The Existential Crisis in Naipaul’s Novel a Bend in the River

Abstract

The novel A Bend in the River presents the transitional period from colonial to postcolonial in an unnamed African country through the life experiences and challenges that the main character, Salim, goes through. Naipaul presents everything through Salim’s perspective by making him the representative of all the migrants that have to undergo a double tragedy: losing their native country, its culture, and customs and tradition by adopting into the new country. The second tragedy occurs when they no longer are seen as part of this new country, where they have already tried to make themselves fit to the new culture, traditions, and mentally they consider themselves as an integral part of it. Thus, Salim and all the migrants go through this transitional process but with a very high cost: losing themselves, their identity, and the feeling of rootlessness. This paper focuses on the crisis of identity and their existential quest in this never-ending process of transformation toward political democracy and prosperity. Received: 9 February 2024 / Accepted: 19 April 2024 / Published: 5 May 2024