The vast changing of the cultural structure caused by globalization and migration has a complicated identity. A higher number of migrants from numerous parts of the world has arisen lately, especially from Middle Eastern and Muslim countries facing various conflicts. Negotiating identities, thus, becomes inevitable, particularly for migrants. Identity negotiation has been frequently raised as an underlying issue in early 2000s literary works. Such an era becomes a worth researching topic on migration as portrayed in exophonic novels. Exophony refers to writing and producing literary works in a language that is not one’s mother tongue. The article covers the analysis of novels written by exophonic writers: Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner (2003), Elif Shafak’s The Bastard of Istanbul (2006), and Mohsin Hamid’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist (2007). The analysis focuses on identity negotiation experienced by Muslim diaspora characters by employing Homi K. Bhabha’s cultural identity. This study reveals that identity negotiation often occurs in the context of power relations and can occasionally be hegemonizing. This notion is backed by the fact that the complexity of the identity negotiation process occurs not only at the intersection of opposed cultures or civilizations but also at the intersection of politics and power relations.

In religious conversations, syncretism is often perceived negatively even though it is actually a healthy process. One form of syncretism that emerged in Indonesia is the religion of Tridharma which consists of Buddhism, Confucianism, and Daoism. This paper discusses syncretism in the religion of Tridharma in Indonesia. Using a historical approach during the 1970s, this paper is a literature study of two magazines affiliated with the religion of Tridharma, namely the Hikmah Tridharma magazine and the Tjahaja Tri-Dharma magazine. This paper rethinks the concept of syncretism as a dirty word, or at least negative form, to one of neutrality. Considering religion as dynamic, syncretism in the religion of Tridharma or Sam Kauw has been a historical process since the Ming dynasty in Mainland China. The Hikmah Tridharma magazine and the Tjahaja Tri-Dharma magazine during the 1970s illustrate how syncretism in the body of Tridharma religion occurs not only between Buddism, Confucianism, and Daoism but also with Hinduism and group of theosophy. As one element of the dynamics of religious belief, the politics of recognition is important. In Indonesia, the state gave a different attitude to Chinese religions or all things Chinese-affiliated in general during the New Order era, and the era of transition to reform, Gus Dur. This then triggered contestation between Chinese religions themselves in Indonesia, especially between the religion of Tridharma and Confucianism.

The issue of identity (re)construction and its relation to social memory has been raised in The Bastard of Istanbul, written by one of the most prolific novelists Elif Shafak. The novel narrates how Turkey attempts to blot out people’s collective remembrance upon the violent history of the Armenian Genocide. The story depicts the issue by showing individuals with contradictory identities of Turks and Armenian Americans who live in a dilemmatic intersection of ignoring and keeping such a memory. This article describes the identity (re)construction among Istanbulites, including Turks and Armenians, as two competing (id)entities, as depicted in The Bastard of Istanbul. The study is a literary criticism that focuses on the social issue of identity (re)construction. It applies Castells' (2010) theory of identity construction and Misztal's idea of social memory (2003). This study reveals that Turkish-ness identity (re)construction of the Istanbulites characters comprises three significant components of legitimation, resistance, and projection that interfere with the competing identities of Turks and Armenians.