British Asian Literature and whiteness

What is it about?

It is usually assumed that British Asian literature gives us a glimpse into the lives of South Asian 'others.' This article, through a close reading of Sathnam Sanghera's memoir 'The Boy with the Topknot' argues that British Asian literature tends to 'reveal' 'Asianness' through a white gaze, for white readers. The familiar culture clash narrative usually assumes the need to assimilate or integrate in order to become 'British'. This is a conditional Britishness that is not available to everyone, including the 'traditional' first generation immigrant parent figures who tend to be 'othered' in this literature.

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Why is it important?

This is a new approach to reading British Asian literature, through the lens of whiteness, ideology and Britishness. This reading opens up new ways of interrogating dominant representations, not only in terms of the pressures of a commodified publishing and marketing industry, but also in terms of the ways in which writers can internalise and reproduce dominant structures, including writing for a dominant (white) readership. This article suggests a way to read these texts differently, and also for British Asian writers to write differently.