Article Per Year (5 Year)
p-Index From 2021 - 2026
0.23
P-Index
This Author published in this journals
All Journal Paradigm: Journal of Language and Literary Studies
Darin Rifda Malya Haq
Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta
Humanities Languange, Linguistic, Communication & Media

Published : 1 Documents Claim Missing Document
Claim Missing Document
Check
Articles

Found 1 Documents
Search

 1 
REASSESSING TABOO: RESHAPING THE PERCEPTION AND REORIENTING THE APPROACH Darin Rifda Malya Haq
PARADIGM: Journal of Language and Literary Studies Vol 8, No 1 (2025): Paradigm: Journal of Language and Literary Studies
Publisher : Department of English Literature, Universitas Islam Negeri Maulana Malik Ibrahim Malang

Show Abstract | Download Original | Original Source | Check in Google Scholar | DOI: 10.18860/prdg.v8i1.39294

Abstract

This paper examines how Shaila Abdullah’s Saffron Dreams (2009) and Laila Lalami’s Hope and Other Dangerous Pursuits (2005) portray actions commonly labelled as taboo and invite readers to move beyond immediate moral judgment. Focusing on Arissa Illahi’s decision to remove her hijab and Faten Khatibi’s decision to enter sex work, the study argues that these actions should be read in relation to the social, religious, emotional, and material pressures that shape them. Using qualitative close textual analysis, the paper applies the frameworks of Muslimah narratives, Islamic feminism, and resistance to examine the protagonists’ conditions before, during, and after their decisions. The analysis shows that both novels situate transgressive acts within contexts of Islamophobia, migration, economic vulnerability, gendered expectation, and social exclusion. As a result, Arissa’s and Faten’s choices emerge not as simple violations of religious or social norms, but as complex forms of negotiation, survival, and constrained agency. The findings suggest that Abdullah and Lalami use narrative empathy to challenge reductive perceptions of Muslim women and to reveal the human complexity behind stigmatized actions. Ultimately, this paper demonstrates that both novels encourage a more patient and humane approach to interpreting taboo choices.
Co-Authors