Estonians in Canada: identity in Salme Ekbaum’s novel Külaliseks on ootus

Abstract

The present thesis analyses Salme Ekbaum’s novel Külaliseks on ootus in an attempt to explicate the problems that immigrants have with accommodating to a new country and identifying themselves. The main aim of the thesis is to find out the reasons for the two protagonists’ personal identity issues and determine what facilitates and complicates their process of adaption to Canadian society. The thesis consists of four parts: the introduction, two chapters and the conclusion. The introduction gives an overview of Estonian literature in Canada and states the importance of Ekbaum’s novel from the diasporic as well as the Canadian perspective. It introduces the author and the main characters in the novel Külaliseks on ootus. It also presents the research questions and defines the terms migration trauma and liminality.