Chapter-1

It is a novel based on real life events.The novel depicts the life of Najeeb Muhammed, an Indian
emigrant going missing in Saudi Arabia. Najeeb’s dream was to work in the Persian Gulf states
and earn enough money to send back home. But, he achieves his dream only to be propelled by a
series of incidents into a slavelike existence herding goats in the middle of the Saudi desert. In
the end, Najeeb contrives a hazardous scheme to escape his desert prison. The novel has now
been made into a movie and the first teaser is out. Exiles survive in the world of exile,
overcoming all the desires and other notions of any expatriate, their helpless conditions, hunger
and other things.And they live there without informing us of their troubles and other difficulties.
Similarly we can compare other people with it. Everyone has their own dreams and realities.
Everyone who is there today has a great feeling when they hear about the world of exile. He
alone knows his sufferings. Such difficult things are told through this novel.

Benny Daniel better known by his penname Benyamin, is an Indian

writer in Malayalam from Kerala. Benyamin lived in the Kingdom of Bahrain from 1992 to
2013, before returning to Kerala. Benyamin born in 1971 in Njettoor, Kulanada, near Pandalam
of Kerala.Goat Days (Aadujeevitham), his most famous novel, portrays the life of an Indian
labourer in Saudi Arabia.It is used as a textbook at Kerala University, Calicut University,
Bharathiar University, Pondicherry University and 10th standard for Kerala State syllabus.Jasmin
Days tells the story of a young woman Sameera Parvin who moves to a middle eastern city and
finds herself in the middle of a revolution. It revolves around the Jasmine Revolution that sprang
up in December 2010 and was quelled by January 2011.The English translation of the novel won
the inaugural JCB Prize for Literature, the richest literary award in the country. The jury
chairperson Vivek Shanbag called the novel “brilliant and intense.

Bemyamin Awards on 2008 Abu Dhabi Sakthi Award (Novel), Winner,

Aadujeevitham[92009 Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for Novel, Winner, Aadujeevitham2012
Man Asian Literary Prize, Longlist, Goat Days2013 DSC Prize for South Asian Literature,
Shortlist, Goat Days2015 Padmaprabha Literary Award2018 JCB Prize for Literature, Winner,
Jasmine Days2018 Crossword Book Award for Indian language translation, Winner,
JasmineDays2019 Muttathu Varkey Award.2021 Vayalar Award, Manthalirile 20 Communist
Varshangal. Movies are another feature of Benyamin Christy and Aadujeevitham.
 Najeeb is an ordinary man. I came to the Arab country with many
dreams and wishes and with a lot of hope. In fact, Najeeb was deceived.In addition, Najeeb also
spent time in jail. Najeeb Muhammad has experienced pain and sorrow, suffering and tears,
innocence and helplessness in prison. Maybe Najeeb would have died of grief. Najeeb
Muhammad his friend landed in a wonderful world bigger than they had ever dreamed. The Arab
world was not as vast then as it is today. Najeeb Muhammad imagined that world through the
words of those who have come and gone in the Arab country.

In Goat Days, whenever there is humour, it is not a product of enjoyment of the

Characters in the novel, rather it is emerging from the tragic situation of Najeeb, the chief
Protagonist in the novel, and there arises conflicting emotions. While reading Goat Days,Readers
will definitely think about the absurdity of human life.Black humour needs someone or
something to play down the significance of the Situation. His inappropriate, casual talk challenge
or deny the seriousness of the instant. There Is a difference or space between anticipation and the
presentation. People look forward to a Sort of behaviour which is suitable to the serious occasion
but are actually offered withSomething entirely different.

Today the more invasive black humour, attacked by many, is called healthy by
those Who argue for it. To the inquiring, disrespect, or denial of moral principles, to the unreason
or Bareness or vice that we see in life, there are three common reactions: distrustful reception
Revolution or abandonment and amusement.The terrors one see cannot be liberated by
acceptance, or mitigated by desolation; but they can be Confronted, perhaps can be overpowered,
by laughter.

Thus through black humour people laugh at those things that threaten us, and by Laughter
mount above those threatening events. Black humour brings laughter into situationsWhere
people usually turn to tears. This could be the motive why Walter Kerr commented About black
humour as.

There is an Amalgamation of conflicting emotions resulting from the combination

of independent and contradictory actions. This usually leaves the readers with an
uncomfortableReflection that the world is hopelessly absurd and any effort to find some sense in
life is Impracticable.The same thing happens when Najeeb uses humour in his terrifying
situations. Those Situations are more than enough to make the readers cry.

This dissertation focuses on tracing out the identity crisis faced by the protagonist
Najeeb, in the novel Goat Days by Benyamin. The dissertation has looked upon almost all the
Instances that had led to his identity crisis in some way or the other. While working on this
Paper, there a doubt aroused that whether such a thing like dressing or cleanliness can cause an
Identity crisis. But it is proven that even these factors can lead to the development of identity
Crisis in a person.Identity crisis is one of the major problems that everyone faces at some stage
of life. It Varies from person to person depending on the context and situation in which a person
is placed. In the novel that is taken for consideration for this research, the protagonist faces
identity crisis In his traumatic condition.Najeeb is unclear about his own capabilities, future
objectives, and strength and power to Control one‟s own destiny and future, and there arises
identity confusion in him. Najeeb‟sIdentity confusion is clear throughout the novel.

By examining identity confusion in Najeeb, this Paper tried to prove his identity
crisis as well.Another objective of the dissertation was to trace out the technique of Black
Humour that Is prevalent in the novel as in the scene of Najeeb trying to enter into the police
station. This Dissertation has attempted to prove this point by examining and applying certain
features and Some theories related to black humour and achieved the goal in doing so.One of the
major findings in this paper is the problem of identity crisis faced by Najeeb During his life in
masara as explained in Goat Days. The research has gone through various Factors including
those mentioned above to reach the objectives presented in the paper.When it comes to the Arab
world, today’s society is very curious. In Arab countries, there is also a desire that all those who
work have cash. When we look at the character of Najeeb, we see a life style of suffering,
hardship and hunger. Every expatriate supports his family without informing about his own
hardships. Goat Days novel In this we can see all of the sadness, forgiveness, there past problems
and survival. It also shows that we can live in any situation. And we can understand that every
job has its own dignity
 PROJECT

SUBMITTED BY:- MUHAMMED RAMEEZ V

4TH SEM BA ENGLISH
SUBMITTED TO:- SREESHA MISS
DEPT OF BA ENGLISH