Discussion Questions for The Anatomy of Exile
The title of this book, The Anatomy of Exile, indicates different sorts of exiles in the novel: the exile that some characters feel from their culture or from an adjacent culture such as Israeli/Palestinian, as well as an exile from family members and close friends. What are these exiles and how do they affect Tamar, Salim, Daoud, and Hadas?
The novel is set between two Israeli-Arab wars: The Six Day War in 1967 and the Yom Kippur War in 1973. What immediate effects do these wars have on Salim and Tamar’s lives? And how do the wars and their aftermaths highlight the themes of exile, memory, and the longing for home in the novel?
Secrets and betrayal run through the novel. Discuss the reasons for these betrayals. In what ways are these secrets and betrayals the result of socio-cultural worlds that define the characters?
The village of Kafr Ma’an haunts the novel. How does this haunted place and what happens there affect Tamar’s behavior and decision-making both in Israel and the US?
Tamar finds it difficult to assimilate to life in the US. Her longing for home infiltrates her marriage and her relationship with her children. Discuss the ways her attitude affects the integrity of the family. Examine the differences and similarities between the way Tamar engages with American society and the way Salim engages with it. What conflicts arise as a result of their attitudes?
Reflect on how the main events in the novel -- such as the death of Hadas, leaving Israel, and assimilation in a new culture speak to the theme of identity. How have Salim’s and Tamar’s senses of identity changed in the US? What they have lost and what they have gained living in the American “melting pot?”
The Romeo and Juliet trope of star-crossed lovers is powerful and ageless. Discuss how the Romeo and Juliet story highlights the themes of cultural taboos, innocence and love in the novel.
Tamar’s decision to confront Mr. Mahmoudi sets into motion events that have the potential to destroy everything she has worked for. Discuss the ramifications of her decision. How does this action affect her marriage and her relationship with her daughter, Ruby? What could she have done differently?
The Yom Kippur war comes as a shock to the Abadi family. However, for some family members, it spurs a sense of purpose and heightens their connection to their Israeli and Jewish identity. For Tamar, the war offers a newfound independence. Discuss the ways this independence broadens her life and yet also constricts it.
The novel focuses on three women: Tamar, Hadas, and Ruby. Discuss the role of motherhood, daughterhood, and sisterhood in the context of these characters in the novel. What role does tribalism have in the lives of these women? How does Tamar’s relationship with her own mother shift over the course of her marriage?
At the end of the novel, Tamar remembers a phrase she had overheard at the beginning of the novel: remember this sweetness. After all that she has experienced, what does Tamar understand these words to mean? Reflect on whether the interpretation of this phrase has changed from the beginning of the novel to the end.