Migrant Narratives and the Search for Identity in Selected African Novels

Migration and identity are prominent themes in contemporary literature reflecting the global realities of displacement and cultural integration. This study delves into the paradigms of migration and the search for identity in Imbolo Mbue’s Behold the Dreamers, NoViolet Bulawayo’s We Need New Names and Helon Habila’s Travellers. Through a qualitative analysis of these texts using Evarette Lee’s Push-Pull theory and Tajfel and Turner’s Social Identity theory, this study interrogates the interconnectedness of migration and migrant’s identity. The fusion of migration and identity suggests the wide range of emotions people go through when they are uprooted from familiar environments such as cultural clashes, economic imperatives and social integration. The characters’ journeys range from pursuing the ‘American Dream’ to longing for a place called home. These findings capture the complex interactions between cultural assimilation, economic inequality and an overwhelming longing for a secure sense of identity while highlighting the resilience and adaptability of migrants amidst systemic inequalities and cultural tensions. The effects of migration on people’s culture have developed into mindboggling questions that have taken center stage in the minds and works of contemporary literary writers and researchers. This study illuminates the enduring quest for belonging and self-discovery offering insights into the human condition in a globalised world.

Keywords: Migration Identity Cultural Assimilation Systemic Inequalities

Authors

• Rita Ugochukwu Uche
  ritaugouche@gmail.com
  Department of English Studies,
  College of Humanities, Tai Solarin University of Education,
  Ijagun, Ogun State, Nigeria
• Michael Jimi Ogunnaike
  ogunnaikemj@tasued.edu.ng
  Department of English Studies,
  College of Humanities, Tai Solarin University of Education,
  Ijagun, Ogun State, Nigeria
• Adefeso Olasubomi Alimi
  olasubomialimi@gmail.com
  Department of English Studies,
  College of Humanities, Tai Solarin University of Education,
  Ijagun, Ogun State, Nigeria
• Michael Olamide Okekunle
  Department of Languages and Literary Studies, Babcock University, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State. okekunleolamide@gmail.com