Displacement and Identity Crisis in Ghassan Kanafani’s Returning to Haifa

Abstract

Utilizing an interdisciplinary approach, we investigate the numerous, nuanced effects of displacement on individuals and communities through its profound impact on identity. Centering around themes of exile and displacement resulting from occupation, we discuss the series of events that take place in Palestine in 1948 through the lens of Kanafani's novella Returning to Haifa. We examine the various ways occupation shapes both individual and national identity in the novella by exploring the struggles its characters face as they grapple with the loss of their homeland, but also in some cases their remarkable perseverance in preserving their cultural heritage amid numerous attempts to assimilate them and, otherwise, erase their identity. We dissect the Zionist imperialist mindset to reveal how it embodies a quest for dominance and the elimination of indigenous Palestinian identity. We walk the reader through a case study of Palestinian exile-- a result of occupation and ethnic cleansing -- which culminates in a loss of Palestinian authenticity and sense of belonging. This article not only contributes interdisciplinary insight into the thorny issue of displacement, but also, by focusing on its profound negative effects on identity, we further emphasize the necessity of recognizing and halting its destructive march.