Abstract
AbstractThe material examined in this chapter; the essay collections The Good Immigrant (2017) and The Good Immigrant USA (2020) as well as Imbolo Mbue’s novel Behold the Dreamers (2017), address the topic of expectations and aspirations in personal, relational, cultural, societal, and political contexts. The titles of the collections reveal complex forces at play: the ‘good’ immigrant is represented as encountering prejudice and stereotyping along the way, caught between aspirations and expectations on all sides, many of which are more limiting than encouraging. Mbue’s novel offers a fictional account of the struggling African migrant without legal residence permit, versus their wealthy, somewhat ignorant employer. The texts examined revolve around migration as a choice, often in search of better prospects. The United States is represented in both essay collections as well as in Mbue’s novel as the land of hopes and dreams, the place to go in search of careers, wealth, and futures.
Publisher
Springer Nature Switzerland
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