식민지인의 디아스포라 내러티브 쓰기: 나이폴의 『당혹스런 도착』

Abstract

This study explores some implications of the act of writing a diasporic narrative which has been largely ignored by scholars. The diaspora experience is an important historical and political issue to be addressed and explored.As a point of departure, a definition of the term 'diaspora' is offered. Then a demonstration is presented that V.S. Naipaul is an embodiment of diasporic experiences in our time. His autobiographical novel, The Enigma of Arrival is examined. The main point of the study is that Naipaul creates and occupies the so-called 'diasporic space' that generates the dynamic and creative processes of 'flight and becoming.' He is the sort of writer with a great potential to command a dual vision of home and abroad and to investigate the malaise of the societies he observes. Special attention to Naipaul's satirical impulse and ironic distancing strategy are offered as they are tellingly discernible in The Enigma of Arrival. Naipaul carefully observes the demise of the old British Empire, let alone the anachronistic ways of life within an Hindu community in Trinidad, his native country. In addition, he questions and challenges such notions as the myth of England as the Garden of Eden, the British genteel tradition, and the glory and the power of the British Empire. The study concludes that the act of a writing diasporic narrative is very much a political act in the sense that it challenges and subverts the dominant imperialist discourse. Naipaul sets a good example; The Enigma of Arrival satisfactorily proves that point.