Memory, History, and Storytelling in M.G. Vassanji’s The Gunny Sack and Abdulrazak Gurnah’s The Last Gift

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Comparative analysis reveals how memory and narrative function in postcolonial storytelling, suggesting cultural continuity and healing.

Memory serves as a crucial element in reconstructing displaced histories in both novels, emphasizing cultural continuity.
Vassanji’s metaphor equates the gunny sack with a repository for personal memories, contrasting with Gurnah’s portrayal of oral storytelling's fragility.
Narrative techniques explore the connection between trauma and intergenerational memory, highlighting silences in historical records.
Literature acts as an alternative archive, preserving marginalized voices and memories that challenge colonial historiography.

Khushboo Thakur (2025) studied this question.

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