ROUTES TO ROOTS: NEGOTIATING IDENTITY IN MICHAEL ONDAATJE’S RUNNING IN THE FAMILY

The paper examines themes related to transnational migration and the multiple problems migrants face such as loneliness, alienation, identity crisis, cultural assimilation, etc. They may be completely engrossed in their struggle to make a home of the new world, the connection with the native land however remains intact even if ignored, suppressed, trivialized and hidden. At the back of mind, the thought is always there about the kind of stories they would relate on returning to the native land.The paper follows Michael Ondaatje travelling along multiple routes to roots as recorded in his semi-autobiographical memoir Running in The Family(1982). The book is primarily about Ondaatje’s quest to reconnect with the memory of his father. While doing so, he finds himself also grappling with issues related to identity in the process of becoming. The paper explores how telling of the story leads to a healing of self and a reconstituting of identity at home in the transnational, transcultural world.