Gendered Migration Experiences in Laila Lalami’s The Other Americans (2019) and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Americanah (2013)

Abstract

This study explores the complexities of gendered migration, focusing on the experiences of migrant women and their negotiation of identity within new cultural contexts in The Other Americans by Laila Lalami and Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. It explores how the two novels challenge the notion of migration as a gender-neutral process. In this study, we argue that both texts suggest that gendered constructs significantly shape every stage of the migratory experience. The study employs a feminist intersectional lens focusing on the intersections of gender, race, class, ethnicity, and sexuality and their role in shaping migrant women’s experiences. The study finds that migrant women face unique challenges related to cultural expectations, familial obligations, racial and gender discrimination, and workplace exploitation. Special attention is given to themes of cultural adaptation, intergenerational conflict, racial discrimination, gender oppression, and the reclamation of identity. The analysis also reveals the resilience and agency of migrant women, demonstrating how they strategically navigate these challenges through resistance, self-assertion, and the formation of new hybrid identities. The central aim is to contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of gendered migration, challenging simplistic narratives and highlighting the contradictions inherent in migrant women’s experiences.