zeitoun

Selfishness Doesn't Equal Heroism Before reading a book, the synopsis on the back of the book is what most readers take a look at first. However, the information provided in Zeitoun by Dave Eggers is very misleading. “The true story of one family, caught between America’s two biggest policy disaster: the war on terror and the response to Hurricane Katrina” is what the back of the book reads (Eggers). While the book does mention the struggle of living with racism against Muslims in America and the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, it is hardly about family. The main character of this novel is Abdulrahman Zeitoun, a Muslim man who resides in New Orleans. Though his work ethic is second-to-none, he is also stubborn and bullheaded which sometimes causes him to cloud his better judgment. When Hurricane Katrina was at its peak, a mandatory evacuation was issued, but Zeitoun decided to stay behind and care for the properties his company, Zeitoun Painting Contractors LLC, works on. His wife and children take the precautionary measures and evacuate. This causes a separation from them. Since Zeitoun does not demonstrate the true meaning of family and cares more for his self-interest, he cannot be portrayed as a hero. Generally, it is accepted that families are headed by a strong male figure; this is no different in Zeitoun's family. “So without a captain, the ship cannot navigate...Look above you, at the stars and moon. How do the stars keep their place in the sky, how does the moon rotate around the earth, the earth around the sun? Who’s navigating?” (Eggers 153). Based on this philosophy, Zeitoun is the captain in charge of navigating or guiding his family, but why

did he instead choose to let them fend for themselves? This action on Zeitoun's end displays a lot about Zeitoun's genuine characteristics. It was more of a priority for Zeitoun to stay back so he could look after his properties instead of being with his family. Even though Zeitoun had experienced many