Aiding Latinas claim their stories, this study
focuses on the experience of migration. The women who
shared their stories were found to be Seekers who
believe that the process of migration has enriched
them despite the hardships it entails. Although they
often still feel as if they belong neither here-in
their adoptive country-nor there in their country of
origin these women continue to search for home.
A weaving of their stories of migration was
interpreted through the lens of the tale of The Ugly
Duckling by Hans Christian Andersen. Like the
immigrants'' this tale is a story of separation and
loss. It thus helps place the Latinas journey within
a universal, archetypal context and view their
stories against a mythological framework. Since the
heroic quest portrayed by the tale of the Ugly
Duckling is an archetypal pattern or blueprint of the
process of individuation, seeing an immigrant s
journey through this lens helps situate her personal
experiences within the larger human journey. In light
of this tale, these women are seen as heroines in a
quest, one that could, in the end, lead them to
individuation: healing their wounds and returning
them Home.
focuses on the experience of migration. The women who
shared their stories were found to be Seekers who
believe that the process of migration has enriched
them despite the hardships it entails. Although they
often still feel as if they belong neither here-in
their adoptive country-nor there in their country of
origin these women continue to search for home.
A weaving of their stories of migration was
interpreted through the lens of the tale of The Ugly
Duckling by Hans Christian Andersen. Like the
immigrants'' this tale is a story of separation and
loss. It thus helps place the Latinas journey within
a universal, archetypal context and view their
stories against a mythological framework. Since the
heroic quest portrayed by the tale of the Ugly
Duckling is an archetypal pattern or blueprint of the
process of individuation, seeing an immigrant s
journey through this lens helps situate her personal
experiences within the larger human journey. In light
of this tale, these women are seen as heroines in a
quest, one that could, in the end, lead them to
individuation: healing their wounds and returning
them Home.