Interpretation

“Not Wanted” by Maggie Cobbett is a short story constructed around a flashback plot about a young Turkish man named Osman who ends up a migrant in Britain, after he follows a British tourist with whom he had an affair in Turkey.

As you have seen in previous sections, the story is about cultural differences and migrant life, about pride and the nature of young love. When you analyse and interpret the text, you should also remember to discuss its title in relation to plot and themes. “Not Wanted” sounds like an ironic reversed advertisement and refers to Osman’s situation. Consider how job adds sound usually like “help wanted”. Osman’s circumstances were quite the opposite. Even though he went through a lot of trouble to travel illegally to Britain after Liz, it turned out that the woman did not really want to be with him. Furthermore, Britain did not want him – symbolically - as his illegal migrant status shows it. Lastly, when he looks for a job in Leeds in the first days he is also met...