The Economic Shock in Arab and African American Female Fiction: A Socio-Economic Reading of the Mother-Daughter Relationship

The study explores the economic difficulties encountered by Arab American and African American mothers, as well as the adverse conditions they endure due to their economic and social circumstances, which are manifested in four selected novels. This study seeks to clarify the reasons behind these difficulties and their impacts on family relations, particularly between mothers and daughters. The introduction of new economic regulations, unfamiliar to the mothers, constitutes a significant shock, profoundly affecting their understanding of their daughters' attitudes and choices. This shift in perception often results in conflicts that strain and, in some cases, sever the bonds between mothers and daughters, as well as between daughters and their broader family networks. To achieve the research purpose, the study uses Mark Fisher's concept of "capitalist realism" to analyze Suzan Darraj's The Inheritance of Exile (2007), Randa Jarrar's A Map of Home (2008), Toni Morrison's A Mercy (2008), and Alice Walker's Possessing the Secret of Joy (1992). The concept elucidates how the new economic regulations, which mothers have not previously encountered in their homelands, impact their exploitation by landlords and the patriarchal system. In conclusion, the study reveals that harsh economic conditions break connections between African American mothers and their daughters, while changes in economic institutions lead to misunderstandings between Arab American mothers and their daughters, resulting in family crises that negatively affect and lead to the breakdown of the mother-daughter relationship.