Alif the Unseen

Throughout the novel, there is an emphasis on identity, in both the real and the digital worlds. What is your answer to Sheikh Bilal’s query about whether an online avatar eating pork is a sin? Is our identity in cyberspace different than our identity in reality?

There is a similarity implied between magic and technology throughout the book. What aspects of technology are taken from magic? How has magic changed to mirror technology? What is the relationship of religion to either/both?

 At the end of the book, the final story of the Alf Yeom is entitled “The Tale of Alif the Unseen.” When Dina asks what the story was about, Alif responds “nothing we couldn’t have written together” (413). Why is the final story about Alif? What might it contain? Support your thesis with evidence from Alif’s character arc.

A connection is made between being unseen and being afraid. Is the tendency of people to communicate via the internet one born of fear? Think about your own internet use. Do you hide behind avatars or handles? Are you afraid to let your true self be seen? Do you feel safer with a layer of anonymity between yourself and people you communicate with online?

Alif begins the story believing he was in love with Intisar. As the book progresses, he realizes he was in love with the idea of her but that he truly loves Dina. How does this realization mirror his journey from unseen to seen? What characteristics and desires does Intisar represent for Alif? Which do Dina represent? What characteristic(s) stopped Alif from realizing his true feelings earlier in the story? What event removed those barriers and how?

Rebellion is a common theme in many stories, with the characters often looking to the bright new future. What do you think of Alif’s assessment that what will come next is neither good nor bad? Is there good or bad inherent in rebellion?

Choose one of the stories from the Alf Yeom that Alif reads in the book. What are the themes of that story? What lessons does it teach? What do the princess’s and nurse’s reactions to the story represent?

Sheikh Bilal observes that there can be no fiction because the human mind can’t understand anything it hasn’t encountered somewhere. Do you agree with this statement? Think of the fiction you’ve read. Have you come across concepts that were completely new to you? Did these concepts affect your ability to understand the story? Are there such concepts for you in Alif the Unseen?