『ナイフの発音の仕方』における主人公のラオス人としての思い

抄録

　How to Pronounce Knife is a collection of 14 short stories by Souvankham Thammavongsa. The text contains common motifs that speak to the experiences of immigrants from Laos, such as yearning for a sense of home and feelings of alienation. The stories “Randy Travis” and “Mani Pedi” strongly depict a nostalgia for home. In the titular story “How to Pronounce Knife,” the protagonist Joy, whose parents are Laotian refugees, refuses to admit that the “k” in “knife” is silent as per the grammatical rule of Lao. This persistence reflects her pride in the culture of Laos, symbolized by Lao, and the richness of the culture inherited by her ancestors, even when she has run the risk of sacrificing a sense of belonging to the society in which she lives now.