Volume IV Special Issue VII September 2024

Name of Author : Arijit Mondal

Title of the paper : Fluid Histories: Diaspora and Memory in Derek Walcotts The Sea Is History

Abstract: Derek Walcotts The Sea Is History presents the ocean as a vast, fluid archive of diasporic memory, where the histories of African and Caribbean people are both submerged and preserved. This paper explores how Walcott reclaims and reinterprets the fragmented, often erased histories of the African diaspora through the metaphor of the sea. By asserting that the sea is history, Walcott challenges conventional historical narratives and emphasises the ocean’s role as a carrier of cultural memory, identity, and trauma. The poems imagery of waves and tides reflects the ongoing process of cultural fusion and identity formation within the diaspora. Through a close reading of the poem, this paper examines how Walcott navigates the complexities of diasporic memory, offering a nuanced understanding of history as something both elusive and ever-present, shaped by the rhythms of the sea and the collective experiences of displacement and survival.

Keywords : Diaspora, Memory, History, Ocean, Identity

DOI :

Page Number : 33-38