When dealing with a novel called The Buddha of Suburbia, I feel that it’s appropriate to begin by discussing suburbia as a home space. Suburbia is initially presented as the stereotypically dull opposition to “the city”; a place lacking in opportunity and, as our protagonist states, ‘I always wanted to be somewhere else’.
Karim’s desire to escape his home, along with the connotations of suburbia as a space lacking in excitement is soon challenged once he and his father leave the space of their own home and voyage to Eva’s. The first venture to Eva’s home almost immediately erases the stereotypes attributed to suburbia, and it is no coincidence that this is done through the mode of sexual exploits. Nathaneal O’Reilly notes that ‘in Kureishi’s suburbia, an evening may contain Eastern mysticism, an extramarital affair, interracial sex, homosexual experimentation…this is hardly boring, conformist behaviour’. However, this subversion of the very essence of suburban, heteronormative life isn’t fully accepted by all of its inhabitants and eventually provokes the breakdown of Karim’s family, and as a result, his home. These events serve to portray the polarity of different iterations of home, trigger a sexual awakening in Karim, and allow Haroon to liberate himself sexually and emotionally. In a nutshell, it’s a fairly loaded passage.
Haroon’s journey is far more straightforward than that of his son. Once he is open about his relationship with Eva, he separates from Margaret, leaves his own home and moves in with Eva. For Haroon, the space of home is clearly interchangeable, and he prioritises his sexual and emotional desires over the importance of maintaining a traditional family life and fulfilling his roles as husband and father. Haroon’s experiences may imply that sexual liberation brings happiness, however, Karim’s tumultuous sexual journey strongly challenge the solace and ease that his father’s actions implicate.
Homi Bhaba discusses the concept of the “unhomely”, noting that ‘it captures something of the estranging sense of the relocation of the home and the world in an unhallowed place’.[3] Bhaba clarifies that the “unhomely” isn’t categorised purely into public and private spaces, although this happens to be the case for Karim. Bhaba further states that ‘in the stirrings of the unhomely, another world becomes visible’. The relevance of this statement to Karim’s situation becomes more apparent as the events of the novel unfold. While Haroon was open about his relationship with Eva, the undercover nature of Karim’s dalliances drove him to transgress the boundaries of other people’s homes, often with harmful consequences to at least one party.
However, on the other side of the fence, Karim’s exploration of his sexual desires played a pivotal role in his metamorphosis into a confident butterfly actor. Karim has a number of sexual relations throughout the text, each one taking him further from his initial home in suburban London and deeper into city life. Indeed, by the end of the novel Karim’s acting work has brought him to New York, where he comes full circle by living with Charlie. Unfortunately, while Charlie initially played the role of idol to Karim for a substantial portion of the text, this relationship takes a turn during their time together in New York. Charlie’s own personal issues overwhelm him and his struggle with fame eventually result in him using sexual humiliation to achieve emotional liberation, as opposed to earlier in the text when he would happily risk social humiliation in the name of sexual liberation. Charlie’s compulsion for self-deprecation and degradation compel Karim to realise that being further from home doesn’t necessarily equate to being closer to happiness; a revelation that is emphasised by Haroon and Eva’s engagement announcement.
These two events reinforce the initial stereotypes of suburbia, however, when taken into account alongside Karim’s growth throughout the novel, the reoccurrence of these stereotypes imply that there is comfort and happiness to be found in the traditional home, and that while sexual exploration plays a role in personal development, it doesn’t necessarily equate to emotional fulfilment.