LOCATING CULTURAL HEGEMONY: A MARXIST ANALYSIS OF HOME FIRE

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to explore cultural hegemony in Kamila Shamsie’s Home Fire through the class systems and hierarchies in a multicultural society. This research takes the theoretical framework of Marxism with the insights of ‘cultural hegemony’ by looking at the multiple links between the characters and cultures. It aims to explore the way Kamila Shamsie develops Eurocentric biases through culture, using Muslim characters, and also presents the ideals of aristocracy by highlighting the function of cultural hegemony in Britain. Cultural hegemony by the ruling class is not a matter of supremacy and violence; instead consent, language, utilization of intellectual men's power, and informative skills are the ways to complete the process of cultural hegemony. This study not only examines how the Muslim migrants of Kamila Shamsie in Home Fire are affected by the ruling class but also depicts the alarming effects of cultural hegemony that create cultural infidelity and class conflict between characters. This study would be helpful for future researchers to highlight the repressive factors in multi-cultural societies and their prevention.