Her fear manifests itself in outward-facing personality traits like toughness, vulgarity, rudeness, and emotional passivity. Published in 2018, best-selling author Tahereh Mafi’s first standalone novel was long-listed for a National Book Award. Quiz A Very Large Expanse of Sea Themes Fear of Peer Relationships Shirin’s difficulty with fellow students represents a consistent and deep fear of peer relationships. A Very Large Expanse of Sea crafts a powerful exploration of cultural identity, cross-cultural relationships and the ways that post-9/11 prejudice still echoes in America. As Shirin and Ocean’s relationship grows deeper, the couple faces prejudice and criticism from nearly everyone around them-forcing Shirin to make a heartbreaking decision.
But when star basketball player Ocean James, her white lab partner at her new high school, begins showing a genuine interest in getting to know her, Shirin’s guard slowly starts to come down. In response, she’s withdrawn into herself, only emerging from her shell whenever she practices her dance moves with her brother and his break-dancing crew. I was no longer free to be only a teenager, only a human, only flesh and blood-no, I had to be more than that” (159).Shirin, a 16-year-old Iranian American who wears a headscarf, has spent the year since the attacks of 9/11 enduring an onslaught of racist and Islamophobic abuse from peers, teachers and strangers. Although she wants deeply to have friends, the potential for pain and consequent fear make it too arduous a process having seen and experienced others’ racism and bigotry, she feels they perceive her as different: “I’d become a talking point a statistic. She acquires a label of “mean” because of her lack of interactions and open unfriendliness with classmates. These events caused Shirin to develop fearfulness with interpersonal situations in general (such as when strangers on the street, including adults, yell insults at her) and with peer relationships specifically, causing Shirin to construct figurative emotional barriers between herself and other students. After September 11, strangers and acquaintances showed distrust and intolerance toward Shirin because of her religion and appearance soon after the terrorist attacks, two male students attack Shirin.
Inside, Shirin recalls lost friendships from her family’s moves when she was younger, which causes enough pain to convince her that friends are not worth pursuing.
Shirin’s difficulty with fellow students represents a consistent and deep fear of peer relationships.
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