Exploring Sara Suleri’s Meatless Days Through Heidegger’s Concepts of Throwness, Facticity, and Authenticity

Abstract

This study explores Sara Suleri’s Meatless Days (1989) through the philosophical lens of Martin Heidegger, focusing on his existential concepts of throwness, facticity, and authenticity. While previous research has examined the memoir from feminist and postcolonial perspectives, little attention has been given to how Heidegger’s ideas can deepen our understanding of the characters' emotional and identity struggles. Using a qualitative approach and thematic textual analysis, selected passages from the memoir are interpreted to show how Suleri and her family members experience life in a world they did not choose, how they face unchangeable facts of identity, and how they make meaningful choices within those limits. The findings reveal that Heidegger’s framework provides a powerful tool for understanding postcolonial identity, cultural dislocation, and the search for meaning in Suleri’s narrative.