Negotiating Belonging: Racial Borders and the Migrant Voice in Mira Jacob’s Good Talk: A Memoir in Conversations
Lublin Studies in Modern Languages and Literature, cilt.50, sa.2, ss.31-43, 2026 (Scopus)
- Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
- Cilt numarası: 50 Sayı: 2
- Basım Tarihi: 2026
- Doi Numarası: 10.17951/lsmll.2026.50.2.31-43
- Dergi Adı: Lublin Studies in Modern Languages and Literature
- Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Scopus, Central & Eastern European Academic Source (CEEAS), Linguistic Bibliography, MLA - Modern Language Association Database, MLA International Bibliography, EBSCO Communication Source, Communication Source (EBSCO)
- Sayfa Sayıları: ss.31-43
- Anahtar Kelimeler: graphic memoir, identity, migration, post-9/11, racial belonging
- Açık Arşiv Koleksiyonu: AVESİS Açık Erişim Koleksiyonu
- Erciyes Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet
Özet
This article examines Mira Jacob’s Good Talk: A Memoir in Conversations as a contemporary migrant narrative that negotiates racial belonging in post-9/11 America through visual minimalism, fragmented dialogue, and intergenerational exchange. In this graphic memoir, Jacob shares the daily conversations she has with her son, which form the point of departure for the work. Situating the memoir within the socio-political climate shaped by intensified surveillance, racial profiling, and populist rhetoric, the study explores how everyday family conversations become sites where identity, fear, and belonging are continuously negotiated. The narration mostly follows Jacob’s dialogues with her young biracial son, Z, as well as with family, friends, and partners. These moments of dialogue, filled with humour, frustration, and doubt, offer insight into how racialised individuals search for belonging in a society that often excludes or misrepresents them.