The Image of the United States in Meredith Talusan’s Fairest
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2023 |
| Type | Article in Proceedings |
| Conference | Silesian Studies In English 2021. Proceedings of the 6th international conference of English and American studies, 9th-10th September 2021 |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| web | https://www.slu.cz/fpf/cz/file/cul/9d1c702c-6008-4b5e-9b4c-1af05444d292 |
| Keywords | Meredith Talusan; Fairest; the United States; American Dream; queer; immigrant; albino; memoir |
| Description | The paper discusses the ways in which the United States as a new homeland is approached and portrayed in Meredith Talusan’s 2020 memoir Fairest and how Talusan’s queerness impacts this portrayal. After introducing the image of the United States as a new homeland for queer immigrants, the paper moves on to the analysis of Talusan’s depiction of the United States. It demonstrates the complex situation of an immigrant protagonist who is aware of the postcolonial reality yet still adopts and reproduces some of the Western and white-centrist views. Drawing on the theories of Jasbir Puar and Sara Ahmed, the paper demonstrates how the protagonist becomes the right kind of migrant and the right kind of queer, displaying dedication and perseverance. Finally, the paper concludes that this also makes Talusan a good autobiographical subject who narrates her story of trauma in a culturally sanctioned and celebrated way. |
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