Both Black Dog of Fate by Peter Balakian and Baghdad Without a Map by Tony Horwitz are memoirs written by people about the times in their lives when they experienced changes in their understandings of identity and heritage. In Black Dog of Fate, Balakian’s understanding of his Armenian heritage changes drastically throughout the novel. This change is shown through his conversations with family members and other fellow Armenians. In Baghdad Without a Map, Horwitz’s anecdotal stories about his travels through the Middle East help demonstrate a shift in his views of the identity and culture of the the people he meets, as well as his own heritage. Through their weaving of these changes into the story as a whole, both authors demonstrate the impact
…show more content…
As shown in his conversation with his Aunt Gladys, as Peter grows older he becomes increasingly interested in his cultural background. After she tells him about her memories of the Armenian Genocide, Peter questions why she never told him about it before. He says “I felt stunned and overwhelmed. I had nothing to say. I just wanted to get out of the room, into the bright day (191). His reaction to hearing her story shows how much his understanding of his heritage has grown and deepened since the beginning of the novel. Balakian is so affected by his Aunt’s recounting of the events that he feels the need to leave the room. This shows how emotionally invested he has become in his own cultural identity. By the end of the novel, Balakian has become a leading voice for Armenian-Americans. One of the final stories he tells in the memoir is about a trip he took to an Armenian chapel in Syria. Under the church he is shown a memorial to the Armenian genocide that includes the bones of victims who died in the masacre. Peter’s strong reaction to this is shown through his conversation with a fellow Armenian, saying “‘Jesus Christ, our ancestors.’... ‘God, here they are’”(342). Peter then begins picking up the bones and putting them in his pockets. Balakian’s response to seeing the bones of his ancestors and fellow Armenians shows how far …show more content…
The only times throughout the novel that Horwitz shares a similar culture to the people he meets is when he connects to fellow Jewish people in Yemen and Israel. However, Horwitz’s lack of similarities to many of the people in the Middle East does not prevent him from undergoing changes in the way he views identity and heritage. The first story he tells in the novel is from his one of his first nights in the Middle East. A woman he’d just met “spoke in hesitant English, and her voice was muffled by the veil. ‘I love you,’ she said” (Horwitz 2). He uses this anecdote to show how the cultures of people in the Middle East differ from Western cultures and how they view and interpret Western culture. In the beginning of the book, Tony only understands Middle Eastern culture as how it is portrayed in movies and the news. This is shown when he makes up an elaborate backstory for the woman he’d met, saying “It was the sort of thing that often happened in movies about Arabia” (2). However, as Tony journeys through the Middle East, he learns more about the cultures of each individual country and how the people he meets fit into the identity of their country as a
As shown in his conversation with his Aunt Gladys, as Peter grows older he becomes increasingly interested in his cultural background. After she tells him about her memories of the Armenian Genocide, Peter questions why she never told him about it before. He says “I felt stunned and overwhelmed. I had nothing to say. I just wanted to get out of the room, into the bright day (191). His reaction to hearing her story shows how much his understanding of his heritage has grown and deepened since the beginning of the novel. Balakian is so affected by his Aunt’s recounting of the events that he feels the need to leave the room. This shows how emotionally invested he has become in his own cultural identity. By the end of the novel, Balakian has become a leading voice for Armenian-Americans. One of the final stories he tells in the memoir is about a trip he took to an Armenian chapel in Syria. Under the church he is shown a memorial to the Armenian genocide that includes the bones of victims who died in the masacre. Peter’s strong reaction to this is shown through his conversation with a fellow Armenian, saying “‘Jesus Christ, our ancestors.’... ‘God, here they are’”(342). Peter then begins picking up the bones and putting them in his pockets. Balakian’s response to seeing the bones of his ancestors and fellow Armenians shows how far …show more content…
The only times throughout the novel that Horwitz shares a similar culture to the people he meets is when he connects to fellow Jewish people in Yemen and Israel. However, Horwitz’s lack of similarities to many of the people in the Middle East does not prevent him from undergoing changes in the way he views identity and heritage. The first story he tells in the novel is from his one of his first nights in the Middle East. A woman he’d just met “spoke in hesitant English, and her voice was muffled by the veil. ‘I love you,’ she said” (Horwitz 2). He uses this anecdote to show how the cultures of people in the Middle East differ from Western cultures and how they view and interpret Western culture. In the beginning of the book, Tony only understands Middle Eastern culture as how it is portrayed in movies and the news. This is shown when he makes up an elaborate backstory for the woman he’d met, saying “It was the sort of thing that often happened in movies about Arabia” (2). However, as Tony journeys through the Middle East, he learns more about the cultures of each individual country and how the people he meets fit into the identity of their country as a