Pico Iyer: Nowhere Man

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This activity contains 3 questions.

Discuss your perception of what Iyer describes as an “entirely new breed of people,” the “nowhere man” of his title. What characterizes this new type of person? To what extent are you familiar with it? What consequences of “the transit lounge” syndrome does Iyer identify? Can you think of others?

To create paragraphs in your essay response, type at the beginning of the paragraph, and at the end.

Explain Iyer’s remark that “being part of no society means one is accountable to no one.” According to Iyer, what are the consequences of being rootless, of lacking a sense of being rooted in a particular place that one can call home? Do you agree with him? Why or why not?

To create paragraphs in your essay response, type at the beginning of the paragraph, and at the end.

The flip side of the rootlessness that Iyer describes is a strong sense of pride that people feel for their countries and for their nationalities. What dangers and what benefits does Iyer see as resulting from an intense pride in one’s place of origin and/or residence? To what extent do you agree with his assessment? Explain.

To create paragraphs in your essay response, type at the beginning of the paragraph, and at the end.

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