The Worst Class Trip Ever

Some characters from The Worst Class Trip Ever, such as Brevalov , Woltar, and Lemi, are from a fictional country named Gadakistan. The narrative includes descriptions of some of the country’s imaginary cultural traditions, such as fork-throwing, and its political history is also described, as when Victor learns about the existence of a Gadakistani rebel group called “Ranaba Umoka” (113) in Gadakistan’s fictional language. As Victor explains, “According to Wikipedia, Gadakistan […] just had a war of independence, and the head military guy, Gorban Brevalov, declared himself the leader. […] [H]e declared that he was an ally of the United States, which apparently was a big deal” (92).

 Although the country is fictional, Barry’s descriptions imply that it is designed to be a stereotypical and overgeneralized conglomeration of many different Middle Eastern and Central Asian countries. This impression is reinforced by Gadakistan’s supposed political relationship with the United States, which is reminiscent of contemporary geopolitical issues. However, the deliberately vague descriptions of the country’s attributes is meant to critique the protagonists’ uncritical reliance on ill-considered stereotypes to inform their understanding of the world. For example, the children in the story identify Woltar and Lemi as potentially dangerous terrorists because their perspective is heavily skewed by the inherent biases of the news media. As a result, Gadakistan is a symbolic representation of a fantasized, dangerous “Other.” Even the Gadakistani president’s name, Gorban Brevalov, is designed to mimic the names of famously anti-American Soviet leaders. By using Gadakistan as a symbol, the narrative avoids targeting a specific country and instead combines the salient characteristics of several historical enemies of the US. While the resultant effect is intended to be satirical, it is also important to note that such a representation is heavily stereotyped, culturally insensitive, and even racist.