Leaving

1. Nowadays, many immigrants have moved to America(north, central, and south) for many reasons, searching for a fresh start. My family was one of them. I was born in Egypt and lived there for six years of my life. My family’s decision to immigrate to Canada was basically for my future. At that time, the state of the Egyptian government was very unstable, the economy was poor and there were many problems between Christians and Muslims in the country. Also, the education system in Egypt is not one of the best in the world. So, thinking of my future, my parents decided to immigrate to Canada. I have been living here for 12 years now. My country will always be the best to my eyes but I have to say my place is in Canada. In one’s life, it is highly likely that one will hear somebody say “I've been lucky to have some great opportunities acting with some great people since leaving my country” or “ I have certainly been kept busy since leaving the street!” talking about how much his life is better in another country. In M.G. Vassanji’s short story, “Leaving” we followed the plot which took place in Tanzania in the 21st century. The story gives a clear representation of immigrant’s lives, their motives and their most dominant struggles. The story can be perceived from many different angles with the use of context, the character’s evolution, the language used and the plot.

The origin of “ Uhuru Street” and more specifically of “Leaving” has much to do with the origin of M.G. Vassanji. Vassanji is a Canadian writer of Indian identity. He was born in Kenya and spent his early years in the south of Asia, in Tanzania. In his written pieces, he concentrates on the situation of south Asians living in Africa. There, we can already see a direct link of vassanji’s life and the people he writes about. Much like Aloo in “Leaving”, he even received a scholarship to the university of Massachusetts. In his stories, Vassanji analyzes the lives of those people, which are affected by