Root systems: nature and diasporic identity
Intro one:
Rea: Today our topic is root systems: nature and diasporic identity. So we’re going to discuss
the idea of nature as a tool to represent this diasporic identity within three of this course’s
modules: Crossing the Mangrove, Fuocoammare and the Tuning of Perfection.
Slide one: nature as a bridge (positive) -
Eden: In migratory literature, nature manifests as both a physical bridge and also a temporal
bridge between a diaspora’s cultural past and present.
Morgan:In the context of the film, the sea seems to serve as a symbolic and literal bridge
between Africa and Europe. Although people are quick to associate the sea with negative
connotations when it comes to migrant crossings, it is also thanks to the sea that many people
manage to start their new beginning away from the troubles of their motherland. Through
focusing on the human stories of both the islanders and the migrants, Rosi manages to
humanise the refugee crisis. The sea becomes a common thread that connects these disparate
lives as well as capturing the shared humanity of people on both sides of the migration issue,
emphasising the interconnectedness of their experiences.
Nieve: In Crossing the Mangrove however, nature serves as a bridge between the society and
identity which exists in Guadeloupe and its historic roots in France or Africa. By using the
mangrove as a metaphor for the creation of a Guadeloupean identity, Condé highlights that
modern Guadeloupean identity is not wholly characterised by its origins, rejecting ideas
portrayed in theories such as La Négritude and highlighting the success of Guadeloupean
society to develop into a diverse, durable and independent society in the same way as a
mangrove
Rea: In The Tuning of Perfection, nature is used as a metaphorical bridge between the nostalgic
memories that modern Canadians have of Scotland and its nature and their new lives in Nova
Scotia - a place that didn’t always live up to their ancestor’s expectations. Throughout The
Tuning of Perfection and the other Gaelic poems discussed in the module, descriptions of nature
- such as the mountaintop forest in which Archibald works and lives - are used to express
memories both good and bad. The juxtaposition between these images of Scotland and Nova
Scotia provide a lens to view the past through, creating an atmosphere that is both comforting
and sentimental.
Intro one:
Rea: Today our topic is root systems: nature and diasporic identity. So we’re going to discuss
the idea of nature as a tool to represent this diasporic identity within three of this course’s
modules: Crossing the Mangrove, Fuocoammare and the Tuning of Perfection.
Slide one: nature as a bridge (positive) -
Eden: In migratory literature, nature manifests as both a physical bridge and also a temporal
bridge between a diaspora’s cultural past and present.
Morgan:In the context of the film, the sea seems to serve as a symbolic and literal bridge
between Africa and Europe. Although people are quick to associate the sea with negative
connotations when it comes to migrant crossings, it is also thanks to the sea that many people
manage to start their new beginning away from the troubles of their motherland. Through
focusing on the human stories of both the islanders and the migrants, Rosi manages to
humanise the refugee crisis. The sea becomes a common thread that connects these disparate
lives as well as capturing the shared humanity of people on both sides of the migration issue,
emphasising the interconnectedness of their experiences.
Nieve: In Crossing the Mangrove however, nature serves as a bridge between the society and
identity which exists in Guadeloupe and its historic roots in France or Africa. By using the
mangrove as a metaphor for the creation of a Guadeloupean identity, Condé highlights that
modern Guadeloupean identity is not wholly characterised by its origins, rejecting ideas
portrayed in theories such as La Négritude and highlighting the success of Guadeloupean
society to develop into a diverse, durable and independent society in the same way as a
mangrove
Rea: In The Tuning of Perfection, nature is used as a metaphorical bridge between the nostalgic
memories that modern Canadians have of Scotland and its nature and their new lives in Nova
Scotia - a place that didn’t always live up to their ancestor’s expectations. Throughout The
Tuning of Perfection and the other Gaelic poems discussed in the module, descriptions of nature
- such as the mountaintop forest in which Archibald works and lives - are used to express
memories both good and bad. The juxtaposition between these images of Scotland and Nova
Scotia provide a lens to view the past through, creating an atmosphere that is both comforting
and sentimental.
