot sit idly by and wait for a diplomatic solution (Lender

2013:50-52). “Diplomacy, my ass. So how do we really fix this?” (Lender 2013:52). The CIA does not want to jeopardize its oil business with Saudi Arabia for which it gave military hardware in exchange and, furthermore, turned a blind eye towards the oppression (Lender

2013:23-24). Therefore, the CIA decides to send the retired agent Sasha Del Mira to Saudi

Arabia in order to assassinate Saif. Following this plan, there will be no official link with the

CIA or the White House and the Saudi revolution will be prevented. Hence, in Arab Summer, the CIA does not work by the book in order to secure the US’s political and economic interests.

As said in the previous paragraph, the uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt, and elsewhere are regarded as fortunate events in the US. Even so, the American characters in the novel and by extension the reader experience the fictional uprising as a global threat that should be avoided.

The author easily achieves this by portraying the uprising as a holy war led by terrorists. So, although the Americans and the reader know that the Saudi royals mishandle and suppress their civilians, they still side with the monarchy. When al-Mujari eventually occupies the

- 38 -

Grand Mosque, the White House also feels compelled to express its support for the Saudi government (Lender 2013:189) and even sends a squad of US Special Forces to liberate the

Mosque (Lender 2013:244). While al-Mujari is portrayed as the evildoer in the novel, the US plays the role of the courageous world power that gets involved to save the day, an image that the contemporary Western media also tend to ascribe to the US. Saif fears the US: “What would their chances be if the Americans […] threw not only their weight but their military muscle behind the Saudi regime?” (Lender 2013:177). In Arab Summer, there are two passages in which two American soldiers are fighting al-Mujari; one shouting heroic encouragements such as “I don’t plan on dying out here in this desert today, so let’s show these amateurs how the US Army operates” (Lender 2013:178), the other faultlessly overrunning the terrorists with his squad, thinking “We’re kicking their asses” (Lender

2013:256). Yet another American soldier is described as “an animal intent on raw meat”

(Lender 2013:258), ready and capable to defeat his enemies. The small squad of US Special

Forces is depicted as superior in battle and crisis situations to both al-Mujari and the Saudi

Royal Army. Rather than being reassured by the intelligence and readiness of the Saudi Secret

Police, with whom they form an alliance, the CIA is surprised and impressed (Lender

2013:224), as if the Saudis are not capable of putting together an effective armed force. In the end, the Americans prevent the uprising from happening and thus are the actual saviors in the novel.

Arab Summer is a prototype of self-centered literature. Not only is the depiction of

Muslims and Islam primarily based on typical American stereotypes, but America itself emerges as a superior nation, undefeatable in battle and concerned for human welfare at the same time. In Lender’s novel, the reader is made to believe that the central US authority is not aware of the extensive misrule in Saudi Arabia because the CIA holds back essential information. Lender does not completely deny the US’s questionable politics, but he frees the

- 39 -

White House from blame. The novel gives the impression that the actions of the American president are purely motivated by philanthropic considerations. When the US decides to intervene in Saudi Arabia, it is purely in the context of its war against terror, its attempt to rid the world of violence and intolerance. The novel can thus be regarded as an effort to confirm the idea that America is a force for good. However, we must realize that the depiction of the

US as an intrinsically noble world power is put forward by an American author who is not objective. Arab Summer primarily depicts the Arab world according to negative stereotypes, so it is not unlikely that the US is depicted according to positive stereotypes. Although the US advocates many respectable values, the nation is not perfect. It is known that the US was aware of the misrule in the countries of dictators such as Ben Ali and Mubarak, but neglected the oppression in order to secure other interests. Hence, rather than confirming America’s power and nobility, this glorification of the US demonstrates that Lender’s novel is, indeed, one-sided and influenced by American preconceptions.

4.1.3. The role of mass media

Finally, I want to address the role of the media in David Lender’s thriller. The media and the new social media in particular have had a major influence on the genesis and the swiftness of the Arab Spring revolutions. Facebook is without a doubt one of the most influential social network sites that contributed to the Arab Spring. In 2009, Facebook was made available in Arabic, so Arab Internet surfers did not need to understand English or any other Western language anymore to utilize the social platform. Moreover, because of the increasing amount of Internet cafés, it was not even necessary to own a personal computer.

Facebook in the Arab world was thus no longer exclusively reserved to the English-speaking, modernized youth. In 2011, Egyptian Muslim Brothers, for example, also roamed the social network (De Cock 2011:141). In Tunisia, the revolution started in the small village Sidi

Bouzid. It was by means of Facebook and e-mail that movies and photos of the revolts, often

- 40 - made with cell phones, were spread out to the bigger coastal cities, unleashing a large-scale revolution. The revolutionaries were aware of the usefulness of these platforms, which was noticeable in the increasing amount of Facebook users during the first months of the revolutions, an increase of thirty percent (De Cock 2011:141).

In Arab Summer, Yassar, one of the Saudi royals, tries to introduce social reforms, one of which is the permission for women to enter the private sector workforce. A female protester caught Yassar’s attention “with an 80.000-strong Facebook community dedicated to this change” (Lender 2013:32). Yassar calls lobbying by means of social media “a novel approach for a seismic shift in our culture” (Lender 2013:32). It is a new and easy way to organize protests such as the various “Days of Rage”. In reality, the Facebook page for Saudi

Arabia’s “Day of Rage” in March 2011 was blocked by the government (Essop 2011). This demonstrates that the rulers also recognized the threat of social media. Shutting down specific websites or the Internet as a whole did not only occur in Saudi Arabia. Mubarak used the same strategy and even in Turkey, the government recently banned Twitter (Saerens 2014) and YouTube (Cardoen 2014).

The distribution of visual material in Arab Summer is presented as a weapon that is wielded by both al-Mujari and the Americans. The former records the public executions of a police officer and a renegade fundamentalist on video (Lender 2013:147-148), a way to show the rest of the world their power and commitment to their cause. The American camp, on the other hand, arranges for photos of Saif’s corpse to be leaked on the Internet (Lender

2013:267) in order to discourage and deter other terrorists. Furthermore, Lender’s narrator mentions al-Mujari’s earlier attempt to gain control over the world’s oil infrastructure by means of hacking, infiltrating “the computers of the largest software vendors to the oil industry” (Lender 2013:40). It would be an overstatement to call the Arab Spring an Internet revolution or a cyber conflict, because the uprisings were mainly fought in the streets and the

- 41 - cities, but still, the revolutionaries’ use of social media to achieve their goals is an undeniable facet of the Arab Spring.

Then, there are also the older media, such as the newspapers and television. These media have an impact on public opinion and are, furthermore, capable of influencing the turn of events. Ongoing bad publicity can, indeed, force a regime to make concessions.

Furthermore, Lawrence Pintak wrote in Foreign Policy that the Egyptian revolution would not have taken place if the Egyptians had not been able to follow the Tunisian uprising on Al

Jazeera (De Cock 2011:146). This influence of the media is also recognized by Lender’s character Yassar, who, despite the opposition of all the other royals, keeps striving for reforms. He gives a press conference for reporters from the Saudi Arabian and worldwide press, including the London Times, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. He believes they will positively depict his struggle for reforms, “all the better to stuff it in the faces of his cousins, make it harder for them to stem the tide of change” (Lender 2013:31).

Al-Mujari, too, counts on the media to report their occupation of Mecca’s Grand Mosque from where Saif plans to announce the advent of the Mahdi. CNN, BBC, the US networks, et cetera are all broadcasting the terrorists’ occupation, “just the kind of coverage they want”

(Lender 2013:189). Saif hopes that Muslims all over the world, but especially in Saudi

Arabia, will side with him when these networks inform the world of the Mahdi’s arrival.

In the same way as social media, news reports can be used as weapons. Therefore it is important to adopt a critical attitude, not blindly believing everything that is reported. News reports can be very subjective, representing only one perspective. During the Egyptian revolutions, for instance, Al Jazeera and its Saudi Arabian concurrent Al Arabiya were broadcasting at the same time. Al Arabiya tried to minimize the extent of the protests, standing in an empty street with a couple of army tanks in the background, stating everyone respected the curfew and primarily interviewing supporters of the regime. At the same time,

- 42 - however, Al Jazeera stood amidst 150.000 demonstrators on Tahrir Square (De Cock

2011:144). Hence, media can be used to bend the truth and control public opinion. In Arab

Summer, this happens when the CIA makes sure there is no mention in the news of any kind of US involvement in avoiding the uprising (Lender 2013:267). The CIA wants to keep a low profile and thus the people who are following the fictional uprising at home will never know the full truth. The media are important instruments to keep the world up to date, but at the same time it is important to keep in mind they have the ability to influence the public opinion, for good or bad purposes, depending on the perspective.

A lot of David Lender’s characters recognize the usefulness of the mass media.

Facebook is depicted as a means to effectuate social reforms, a depiction which is justified.

When we examine the non-fictional uprisings, we encounter various Facebook groups such as

“We are all Khaled Said” and the “April 6 Youth Movement”, which have contributed to the outbreak of the revolutions. Various of Lender’s Saudi characters use the Internet to plead for gender equality, but the World Wide Web is also presented as a means to spread dishonorable messages, to distribute videos of public executions or photos of assassinated opponents. The

Internet has made it easier to communicate one’s convictions. Unfortunately, the net is not only employed by oppressed civilians, but also by immoral individuals who use it to spread hate and fear. The CIA in Lender’s story does not seem to have much trouble with spreading images of Saif’s corpse on the Internet. Instead, it seems an obvious decision to use the

Internet in this way. Nonetheless, we can question the morality of such actions. On top of the

Internet, older media such as television and news papers are also used to convince people of one’s cause. Yassar uses them to put pressure on the conservative Saudi royals and Saif, too, takes advantage of the media in order to convince the Saudi population to start an Islamic revolution. The older media are instruments to report events, but that does not mean these reports are always reliable. News reports can be garbled in order to manipulate public

- 43 - opinion. Depending on broadcasting companies’ political views, some facts can be exaggerated, while some are held back entirely. Hence, Arab Summer demonstrates the ambiguity of mass media. Although they offer people a chance to express complaints about their society, me must remember that they can also be used for bad purposes and, moreover, are able to deceive people.

4.2. G. Willow Wilson: Alif the Unseen

The next novel treating an Arab Spring revolution is G. Willow Wilson’s Alif the

Unseen. Unlike David Lender’s Arab Summer, Wilson’s work is not subjected to typical

American stereotypes. New York Times described her novel as such: “For those who view

American fiction as provincial, or dominated by competent but safe work, Wilson’s novel offers a resounding, heterodox alternative” (Toutonghi 2012). This is probably because she stands much closer to Eastern culture than Lender and thus has a broader knowledge of it. G.

Willow Wilson was born in New Jersey, but after she graduated with a degree in History and coursework in Arabic language and literature, she moved to Cairo were she was a contributor to the opposition weekly Cairo Magazine (Wilson 2013). Furthermore, she converted to

Islam, a turning point in her life which she writes about in her memoir The Butterfly Mosque

(Toutonghi 2012). In her literary career, she has written for various politics and culture blogs, produced a graphic novel, Cairo, illustrated by M.K. Perker, and a series of comics based on her own experiences (Wilson 2013).

Alif the Unseen is her first novel and fairly difficult to categorize; it has been called literary fiction, a fantasy novel, a dystopian techno-thriller and even an exemplar of Islamic mysticism (Toutonghi 2012). Anyhow, its approach to the Arab Spring and the Muslim world in general is more open-minded than Arab Summer’s. Wilson’s novel revolves around the young hacker Alif who lives in the City, an unspecified place in the Persian Gulf. Similar to

- 44 - other Arab countries, the City is ruled by an authoritarian emir who subdues dissidents and does not take into account the poorest of his realm. Knowing his way around the computer,

Alif keeps bloggers and online activists who oppose their regimes safe from their governments’ Internet policing systems, until one day Alif is singled out by his own government and has to flee to avoid imprisonment or worse. In what follows, I will demonstrate that Wilson’s portrait of an Arab Spring revolution is profounder and more realistic than Lender’s description, which primarily dwells on stereotypes. Thereafter, the role of religion in times of oppression will be talked about. Instead of exclusively focusing on the frightening and oppressive aspects of Islam, Wilson renounces such stereotypical presentations and presents the respectable facets of the religion too. The last part will discuss the importance of the Internet and modern communication systems in Wilson’s novel. The

Internet is used as a means to undermine the authoritarian rule in the City, but once again, the possible dangers of online communication are emphasized too.

4.2.1. Uprising in the City

G. Willow Wilson’s story is set in a place which is simply referred to as “the City”. In the beginning of the book a page displays a map of the City, with a single non-fictional reference, the Persian Gulf. Throughout the story, the countries Omar, Saudi Arabia (Wilson

2013:64) and Qatar (Wilson 2013:359) are mentioned as neighboring countries of the City, but we do not need to conclude that the City represents another specific country on the

Arabian Peninsula such as Bahrain or the United Arab Emirates. The City is rather a general representation of a place plagued by social inequality, eventually resulting in an Arab Spring revolution. Wilson’s story is not adapted to an existing Arab government, as Lender’s thriller is, but instead gives the reader an idea of the typical circumstances of an Arab Spring uprising, this time in a fictional territory. As the other countries that passed through an Arab revolution, the City too is considered tyrannical by a large part of its population. Before, the

- 45 -

City was a dictatorship amongst many other oppressive regimes but after the events of the

Arab Spring it “began to feel as though it were outside time: a memory of an old order or a dream from which its inhabitants had failed to wake” (Wilson 2013:11). At the beginning of the book, it seems that the wave of protest has passed over the City. Alif feels the time of authoritarian rulers is ending but unfortunately he is stuck in a country whose inhabitants have not yet undertaken measures to oppose social inequality in the City. All power is still in hands of the emir and anyone who dares to question his authority ends up in jail (Wilson 2013:183).

Similar to the Saudi Arabian situation, the City’s government consists of a royal family having more money than they know what to do with it (Wilson 2013:389). They drive expensive BMWs (Wilson 2013:276) while the largest part of the population lives in appalling conditions. This gap between rich and poor is criticized throughout the novel. The oil industry is the primary sources of income in the City, but it is called a “cursed wealth”

(Wilson 2013:183) because it only enables the upper class citizens to become richer, but does not benefit the poor. Furthermore, the City’s social disparity has created an atmosphere of fear and suspicion. Security guards have to check each person’s bag before entering a public building (Wilson 2013:135) and transporting a package is accompanied by the fear of it containing a bomb (Wilson 2013:23). Specifically, the City consists of three main parts: Old

Quarter, New Quarter and between these two areas, the largest region in which the working and lower-middle classes dwell. The three regions are respectively called “old money, new money, and no money” (Wilson 2013:89). Old Quarter is mainly inhabited by the aristocracy

(Wilson 2013:22). It is a walled area where the City’s main mosque and university are located, which consequently attracts Westerners, either as tourists or as students or researchers at the university, which is equipped with a hypermodern, expensive research lab

(Wilson 2013:137). Unlike the slums in the City, Old Quarter is filled with gracious houses and modern buildings, adorned with balconies, arches (Wilson 2013:134) and various luxury

- 46 - shops (Wilson 2013:176). The people who reap the benefits of the oil industry, often Western capitalists, live in the new-built apartment blocks in New Quarter. The Western influence in this place is noticeable by the established MacDonald’s and Starbucks (Wilson 2013:128).

The last region, the dwelling place for Alif and the other lower class citizens, differs immensely from New and Old Quarter. There is no wealth in Alif’s Baqara District, where people are begging for alms (Wilson 2013:25) and search in the garbage for reusable plastic and glass (Wilson 2013:27). Alif clearly understands that the people from the poor districts are the ones who have to deal with injustice and that the City’s upper class is not planning to improve these people’s living standard. While on the run from State security, Alif is grabbed by the arm by a local working class man who works in Old Quarter as a doorman, wearing an

Ottoman robe and turban by way of a uniform. Angrily Alif shouts: “Is this your life, dressing up like a monkey for a bunch of rich fucks? Is this your life? Is this your life? Do you think they’re going to stop treating you like shit if you turn me in?” (Wilson 2013:175).

Acknowledging the truth in Alif’s outburst, the man releases him. Wilson’s novel thus successfully captures the poor citizens’ bleakness of existence and the frustration with their society. The situation in the City is similar to other Arab countries like Tunisia, Egypt, Libya or Saudi Arabia, where a sizeable amount of the population was tormented by hunger, poverty and unemployment as well.

In Arab Summer, the narrator often mentions aspects of the social malaise, without further elaborating about them. One of these aspects is discrimination against Shiites. The reader is informed about the Shiite minority, but that it is practically it. Lender does not include a Shiite character or does not narrate about a Shiite demonstration; such aspects of social disparity are only mentioned to create an atmosphere in which the primary story is set, the stereotypical narration about American CIA agents combating Muslim fundamentalists.

Social discrimination is discussed in Alif the Unseen on a much more human level. Wilson

- 47 - does not simply mention the fact as a news reporter; she acquaints the reader with discrimination in the City by means of Alif’s personal experiences. The City is crowded with people of different ethnic origins: Gulf Arabs, Indians, Egyptians, Westerners, et cetera. In the social hierarchy the Gulf Arabs stand on top, Westerners come to the City for business, study or vacation, so they are not second-class citizens either. Lower layers of society consist of the

Egyptians and Indians. According to Alif “Egyptian’s aren’t really Arabs, not in the same way

[as the Gulf Arabs]. You’re just imported labor, just like us” (Wilson 2013:80). As son of an

Arab father and an Indian mother, he will never have the same opportunities as a full-blood

Arab. “Can you see them hiring me at CityCom or the Royal Bank” (Wilson 2013:80), Alif asks sarcastically. However, Alif’s main frustration about discrimination in the City does not originate in concerns about his future professional life, but has to do with love. Alif has fallen in love with Intisar, an Arab aristocrat, but due to his inferior status in the City, he will never be allowed to marry the girl. He dreams about giving up his life as a hacker, taking a job at a respectable company in order to earn some money and live with Intisar in a reasonable place;

“they could be happy” (Wilson 2013:65). Alif would welcome a revolution, not because he is after power like Lender’s antagonist Saif, but out of the basic human emotion love. Alif’s dreams are modest but utterly important. In the same way as Mohamed Bouazizi, who set himself on fire in protest against the suppression, Alif simply wants a happier existence.

Wilson’s characters feel the City is no longer livable if the state has the authority to throw someone in jail for “falling in love with the wrong person” (Wilson 2013:116).

Since oppression in the City is one of the main triggers for the revolution, Wilson puts a lot of emphasis on it. Her narration about the oppressive and brutal regime is more profound than Lender’s. We can even go as far as to state that Wilson’s Alif the Unseen leans towards the so-called prison novel, a distinct literary genre in Arab literature (Hafez 2002). The prison novel has its roots in the colonial period, when Arab nationalists were persecuted, imprisoned

- 48 - and tortured by their colonizers. The succession of the colonial authorities by new national authorities did not, however, end the suppression. Even worse, in many regions of the Arab world the new post-colonial regimes surpassed their predecessors in tyranny and oppression.

Hence, imprisonment, torture and political assassination became important topics in Arab literature. Prominent examples of novels testifying about political imprisonment are Syrian author Nabil Suleymen’s The Prison (1972) and Egyptian writer Fathi Abdul Fattah’s The

Duet of Prison and Alienation (1995) (Hafez 2002). Similar to the Arab prison novel, Alif the

Unseen is “a strong protest against the torture of those who are innocent of any crime except for love of their country and the courage to defend its aspirations and to dream of a just and better future” (Hafez 2002).

G. Willow Wilson portrays the City’s emirate as a tyranny that keeps telling itself and its civilians that democracy won’t work. A member of the oppressive government tells Alif:

People don’t want freedom anymore. […]

People want their government to keep secrets

from them. They want the hand of law to be

brutal. […] Freedom is a dead philosophy, Alif.

The world is returning to its natural state, to the

rule of the weak by the strong (Wilson

2013:264).

Keeping this self-delusional idea in mind, the rulers try to legitimize their oppressive rule.

The many unfortunate dissidents who try to display the banality of this notion, on the other hand, end up in jail or must pay with their lives. Alif notes that he “could not think of no other dissident, religious or political, who had successfully evaded State” (Wilson 2013:130). These dissidents are often intellectuals such as the university professors who are locked up in State

- 49 - prison (Wilson 2013:252). Alif has been protecting dissident bloggers for years until he becomes the emirate’s centre of attention. He is forced to flee and hide in order to keep out of

Sate security’s hands. The latter does not have too much trouble to find out where Alif lives and awaits him at his house (Wilson 2013:58-60). Not being able to go home or to flee the country, because border control will recognize him (Wilson 2013:64), Alif thus risks prison for the rest of his life. Trying to survive in these circumstances is psychologically demanding and Alif is, not surprisingly, more than once overcome with panic. Being persecuted for their political beliefs, Alif and all dissident Arabs have to move cautiously in their own countries, becoming paranoid from the constant threat of being arrested (Wilson 2013:60-61). On top of that there are also Alif’s family and friends who must live in fear of Alif being taken away or executed. When Alif and Dina are reunited after being separated for a while, Dina cannot hold back her tears and tells him: “I was afraid you were dead” (Wilson 2013:335). Furthermore,

Alif occasionally thinks about “his mother, alone with the maid in their little duplex, fearing him dead” (Wilson 2013:367). Wilson’s novel thus also treats the grim atmosphere that the dissidents and related bystanders find themselves in while living in a reign of terror.

The people in the City all have a reason to fear their government. As many prison novels show, the Arab world has a long tradition of violent authorities and torture in prison. In

Alif the Unseen, State security does not take kindly to citizens opposing the government. Alif tells his neighbor Dina that she is in danger just by living next to him, “people have been executed for less” (Wilson 2013:63). And indeed, later in the novel, Dina is almost shot to death by a police officer (Wilson 2013:91). Alif himself also gets in dire straits when the State employs snipers and blocks the streets in order to arrest him (Wilson 2013:228). Eventually, security knocks him unconscious with a baton and brings him to State prison (Wilson

2013:243), where he has to experience the dreadful living conditions. Wilson provides her reader with a touching description of the inhumane punishments and suffering that many

- 50 - opponents of the regime have to endure. The prison is referred to as a “lightless hell” (Wilson

2013:281), the cell walls spotted with dirty fingerprints and blood (Wilson 2013:250).

Prisoners are naked and locked in a pitch dark, hot cell, given barely enough food and water to survive. There are also no toilets, so the captives sit amidst their own feces (Wilson

2013:245-247), and on top of that, they are subjected to corporal punishments such as electrocution (Wilson 2013:263). Because they lose track of time in the dark cells and are in constant fear of what is to come, the prisoners experience psychological deconstruction. Even survivors who get out of the prisons alive carry this traumatic experience with them for the rest of their lives. Alif, for instance, does not die in State prison, but keeps being plagued by moments that “he feared he was asleep and would presently wake up in the darkness of his cell” (Wilson 2013:421). The following quote will give a good idea of the atrocities committed in the City’s prison:

I’ve won. I want that realization to settle over

you like a premonition of death. I want your

defeat to seep into your bones as you sit naked

in the dark, watching your life and your sanity

spool away before you into nothingness. I want

to watch each of your intellectual powers drop

away one by one until you are a quivering,

pissing mess at my feet. By then I will have

gotten what little information I require from

you […]. You will become useless to me. At

that point, I will allow you to die (Wilson

2013:256).

- 51 -

The isolation, darkness and nakedness are said to be standard operating procedure in the City’s prison (Wilson 2013:251), so we can ask ourselves whether the non-fictional Arab rulers developed a similar system to break their opposition. News agency Reuters declares that Colonel Gaddafi deployed squads which held Libyan rebels in shipping containers, torturing them for information about insurgent networks (Lowe 2011). A survivor testified that the squad took his clothes and left him in the heat of the containers with only a few sips of water a day. Various torture methods such as electrocution, whipping and severe beatings were applied on the suspected rebels (Lowe 2011). Furthermore, a Human Rights Watch report documents dozens of cases of torture and death in the Egyptian prisons under the

Mubarak regime (Razzouk 2011) and also Tunisia’s Ben Ali did not flinch to isolate people he regarded as a threat, beating and nearly drowning them (Klaas 2013). We can conclude that the cruelty and draconian penalties displayed in Alif the Unseen are not merely sensational aspects but are affairs that certainly occurred in the prisons of the Arab dictators.

All the above mentioned factors –the gap between rich and poor, discrimination, oppression and the cruelty of the emirate- ultimately culminate in the outbreak of the City’s revolution. Alif is taken aback by the astonishing size of the protest, “a human sea at high tide” (Wilson 2013:393). The people participating in the demonstrations are commoners armed with sticks and kitchenware, waving their banners (Wilson 2013:409-411) and burning pictures of the emir (Wilson 2013:426). There are no terrorists driving the opposition as in

David Lender’s depiction of the revolution; instead ordinary citizens are taking the lead.

Moreover, there is no mention of an Islamic revolution or an attack on the West in any way.

Closer to reality, Wilson’s revolutionaries are Islamists, secularists, communists, et cetera, who set aside their ideological differences in order to walk together with the same and only purpose, bringing down the oppressive regime (Wilson 2013:376). Wilson depicts the essence of the Arab Spring uprisings, the escalation of the people’s rage after years and years of

- 52 - poverty, suppression and fear. The Arab Spring did not revolve about returning to one true

Islam or discarding the West, but as Wilson’s novel demonstrates, about emancipation and freedom. By the end of her novel, the City’s government has lost its grip on its population.

Rich oil traders and royals are forced to flee the country (Wilson 2013:392) and any kind of attempt to appease the angry mob is in vain. In the same way as Ben Ali and Mubarak, the

City’s emir tried to put an end to the protests by reorganizing his government, firing corrupt and hated officials (Wilson 2013:404). The demonstrators in Tunisia, Egypt and the City, however, were not that easily satisfied, but kept revolting until their hated dictators completely lost power.

Not willing to undergo any more repression, the City’s population prefers the chaos of the revolution over the suffocation of living under an authoritarian regime. And there is plenty of chaos during uprisings or as one of Wilson’s characters puts it, “revolutions are ninety percent social diarrhea” (Wilson 2013:380). Not everyone is out in the streets for the right reasons, some just hope to destroy and plunder the apartments of the upper class citizens

(Wilson 2013:380-381). Amidst the “rank butchery smell of perspiration and blood” (Wilson

2013:411), Alif woefully comes to the conclusion that the revolution is less glorious than he initially anticipated (Wilson 2013:376). Wilson displays the idealism that goes with the uprising, but also the violence and cruelty that occurs on both sides of the conflict. Not surprisingly, the oppressive government employs riot police in full body armor, carrying batons and shields to frighten and engage the demonstrators (Wilson 2013:377). Furthermore, the protestors are assaulted with tear gas (Wilson 2013: 377) and in the worst case shot to death (Wilson 2013:413).

At the same time, however, Wilson also draws attention to the cruelties on the part of the protesting mobs. When the revolutionaries are publically lynching one of the government’s officials, Alif regards them no longer as the heroes of the City but as “savages

- 53 - stripped of any noble purpose” (Wilson 2013:420). Nonetheless, the novel is not designed to condemn the Arab revolutions. The City was a place plagued by social injustice, which needed to change somehow. Due to the repressive nature of the regime, peaceful protests alone would not result in the emir’s resignation. Therefore, the City’s inhabitants used a more violent approach. The City’s revolution is generally depicted positively, as a plea for justice and freedom, but the novel does not forget to remind the reader of the brutalities that took place during the Arab Spring. It is, indeed, no use to depict all revolutionaries as peaceable protestors, because a lot of the people who participated in the Arab Spring revolutions were driven by frustration, anger and vengeance. Many had suffered a great deal under the tyranny of the Arab dictators and when they finally had a chance to act against them, many did not shun violence. The images circulating on the Internet of the rebels who found and executed

Gaddafi in Sirte speak volumes about the savagery of some of the revolutionaries. Although many of their ideals were respectable, their means of achieving them were not always in order, but then again, how many conflicts are resolved without violence and bloodshed on both sides of the battlefront?

Ultimately, the City’s State police cannot hold the demonstrators and falls back

(Wilson 2013:421). The common people celebrate the fall of the emir (Wilson 2013:421, 426) and the novel’s last sentence describes the “sounds of cheers and shouts and horns” (Wilson

2013:427). The Arab revolutions are often regarded positively and the departure of men like

Mubarak and Gaddafi has, indeed, been applauded, but we cannot forget that the end of the dictators’ rule did not solve all the Arab countries’ problems. Egypt encountered many new difficulties such as the deposition of the new President Mohamed Morsi, the military’s seizure of power (De Roy & Verstraete 2013) and the recent verdict which sentenced the leader and

682 supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood to death (Saleh 2014). Likewise, Libya today still contends with human rights abuses and armed militias that control eastern oil terminals (Jones

- 54 -

2014). Alif seems to realize that the future of the City is uncertain. He is not sure what will follow after the revolution; “State had fallen. What would replace it might be better or worse”

(Wilson 2013:421). The overall atmosphere in the City is one of victory, but nonetheless the

City’s future remains obscure in the same way as many other Arab countries cannot tell what tomorrow will bring.

Although G. Willow Wilson’s Alif the Unseen is called a fantasy novel, it provides the reader with a very realistic exposition of an Arab Spring uprising. The various Arab protests displayed a similar turn of events which is also presented in Wilson’s novel. We can thus regard the events in the City as a generalized exposition of how the Arab revolutions came about. Poverty, social inequality and oppression were the main triggers for the demonstrations and are also depicted as such in Alif the Unseen. These causes are also mentioned in Arab

Summer, but Wilson is able to present them in a more profound way than Lender. She appeals to the emotions of her readers by letting them in on Alif’s personal hardships. Lender has some of his facts straight, but the bleak existence of his Saudis is merely accessory in his novel. Wilson, however, draws up a more touching portrait about Alif’s life. She pays attention to his modest hopes and dreams of happiness and acquaints the reader with the suppression and cruelty he had to endure under the emir’s government, in a more elaborate way than Lender. Concerning the revolution itself, both Wilson’s and Lender’s characters describe how the regimes do not hold back to aggressively suppress the demonstrators and that the revolutions come with a lot of chaos and misery. The main and essential difference between the two authors, however, is their depiction of the opposition. There are no Muslim fundamentalists in Alif the Unseen, but common people; mothers, fathers, the City’s youth, all come together to overthrow the rulers, no matter what ideology they believe in. Wilson’s representation of the driving force behind the revolution, and by extension her entire novel,

- 55 - resembles reality much more than Lender’s. And this is because Wilson’s story is, unlike

Lender’s, not subjected to the cliché Western prejudices about the Muslim world.

4.2.2. Religion

The next aspect from Alif the Unseen that I want to discuss is the role of religion.

David Lender’s portrait of Islam is rather negative. He emphasizes that Islamic law is a means to keep discontented citizens in line. Furthermore, Lender’s antagonist plans on orchestrating the fulfillment of a Muslim prophecy which he hopes will result in a holy war against the

West. In Arab Summer, Islam is depicted as a means to mislead people and as a weapon against Western nations. Hence, Lender’s depiction of Islam evokes disapproval and hostility, which are typical Western sentiments about Muslims.

As a converted Muslim herself, G. Willow Wilson stands much closer to Islamic faith and is less influenced by these Western stereotypes. Consequentially, her exposition of religion in the City is much more open-minded. The Guardian accurately describes her novel as “a valuable contrast to the writing of many young authors today who see, with good reason, the religions that claim to represent them as corrupted to the purposes of oppression” (Walter

2012). Wilson, however, focuses much more on the consolation and strength that religion can offer in times of need. Nonetheless, Wilson is not as naïve as to deny that religion can be employed to oppress people. The novel also pays attention to the fact that the upper classes can use religion as a tool to control the lower classes. Alif is struggling to embrace religion.

He is no atheist, but certainly no devoted Muslim either. He is a moderate believer who is skeptical of Islam because he recognizes the oppressive side of it. As the Quran prescribes,

Alif’s lover Intisar wears a veil to cover her face, but Alif notes that her veil is “a mark of rank, not of religion” (Wilson 2013:23). Alif thus feels that religion is as an affair of the rich who use it to dictate to the poor in the name of God. Likewise, Alif is not delighted when the

- 56 - muezzin calls to prayer, but regards the muezzin’s voice as a reprimand (Wilson 2013:25). He feels threatened by his own religion because he believes the City is in part controlled by men he calls “pious airheads” (Wilson 2013:219), and, on top of that, he struggles with questions about the very nature of religion: “One step the wrong way, one sin too many and it’s the fiery furnace for you. Beware. And then at the same time, you ask us to love the God who has this terrible sword hanging over our necks. It’s very confusing” (Wilson 2013:330). Alif does not always believe religion is what the clerics tell him. He is, for instance, disgusted by some of the sharia punishments such as stoning (Wilson 2013:254) and the liege lords’ permission to treat female prisoners as their slaves (Wilson 2013:273). These are affairs that are also condemned in the West, so once again, Wilson breaks with the stereotypes. She does not portray a Muslim extremist, preaching for a strict Islam and harsh punishment for the infidels, but she presents a moderate and humane Muslim, struggling with the oppressive aspects of religion himself. Such a depiction can help to build up a more nuanced portrait of the Orient.

I already mentioned that Alif questions various aspects of the State’s official religious views, but there are still more fragments in the novel in which characters expose personal religious interpretations. As Edward Said argues, Islam does not embody one intolerant system of beliefs, but a vast collection of interpretations, some of which are more orthodox than others. Alif’s neighbor Dina, for instance, believes that music is not forbidden, while many other Muslims believe it is: “Birds make music, river reeds in wind make music. Babies make music. God would not forbid something that is the sharia of innocent creatures” (Wilson

2013:72). Islamic religion is a matter of interpretations, which is also apparent in Alif the

Unseen. While many clerics prohibit music, Dina clings to her personal religious interpretation. Intisar, too, feels that the City’s official interpretation of Islam does not entirely correspond with her own beliefs:

- 57 -

The Quran speaks of the hidden people in the

most candid way, yet more and more the

educated faithful will not admit to believing in

them, however readily they might accept even

the harshest and the most obscure points of

Islamic law. That God has ordained that a thief

must pay with his hand, that a woman must

inherit half of what a man inherits –these things

are treated not only as facts, but as obvious

facts, whereas the existence of conscious beings

we cannot see –and all the fantastic and

wondrous things that their existence suggests

and makes possible– produces profound

discomfort among […] traditionalists. Yet how

hollow rings a tradition in which the law, which

is subject to interpretation, is held as

sacrosanct, yet the word of God is not to be

trusted when it comes to His description of

what He has created. I do not know what I

believe (Wilson 2013:104).

Intisar believes it is rather arbitrary that so many Muslim theologians have blind faith in the

Quran when it comes to harsh punishments and oppression, but at the same time deny the existence of the djinns, the “conscious beings we cannot see”. With this thought, Wilson wants to show that the oppressive variants of Islam are only part of the extensive collection of

- 58 - interpretations and that many Muslims, like many of Wilson’s characters, rather attach importance to the wondrous and soothing aspects of Islam.

Many of these personal religious interpretations are often not comprehended by

Westerners or fellow Muslims, but actually that should not be necessary. The problem, however, is that we live in an era of knowledge, guided by digital progress and overwhelmed with information brought to us by newspapers, television and computers. A result of living in such a society is that we want to understand everything. When we are confronted with cultures or habits that do not seem explainable according to the rational Western standard we get frustrated and then it is easy to adopt a hostile attitude because what is unknown is unloved. We see this in the novel when Dina and Alif are arguing because he does not comprehend why he cannot touch her, not even in life-threatening situations: “You don’t understand, you don’t want to understand”, Dina says (Wilson 2013:199). The rational Alif is skeptical of her religious beliefs because he cannot grasp them. Eventually, however, he starts to realize that Dina draws confidence from her religion. In a moment of chaos and panic, Dina puts her veil over Alif’s head in order to calm him down. Alif is amazed by the soothing effect of the darkness of the veil. At first he does not understand why Dina wants to wear a veil and conform to such religious regulations, but after experiencing the tranquility under

Dina’s veil he admits that “he could not have guessed the world she had created for herself”

(Wilson 2013:240), a world in which she allows religion to help and console her. The oppressive aspects of Islam, such as female discrimination or severe punishments, are easy to criticize, but next to these aspects Islam also embodies love, consolation, solidarity, and other respectable elements, which unfortunately appear less frequently in the Western media. Such aspects are also part of our Western Christian religion, which, moreover, is not free of oppressive aspects either. Hence, we should not concentrate on negative stereotypes concerning the Muslim community, but instead learn to accept that many Muslims have their

- 59 - own -often more moderate- beliefs and need their religion to deal with everyday life, especially when living in one of the Arab dictatorships.

A review published in The Guardian states that “Alif and the other characters in

Wilson's novel find strength in the Islamic faith, as have many of those risking their lives against oppression in the Arab spring, and as does the author herself” (Walter 2012). In Alif the Unseen, Wilson uses djinns in order to portray this strength that religion offers in times of oppression. There is an allusion to this metaphor in the beginning of Wilson’s novel. When returning Alif’s copy of The Golden Compass, Dina says that the pagan images in it are dangerous, to which Alif replies “don’t be ignorant. They’re metaphors” (Wilson 2013:4).

The pagan images in Alif the Unseen are the djinns and demons from the Quran, who are no longer recognized by many Muslim theologians. Throughout the story, the Islamic djinns protect Alif and his friends and help them escape the oppressive government, thus representing the strength and consolation religion can offer. On the other hand, there are the demons that work together with the regime and represent the oppressive aspect of Islam. The demons are said to be misleading (Wilson 2013:312) and are able to cause unrest amongst people, setting secularists and Islamists up against each other (Wilson 2013:398). Likewise,

Islam (and many other religions) can be used to mislead believers in obeying a base ruler, to keep the citizens of an oppressive nation in line. And religion can, indeed, be used to spread hostility to unbelievers, dividing the world in fractions instead of preaching tolerant coexistence. Hence, the demons in Wilson’s novel correspond to oppressive religious characteristics. However, these demons and thus the oppressive aspects of Islam are depicted as weak in comparison with the faith of the uncorrupted believer. Demons might deceive but are not powerful; they start shuddering and weaken from the moment they are confronted with a righteous Muslim voicing prayers (Wilson 2013:384). Religion, when it is used to suppress

- 60 - and deceive, is thus presented as inferior to the positive and heartfelt facets of Islamic faith, which are embodied by the djinns in the novel.

When Alif has to flee from his government, he is almost instantly aided by a djinn called Vikram, who represents the protection and strength that religion can offer in times of need. As a protective figure he addresses Alif as “younger brother” (Wilson 2013:152) and both Dina and Alif as “children” (Wilson 2013:149). The djinn Vikram tells Alif: “I can’t protect you from everything. At least not permanently. However […], I will give you all that I can” (Wilson 2013:213). Throughout the story, Vikram looks after both characters; he saves them, cares for them and even dies for them. The protection and strength Vikram gives to

Wilson’s characters is of course more literal than the protection of Islamic religion, but nonetheless, it is a fact that many faithful people draw a sense of safety from their religion, something Vikram also gives to Alif. The longer Alif is with the djinns, the more he relies upon them. Stranded in a dessert with only a little food and water, Alif is certain he will encounter a djinn who will bring them to safety (Wilson 2013:292). Hence, similar to religion, the djinns present hope when one finds oneself in a precarious situation. And then there is also the consolation, which is offered to Alif by a djinn in the form of an “elixir against heartache”

(Wilson 2013:323), again more literal, but analogous to religion.

Next to the metaphor, there are also more obvious references to the protective and soothing nature of religion. One of these references is Old Quarter’s main mosque. While Alif is being chased by a dozen of State agents, he runs instinctively to the mosque, believing he would be safe in that holy place. He perceives the doors as his “lost friends” (Wilson

2013:177) and notices that the mosque has “a sympathetic air, as if it could speak but chose instead to listen” (Wilson 2013:188). Hence, Alif does not regard the mosque as an oppressive place, dictating how to live, but instead as a safe haven, that will listen to his problems and aid him. Sheikh Bilal who takes care of the mosque puts God’s authority above State’s authority

- 61 -

(Wilson 2013:179) and therefore hides the helpless Alif even though he knows the emir might punish him for it. In the end, it is the house of God, and not his computer, that offers Alif protection and where he allows himself to feel safe. It is the place where he can finally wash off the misery from the past few days he spent on the run (Wilson 2013:181), a place where he can rest and find his strength. The mosque, the sheikh and religion sustain the needy and the oppressed civilians of the City, so consequentially the mosque becomes the “symbol against tyranny” (Wilson 2013:181).

It is remarkable that Alif increasingly learns to appreciate Islam as he is confronted with more and more repression and misery. At the beginning of the novel, Alif does not attach that much importance to religion. He does not really rely upon it, certainly not more than upon his computer. Nowadays it seems that prayer and religion are affairs that are given the cold shoulder by many modernized adolescents such as Alif. As told, he is no atheist but he still has problems embracing religion because it is easier for him to rely on reason than divine authority. As a hacker, he spends most of his time creating computer programs, an occupation that might seem complicated, but is logical and explicable nonetheless. When he encounters something he cannot explain such as a djinn or religion, he has problems accepting it and is incredulous. In the following dialogue between Alif and Dina, it becomes clear that Alif tries to come up with a rational explanation for the djinn Vikram’s peculiar appearance, which is partly human, but with animal-like features:

A: “We have to try to think this through and

process it. Break it down into composite parts

until it makes some kind of rational sense.”

D: “Rational? Are you mad? That thing was not

human!”

- 62 -

A: “Of course he was human. What else could he be?”

D: “You unbelievable child –did you see his legs?”

A: […] “That could have been anything. The light inside the tent was strange. We were both upset. When you panic you start to think things that aren’t real.”

D: […] “I can’t believe this. You read all those kuffar fantasy novels and yet you deny something straight out of the holy book.”

A: […] “You’ve lost me. What am I denying.

Instruct me in my religion.”

D: “You don’t have to get snotty. Remember:

‘And the djinn We created in the Foretime from a smokeless fire.’ […] You lent me The Golden

Compass! It’s full of djinni trickery, and you were angry at me when I told you that made it dangerous! Why do you get mad when religion tells you that the things you want to be true are true?”

A: “When it’s true, it’s not fun anymore. All right? When it’s true it’s scary.”

- 63 -

(Wilson 2013:86-87)

Alif likes to read fantasy books because it enables him to escape the oppressive City for a while: “The censors don’t bother with fantasy books, especially old ones. They can’t understand them. They think it’s all kids’ stuff. They’d die if they knew what The Chronicles of Narnia were really about” (Wilson 2013:98). Various of these books revolve around subjects which are dear to Alif. The Chronicles of Narnia, for instance, narrates about a war against an oppressive queen. Similar to these books, religion can be a means to momentarily flee from misery. Nonetheless, Alif keeps in mind that all these stories are purely fictional and he does not allow such wondrous affairs to penetrate and guide his life because “when it’s true it’s scary”.

Initially, Alif denies the existence of the djinn, so following the metaphor, he does not yet accept religion into his life. However, after experiencing the life of a political fugitive and on top of that the horrors of prison, he starts recognizing the beauty of religion. No matter how scary and inexplicable Vikram’s existence and religion might be, he accepts it because the djinn and Islam offer him safety and consolation. In the same way, many Arab revolutionaries relied on religion without trying to explain it, because it is a sort of tool to get through the hard days of the uprisings. Wilson tries to clarify that the Islamic faith is not exclusively used to mislead, oppress or set people up against each other, but is very often an essential part of Muslims’ lives and offers them, inter alia, a manner to cope with the oppression and violence of the revolutions. Alif might be a rational modernized youth, but by passing through such dangerous and frightening situations he begins to rely on the djinns and religion, things his rational “mind […] [has] taught itself not to see” (Wilson 2013:106). At first Alif does not pray; when Dina enters a mosque he just stands outside waiting for her

(Wilson 2013:78-79), but later on, he starts to find prayer comforting because “the force of the familiar words” distracts him from the misery he has to deal with (Wilson 2013:216). Alif

- 64 - prays for Dina, believing God will at least grant his friend safety (Wilson 2013:242), which is a comforting thought for Alif. When he escapes from State prison he again falls on his knees to thank his God that He has given Alif the strength to get through his imprisonment and has saved him from death (Wilson 2013:290).

Rationally thinking, it is hard to imagine a godlike figure who actually protects and supports oppressed people, but, as the narrator says in the novel, it is often harder to psychologically damage religious people (Wilson 2013:251). That is because they have something to hang on to, an irrational belief in times when all rationality seems to have faded away. Whether there is a God or not, it does not really matter. What matters is that people in need are able to find a way to cope with the hard reality, and religion is certainly an appropriate remedy for that. So, instead of constantly criticizing Islam for being oppressive, we should be glad that many Muslims at least have their faith to give them strength to endure their oppressive regimes and chaotic revolutions.

In conclusion, G. Willow Wilson gives an entirely different view on Islam in Alif the

Unseen than David Lender in his Arab Summer. Whereas Lender’s novel focuses on Islam as a threat to the West and depicts religion as a means of oppression and deceit, Wilson’s novel pays attention to the consolation and strength that religion can offer. The novel mentions the oppressive side of Islam, but also makes clear that Islam is no homogenous religion. Instead, it consists of various interpretations, extremist and humane ones. Alif’s Islam does not pose a threat to the Western world, but instead helps him to get through the daily suppression and problems in the City. Furthermore, Wilson does not at all present religion as the trigger for the revolution, as Lender does in his thriller. In Alif the Unseen, the faithful rely on their religion in harsh days of revolution, but the actual cause for the City’s uprising remains the undemocratic and unjust government, a cause which motivates not only Muslims but people

- 65 - from all walks of life. Hence, the role of religion in the Arab Spring uprisings is depicted more realistically and less subject to preconceptions in Wilson’s novel than in Lender’s.

4.2.3. Cyber War

In Arab Summer, Lender’s characters already mention the significant role of the

Internet during the Arab Spring. In Alif the Unseen, however, the World Wide Web occupies an even more important role and becomes one of the central themes, the weapon wielded by protagonist Alif. Wilson said that she partly wrote her novel because she was frustrated by

“the failure of many Americans, including some in the publishing industry, to grasp the significance of social media as a medium for social change, especially in the Middle East”

(Hand 2012). Therefore, Alif the Unseen extensively describes how the mass media are integrated in an Arab country’s everyday life and how they are used to oppose the authorities.

As Edward Said argues, Western media very often depict the Easterners either as terrorists, oil suppliers or conservatives engrossed in their religion. Whereas Lender’s Arab characters largely suit with these descriptions, Wilson focuses on Alif, who is part of the Arab modernized youth that relies more upon the Internet than upon religion. Alif decorates his room with Robert Smith posters (Wilson 2013:3), reads fantasy novels like The Golden

Compass (Wilson 2013:4) and The Chronicles of Narnia (Wilson 2013:98), speaks English fluently (Wilson 2013:4) and is a first rate computer geek. Hence, not our everyday stereotypical Muslim. As mentioned above, social platforms such as Facebook are not exclusively used by the English-speaking, modern Arab youth, but also by more traditional groups of people. Nevertheless, in order to overcome existing stereotypes about the Muslim world, it is useful to read something about the young people in Arab countries who do not differ that much from Western youth. This modernized youth in the East has greatly contributed to the realization of the revolutions, using the Internet to recruit people and

- 66 - organize public demonstrations or simply by uttering their own free thoughts on their repressive governments.

The importance and usefulness of hiding under pseudonyms in the oppressive City is a recurrent motif in Alif the Unseen. The anonymity on the Internet gives people the chance to utter complaints for which they could be arrested if they would pronounce them in public spaces. It is this freedom of speech that is dear to Alif. If it were not for people like him, the

City’s government would control the Internet by censoring all dissident opinions on it. Alif, however, works as a hacker and keeps incriminating blogs and sites operational by installing protective software against the City’s censors. “It was the censors who made him grind his teeth as he slept” (Wilson 2013:8). Apart from his desire to be free, he is no ideologue: “As far as he was concerned, anyone who could pay for his protection was entitled to it” (Wilson

2013:8). Still, his main interest is not money, but his conviction that everyone is entitled to a personal opinion: anarchists, communists, Islamists, secularists, feminists, et cetera. For many people who lived under the yoke of dictators, the Internet was the only means to express their personal -often dissident- beliefs without reprisals, the only place where they had at least a taste of freedom. Alif is not the protagonist’s real name, but his pseudonym and it is, moreover, no coincidence the title refers to him as the unseen. Like many online activists, he does not risk to undermine the emir’s authority in the open, but instead operates from behind closed doors where he remains unseen to State police. Once the State knows someone’s name or whereabouts, it will be hard to stay out of its hands. On various occasions, the narrator emphasizes the importance of anonymity: Alif tells Dina that “it’s safer to be anonymous. If you use your real name you’re liable to get into trouble” (Wilson 2013:70), the djinn Vikram, who helps Alif escape State warns to “never tell a man your given name if you don’t know his” (Wilson 2013:85) and also the Sheikh who hides Alif in his mosque does not want to know Alif’s name or even his pseudonym. It is safer because in that way, he cannot tell the

- 67 - authorities his name, even if he would crack under torture (Wilson 2013:188). Hence,

Wilson’s characters realize anonymity is important in a place where one can end up in jail for expressing a “wrong” opinion. Many people, however, feel an urge to utter their dissident opinions nevertheless, and this is where the Internet presents itself as an accessible manner to do so.

Both the City’s government and the oppressed citizens recognize the possible force of the Internet. The authorities try to restrain Internet usage, but due to high demand, smugglers have established an extensive market on which they sell smartphones and other computer parts (Wilson 2013:75). For people like Alif, “the Internet is the only place left to have a worthwhile conversation” (Wilson 2013:68). Hackers like him distribute just about everything that is banned by any government in the Arab world. Alif, for instance, helps a Saudi to keep his pornographic site operational, a Turkish person who propagates an Islamic movement which is not tolerated by his regime and numerous other dissidents in and outside the City

(Wilson 2013:8). In order to keep these people from being detected by their governments, Alif sometimes spends days without speech or sleep (Wilson 2013:31), hacking the regimes’

Internet police time after time, programming new security systems when the previous ones are breached. Nonetheless, Alif feels his hacking activities are all worth it, because he believes it is the population’s only means to react against the life that everyone is obligated to live; a life that is, in fact, constructed by the ruling class. Naturally, the government regards the people who are protected by Alif’s software as criminals. Alif, however, thinks differently: “My clients aren’t criminals. They’re just trying to escape from this gold-covered shit we live in, like everybody else. The only difference is that they have the balls to stand by what they believe” (Wilson 2013:211). The Internet is a weapon that non-conformist citizens employ to utter critiques against their governments or to escape in one way or another from the dogmatic rules, imposed on them by their rulers. Alif cannot officially marry the girl he loves because

- 68 - of her aristocratic roots, so he prints a marriage certificate from his computer to legitimize the bond between himself and his beloved (Wilson 2013:35). The State, of course, does not recognize such a marriage, but still, it demonstrates how Alif falls back on his computer and the Internet in order to flee the restrictions which are imposed on him by the conservative

City.

The climax of Alif’s cyber offensive against the emirate is his advanced computer program which enables him to destroy the City’s entire system, erasing all data the intelligence bureau has on Alif and all other dissidents in the country (Wilson 2013:229). In an attempt to repair the damage caused by Alif, the City’s engineers accidentally shut down all Internet providers, which Wilson presents as the straw that breaks the camel’s back and unleashes the revolution in the City (Wilson 2013:375). Now that the population’s only means to resist the emir is also taken away from them, they cannot sit idly by any longer and thus gather in the streets. When Alif eventually manages to recover the City’s Internet connection, people once again reach for their smartphones and tablets, punching them in the air “like a weapon” (Wilson 2013:412). Now that the revolution has started, online actions will no longer be restricted to slandering the government, but the protesters will use the social networks to recruit more allies and let the world know that the City’s population is fighting the repression (Wilson 2013:408-409). We can conclude that computers and the Internet have given humanity a new means to protest; it can be viewed as a modern age weapon of the common citizen. In the same way as books, pamphlets or flyers are sometimes used to anonymously satirize social circumstances, most people today use their computers to utter discontent or organize large-scale protests. In the digital age it has become easier than ever to communicate one’s views, which can, moreover, happen under the protective veil of a pseudonym. This can be a blessing, because everyone should have the right to freedom of expression, but the blessing does not come without any dangers. Computers are the working

- 69 - tools for hackers who can tamper with all kinds of digital systems, which may complicate the anonymous distribution of opinions and critiques. No matter which side a person is on, he or she stays a potential target for other people who know a great deal more about computers than the average user, and who can, for instance, track and identify the person in question. In Alif the Unseen, the hacking activities and the possibility to easily share opinions are depicted as weapons for good, but Wilson does not forget to address the dangers of the digital age too.

The Guardian’s review of Wilson’s novel also acknowledges that the technology of the Internet, social media and powerful computers placed in the hands of millions worldwide helped to realize the downfall of various oppressive regimes. It is, however, the same technology that allows unprecedented penetration in our private lives. So, if the technologies of surveillance and control now surrounding us should be turned to oppressive ends, we might find ourselves practically defenseless (Walter 2012). Unfortunately for Alif, he is not the only hacker in the City. The government also recognizes the usefulness of the Internet and employs its own hackers to hunt down the dissident hackers who protect and spread “illegal expressions of distress and discontent” (Wilson 2013:8). The regime tries to control illegal digital activities by extensive Internet policing and only allowing State servants to teach computer science at the City’s university, so that no harmful techniques can be learned

(Wilson 2013:9). The main antagonist and digital threat in Alif the Unseen is a government hacker who is referred to as the Hand. The Hand is the most competent and dangerous person involved in the emir’s “digital counterterrorism operations” (Wilson 2013:50), employing a program that is called a “carnivore system”, which hunts down dissident hard drives (Wilson

2013:233). Like all other government officials searching for citizens who dare to criticize the emir, it is the Hand’s task to discover, dismantle and subdue enemies of the regime (Wislon

2013:9). Alif pitifully realizes that hacked accounts of citizens will eventually result in hacked lives, such as the various Egyptian hackers he could no longer protect and consequently were

- 70 - found by their government and sent to jail weeks before the Egyptian revolution (Wilson

2013:10). The computer as an instrument to tamper with someone else’s systems can thus be used by both the government and the opposition. The Hand is able to hack Alif’s computer and track his address, which forces Alif to go on the run. Furthermore, the Hand has ambitions to use the same advanced computer program that Alif created in order to establish a surveillance system “that will make China’s Golden Shield look like a leaky bucket” (Wilson

2013:404). Wilson thus also pays attention to the threat that social networks and other digital systems can pose for common citizens.

Many people put a lot of confidence in the Internet and social media such as

Facebook, but they often seem to forget that these new technologies can be used by governments to gather information about them. In the first six months of 2013, Facebook received over 38.000 request from governments around the world asking for information about its users. The US made circa 12.000 requests for information, information the Facebook company granted in 79% of the cases. Countries like Egypt and Turkey also filed requests for information over those six months. The former asked information about eleven account holders, but Facebook did not comply with any of those requests. In Turkey, where prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called social media “the worst menace to society” and recently shut down Twitter and YouTube, the government made 96 requests for information over those six months. In this case, Facebook complied in 47% of the requests (Rushe 2013).

Although Facebook did not announce the details about the types of requests or the type of information handed over, it remains a disturbing thought to know that governments employ social media to gain information about their citizens. There is thus a real possibility that governments can use social media in order to control its citizens. On the one hand, Wilson’s novel depicts the Internet as a safe haven where people can utter their frustrations, but at the

- 71 - same time it warns that this new weapon can also be used against citizens by their governments.

The Arab Spring is sometimes called an Internet or a Facebook revolution. In Wilson’s work, too, one of the secondary characters notes that it seems as if the revolution moved from the battlefield to the computer (Wilson 2013:366). This might be an overstatement, but

Wilson, in any case, succeeds in depicting the two-way hack activities between Alif and the

Hand as if it were a military battle. While programming, Alif sees himself as a general, standing on top of a tower of programmed codes, leading his digital attack. Furthermore, the government’s firewalls he assaults with his advanced computer program are compared to the

Old Quarter city walls, protecting the emir’s fortress. The Hand and Alif are constantly launching attacks at each other and as in a real-life battle, Alif is struck with both panic and adrenaline. At the end of their greatest hacking duel, the Hand falls back with a silicon scream and retreats behind the burn line of the intranet while Alif’s overheated computer is reduced to a “molten heap, revealing mechanical guts”, as if it were a wounded soldier after a firefight

(Wilson 2013:230-237).

The online activities of Alif and many other revolutionaries may have been important aspects of the Arab Spring and we can even speak of a kind of cyber war against the governments, but these activities alone did not suffice to overthrow the authoritarian rulers.

Wilson realizes that the revolutions would not have taken place if everyone had stayed behind their desks. Therefore, she underscores the necessity to leave the Internet at a certain point and commence the protests in the streets; at least if the people really want to end the oppression. Starting a street revolt is, however, easier said than done; it is one thing to slander a misruling regime from the safety of one’s room, but another thing to openly foment revolution, especially in a country known for imprisoning and torturing political opponents. It takes courage to risk your own safety for the greater good and it is not self-evident that

- 72 - everyone is willing to take that risk. In Wilson’s novel, Alif is one of the people who is struggling with his failure to launch the uprising. He strives for the government’s downfall, but his actions to realize this goal are restricted to hacking, which will not bring the emirate down.

He was impotent […] in the outside world, his

utility confined to punching commands into

computers. Beyond the bedroom where he sat

day after day like an idle spider in the midst of

digital web he was boneless, protected only by

a black carapace of T-shirts and jeans,

unprepared for physical danger (Wilson

2013:163)

Throughout the novel, Alif, who has never held a gun (Wilson 2013:79) or even thrown a punch at someone (Wilson 2013:410), reflects on his cowardice. In the past, Alif had to cut his ties with other Egyptian hackers because the Egyptian authorities were on the brink of unmasking them (Wilson 2013:10). This event is repeatedly mentioned in the novel, reminding Alif of his cold feet whenever the situation is getting too perilous. He is afflicted by feelings of guilt caused by his failure to protect fellow hackers he hoped to protect, some of whom inevitably ended up in jail or worse (Wilson 2013:168). While many delight in the

Arab uprisings, Alif finds no pleasure in them because they confront him with his own shortcomings. Many hackers in the City feel the same way. They want to oppose the government, but have no stomach for physical conflict, so they fall back on their computers.

The Internet enables them to do some damage, but not nearly enough to accomplish their goal of freedom and that is why Alif does not gain satisfaction from hacking. While he is spending his time trying to demolish “the digital fortress […] erected to protect the emir’s rotting

- 73 - government” (Wilson 2013:11), many braver nations have already begun or even ended their full-scale revolutions.

Still, in the course of the novel, after several life threatening experiences, Alif ultimately finds his courage to undertake more decisive actions. Initially he only relies on his computer for a better life, but eventually he realizes it is strange that, for so long, he had depended more on his phone and computer than on his own limbs (Wilson 2013:200). Near the end of the story he finally comprehends that his body is “a machine more elaborate and efficient than any computer he had ever used” (Wilson 2013:267). Following the City’s

Internet shutdown, the violence spilled off the net and into the streets, unleashing the revolution. Alif, who considered himself a moral coward for years, now stands amidst thousands of demonstrators and finally finds his courage to become one of the revolutionaries that will personally bring the emir down. “To choose a new name, to sit behind a screen and harry a few elites […], it had felt like a game, a fiction” (Wilson 2013:419). Alif is done assaulting the government from behind his trusted computer, which has been lucrative but insufficient nonetheless. Surrounded by the angry mob, Alif at last stands face to face with the oppressing Hand, a weapon in his hand and ready to fight him (Wilson 2013:415). Wrathful about everything he had to endure under the oppressive government, Alif proclaims:

It’s because of people like you that we have to

go unseen in order to be honest. You’ve made

the truth impossible anywhere but in the dark,

behind false names. The only thing that ever

sees the light of day in this City is bullshit.

Your bullshit, the emir’s bullshit, State’s

bullshit. But that’s over now. All the people

you’ve chosen not to see are out there calling

- 74 -

for your blood. And I, and […] all the ones

you’ve been hunting down and kidnapping and

shutting up in prison all these years –we’re

going to give it to them (Wilson 2013:402-403)

Hence, Wilson’s novel shows that though the resistance in the City commenced on the net behind false names, it takes a physical offensive to free oneself of an authoritarian system.

Even so, the author does not try to minimize the role of the Internet. When first seeing the protesting mass, a fellow hacker ecstatically tells Alif: “We did this, akh. Computer geeks did this. We told these ruffians they could all have a voice” (Wilson 2013:377). With her novel,

G. Willow Wilson thus demonstrates that the Internet is, indeed, a medium to achieve social changes, that it can be a weapon, both for the oppressor and the oppressed. The final step towards emancipation, however, still are public protests, which are undoubtedly riskier than slandering online. All the same, the Internet has played an undeniable role in the Arab Spring revolutions. It is the combination of the two aspects, Internet and public protest, “the mingled uproar of man and machine” (Wilson 2013:409) that made the Arab Spring revolutions so successful.

5. Conclusion

It has become clear that the depiction of the Arab Spring revolutions in contemporary

American literature is not homogeneous. Although the Arab populations unleashed the uprisings in order to pursue values which are praised in the United States as well, the literary works do not always depict the revolutions positively. It is true that both discussed novels welcome the social changes which benefit the poor and oppressed Arab citizens, but this master’s thesis has also demonstrated that Western preconceptions concerning the Muslim world have found their way into American literature, even in works about democratic

- 75 - revolutions. Not every American book is subjected to stereotypes which cause many

Americans to think that the Orient is a region dominated by intolerance, violence and religious fundamentalism. Nevertheless, it is important to read American fiction about the

Middle East with a critical attitude, realizing that writers can be influenced by their society too. Edward Said and Ibrahim Kalin argue that many Americans’ reductionist views about

Muslim culture are instilled by the media. Hence, it is possible that an American literary work about Arab conflicts focuses on the same negative facets of the Muslim world which are omnipresent in the Western media.

David Lender’s thriller Arab Summer is a proper example of literature based on

Western stereotypes. The Saudi rebels, who oppose their authoritarian monarchy, are not depicted as common people who demand their basic human rights. Instead, Lender describes a power-hungry terrorist organization that intends to establish a severe Islamic state. In Arab

Summer, the non-fictional democratic uprising is transformed into an Islamic revolution.

Lender’s bias is furthermore noticeable by his one-sided depiction of the US as a powerful and noble nation, which is primarily occupied with securing the rights of oppressed populations. We can argue that Lender chose to depict the Arab Spring revolution as he did, because the thriller genre requires suspense and escalation. This study, however, primarily focuses on the question whether his representation is realistic or prejudiced, and we must conclude that Lender provides his reader with a distorted portrait of the Arab Spring revolutions, a portrait which confirms negative stereotypes and will not inspire Americans to adjust their reductionist views on the Muslim world.

Nonetheless, Lender’s thriller is not completely inaccurate. It contains realistic aspects of the Arab Spring as well. Arab Summer makes mention of the wealth gap in the Arab countries, the oppressive governments, the misery and desolation which are generated by revolutions and the violent encounters between protesters and security forces. These motifs

- 76 - are also present in G. Willow Wilson’s novel Alif the Unseen, which presents a more realistic depiction of the Arab Spring revolutions. Wilson does not fall back on the prejudice that most

Muslims are violent fundamentalists. Instead of portraying Islam as an oppressive religion and a threat to the West, she explains that the religion has offered many Arab protesters strength and consolation during the violent uprisings. She clarifies that many Muslims cling to personal religious interpretations. Moreover, the extremist and harsh facets of Islam, frequently displayed by Western media, are often rejected by Muslims themselves. Hence, the uprising in Alif the Unseen is not portrayed as an Islamic revolution, but as the common citizens’ struggle for a better existence without poverty, discrimination or oppression.

Wilson’s novel is more open-minded about the Arab world. Consequentially, her depiction of the Arab Spring resembles reality much more than Lender’s stereotypical narration.

Furthermore, both American novels discuss the role of mass media in the Arab Spring.

The Internet and the older media have become indispensible facets of Western societies.

Inevitably, they entered contemporary literature as well. Mass communication has also played an important role during the Arab Spring. Both Lender and Wilson present the mass media as instruments that can be used in order to effectuate social changes. Lender’s novel mentions

Facebook groups that put pressure on the Saudi monarchy to introduce social reforms. It also shows how news reports can positively influence public opinion. Wilson’s character Alif undermines his government by hacking its systems and keeping dissident websites operational. These websites are the only places where people can utter complaints about their oppressive regimes. In this way, the Internet ensures the people’s freedom of speech.

Additionally, Wilson’s novel describes how the oppressed citizens use the social platforms in order to quickly organize public protests, similar to the non-fictional Facebook groups who organized the various “Days of Rage”.

- 77 -

However, the American authors do not forget to point out the dangers and limitations of mass media. The Internet has been useful for oppressed people, but it also enables oppressive governments to gain information on their citizens. In Alif the Unseen, Alif’s government has established an online surveillance system, which is able to track him down.

Apart from offering governments a chance to monitor rebellious citizens, the mass media are also capable of manipulating populations. By deliberately leaving out facts in news reports or strategically emphasizing them, the media can bend the truth and influence public opinion as they wish. Arab Summer raises this issue when the CIA makes sure its involvement in the

Saudi uprising is not mentioned by any news reporters. Wishing to keep a low profile, the

CIA misleads the world into thinking that there was no US involvement whatsoever in the fictional Saudi revolution. Hence, both American novels convey the message that mass media are employed for various purposes, respectable ones, but also immoral ones.

In conclusion, both novels have demonstrated how modern aspects of our societies, such as mass media, are integrated in contemporary literature. The novels allow us to study how contemporary authors regard these affairs which will probably keep influencing our cultures. Additionally, the American novels about the Arab Spring enable us to examine how the Middle East is depicted and perceived in contemporary American culture. We should not claim that American culture is entirely based on negative preconceptions about the Orient, because then we would start speaking in stereotypes ourselves. As G. Willow Wilson’s novel demonstrates, contemporary American literature certainly offers open-minded works concerning Muslim culture. Nonetheless, we cannot deny the existence of American popular fiction that confirms the prejudices about Islam and Muslims. Said and Kalin argue that exactly such works, which exclusively focus on the frightening aspects of the Muslim world, contribute to the rise of Islamophobia. Therefore, it is irresponsible to distribute literary works that stigmatize Muslims as terrorists, even if it is purely for the sake of sensation or suspense.

- 78 -

I believe that works such as Alif the Unseen can benefit US culture much more than a thriller such as Arab Summer.

- 79 -

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