Alienation and Identity Transformation in Fadia Faqir’s Willow Trees Don’t Weep

Introduction: People may suffer from different sources of alienation due to political and societal pressure. This study discusses two aspects in modern Anglophone literature: alienation, more specifically, different dimensions of alienation that individuals may experience; and identity transformation, through a novel written by the British Jordanian, Fadia Faqir, Willow Trees Don’t Weep (2013). The aim of this study is to investigate how Faqir’s Willow Trees Don’t Weep portrays the sense of alienation and identity transformation, identify the reasons behind this sense of alienation that the main characters’ experience throughout the novel events and its impact on the identity transformation of the main characters. Methodology: The thematic descriptive methodology was used in this study where text was analyzed using thematic analysis approach based on Braun and Clarke’s model. It began with a close reading of the text, followed by the forming of codes, categories and themes. Results: The analysis indicates various reasons of alienation the main characters experience throughout the novel events. The characters' experiences are heavily impacted by psychological, social, cultural, religious, and political factors. All the different sources o f alienation contribute differently to the identity instability. It presented the process of changing that identity undergoes after facing and experiencing different sources of alienation in society. The processes and experiences Najwa had while tracing her father via Pakistan, Afghanistan, and England have influenced her to establish her identity and become flexible with each culture. Conclusion: The construction of the main characters' identities is largely influenced by their experiences of alienation in various cultures. Distinct cultures reflect different identities, and they are changed through time depending on where one lives and the extent of sense of alienation that he/she experiences. The theoretical implications of this study's premise show that alienation might be felt by people in different nations as a result of various social and psychological processes. The present research can enrich our understanding of the types of alienation that Arab individuals experience, both within, and outside their societies, and how this sense of alienation impacts on, and ultimately, can transform a person’s concept of their identity.