Transcontinental Coming-of-Age: An Analysis of the Psychosocial Development of Feroza Ginwalla in Sidhwa’s An American Brat

Abstract

Sidhwa’s An American Brat is an account of the story of Feroza Ginwalla, as she learns and unlearns lessons that shape her identity after her move from Pakistan to America. This paper analyses her coming-of-age process in a transcultural setting, tracing it through the lens of Erik Erikson’s theory of Psychosocial Development and by extension, James Marcia’s Identity Status Model. It does so, keeping in view her hybrid identity, in light of Bhabha’s theory of Cultural Hybridity. As the novel progresses, her character develops, achieving and then shedding the diffusion, foreclosure and moratorium identity statuses. This research shows that growing up in two different cultures opened up her identity exploration to go beyond issues of class and gender, bringing considerable changes in her social, religious and sexual beliefs. Having to face things that an adolescent growing up in one culture alone would not get the chance to, Feroza struggles to find her identity, and as a result, finds herself to be too foreign for both Pakistan and the States.