Globalization effect and wealth within the East and the Middle East invigorates the rate at which the global population immigrates to the region. In the novel How to Get Filthy Rich in Asia, Mohsen Hamid tells the tale of an anonymous young man from a poor background who rises from abject impoverishment to a tycoon in an unknown city within Rising Asia. In addition, while pursuing his dream in the town, he begins pursuing a pretty girl who keeps crossing but never converges with him, introducing the theme of wealth and love. Borrowing its approach from the self-help books popular with the Asian youth, the literature is playful and genre-bending but also reflects on the concept of thirst for love and ambition during economic turmoil and social upheaval. How to Get Filthy Rich confirms that despite being radically inventive, Mohsen Hamid is one of the best storytellers.
Ambition and Success
Ambition is one of the primary themes of the novel How to Get Filthy Rich by Mohsen Hamid. The author uses an unknown character who moves into Rising Asia as a poor man but emerges as a filthy wealthy individual to develop this theme of ambition and success (Hamid, 2014). Stories about the economy of the East and Middle East always entail issues surrounding oil and gas explorations. Nonetheless, while the author does not reveal the real intention of the protagonist in the novel, it is evident that his immigration into the region is the main contributor to his wealth. The available research on the economy of Rising Asia reveals that it is emerging as the most attractive investment and business destination (Nguyen, 2018). From this character, one of the most important lessons is that an individual’s background is not a barrier to wealth creation in the Rising Asia region. Despite being from a poor background, a barrier to success in his country, Asia Rising has a level playing ground for creating wealth.
Additionally, Rising Asia offers a refuge in times of global economic crisis. A closer look at the protagonist’s background reveals a person from a generation characterized by suffering and struggle, from his father, who works as a cook in the city, to his extended family in the village (Hamid, 2014). The poor ancestry emerges as one of the main drivers of the character’s thirst for ambition to change the story. In this scenario, the nuclear family consisting of his mother and two brothers offers more potential for developing the theme of ambition amidst economic challenges. Typically, nuclear families are easy to write about because of their small setup and connection. Besides, the plot of such fiction stories is always straightforward. It can be a simple house like the village one where the main character in the story How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia lives with his nuclear and extended family. By portraying the region as a place where anything is possible with ambition, the author offers it a refuge or haven status.
Love and Wealth
The author of How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia attempts to explain that wealth and love are intrinsic. According to Hamid (2014), the leading character in the novel feels bolstered by his wealth and begins to pursue one of the prettiest girls in his neighborhood. Usually, financially stable individuals have higher self-esteem making them believe they can achieve whatever their heart desires. Affording the pleasures of life further assures them of acceptance, hence, the character’s pursuit of the most beautiful girl in the region. The question that remains a mystery in the novel is whether the behavior results from wealth or is typical of this character. Nevertheless, failing to state whether the character had a girlfriend and how beautiful she proved this is a new behavior resulting from affluence. However, all assumptions point to the man working hard first and amassing enough wealth before considering romantic relationships. Hence, arguably there is a significant relationship between wealth and love.
In How to Get Filthy Rich, it is evident that wealth can eliminate the barrier of rejection. Despite the disinterest in the main character, the pretty girl concedes to his romantic advances, eventually having sex with him before running away with another man who recognizes her “potential as a model”( Hamid, 2014, p. 24). The move implies that the protagonist is not her ideal man, but his wealth attracts her to him nonetheless. Following the woman’s action, it is clear that wealth suffices in most cases but love always prevails. Running away with a man whose wealth status remains unclear exemplifies the power of love over wealth. South (2019) holds that while wealth is an essential consideration for women getting into relationships, love remains the most important though most women would rather have both love and wealth simultaneously. The author develops this theme through the love triangle involving the main character, the pretty girl, and the man she eventually runs away with after having sex with the main character.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the primary themes of the novel How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia are ambition and success, wealth, and love. The author takes a comparative approach to these elements through the unnamed protagonist, the pretty girl, and the man who eventually wins her love and runs away with her. Understanding these themes is a precursor to explaining the author’s argument and style of writing. The author uses an unknown character who moves into Rising Asia as a poor man but emerges as a filthy wealthy individual to develop this theme of ambition and success. Finally, the author of How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia attempts to explain that wealth and love are intrinsic. The leading character in the novel feels bolstered by his wealth and begins to pursue one of the prettiest girls in his neighborhood. Usually, financially stable individuals have higher self-esteem making them believe they can achieve whatever their heart desires.
References
Hamid, M. (2014). How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia: A Novel. Penguin.
Koo, H. J., Piff, P. K., & Shariff, A. F. (2022). If I could do it, so can they: Among the rich, those with humbler origins are less sensitive to the difficulties of the poor. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 14(3), 333–341. https://doi.org/10.1177/19485506221098921
Nguyen, H. (2018). Viet Nam as an emerging market: Yet another rising Asian dragon.
South, S. J. (2019). For love or money? Sociodemographic determinants of the expected benefits from marriage. The Changing American Family, pp. 171–194. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429309441-9
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