Abstract

This paper presents the results of a comparative study which investigated the narrative structures shaping the topic «migration» and its imagery into a literary discourse in four recent works of German and Italian literature. Suggesting a definition of «migration literature» based on the explicit narrativized topic and on the author's legitimation strategies, rather than on their biography, this study shows how the four works employ comparable formal strategies. These strategies go beyond linguistic differences to construct a counter-narrative of the official discourse on migration. Thereby, the paper encourages a re-evaluation of the categories typically employed to investigate these works, while proposing a textual, transnational understanding, founded on their comparable conception as counter-narratives.