Dinaw Mengestu's Essay Home At Last

I was born in Haiti. In 1974. The first year my home country made its way into the World Cup.

Belonging means different things to different people. The most common definition is feeling a sense of connectedness to a person, place or thing. Understanding nourishes belonging while a lack of understanding can prevent people from belonging. This is shown through Peter Skrzynecki’s poem ‘Migrant hostel’ which is about the challenges faced by travelers on their journey, and the hardships they have to overcome by exchanging their old world for the unfamiliar and unwelcoming new world in which they don’t understand anything. Skrzynecki’s poem ‘Feliks Skryznecki’ explores a relationship between father and son, and their contrasting experiences of belonging to a new place. The related text, ‘The Red Tree,’ by Shaun Tan also shows that a lack

Belonging is a complex, multi-faceted concept encompassing a wide range of different aspects. The need to belong to family and culture is a universal human need which provides a sense of value and emotional stability, and in many respects forges one’s identity. Alienation and disconnection often creates feelings of isolation, depression and loss of identity. A struggle with cultural identity is evident in Peter Skrzynecki’s poems ‘Migrant Hostel’ and ‘Feliks Skrzynecki’, where he examines a division between his pre-war Polish heritage and his newfound Australian way of life. The movement away from his European cultural heritage towards a more Australian identity created disorientation for Skrzynecki, and these feelings of disconnection

Where are you from? It is a simple question yet; it is difficult to answer as an immigrant who has lived in multiple places. I was born in Lagos, Nigeria. A few years after my birth, my dad's job required my family to move to the United States. My family first "settled" down in Walnut Creek, California; however, less than a year later, we moved down to Houston where just like in California, we lived for less than a year before being catapulted to the beautiful yet cold country to the north of the border: Canada. After living in so many places and being exposed to many different societies, I never found a culture that I fully identified with. Instead, I now identify as not only a first generation Nigerian immigrant but also as a global citizen.

A lack of belonging can destroy a sense of placement in society. This statement is thoroughly explored in the poem, ‘Migrant Hostel’ by Peter Skrzynecki, investigating the concepts of alienation and dislocation through the migrant’s lack of acceptance by the Australian citizens. The migrants are also unable to find a fixed home, and therefore feel no sense of stability or permanence. This transitory nature is best identified in the simile, ‘We lived like birds of a passage/Always sensing a change/In the weather’, where the comparison to birds emphasises the absence of a home. It is clear that the migrants feel unable to adapt to Australian society, constantly moving and never settling. The migrant’s exclusion is further highlighted in the lines,

One’s understanding of belonging can broaden their understanding and acceptance of themselves and the world around them. The statement that we all strive to belong is true, however it may take time to belong to a certain person, place, group, community or even the larger world. This issue is explored in Raimond Gaita’s biographical memoir Romulus, My Father and Khaled Hosseini’s confronting novel The Kite Runner. Throughout these texts, the themes of personal relationships, migrant experience and morals and values arise from the concept of

Leaving one's own country and moving to another is one of the most difficult journeys anyone can make. In one's home country, he or she has a place, an identity that is

Belonging requires an individual to build a connection with another person or group over time, these connections are often developed through shared experience and understanding. Peter Skrzynecki’s poems; “Feliks Skrzynecki” (1975) and “Migrant Hostel” (1975) offer various perspectives and representations on this concept. Ernest Hemingway’s short story “A clean well lighted place” (1926) and the picture “Berlin Wall” by unknown (1973) compliment these perspectives and representations further.

Belonging to place/culture is a major concept in ‘Migrant Hostel’ to show how the migrants use their background as a sense of affiliation and belonging. This can be seen through the use of a in “Nationalities sought each other out instinctively like a homing pigeon circling to get its bearings” This example shows how the migrants felt isolated and alone when they first arrived at the migrant hostel. As they came together the “sought each other out” through the use of nationally and culture which made them fit in and feel excepted into the place.

Through an individual’s intrinsic desire to develop meaningful connections with society, place or heritage, they forge their own sense of self-identity by overcoming the barriers in place. In Peter Skrzynecki’s poetry, particularly “Migrant Hostel” and “10 Mary Street” we witness an individual’s experience of segregation to eventual connection in the world they live.

This evident transience is perhaps symbolic of the migrants' own fleeting sense of connection as they instinctively seek out members of their own culture, efficaciously conveyed through the use of a familiar analogy – “nationalities sought/each other out instinctively – like a homing pigeon/circling to get its bearings”. These superficial relationships thus serve to hinder the development of any lasting sense of belonging – regardless of a common history and identity – as, whilst for some migrants, their time in the hostel represents a new beginning, for others the sustained sense of alienation and despair, due to a lack of strong relationships, becomes too difficult to bear, as the final lines of the poem poignantly suggest through juxtaposition – “lives/that had only begun/or were dying”. Thus a feeling of belonging depends on a strong relationship, developed over a period of time.

In the book, Mengestu describes his challenges with trying to transition to America and trying to find a place where he really belongs. In Peoria, Illinois where his family moves after leaving Ethiopia, the author feels out of place since he was surrounded by white school, community institutions and churches. Moving to Washington DC where many Ethiopian immigrants lived, he still felt out of place and it was only when his parents moved to Brooklyn, in a neighborhood called Kensington, that Mengestu was finally able to gradually settle down.

I was born in a town called Liancourt in Artibonite, Haiti. I moved to America when I was six years old. For the most part, growing up I felt I could relate to African Americans. After

Before introducing any major events, or analysis, it’s important to note that this autobiographical work was only made possible with the aid of written documentation, and tales passed on from the family and the community. This is imperative because a great portion of the piece focuses on events that Edwidge didn’t experience first-hand, so she heavily stresses on the details being re-surfaced through friends and family to complete a holistic emigration story. Family history and the involvement of cherishing family moments is often an overlooked form of communication, but without this, this and many other important minority stories would have never been complied in a way where we can now discuss them in a culturally-reflective academic setting, like this course.

Dinaw Mengestu talks about his life long trouble with his society and fitting in with the people of his community. Born in Ethiopia and raised in the States confused him and made him feel like he doesn’t belong anywhere. He doesn’t feel like he was ever part of the Ethiopian society and is not accepted in the United States, as an American. I understand his situation, not because I went through what he has but I’ve lived around people that have. During high school I had a Persian friend who’s parents have immigrated to Bahrain, and he felt like he didn’t belong in the country he also didn’t feel like he was a Persian at all, because he has never been there. It was difficult on him to make friends, and people made him feel like an outsider. But like Mengestu my friend slowly adapted to his surrounding and didn’t identify