“Multi-Identities” uncovered: the (de)Construction of the cultural self in Aura Imbarus’ Out of the Transylvania Night
“Multi-Identities” uncovered: the (de)Construction of the cultural self in Aura Imbarus’ Out of the Transylvania Night

Summary/Abstract: Functioning primarily as an ideology of diversity, multiculturalism is meant to offer the functional framework within which group identities can (fruitfully) manifest themselves. What happens, however, when multiculturalism becomes a tool of deconstructing and even shattering identity? The present paper explores the multi-layered phenomenon of cultural adaptation, hegemony, and interference in Aura Imbarus’ autobiographical novel “Out of the Transylvania Night” – the recollection of a Romanian immigrant to the United States and of the almost Kafkaesque cultural metamorphosis and rebirth experienced by the author in the aftermath of a fascinating journey into the very depths of identity (de)construction. In tracing the social and emotional coordinates of this “journey inwards” we will resort to Bhikhu Parekh’s discussion of the three essential types of cultural diversity: diversity of subculture, of community and of perspective. Our aim is to prove that in an increasingly globalized world a new perspective upon the individual is called for. Is the self the key element which conveys identity to the group, or does the feeling of belonging to a community create the general framework for defining and reshaping personal identity?

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