Postcolonial Discourse of Displacement and Immigration in Doris Lessing's The Sweetest Dream

This paper examines the themes of immigration and diasporic life in Doris Lessing's novel The Sweetest Dream, a postcolonial work that reflects the author's experiences in London and Africa. Lessing's text returns to the world of the colonizer-colonized relationship, exploring the influential power dynamics that shape the lives of those who have migrated from the colonies to the colonizer's country. Immigration emerges as a central concern in postcolonial discourse, often defined as displacement, dislocation, and a sense of hopelessness that arises from the collision of disparate cultures. This study incorporates the theories of Edward W. Said and Robert J.C. Young to elucidate the diasporic experience of Lessing's characters. The paper argues that the migrant individuals in The Sweetest Dream, caught in the in-between spaces of their hybrid cultural identities, face the consequences of this ambivalence. They grapple with feelings of homesickness, unhomeliness, and the broader challenges of navigating a diasporic existence, all of which contribute to the formation of a hybrid culture for the displaced immigrants. By examining Lessing's postcolonial themes of migration, displacement, and hybridity, this paper illuminates the complex realities faced by those who have left their homelands to reside in the colonizer's domains.

Postcolonial Discourse of Displacement and Immigration in Doris Lessing's The Sweetest Dream Keywords:

Ambivalence , Diasporic life , Hybrid culture , Immigration , In-betweenness , Unhomeliness