The Quest for Self-Discovery: A Study of the Journey Motif in Kahf’s

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how the journey motif plays a pivotal role in the works of Arab women writers in diaspora. Through a close reading of Arab American novelist Mohja Kahf’s The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf (2006) and Arab British novelist Leila Aboulela’s The Translator (1999), the paper highlights how the journeys taken by Khadra and Sammar, respectively, govern each of these two novels structurally and thematically. As they make journeys to their home towns in Syria and Sudan, respectively, they edge closer toward self-discovery. Therefore, the journeys the characters embark on are linked to their inner search for their own identities. Khadra and Sammar gain knowledge, better understand life, and consequently, better understand themselves. Overall, the paper shows how investigating the importance of journeys and travels in The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf and The Translator helps shed light on how Khadra and Sammar negotiate their cultural circumstances and cope with pressing social demands. In this sense, the two women personify resilience, courage and self-respect since they resist social pressures and decide to challenge them..