Negotiating Identity in Migration Spaces: A Postcolonial Reading of Hamid’s Exit West and Rawlence’s City of Thorns
الكلمات المفتاحية:
post colonialism، identity crisis، refugee literature، displacement، hybridity، Exit Westالملخص
This study examines the theme of identity crisis in refugee narratives through a postcolonial perspective, with particular focus on the novels Exit West by Mohsin Hamid and City of Thorns by Ben Rawlence. Drawing upon the theoretical framework of Homi K. Bhabha, particularly his concepts of hybridity, mimicry, and Third Space, this research study investigates how forced migration molds and reshapes the pattern refugees’ sense of self, belonging, their identity, and specifically their cultural identity. Using textual and thematic analysis as an analytical framework, the researcher in this study explores the way displacement and forced migration destabilizes the established identities and compels the refugees to negotiate between preserving their cultural roots, their norms, and adapting to a totally new social environment. The findings of this study suggest that migration does not simply produce a psychological sense of loss rather, it also generates complex, and hybrid identities that reflect ongoing tensions between memory, home, and survival. Both the texts in this study illustrate that identity crisis emerges not only from personal trauma but also from broader structural inequalities embedded in a globalized and post-colonial world order. The study concludes that interpreting refugee narratives through a postcolonial lens deepens our understanding of the transformative impact of displacement. At the same time, it highlights the resilience, adaptability, and evolving selfhood of displaced individuals who reconstruct meaning and belonging in unfamiliar spaces. By situating identity within historical, political, and cultural contexts, this research contributes to contemporary discussions on migration, globalization, and human agency.
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