Bodies as Crisis: A Foucauldian Discourse Analysis of Dystopian Migration in Exit West by Mohsin Hamid

Abstract

This paper examines how migrant bodies become sites of crisis within contemporary migration narratives. It analyses the intersections of power, surveillance, and violence in a postcolonial, globalized context, applying Foucauldian discourse analysis to Mohsin Hamid’s Exit West. The study explores how disciplinary power regulates and normalizes migrants through mechanisms of control, including surveillance and the panoptic gaze imposed by host nations. Focusing on key themes such as border crossings, refugee camps, and displacement, the paper highlights the marginalization and objectification of migrant bodies through Foucault’s theory of power. It argues that modern global systems perpetuate new forms of domination and control, shaping migrants’ experiences of vulnerability and identity. Ultimately, the analysis reveals how structural violence and global governance transform migration into a dystopian condition of crisis.