Juan-Batista Character Analysis in The Reluctant Fundamentalist

The president of a Chilean publishing company that Underwood Sampson values. Changez works on the project, and becomes friendly with Juan-Batista. It is Juan-Batista's questioning that leads Changez to see himself as a "janissary" – a person who has been kidnapped and made to fight against his own culture. This revelation causes Changez to cease working at his job at Underwood Sampson.

Juan-Batista Character Timeline in The Reluctant Fundamentalist

The timeline below shows where the character Juan-Batista appears in The Reluctant Fundamentalist. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...to determine why she can’t get over her love for Chris. In Chile, he meets Juan-Batista, the president of the publishing agency Underwood Samson is valuing. Changez likes Juan-Batista immediately, and... (full context)

One day as he meets with Juan-Batista, Juan-Batista asks Changez about his father’s uncle, the poet. He notices that Changez seems unlike... (full context)

Patriotism & Post-9/11 United States Theme Icon

Juan-Batista invites Changez to lunch. At lunch, he tells Changez that he reminds him of a... (full context)

Changez says that the Stranger seems skeptical; he assures the Stranger that Juan-Batista was real, and so was their lunch. He points out that it’s unreasonable to question... (full context)

...being of a “suspect race,” and when he returns to his apartment, he mentally thanks Juan-Batista for helping him see America for what it really is. (full context)