African literature
African literature is
A common theme during the colonial period is the slave narrative, often written in English or French for western audiences. Among the first pieces of African literature to receive significant worldwide critical acclaim was Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe, published in 1958. African literature in the late colonial period increasingly feature themes of liberation and independence.
Post-colonial literature has become increasingly diverse, with some writers returning to their native languages. Common themes include the clash between past and present, tradition and modernity, self and community, as well as politics and development. On the whole, female writers are today far better represented in African literature than they were prior to independence. The internet has also changed the landscape of African literature, leading to the rise of digital reading and publishing platforms such as OkadaBooks.
Overview
As George Joseph notes in his chapter on African Literature in Understanding Contemporary Africa, whereas European views of literature stressed a separation of art and content, African awareness is inclusive and "literature" can also simply mean an artistic use of words for the sake of art alone. Traditionally, Africans do not radically separate art from teaching. Rather than write or sing for beauty in itself, African writers, taking their cue from oral literature, use beauty to help communicate important truths and information to society. An object is considered beautiful because of the truths it reveals and the communities it helps to build.[1]
Oral literature
Oral literature (or orature, the term coined by
In Algeria, oral poetry was an important part of Berber traditions when the majority of the population was illiterate. These poems, called Isefra, were used for aspects of both religious and secular life. The religious poems included devotions, prophetic stories, and poems honoring saints. The secular poetry could be about celebrations like births and weddings, or accounts of heroic warriors.[5] As another example, in Mali, oral literature or folktales continue to be broadcast on the radio in the native language Booma.[6]
Precolonial literature
Examples of
As for the
Colonial African literature
The African works best known in the West from the periods of colonization and the slave trade are primarily
In the colonial period, Africans exposed to Western languages began to write in those tongues. In
During this period, African plays written in English began to emerge. Herbert Isaac Ernest Dhlomo of South Africa published the first English-language African play, The Girl Who Killed to Save: Nongqawuse the Liberator[12] in 1935. In 1962, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o of Kenya wrote the first East African drama, The Black Hermit, a cautionary tale about "tribalism" (discrimination between African tribes).
Among the first pieces of African literature to receive significant worldwide critical acclaim was the novel Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe. Published in 1958, late in the colonial era, Things Fall Apart analysed the effect of colonialism on traditional African society.[13]
African literature in the late colonial period (between the end of
For many writers this emphasis was not restricted to their publishing. Many, indeed, suffered deeply and directly: censured for casting aside their artistic responsibilities in order to participate actively in warfare,
Postcolonial African literature
With liberation and increased literacy since most African nations gained their independence in the 1950s and 1960s, African literature has grown dramatically in quantity and in recognition, with numerous African works appearing in Western academic curricula and on "best of" lists compiled since the end of the 20th century. African writers in this period wrote both in Western languages (notably English, French, and Portuguese) and in traditional African languages such as Hausa.
In
In 1991,
Contemporary developments
There have been a lot of literary productions in Africa since the beginning of the current decade (2010), even though readers do not always follow in large numbers.
The increasing use of the internet has also changed how readers of African literature access content. This has led to the rise of digital reading and publishing platforms like OkadaBooks.[23]
Literature published in Africa
Inaugurated in 1980 and running until 2009, the Noma Award for Publishing in Africa was presented for outstanding African writers and scholars published in Africa.[24]
Notable novels by African writers
- Peter Abrahams (South Africa): Mine Boy (1946), This Island Now, A Wreath for Udomo (1956)
- No Longer At Ease (1960), Things Fall Apart (1958), A Man of the People (1966), Anthills of the Savannah(1987),
- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Nigeria): Purple Hibiscus (2003), Half of a Yellow Sun (2006), Americanah (2013)
- Chigozie Obioma (Nigeria): The Fishermen (2015), An Orchestra of Minorities (2019)
- José Eduardo Agualusa (Angola): Rainy Season, Creole, The Book of Chameleons, My Father's Wives
- Changes: a Love Story(1991)
- Germano Almeida (Cape Verde): O dia das calças roladas (1982), The Last Will and Testament of Senhor da Silva Araújo
- Elechi Amadi (Nigeria): The Concubine (1966), The Great Ponds, Sunset in Biafra
- Ayi Kwei Armah (Ghana): The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born (1968), Two Thousand Seasons (1973)
- Sefi Atta (Nigeria): Everything Good Will Come (2005)
- Ayesha Harruna Attah (Ghana): Harmattan Rain
- Une si longue lettre(So Long a Letter)
- Chris Barnard (South Africa): Bundu, Mahala
- Ishmael Beah (Sierra Leone): A Long Way Gone (2007), Radiance of Tomorrow
- Poor Christ of Bomba(1956 as Le Pauvre Christ de Bomba)
- André Brink (South Africa): 'n Droe Wit Seisoen (A Dry White Season), Gerugte van Reen (Rumours of Rain)
- Disgrace (1999), Life & Times of Michael K(1983)
- Terra Sonâmbula(Sleepwalking Land)
- Ungulani Ba Ka Khosa (Mozambique): Ualalapi (1987)
- Luís Bernardo Honwana (Mozambique): Nós Matamos O Cão-Tinhoso e Outros Contos, translated as We Killed Mangy Dog and Other Stories(1964)
- Tsitsi Dangarembga (Zimbabwe): Nervous Conditions (1988), The Book of Not (2006), This Mournable Body
- Mohammed Dib (Algeria): La grande maison
- E. K. M. Dido (South Africa): 'n Stringetjie Blou Krale (A String of Blue Beads), Die Storie van Monica Peters (The Story of Monica Peters)
- Assia Djebar (Algeria): Les Enfants du Nouveau Monde
- K. Sello Duiker (South Africa): Thirteen Cents (2000), The Quiet Violence of Dreams (2001)
- Buchi Emecheta (Nigeria): The Bride Price (1976), The Slave Girl (1977), The Joys of Motherhood (1979), Destination Biafra (1982)
- Ogboju odẹ ninu igbo irunmalẹ(The Forest of a Thousand Demons)
- Nuruddin Farah (Somalia): From a Crooked Rib (1970), Maps, Sweet and Sour Milk
- Athol Fugard (South Africa): Tsotsi
- Nadine Gordimer (South Africa): Burger's Daughter (1979), The Conservationist (1974), July's People (1981)
- A Walk in the Night(2020)
- Abdulrazak Gurnah (Tanzania): Paradise (1994), By the Sea (2001), Afterlives (2020)
- Bessie Head (Botswana): When Rain Clouds Gather (1968), Maru (1971), A Question of Power (1973)
- Moses Isegawa (Uganda): Abyssinian Chronicles (1998)
- Confessions of a Gambler
- The Sacred Night, The Sand Child (1985), This Blinding Absence of Light(2001)
- Cheikh Hamidou Kane (Senegal): L'Aventure ambiguë (1961)
- Malama Katulwende (Zambia): Bitterness (2005)
- Yasmina Khadra (Algeria): The Swallows of Kabul (2002)
- Christopher Zacharia Lameck (Tanzania): The Mythical Father, Lost, Ztraceni European Madness,
- Camara Laye (Guinea): The African Child (L'Enfant noir, 1953), The Radiance of the King (1954)
- Naguib Mahfouz (Egypt): The Beginning and the End (1949), Cairo Trilogy, Children of Gebelawi, Midaq Alley
- Charles Mangua (Kenya): Son of Woman (1971), A Tail in the Mouth
- Sarah Ladipo Manyika (Nigeria): In Dependence (2008)
- Dambudzo Marechera (Zimbabwe): The House of Hunger (1978)
- Dalene Matthee (South Africa): Kringe in 'n bos (Circles in a Forest)
- Zakes Mda (South Africa): Ways of Dying (1995), The Heart of Redness
- Thomas Mofolo (South Africa/Lesotho): Chaka (1925)
- Nadifa Mohamed (Somalia) Black Mamba Boy (2010), The Orchard of Lost Souls (2013), The Fortune Men (2021)
- Bai Tamia Moore (Liberia): Murder in the Cassava Patch(1968)
- Fadhy Mtanga (Tanzania): Kizungumkuti, Huba, Fungate
- Going Down River Road (1976), Kill Me Quick(1973)
- Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o (Kenya): A Grain of Wheat (1967), Matigari (1986), Petals of Blood (1977), Weep Not, Child (1964), Wizard of the Crow (2006)
- Underground People(2002)
- Flora Nwapa (Nigeria): Efuru (1966), Idu (1970), One is Enough, Never Again, Women are Different
- Nnedi Okorafor (Nigeria): Zahrah the Windseeker (2005)
- Ben Okri (Nigeria): The Famished Road (1991), Songs of Enchantment (1993)
- Deon Opperman (South Africa): Donkerland (Dark Land), Kruispad (Crossroad), Hartland (Heartland)
- Yambo Ouologuem (Mali): Le Devoir de Violence (Bound to Violence)
- Cry, The Beloved Country(1948)
- Pepetela (Angola) : Muana Puó, Mayombe, A Gloriosa Família (1997)
- Sol Plaatje (South Africa): Mhudi (1930)
- Nawal El Saadawi (Egypt): Woman at Point Zero (1975)
- Tayeb Salih (Sudan): Season of Migration to the North (1966)
- Wilton Sankawulo (Liberia): Birds Are Singing
- Karel Schoeman (South Africa): n Ander Land (Another Country), Na die Geliefde Land (Promised Land)
- Olive Schreiner (South Africa): The Story of an African Farm (1883)
- Benjamin Sehene (Rwanda): Le Feu sous la Soutane (Fire under the Cassock)
- Ousmane Sembène (Senegal): Xala (1973), The Black Docker (Le Docker Noir), God's Bits of Wood (Les Bouts de Bois de Dieu), The Last of the Empire (Le dernier de l'Empire), Tribal Scars (Voltaïque), (1962)
- Seasons of Anomy (1973), Chronicles from the Land of the Happiest People on Earth(2021)
- The Palm Wine Drinkard (1952), My Life in the Bush of Ghosts(1954), Simbi and the Satyr of the Dark Jungle, Feather Woman of the Jungle, The Witch-Herbalist of the Remote Town, Ajaiyi and his Inherited Poverty
- Marlene van Niekerk (South Africa): Triomf (Triumph, 1994)
- Yvonne Vera (Zimbabwe): Butterfly Burning (1998)
- José Luandino Vieira (Angola): Luuanda (1963)
- Joseph Jeffrey Walters (Liberia): Guanya Pau: A Story of an African Princess(1891)
- Berhanu Zerihun (Ethiopia): Ye'imba debdabbéwoch ("Tearful Letters")
Notable African poets
- Chinua Achebe (Nigeria)
- Ama Ata Aidoo (Ghana)
- Jared Angira (Kenya)
- Kofi Anyidoho (Ghana)
- Kofi Awoonor (Ghana)
- Fadhy Mtanga (Tanzania)
- Breyten Breytenbach (South Africa)
- Dennis Brutus (South Africa)
- Abena Busia (Ghana)
- John Pepper Clark(Nigeria)
- José Craveirinha (Mozambique)
- Viriato Clemente da Cruz(Angola)
- Hadraawi(Somalia)
- Ingrid Jonker (South Africa)
- Jonathan Kariara (Kenya)
- Susan Kiguli(Uganda)
- Ahmadou Kourouma (Ivory Coast)
- Antjie Krog (South Africa)
- Mumbi Macharia (Kenya)
- Jack Mapanje (Malawi)
- Eugene Marais(South Africa)
- Don Mattera (South Africa)
- Bai Tamia Moore(Liberia)
- Micere Githae Mugo (Kenya)
- Togara Muzanenhamo (Zimbabwe)
- Christopher Mwashinga (Tanzania)
- Arthur Nortje (South Africa)
- Gabriel Okara (Nigeria)
- Nii Parkes (Ghana)
- Christopher Okigbo (Nigeria)
- Ben Okri (Nigeria)
- Marjorie Oludhe Macgoye (Kenya)
- Okot p'Bitek (Uganda)
- Gambia)
- Dada Masiti (Somalia)
- Jean-Joseph Rabearivelo (Madagascar)
- Jacques Rabemananjara (Madagascar)
- Elie Rajaonarison (Madagascar)
- Ny Avana Ramanantoanina (Madagascar)
- Jean Verdi Salomon Razakandraina (Dox) (Madagascar)
- David Rubadiri (Malawi, Uganda)
- Tijan Sallah (Gambia)
- Dina Salústio (Cabo Verde)
- Léopold Sédar Senghor (Senegal)
- Bewketu Seyoum (Ethiopia)
- Warsan Shire
- Adam Small(South Africa)
- Wole Soyinka (Nigeria)
- Véronique Tadjo (Ivory Coast)
- Arménio Vieira (Cape Verde)
- Patricia Jabbeh Wesley (Liberia)
See also
- African cinema
- African language material archive[25]
- African-American literature
- Asian literature
- Caine Prize for African Writing
- European literature
- Grand Prix of Literary Associations
- International Research Confederacy on African Literature and Culture
- Latin-American literature
- Liberian literature
- List of African novelists
- List of African writers by country
- Literature by country
- Nigerian literature
- Oceanian literature
- Poetry in Africa
- South African literature
- The Journal of Commonwealth Literature
References
- ^ Joseph (1996), p. 304.
- ^ George, Joseph, "African Literature", in Gordon and Gordon, Understanding Contemporary Africa (1996), ch. 14, p. 303.
- ^ "African literature" at info-please.
- ^ Gunner, E., and H. Scheub (2018), "African Literature". Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
- ^ Aoudjit, A. (2017). Algerian literature : A reader's guide and anthology (Francophone cultures and literatures; v. 66). New York, NY: Peter Lang Publishing, p. 77.
- S2CID 144077902.
- ^ African Literature - MSN Encarta. Archived from the original on 28 October 2009. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
- ^ "Timbuktu Manuscripts Project Description" (PDF). uio.no. 1 January 2003. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 May 2006. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
- ^ Schulz, Matthias; Anwen Roberts (1 August 2008). "The Rush to Save Timbuktu's Crumbling Manuscripts". spiegel.de. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
- ^ "Ancient Manuscripts from the Desert Libraries of Timbuktu | Exhibitions - Library of Congress". Loc.gov. 27 July 2010. Retrieved 25 July 2014.
- ^ Newell, Stephanie, Literary Culture in Colonial Ghana: 'How to Play the Game of Life' , Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press, 2002, p. 135, ch. 7, "Ethical Fiction: J.E. Casely Hayford's Ethiopia Unbound".
- OCLC 6680037.
- ^ Elizabeth, Marie (22 March 2013). "Humble beginnings of Chinua Achebe's 'Things Fall Apart'". The Washington Post. Retrieved 25 July 2014.
- ^ Leopold Senghor - MSN Encarta. Archived from the original on 31 October 2009.
- Daniel P. Kunene and Jan Vansina.
- ^ Mugo, Delfhin (5 October 2020). "The AKO Caine Prize for African Writing is a Literary Institution Built to Last". Brittle Paper. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
- ^ "La littérature africaine est en mouvement" (African literature is on the move): Africultures.com
- ^ This article compares the "rebellious" style of a young author (Eric Mendi) with the more classical style of Alain Mabanckou: Jeuneafrique.com
- ^ Bieloe, Latifa (28 May 2017). "Belgique::African Literature: Between Geniuses Affluence and Criticism Shortage::Belgium". Camer.be.
- ^ This prize receives books in three languages (Spanish, English and French), the books are proposed to the Jury by literary associations: Bellanaija.com
- ^ Udenwe, Obinna (13 February 2018). "The Rise of Brittle Paper: The Village Square of African Literature". The Village Square Journal. Retrieved 20 August 2019.
- ^ Shringarpure, Bhakti (4 January 2021). "African Literature and Digital Culture". Los Angeles Review of Books. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
- S2CID 233832700.
- ^ Jay, Mary (23 June 2006), "25 Years of the Noma Award for Publishing in Africa: an historic overview", The African Book Publishing Record, Volume 32, Issue 2, pp. 116–118, ISSN (Print) 0306-0322, DOI: 10.1515/ABPR.2006.116, 2 January 2008.
- ^ "African Language Materials Archive (ALMA)". msustatewide.msu.edu. Archived from the original on 21 May 2021. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
Bibliography
- Werku, Dagnachew, The Thirteenth Sun, 1968.
- Berhanemariam, Sahlesillasse, The Warrior King, 1974.
- Moore, Gerald (1980). Twelve African Writers. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. ISBN 9780253196194.
- Alain Ricard (1987). "Museum, Mausoleum, or Market: The Concept of National Literature". JSTOR 4618186.
- JSTOR 4618185.
- Daughters of Africa: An International Anthology of Words and Writings by Women of African Descent from the Ancient Egyptian to the Present, Jonathan Cape, 1992.
- Mazrui, Ali A. (ed.), General History of Africa, vol. VIII, UNESCO, 1993, ch. 19, Ali A. Mazrui et al., "The development of modern literature since 1935".
- Marvin x. Black theatre: a periodical of the black theatre movement, New York: 1994
- Gordon, April A., and Donald L. Gordon, Understanding Contemporary Africa, London: Lynne Rienner, 1996, ch. 12, George Joseph, "African Literature".
- Gikandi, Simon (ed.), Encyclopedia of African Literature, London: Routledge, 2003.
- Irele, Abiola, and Simon Gikandi (eds),The Cambridge History of African and Caribbean Literature, 2 vols, Cambridge [u.a.]: Cambridge University Press, 2004. Table of contents
- Shamim, Amna. Gynocentric Contours of the Male Imagination: A Study of the Novels of Chinua Achebe and Ngugi wa Thiong'o. New Delhi: Idea Publishing, 2017. ISBN 9788193326978
External links
- Things We Inherited: Voices from Africa Cordite Poetry Review
- New African Literature resource
- The Africa_(Bookshelf) at Project Gutenberg
- African Literature Association
- African Literature Reviews Archived 2021-05-23 at the Wayback Machine
- "(Literature)". AfricaBib.org. (Bibliography)