Topics in African Literature

3 units

Beginning with a survey of African oral narratives, then analyzing selected texts by such leading African authors as Chinua Achebe, Ngugi waThiongUo, Wole Soyinka, and Ousmane Sembene, this course will examine ways in which African narrators have represented the struggle to uphold African identity in the face of such insidious influences as individualism, colonialism and neo-colonialism. Translations from indigenous African languages will supplement the study of works originally written in English. Critical issues in African literature such as the role of literature in society and the issue of language and audience in multilingual African societies will be discussed. The course will help students understand and appreciate the distinctiveness of African culture and encourage them to explore the meaning and complexity of that experience through the eyes of African narrators.