Overview

The Nigerian novelist, Chinua Achebe, is an outstanding figure in modern African literature whose works can be taken as an early literary attempt to move toward de-colonization. What distinguishes Achebe's novels is the way he relies on notions of 'Otherness' and 'hybridity' in constructing his alternative non-Eurocentric discourse. Achebe provides an alternative discourse which depicts not only an authentic picture of native African life in all of its complexity, but also develops dynamic native characters. These real-life black characters grapple with existential conflicts; they also contemplate and reflect on what has been affecting their pre-colonial African identity. Through a study of four novels, Things Fall Apart, No Longer at Ease, Arrow of God, and A Man of People, this work investigates how Achebe constructs this alternative discourse; a discourse which successfully provides voices through which the colonized can speak. This enables the reader to better understand their world and what they have confronted because of colonization. As each novel focuses on a different colonial or postcolonial phase in Nigeria and as Achebe has made use of different discursive strategies in each of them, characterizing them as a tetralogy and studying them together provides a vivid and comprehensive analysis of Achebe's discourse. This also reveals what his novels seek to mirror about the hybridity of Nigerian identity and the struggles faced by the colonized in contending with 'otherness' and difference.

Full Product Details

9781863351775

Table of Contents

Reviews

Author Information

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available