Displacement, Identity, and Belonging Flashcards

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers key concepts, metaphors, and symbols from an Individual Oral script discussing the global issue of displacement in the works of Warsan Shire and Khalid Albaih.

Displacement

The act of being forced to leave one’s home because of war, violence, or danger, resulting in emotional instability and a struggle with identity.

Warsan Shire

A Somali-British poet whose work focuses on refugees, trauma, and identity, suggesting that displacement becomes internalised and permanently shapes a person's identity.

Khalid Albaih

A political cartoonist who uses minimalist visual imagery to present the external reality of refugees facing exclusion, danger, and impossible choices.

Home (Metaphor by Shire)

Described as the 'mouth of a shark' to reverse the association of home with safety and show that refugees are not leaving by choice.

Conversations About Home (at a Deportation Centre)

A poem by Warsan Shire that highlights how refugees experience exclusion and rejection even after escaping physical danger.

Dehumanisation

The treatment of refugees as labels or categories rather than individuals, exemplified by the rhetorical question 'are you human?' in Shire’s work.

The refugee’s heart has six chambers

An extended metaphor by Shire suggesting that trauma (family, violence, migration, fear, and survival) is stored within the body and becomes part of the identity.

Survival Mentality

A state of constant fear and readiness to flee danger, reflected in Shire's use of conditional structure such as 'if he raises his voice we will flee.'

Outer layer of assimilation

A metaphor for refugees changing external traits like language or behavior to survive, which acts as protection rather than true belonging.

Minimalism (Albaih's style)

A technique using simple visuals and minimal detail to force the audience to focus on the political message and make the issue of displacement universal.

Symbolism of burning 'human rights' papers

A visual in Albaih's work suggesting that human rights become meaningless when people are focused solely on physical survival.

Juxtaposition in 'if you stay' and 'if you leave'

A contrast used by Albaih to show that refugees often have no safe option, as both staying and leaving involve suffering and risk of death.

Symbolism of the Child (Albaih)

Represents innocence and vulnerability, emphasizing that displacement affects the most helpless members of society.

Symbolism of the Chair (Albaih)

A visual element representing home and a normal life within the context of a political cartoon.

Symbolism of Water (Albaih)

A visual element representing danger and death mentioned in the context of the migration journey.

Assimilation (Shire)

A specific poem by Warsan Shire that explores the internal emotional and psychological impact of displacement.