The Mystery of Arrival: (A Novel by V.S. Naipaul)

Author: V.S. Naipaul
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features: The Enigma of Arrival is one of Naipaul's most representative novels. The protagonist narrates in the first person, and the "strange land" he finds himself in is the picturesque, ancient countryside of England. The traveler, residing in the manor of the estate, witnesses the decline of people and affairs within the manor. The traveler moves between the colonial homeland and the manor in the English countryside. In his lightly sketched narration, the history of the colonized is set against the remnants of the empire's decline. The protagonist's experiences and inner journey are no less than a reflection of Naipaul's own life. The Enigma of Arrival is also the title of a painting by the Italian surrealist painter Giorgio de Chirico. The painting depicts "a dock; in the background, behind walls and gates (like cut-out patterns), a part of an ancient ship's mast is visible; in the foreground, an empty street has two people wrapped in robes—one may be someone who has just arrived, and the other may be a local from the port. A desolate and mysterious scene: it conveys the mystery of arrival." The traveler arrives in a foreign place and begins his life in the strange land. Gradually, he realizes that he cannot find a way out in this life in the strange land, and thus he develops the desire to return home. He hurries back to the dock where he first arrived in the strange land, only to find that the ancient ship that brought him here has vanished, and he cannot leave even if he wants to. Traveling to a foreign place and being unable to escape, the trajectory of the journey is a fate that cannot be changed. Leaving the island seems like a choice; arrival seems like a destiny. As the descendant of colonial people, Naipaul plays the role of a traveler who constantly roams the colonial society. The Enigma of Arrival can be seen as some kind of defense of such an ambiguous role. This book is autobiographical. Naipaul transforms his own life into writing material, depicting his great migration from Trinidad to England and his quiet life in a manor in the south of England with a colonial background. The words are filled with his deep love for the rural canyons. It is the story of a colonial resident who has taken root on the ancient land of the oppressor.