CBC’s Little Mosque on the Prairie is a humourous look at what can happen when two cultures collide. The show, which takes place on the Canadian prairies, centers around the Muslim community in a small Saskatchewan town. The interplay between the Muslim culture, both conservative and progressive and the Judeo-Christian centered culture of the rest of the town are what form the conflict and the comedy of the series. In season 1 episode 3, “Open House”, these tentions are brought to the fore when the Imam, Amaar, decides to hold an open house to attempt to build bridges. This episode contains many elements of cultural anthropology because it is all about how each culture views the other side, and the attempt to promote communication between the two.
The fact that the episode is going to focus on cultural interplay is shown within the first 25 seconds of the show. Fred Tupper opens the show with a diatribe against Muslims, in which he wonders if the flickering lights of the Mosque are a terrorist signal. (Little Mosque 0:22). Tupper is looking at a culture through his own filters of judgement, and drawing the wrong conclusions. This mistaken assumption of the Muslim culture is shown several more times during the episode, such as a girl’s “Are you gay?” question during the open house when Sarah informs her that she only shows herself to other women, (17:04), and when Tupper appears to be vindicated in his belief that the lights flickering were indeed an attempt at a bombing, as stated near the end of the show. It should be noted that Tupper is not the only one who does not really want to understand the other side. Baber, also, expresses reluctance to try communicating with the larger community when asked to help with the open house. All of these are elements of cultural anthropology, done wrong, because they show the examination of a culture based on false assumptions and an unwillingness to set aside one’s own world view.
Another element of cultural anthropology in the show is the discussion of feminism in Islam. Amaar notes to Sarah that she might have a unique perspective in Islam because of her feminism. (7:10). Sarah replies that yes, others tend to see the headscarf, and think oppression. This shows that Amaar and Sarah both realize that other cultures tend to view theirs as oppressive to women. This is an element of cultural anthropology because it explores both how a culture sees itself in relation to the way it treats groups within itself, and how those from other cultures view the treatment of a minority group within a given culture.
A third element of cultural anthropology in the show is highlighted when Amaar is speaking with Fatima. He suggests that she, too, might have a unique view of Muslim culture. She says that yes, she can speak specifically to the influence of Islam in Africa. (8:04). She adds that generally, one only hears the missionary position. This is meant to draw a laugh, but also highlights the fact that there are many different angles in which a cultural anthropologist can study another culture. One must take into account the fact that there can be many influences on a culture, not just the one that is most commonly studied.
The fourth aspect of cultural anthropology displayed in the show is the dismay that some of the characters feel when Amaar attempts to speak for them. They ask him how he can possibly understand or properly communicate the way their life is impacted by their culture, and the way they are seen because of that culture. Sarah asks him how he knows what it’s like to be a Muslim woman. Fatima asks him how he knows what it’s like to be a black muslim woman. (10:53). The answer to this is, of course, that he does not. After the others threaten to boycott the open house, he realizes that he needs help, and that he cannot speak for all of the people that make up his culture. This is an element of cultural anthropology because it highlights the need for the study of a culture to be done from more than one angle, and with consideration of all of the peoples in that culture. Since a male cannot know what it’s like to be a female in that culture, the female voice in the culture needs to be heard as well as his own. Amaar solves the problem by allowing each member of the group to have his or her own voice and tell the visitors of the open house what the culture is like from that particular perspective.
Though the open house is arguably unsuccessful in its goal and the muslims meet with only limited understanding before the event literally goes up in flames, the fact that it happened at all speaks to the goal of the series to build understanding and communication between the two cultures. It also shows the need for one who is trying to understand a culture to realize that the society they are studying is made up of individuals with unique perspectives on the culture in which they live. The series uses humor to help communicate its points, which makes them easier to swallow for the watching audience. Though it is comic entertainment, perhaps it can help to broaden the horizons of those watching, and, like cultural anthropology, promote communication and understanding between people from different cultures.
- Little Mosque on the Prairie. “Open House”. 1.3(2007). Video. Hulu. 8 May 2016.
