Spatial Confinement and Identity Formation in Victoria Hislops The Island

Abstract

This paper examines the interplay between spatial confinement and psychological liberation in Victoria Hislops The Island through
Henri Lefebvres spatial triad. Analyzing the leper colony of Spinalonga as both a physical quarantine zone and a metaphorical "heterotopia,"
the study reveals how characters negotiate survival, valuable predicaments and evolution across generations. While Eleni and Maria transform
institutionalized oppression into sites of resilience, Annas rebellion and Sofias flight expose the fractures in traditional Greek patriarchy. Ultimately, Alexiss synthesis of ancestral memory and modern individualism demonstrates how Hislop reconfigures Foucaults "biopolitics of
space" into a narrative of emancipatory identity formation. The novels spatial allegory offers a lens to interrogate contemporary discourses on
disease stigma and cultural belonging.