Lakhasly

Multiculturalism in literature has grown into a dynamic and influential
force in the literary world. It has played a vital role in diversifying the
literary canon, amplifying marginalized voices, and fostering cross-cultural
dialogue. Despite challenges and criticisms, multiculturalism in literature
remains a powerful tool for promoting inclusivity, empathy, and a deeper
understanding of the human experience.
Zadie Smith’s first novel White Teeth (2000) has been analysed as an
example of the diverse and multicultural society of the present-day city of
London. This essay studies the way in which characters in White Teeth
negotiate a sense of belonging and identity and how boundaries are
established, and/or violated within that location. It also analyses the
characters’ hybrid identities and the malleable aspect of that multicultural
social space by focusing on the ways Smith depicts spatial configurations
.of inter and intra family life
Zadie Smith made an astonishing debut novel White Teeth, published in
2000, when she was twenty four years old. She deals with many issue
connected with living in a multicultural society and with the gap between
the first and second generation of immigrants. Zadie Smith‟s first novel
White Teeth (2000) has been analysed as the diverse and multicultural
society of the present-day city of London. The roots and history of the first
generation of immigrants have made identity issues for the second
generation in the novel. The main aim of this paper is to demonstrate the
aspects of multicultural social space and instability of identity and family
relations depicted in the novel. The second generation of immigrants, who
live in London, tries to mix the dominant culture (English culture) with
their familial culture in order to have a different identity. They also want to
escape from their families.
The first-generation immigrants Samad, Alsana and Clara all develop some
kind of hybrid identity due to their living ‘in-between’ two spaces; one in
the past, one in the present, and each with a different set of cultural values.
They show different ways of inhabiting Willesden and of reconciling the
past with their current situation. Archie, the only ‘white British’ character
in these two families, also has to form some kind of hybrid identity, living
together with his Jamaican wife Clara and their child in multicultural
Willesden.
The next generation, expected to be more attuned to hybridity and having a
stronger connection to Britain than their immigrant parents, still feel the
weight of living ‘in-between’. They have to negotiate their sense of
belonging between past and present spaces, as well as what it means to be
‘British’ when they do not look as if they are ‘British’. The fact that hybrid
identities are becoming the ‘new normal’ in Britain’s big cities, as Moss
claims, does not spare them of the complications inherent in such
identities. The novel does, however, point to a future in which hybridity
might become more prevalent, potentially making it into more of a non-
issue.