Zeitoun rhetorical

A government by the people, of the people, for the people should in fact be there for the people when they need their government most. In Egger’s book Zeitoun, a theme played upon throughout its entirety is that of a test. A test by God (Allah) directed at Zeitoun. In most religions, tests of faith are common place. Islam is no exception. Zeitoun’s faith is tested through false accusations and assumptions by the guards. Essentially he is stereotyped due to his nationality and religion. This sort of racial profiling is far too common today. Whether it is all African-Americans are good at sports or all Muslims have radical beliefs and violent tendencies. As the American culture blends with others, it will be of the utmost importance to eliminate these stereotypes in order to further the cause for equality.
The question “Who or what was tested?” might seem like it has a simple answer, that answer being Zeitoun was the one being tested. This answer is correct to a degree, but largely inaccurate. The answer is not who was tested, but what was tested. Zeitoun was tested, but essentially his faith in Allah is what was being tested. This was evident throughout the book to varying degree. Zeitoun seems to be constantly judged and stereotyped by others, but he never stops worshiping his god. Even when things became difficult, his faith never wavered.
Zeitoun’s test might be considered by some to be extreme. Sitting in a cage in Louisiana behind a bus station is not an experience most people would wish upon themselves. A test like this does one of two things to your faith, either it destroys it, or it sets it into stone. Allah was testing Zeitoun in such an extreme way because it takes more hardship than normal to bring a strong follower of the faith: such as Zeitoun, to his or her breaking point. A follower who is not as faithful as Zeitoun, very well may have broken down and renounced his or her faith. However, this was not the case for him because of his unwavering