“Post-colonial literature frequently shows alienation to be at the forefront of
the diasporic experience.”
To what extent is this true of If They Come for Us by Fatimah Asghar, using
post-colonial ideas from the AQA Critical Anthology?
In ‘If They Come for Us’, Fatima Asghar explores the alienation
experienced in a diaspora. Through the themes of historical memory,
cultural identity, and community, Asghar acknowledges the trauma and
‘Otherness’1 that has been felt by groups dealing with the legacy of
distressing political events and attempting to make sense of their
fractured identity. However, her poetry may be seen to show the duality
of alienation and liberation – there is a resistance of victimhood and the
celebration of strength and solidarity. Asghar arguably sends a message
of empowerment, showing that rather than alienation being at the
forefront of the diasporic experience, many can find ‘sources of energy’ 2
in their suffering.
‘For Peshawar’3, the opening poem, immediately demonstrates the
harrowing violence rooted in historical memory that has caused
alienation. By starting with the date, ‘December 16th, 2014’4, coupled with
the title itself, Asghar is evidently dedicating this poem to the 2014
Peshawar school massacre. This was an event of immense brutality, with
hundreds of innocent lives lost. The contextual detail of the ‘Taliban
[sending] kafan, a white cloth that marks Muslim burials'5 before attacking
schools allows readers to understand the psychological torture inflicted
onto citizens. The rhetorical question, ‘From the moment our babies are
born/are we meant to lower them into the ground?’6 reflects the futility
felt by those living with the uncertainty of political violence uprooting their
1
AQA Critical Anthology, 2017. Post-colonial ways of reading: page 37
2
AQA Critical Anthology, 2017. Post-colonial ways of reading: page 37
3
Asghar, Fatima. If They Come for Us, 2018. page 3
4
Ibid.
5
Ibid.
6
Ibid.
the diasporic experience.”
To what extent is this true of If They Come for Us by Fatimah Asghar, using
post-colonial ideas from the AQA Critical Anthology?
In ‘If They Come for Us’, Fatima Asghar explores the alienation
experienced in a diaspora. Through the themes of historical memory,
cultural identity, and community, Asghar acknowledges the trauma and
‘Otherness’1 that has been felt by groups dealing with the legacy of
distressing political events and attempting to make sense of their
fractured identity. However, her poetry may be seen to show the duality
of alienation and liberation – there is a resistance of victimhood and the
celebration of strength and solidarity. Asghar arguably sends a message
of empowerment, showing that rather than alienation being at the
forefront of the diasporic experience, many can find ‘sources of energy’ 2
in their suffering.
‘For Peshawar’3, the opening poem, immediately demonstrates the
harrowing violence rooted in historical memory that has caused
alienation. By starting with the date, ‘December 16th, 2014’4, coupled with
the title itself, Asghar is evidently dedicating this poem to the 2014
Peshawar school massacre. This was an event of immense brutality, with
hundreds of innocent lives lost. The contextual detail of the ‘Taliban
[sending] kafan, a white cloth that marks Muslim burials'5 before attacking
schools allows readers to understand the psychological torture inflicted
onto citizens. The rhetorical question, ‘From the moment our babies are
born/are we meant to lower them into the ground?’6 reflects the futility
felt by those living with the uncertainty of political violence uprooting their
1
AQA Critical Anthology, 2017. Post-colonial ways of reading: page 37
2
AQA Critical Anthology, 2017. Post-colonial ways of reading: page 37
3
Asghar, Fatima. If They Come for Us, 2018. page 3
4
Ibid.
5
Ibid.
6
Ibid.
