Is Cocogen (An)Other Identity? A Critical Study of An American Brat

Abstract

The present study seeks to introduce Cocogen, a portmanteau (or frankenword), derived from the initial letters of ‘Coconut’ and ‘Generation’. It aims to view Sidhwa’s An American Brat from the perspective of postcolonial criticism. The researcher has examined the characters and events of the selected fictional work to probe further for the study. It appears that the main characters of the novel follow the path of mimicry, knowingly or unknowingly, to represent the coconut generation. The study finds that characters are ambitious; they have high dreams about the American ways of life; they underrate their native culture; they do mimic the language and culture of the powerful. But, later on, they discover that their major shortcoming is attempting to be ‘white’. It dawns upon the brown persons in the novel that they have come far away in the direction of mimicry and now they are unable to completely fit in the American culture. Though they are non-native brown people but still they want to live as per the demands of the culture. The study is significant because it explains why the inherent tendency of brown immigrants (South-Asians) tend to adopt the white culture and norms to become coconuts of their own volition. The study emphasizes that the interpretation and/or reception of cocogen is context-dependent, varying according to the situation and circumstances in which it is employed.