The migratory journey. A humanist perspective

Abstract

This article proposes an insight into how migrants face the migrant journey. With the aim of analysing this subject matter, we referred to three of the most emblematic autobiographies in the field of migrant literature, namely: Io, venditore di elefanti, by Pap Khouma (1990), Ama il tuo sogno. Vita e rivolta nella terra dell’oro rosso by Yvan Sagnet (2012), and Il deserto negli occhi by Ibrahim Kane Annour (2013). These are the first-hand testimonies that allowed us to examine in depth the different stages of a migrant journey: from the preparations to the way back; going through the departure, the transit per se, and the settlement in the new territory. For the migrants, not only this journey is the expression of the need to improve their living conditions, but, at the same time, it also represents a path that leads them to an inner growth, and to the knowledge of themselves and of the Other. Moreover, while reading these testimonies, the reader is brought to the dimension of the otherness, thus becoming able to experience empathy and sharing.

Keywords

• viaggio
• migrazione
• alterità
• letteratura migrante
• autobiografia