THE POLITICS OF IDENTITY IN CONTEMPORARY ENGLISH FICTION: A POSTMODERN PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

This paper explores the politics of identity in contemporary English fiction through a postmodern lens, focusing on how narratives construct, deconstruct, and reconfigure notions of self, race, gender, nation, and belonging. Postmodern literature’s fragmentation, metafiction, and intertextuality provide fertile ground for interrogating identity as a fluid and contested category rather than a fixed essence. By analyzing key texts by authors such as Zadie Smith, Hanif Kureishi, and Jeanette Winterson, the study highlights how contemporary English fiction challenges traditional identity narratives, reflecting the complexities of multiculturalism, diasporic consciousness, and the globalized condition. The paper argues that postmodern strategies not only subvert dominant ideologies but also open up spaces for marginalized voices and hybrid identities to emerge within the literary discourse. This intersection of postmodernism and identity politics thus reveals a literature deeply engaged with cultural, social, and political negotiations in a pluralistic society.