Post-9/11 America and Arab-American experience in Halaby’ Once in a Promised Land

Abstract

Laila Halaby’s Once in a Promised Land is one of the most interesting of novels published in post-9/11 America. No one, who is interested in contemporary American fiction, can overlook this work by Halaby who is herself an Arab American. The novel is noteworthy in that it projects a striking image of America in general and of post-9/11 America in particular. In the process, it poignantly unveils the experience of Arab-Americans in the wake of the 9/11- terrorist onslaught. This paper is an attempt to briefly explore this aspect of the novel. In the current, post-9/11 international political scenario, Halaby’s novel certainly has a considerable amount of significance about it. The life of the Arab-American diaspora is of special concern today. For, Americans of Arab origin have all been seekers of the Golden Fleece in America. The novel throws light on how gratifying the Golden Fleece is now to them. Scrutiny of the post-9/11 Arab American experience in the novel will also help us understand some of the issues that even in our civilized world still shadow the phenomenon of exile and expatriation.