Omar Rising

“You carry all of our pride with you, Omar. Carry it well.”

Malik Uncle voices his and the village’s support for Omar. Omar, though proud,also feels burdened by what he thinks is the village’s pressure on him to succeed.Omar internalizes this pressure and worries about disappointing others. Hisconcern shows that he lacks confidence in himself, and it will take all of his determination to eventually overcome these insecurities.

“Both of us are at the exact same school, but we see it so differently.”

While Malik Uncle and Omar think his room at Ghalib is spacious and comfortable,Aiden sees it as a “prison.” To Omar, Ghalib and its grounds are beautiful, but toAiden, the place is a “dump.” The difference in the boys’ viewpoints highlightstheir different socioeconomic backgrounds. Coming from poverty, Omar seesGhalib as physically stunning and as an important opportunity. Aiden, comingfrom wealth, sees Ghalib as an inferior school and does not care about his bad grades or his education, as they will likely not affect his future.

“Mr. Adeel’s kindness is like an oxygen tank in outer space.”

Throughout the novel, Omar shows his love of astronomy in his use of figurative language. Here, the simile suggests that Mr. Adeel’s warmth and encouragement gives Omar a much-needed positive boost after his encounter with Headmaster Moiz. The art teacher will continue to be a powerfully positive and supportive force in Omar’s life, particularly when it comes to constructively expressing his outrage at the school’s various injustices.

“Just ‘fake it till you make it.’ You’ll get there.”

Mr. Adeel’s advises Omar that acting confident will help him to “get[…] where [he] want[s] to go” (142). Omar is determined to follow his dreams,but he struggles with self-confidence when faced with the difficult classes at Ghalib and the institutionalized discrimination he experiences. Mr. Adeel’s emphasis on self-confidence illustrates the themes of Daring to Reach for the Stars.

“Speak to us? The pictures on the screen are interesting, but none of them speak to me. Or maybe I just can’t hear them.”

Omar does not understand Mr. Adeel’s instruction to find an artist whose workmakes Omar “feel,” not until the mural and Shehzil Malik’s image of the woman on the bicycle both resonate with him. Omar ultimately learns that art can be both a medium for self-expression and a tool for social change. By the end of the novel art helps Omar to express his dreams and his resistance to injustice.

“If Humza and the others didn’t care that we were scholarship kids, they might feel differently if they see me taking out the trash.”

Omar worries that the regular students will treat him, Naveed, and Kareem asinferiors if they know about their scholarship status and lower-class backgrounds.The scholarship rules also unfairly reinforce class differences, for most students do not have the same “community service” requirements forcing them to do menial work. This injustice rankles Omar.

“I’ve always known I’m poor, but until Ghalib, I never felt poor.”

Before coming to Ghalib, Omar was comfortable with his lower socioeconomicstatus; it did not bother him or affect his self-esteem. At Ghalib, however, Omaris self-conscious about the difference between himself and the paying students.The inequitable rules and demeaning comments from Moiz and Aiden make Omarfeel second-class, and he struggles with these feelings of inferiority throughout the majority of the novel.

“He wants us to feel like we’re outsiders. But who really deserves to be here more?”

Aiden tries to “other” the scholarship boys with his disparaging comments, intending to make Omar, Naveed, and Kareem feel like lesser students because of their poverty. Omar takes umbrage at the inequity, for he works harder and does better in classes than Aiden, which should be rewarded over privilege.

“It’s tiring pretending everything is great in front of everyone.”

The pressure that Omar feels to succeed for himself and others, and his fear of failure, both make him hide the truth about his struggles at Ghalib from Amal and his mother. Even though Omar justifies his lies by rationalizing that it is a necessary part of pursuing the success that his community expects him to achieve, he still ends up hurting those he cares about. Omar learns that it is important to trust in his friends and family, for their love and friendship provide vital support.

“They let us poor kids in. They seem great and generous. But they don’t really mean it.”

In this passage, Kareem sums up Ghalib’s unjust position towards scholarship students. Accepting poor students makes the school look good, but the unequal rules almost guarantee that the scholarship students will not succeed. The school requirements therefore enforce class inequity rather than trying to alleviate it.

“Now we’ll study smarter. We’re going to prove them wrong.”

Omar shows his “stubborn optimism” in his refusal to be weeded out. Omar,Naveed, and Kareem, who are already a subcommunity within the larger student body at Ghalib, pledge to support and help one another to succeed, illustrating the novel’s theme of The Power of Community Support.

“But talking about it could help you feel better.”

Amal teaches Omar the importance of trusting one’s friends. She cares about Omar and knows that sharing worries can be cathartic. She is right, for when Omar shares his troubles, he feels better and more confident. Omar also recognizes that he does not have to put on a brave front with his friends.

“The last thing I ever feel is lucky.”

While Omar despondently enumerates the injustices and woes that he experiences at Ghalib, Omar recognizes that Aiden is right. In other ways, Omar is lucky. Unlike Aiden, Omar has a wealth of people who care about him and want the best for him, along with a powerful support network of friends and family. Despite his family’s great wealth, Aiden lacks these benefits, and this isolation explains his sour behavior for much of the novel.

“Being brave paid off after all.”

Amal’s belief in Omar helps him to regain his own self-confidence, reenabling him to pursue his dreams wholeheartedly. Facing his fears and bravely asking Moiz for help results in positive steps forward in English and towards Omar’s life goals. Omar sees the importance of having courage and self-confidence.

“I’m becoming a ghost boy after all.”

Omar tearfully gives in to despair when his scholarship is revoked, and all his hard work and sacrifice come to nothing. His worst fear (becoming another of Ghalib’s cast-off, failed former students and fading ghostlike into obscurity) has come true. Omar therefore loses faith in himself, at least temporarily, but he eventually shows his determination when he understands that the ghost boys did not give up in life, and he will not either.

“She says not to give up. She says to keep on trying. She says to keep on hoping even when it’s hard to hope.”

Shehzil Malik’s message epitomizes the novel’s themes of Daring to Reach for the Stars. Malik’s work inspires Omar to keep believing in himself and to keep resisting injustice. After Omar loses his scholarship, he questions Malik’s message, but he ultimately overcomes his doubt, and Malik’s phrase “stubbornly optimistic” resonates with him—urging him to rise up and fight harder for his dreams and for equity.

“We were only the ‘nerdiest,’ Marwan, because we had to be.”

Marwan and the other regular students were ignorant of the unequal treatment given to the scholarship students. When Omar explains the inequity, Marwan, Aiden, and the others are outraged at the injustice. Their support for Omar and Naveed reveals the true depths of their friendship.

“I see some nice art. And some very good friends.”

With this deceptively bland comment, Mr. Adeel in fact imparts a powerful message, for rather than berating the boys for organizing a protest, he recognizes the power of art as a tool for resistance and for inspiring social change. Mr. Adeel’s comment upon seeing Marwan and Aiden’s posters and flyers show his tacit approval of their cause, and it also confirms the importance of the power of connections, showing how Omar’s community unites in its pursuit of justice.

“We really do need everyone. Not only for Naveed and me, but for those who will come after us.”

Omar knows that for the protest to be effective, every voice needs to be heard, for true social change requires commitment and visibility. With this statement, Omar also shows that he is thinking beyond just his and Naveed’s personal crises. He wants to see a lasting policy change at the school so that others will not suffer from the same biases.

“The world is wide open for you, Omar. You’ve only just begun.”

Shuaib encourages Omar to believe in himself, no matter what happens with the school board’s decision. Although Omar appreciates the chef’s support, he struggles to keep his hopes up. Omar eventually learns that he can rise to any challenge.

“I should have been stubbornly optimistic about believing in myself.”

Omar realizes that he was mistaken in his insistence for attaching all of his hopes and dreams to Ghalib when he should have had more faith in himself, his abilities, and his resilience. He at last recognizes that his friends, family, and community all believe in him, and although his position at Ghalib will eventually be reinstated, he has already learned that he will be able to support himself and pursue his goals no matter where in the world he happens to be.

“No matter what this letter says, it does not contain my fate. If Ghalib is a solid not, my future isn’t over.”

Omar finally understands that leaving Ghalib does not mean the end of his dreams. In this moment, Omar truly takes charge of his future with a new sense of stubborn optimism. He will succeed wherever he goes because of his confidence, perseverance, belief in himself, and his supportive connections.

“Kids like us will get to breathe a little easier.”

With this comment, Omar shows his solidarity with other students from similar backgrounds of poverty. Omar is proud that he has helped to achieve the impossible: fighting against and changing “the unchangeable rule” (212) at Ghalib. Omar’s successful act of resistance enacts significant social change, even though he is realistic enough to understand that the more deeply ingrained biases at Ghalib will still need to be overcome.