The Myth of the Inside when One feels like an Outsider
Moving to another country, region, organisation or family often arouses strong feelings of separation and a sense of being an outsider. Regardless of the open-ness and how we experience the so-called ‘Inside Group’, the experience of belonging or not belonging is a highly existential experience and one not easily understood by theories of emigration or change. But what does it mean to belong or not, to feel accepted or an outsider?
There are huge individual differences in reponses to change and emigration particularly brrngs up powerful responses of existential otherness which the sufferer often has not anticipated. Enormous feelings of nostalgia or seeking similarities arises, with criticism or judgement often levelled at the host country. The latter of course may be a projection of our anxiety and an attempt to make sense of the feelings of alienation and the unfixed nature of ourselves and the worlds which we inhabit.
Similar Posts:
