This article focuses on the condition of exile and its influence on Berberova's self-representation in her work The italics are mine. In order to represent herself and the circle of literary exiles she was part of, Berberova pictures the exiles as individuals in a world that ignore them, making them feel isolated. The acme of such a situation is the status of stateless person, a stamp on the passport perceived as a mark of hostility stated by France against the Russian exiles. Despite having nurtured experiences of intellectual and cultural growth, especially in the pre-war period, Paris is perceived by Berberova as home to tensions and anxiety both within the Russian circles and in the relationship with the French world and culture. The United States, on the contrary, after quite a difficult period of adaptation, are described as a place of reconciliation where the deepest spiritual needs, linked to the devotion to literature and Russian culture, can finally came to life again. Thanks to her writing Berberova manages - at least ideally - to come back home, to reunite with the destiny of her homeland while, defining her own identity, she ties an unbreakable bond with Russia recalling her motherland through the words of her beloved Pushkin and Blok.
