From Old World Syndrome to History: Understanding the Past in Askold Melnyczuk’s Ambassador of the Dead
Journal: Kyiv-Mohyla Humanities Journal
Year: 2019

Askold Melnyczuk’s novel Ambassador of the Dead (2001) narrates the process through which a second-generation, assimilated American learns to comprehend the Ukrainian historical experience of his family and their generation. This article argues that the novel is centrally concerned with Nick’s learning process: as he begins to better understand his parents’ generation, he transforms his own identity. As a child, Nick is unable to see Ada — his friend’s mother, who is haunted by traumatic experie