The Case of Otherness in Young American Prose — on the Distinctness, Multiculturalism and Ethnical Problems in Selected Short Novels from the Collection of Stories „Granta 97 — Best of Young American Novelists 2”

Abstrakt

The Case of Otherness in Young American Prose— on the Distinctness, Multiculturalism and Ethnical Problems in Selected Short Novels from the Collection of Stories Granta 97 — Best of Young American Novelists 2

The article considers the cases of otherness, multiculturalism and ethnicity as presented in selected short stories gathered in the Polish edition of the collection of stories published by Granta in 2007 — Best of Young American Novelists 2. The collection consists of twenty-one works carefully selected by asix-member jury chaired by Ian Jack. Through the prism of three works by authors: Nell Freudenberger, Uzodinma Iweala and Jess Row the author highlights the notion of diversity and the concept of the Other. The analyzed pieces of literature show that ethnicity, migration, distinctness and multiculturalism are not only objects of the author’s interest but they might also mirror the tensions in the modern American society. Invoking classical theorists of multiculturalism, the author sees the otherness as asource of both interest and uncertainty of literary heroes.