GRAHAM LANG’S DEPICTION OF THE ZIMBABWEAN CRISIS, MIGRATION AND IDENTITY IN PLACE OF BIRTH (2006)

Abstract

This paper explores Graham Lang’s depiction of the Zimbabwean crisis, migration and identity in Place of Birth (2006). The text, by foregrounding the experiences of a white Zimbabwean family’s attempts to survive the crisis, offers a hitherto marginalised discourse/narrative in Zimbabwean literature, which largely focuses on the experiences of black Zimbabweans. Lang’s understanding of the nexus between the Zimbabwean crisis, migration and identity is chiefly centred on the Zimbabwean government’s land reform programme. However, Lang’s depiction of the Zimbabwean crisis in general and the land reform programme in particular largely resonate with colonial perceptions of the African, which project him/her as inherently atavistic in nature.