Partir et arriver

Abstract

The aim of this article is to pay tribute to the Spanish writer Antonio Lozano (1956-2019), whose novels of African immigration to Spain, Harraga (2002), Donde mueren los ríos (2003) and Me llamo Suleimán (2014), will be re-read. We will examine the way in which the author constructs the narrative of the migrant protagonist-narrator, who relates his own adventure and bears witness to the other painful fates he has crossed on his way. The main action is thus interspersed with countless micro-accounts of other migration experiences. The secondary characters thus come to the fore. Two terms articulate these stories: leaving and arriving, the two terms that define any journey. The third term, returning, is deliberately omitted in the title of this article as it is by the characters. What are the different forms taken by this tragedy of the impossible return?

Keywords

• Antonio Lozano
• Spanish novel
• migrants