Arendt, Said and Ugrešić all seem to communicate a similar definition of exile; however, each uses a different brand of nuance, which is inherent in their respective experiences as exiles. Arendt’s insistence on the use of the first-person “we” from the start of her essay establishes a curious fact, that even exiles belong to a community, albeit one that is less homogeneous than those whose constituents have a stable home, family, friends, etc. to which to attach themselves. I found this sort of shocking because I think I have tended to conceive of an exiled person as an individual, cut off from society, and singular (one who resists categorization).
· “WE lost our home, which means the familiarity of daily life. We lost our occupation, which means the confidence that we are of some use I this world. We lost our language, which means the naturalness of reactions, the simplicity of gestures, the unaffected expression of feelings.”
Ugrešić, on the other hand, is concerned with the role of a writer, especially in the twentieth century, a period in which borders have moved many times over. Writing is a an act through which the exile attempts to establish order in a state of chaos, of non-belonging. For her, writing seems to be therapeutic.
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