Re-Shaping Arab American Cultural Identity in Diaspora in Ward’s “How We Are Bound” and Darraj’s “The New World”

This paper explores two short stories written by two Arab American women writers who exposethe varied experiences and reactions of Arab Americans in diaspora. Patricia Ward's “How We Are Bound”(1996) and Susan Darraj's “The New World” (2004) are two stories that show how challenges such asassimilation, generational differences, cultural diversity, and identity questioning are depicted and met bythe Arab American communities. These challenges are approached by relying on Homi Bhabha and StuartHall, as a theoretical framework. This paper argues that the experiences and issues of Arab immigrantsvaried from one ethnic community to another-Lebanese American and Palestinian American-yet theyshared the struggles of adapting and embracing a new shape identity due to their need to survive and livein peace.