Abstract:
During the last decade of the twentieth century, many crucial changes took place in the literary world. These changes that began in the 1980s and the 1990s are probably recognized as the dawn of an immigrant novel which became a major force in literature. The writers of this genre are generally diasporic citizens. One of these writers who this study focuses on is Moyez Vassanji, a descendant of the Indian diaspora in East Africa whose works have enhanced the development of diasporic consciousness. The study analyses M.G Vassanji’s novels The In-Between World of Vikram Lall (2014) and The Gunny Sack (1989) to explore Asian diasporic experiences. Overall, the novels examine the dilemma and paradox of trans-border migration, racial identity and (dis)location of the Indian diasporic citizens in East Africa. The specific objectives of this study are to critically examine trans-border migration as presented in The In-Between World of Vikram Lall and The Gunny Sack; to assess the construction of racial identity and (dis)location of the diasporic citizens in the two novels. The study employs a qualitative research approach due to its textual nature. The two novels were purposively sampled since they are
considered to sufficiently answer research questions and meet the objectives of the study. The study was library based and the main data collection method is a close reading of the novels. The study also utilizes secondary sources of information from creative works from critical literary books on theory, literary journals, articles and other relevant materials. Data was collected using qualitative research design and within the framework of postcolonial theory. The findings will be that M.G Vassanji’s novels have explored trans-border migration, racial identity and (dis)location as postcolonial concerns that Indian immigrants continue to grapple with in the quest for their identity. The study contributes to research knowledge done and to the corpus of knowledge available with special reference to M.G Vassanji and can be used by policymakers in the administration of Asians as a special
community in East Africa.
