DOCSLIB.ORG

Political Reading of Dangarembga's Nervous Conditions

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Political Reading of Dangarembga's Nervous Conditions Language Circle: Journal of Language and Literature 14(2) April 2020 P-ISSN 1858-0157 Available online at http://journal.unnes.ac.id/nju/index.php/LC E-ISSN 2460-853X Political Reading of Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions Majed Alenezi Northern Border University, Saudi Arabia Email: [email protected] Abstract This paper explores Tsitsi Dangarembga’s debut novel, Nervous Conditions, from a political perspective. It has been read as portraying of gender relationships, social hierarchies and oppression of African women. This paper takes a different route as it analyses the role of masculinities through a political perspective. The conflict and struggle between genders in the text can be read through a political and historical perspective. This particular reading is permitted through a close analysis of the male characters in the novel. The research argues that male characters resemble or behave in away similar to white colonizers in their treatment of African women. Reading the novel through a political perspective provides the reader with the benefit of understanding the changes that occur in the characters and the role of gender conflict in the text. The triumph of Tambu and Nyasha at the end underscores the failure of colonial power to colonize Zimbabwe. Keywords: Tsitsi Dangarembga/ postcolonial, African literature/ feminist literary criticism. INTRODUCTION people is hardly mentioned in the novel. There is no obvious struggle between the white colonizers Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions and the indigenous African people. According to (1988) is considered a masterwork of modern Af- Sugnet Zimbabwean male authors wrote in the rican literature. It is the first English novel written late 1980s “foreground the chimurenga struggle by a black Zimbabwean woman. The work was for national liberation, Nervous Conditions barely completed in 1984, but it was rejected by local mentioned it” (33). Searle believes that Danga- publishers as it touches upon highly sensitive sub- rembga goes far above the immediate level of jects in African society. “For four years Danga- British colonization found in Things Fall Apart. rembga was rejected by Zimbabwean publishers Many critics have analysed the text through gen- whose attitudes to her writing were that she was der relationships, social hierarchies and oppressi- too much of a feminist” (Tendai 22). After its on of African women, simultaneously male cha- publication, the novel has achieved international racters in the text are only considered in terms success. It has become one of the most important of their interactions with female characters. This literary texts in African literature. Nowadays, the paper takes a different route as it analyses the role text is taught at Zimbabwe schools. Even though of masculinities through a political perspective. Nervous Conditions is a fictional literary work, the The conflict and struggle between genders in the novel’s prestige rests in part on its realistic scenes text can be read through a political and historical of actions and events. The locale of the novel perspective. This particular reading is permitted and the social context are unmistakably the ear- through a close analysis of the male characters ly colonial period of an African community. The in the novel. The research argues that male cha- novel’s internal narrative is set in the late 1960s racters resemble or behaves in away similar to and early 1970s. The author does not build her white colonizers in their treatment of African theme, characters, dialogues, conflicts and plot women. Viewed from a political perspective, the strictly around particular historical events. Yet, female characters signify the colonized nation the characters in the text are caught in a speci- (Rhodesia), whereas male characters represent fic historical and social framework. The female the British Empire. “Dangarembga’s heroine narrator represents the past and present of the suggests that women can reproduce the nation as African community. She reveals both the negative intellectual subjects not just as embodied ones” and positive facets of the traditional and colonial (Stone 113). Yet, there are significant differences experiences. between the white colonizer and African male, The colonial experience as an encoun- since the latter is a product of the former. “Ner- ter between European forces and the colonized vous Conditions nevertheless, shows clearly how Language Circle: Journal of Language and Literature 14(2) April 2020 those men are themselves products of the colo- Colonial domination in Tambu’s world nial system” (Sugnet 36). The other difference manifests itself in all aspects of social life, such as between the two is that African male has an am- defining the age at which African children should bivalent role in the text as colonized and coloni- start school, maintaining a racist agenda against zer. Due to the limitation of space and time, this the indigenes in educational institutions [....] and paper concentrates mainly on Babamukuru and using the selective nature of its educational sys- the two young girls Nyasha and Tambudzai. Yet, tems to limit the educated indigenous population other characters are brought into light to support (79). the above claim. Furthermore, Uwakweh argues that Dan- garembga as a postcolonial writer has shown LITERATURE RIVIEW some political concerns about major issues such as the value of Western education and the exp- Nervous Conditions recounts the story of loitative nature of colonization. “This dialectical two young African girls; Tambudzai and Nyasha. tension in the novel projects the socio-political Tambudzai is the tale orator who is raised in a dimensions of the novel” (Uwakweh 77). In fact, typical African village. Nyasha and Tambudzai’s Uwakweh’s reading of Nervous Conditions provi- personalities and motivations have attracted the des an insightful analysis of the text through the most criticism of Nervous Conditions. The novel is political dimensions. Yet, it seems that Uwakweh about Tambu’s willingness to progress through does not show how Dangarembga highlights the formal education. “ I decided it was better to be political concepts. The exploitative nature of co- like Maiguru, who was not poor and had not lonization is not revealed. been crushed by the weight of womanhood” (16). Sugnet takes a different view in his in- The text reveals how women individually or col- terpretation of the novel. Yet, he is within the lectively seek their identities within traditional fe- framework of feminism. Sugnet argues that the male daily life in colonial Zimbabwe. The female text’s depiction of feminism and anti-colonial na- characters in the novel struggle with what seems tionalism based on Fanon’s conceptual lens. He to be the prevalent rules of the society regarding traces the gradual development of the young Af- race, gender, culture and religion. The only way rican girl. Tambu‘s struggle is seen as a gendered to withdraw from this patriarchy is to refuse it. struggle for national liberation. Nervous Conditions has always been viewed The national liberation struggle is conspi- as a feminist representation of the African com- cuous by its absence in this novel, yet I think munity. Lindsay Aegerter adopts a womanist lens there may be a complex party subterranean rela- in her analysis of Nervous Conditions. She propo- tionship between it and the struggle of the young ses that Nervous Conditions articulates “a dialectic Tambudzai against the immediate manifestation and autonomy community” (231). Aegerter af- of patriarchy in her life (Sugnet 34). firms that the female characters in Nervous Condi- Sugnet goes beyond this idea and argues tions are given voice. They occupy the locus spot that Dangarembga uses Fanon’s concept “on in the text. According to Aegerter, “the African violence as the decisive rapture in the colonial women of Nervous Conditions do not merely react; situation” (39). On several occasions, female they act. And in their very action – in their refusal characters in Nervous Conditions violently resist to live their lives only in response to oppression patriarchal dominations. As an example, he con- lies their resistance” (231). Furthermore, Aeger- siders Nyasha’s resistance when her father punis- ter views Tambudzai’s identity as inextricably hes her. connected to women collectively. Thus, Tambu Dangarembga in one of her interviews dis- and Nyasha demonstrate two sides of one whole tinguishes between the situation in Africa and in person. the West concerning feminist theory. When she The novel demonstrates that African wo- is asked about the unequal treatment of Tambu men face enormous social problems. Uwakweh and her brother within their family, she replies examines the social structure of society. She ar- that the patriarchal system which is adopted by gues that Dangarembga represents African fe- Western feminism can not be applied to Africa males as encountering the double oppression “because the situation in my part of the world has of patriarchy and colonization. More precisely, one variable which makes it absolutely different: Uwakweh concentrates on the negative impact the men are also in a position of powerlessness” of colonization on the social life of the African (qtd. un Holland 121). Dangarembga’s view of community. The negative effects are seen through Africa has a great value to the above research all aspects of social life in Zimbabwe. question as the paper examines the gender rela- 157 Language Circle: Journal of Language and Literature 14(2) April 2020 tionship through a political perspective. Danga- Nervous Conditions reveals many events and rembga in her interview was not talking about the incidents which affirm that the novel can be read male characters in the text, but she was providing above the level of gender struggle in a colonized a realistic view of Zimbabwe. Both genders are nation. In the early stage of the story, Nhamo ta- exposed to a certain degree of oppression. The kes the chance of education, while Tambu faces novel reveals many incidents in which African many impediments and difficulties in her journey males are presented as inferior to the white co- to receive formal education.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • British Colonial Educational Practices and the Possibility of Women's
    University of South Florida Scholar Commons Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate School 2009 'Adding wisdom to their natures': British colonial educational practices and the possibility of women's personal emancipation in Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre, Buchi Emecheta's Joys of motherhood and Tsitsi Dangrembga's Nervous conditions Megan McIntyre University of South Florida Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd Part of the American Studies Commons Scholar Commons Citation McIntyre, Megan, "'Adding wisdom to their natures': British colonial educational practices and the possibility of women's personal emancipation in Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre, Buchi Emecheta's Joys of motherhood and Tsitsi Dangrembga's Nervous conditions" (2009). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/2093 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ‘Adding Wisdom to Their Natures’: British Victorian and Colonial Educational Practices and the Possibility of Women’s Personal Emancipation in Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, Buchi Emecheta’s Joys of Motherhood and Tsitsi Dangrembga’s Nervous Conditions by Megan McIntyre A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of English College of Arts and Sciences University
    [Show full text]
  • Thinking Globally, Teaching Locally, the Nervous Conditions of Cross-Cultural Literacy Lisa Eck Framingham State University, [email protected]
    Framingham State University Digital Commons at Framingham State University English Faculty Publications English Department 7-2008 Thinking Globally, Teaching Locally, the Nervous Conditions of Cross-Cultural Literacy Lisa Eck Framingham State University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.framingham.edu/eng_facpub Part of the English Language and Literature Commons Citation Eck, Lisa. "Thinking Globally, Teaching Locally, the Nervous Conditions of Cross-Cultural Literacy." College English 70, no. 6 (2008): 578-598. Accessed at http://digitalcommons.framingham.edu/eng_facpub/84 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the English Department at Digital Commons at Framingham State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in English Faculty Publications by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons at Framingham State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. 578 Thinking Globally, Teaching Locally: The "Nervous Conditions" of Cross-Cultural Literacy Lisa Eck The foreignness of foreigners, the strangeness of strangers: "these things," Kwame Appiah reminds us, "are real enough" (xxi). Yet, as he goes on to a argue in Cosmopolitanism: Ethics in World of Strangers, the significance of our current foreignness in academic climate has, "by an order ofmagnitude," been exaggerated "by well-meaning intellectuals" who risk asserting the pedagogi cally undesirable position that, essentially, certain human beings are illegible to one another (xxi).What happens with this predicament of intractable cultural difference on in the world literature classroom?where, any given partly cloudy Tuesday, a are group of "native" readers invited to trespass onto foreign literary soil? Take my small state college's Global Perspectives inLiterature, regularly offered as a recom course for mended future teachers and also chosen by students of multiple majors looking to fulfill a diversity requirement.
    [Show full text]
  • Representations of Women, Identity and Education in the Novels of Tsitsi Dangarembga and Kopano Matlwa
    Representations of Women, Identity and Education in the Novels of Tsitsi Dangarembga and Kopano Matlwa by Randi Jean Rodgers Thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of English in the Faculty of English at Stellenbosch University Supervisor: Dr Tina Steiner December 2013 Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za DECLARATION By submitting this thesis electronically, I declare that the entirety of the work contained therein is my own, original work, that I am the sole author thereof (save to the extent explicitly otherwise stated), that reproduction and publication thereof by Stellenbosch University will not infringe any third party rights and that I have not previously in its entirety or in part submitted it for obtaining any qualification. Date: December 2013 Copyright ©2013 Stellenbosch University All rights reserved ii Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to give my utmost thanks and appreciation to Dr Tina Steiner for her support, knowledge and patience throughout this long process. This project would have never come together if it were not for her expertise and her encouragement. In addition, I owe a debt of gratitude to Wamuwi Mbao for all of his support in academics and in friendship. The English department community at Stellenbosch has been wonderfully interesting and supportive and I would like to extend a special thank you to Shaun Viljoen, Riaan Oppelt, Jolette Roodt, Martina Muller and Nikita Hector. Finally, to my parents, who gave me nothing but their full support even though their only child was on the other side of the world.
    [Show full text]
  • A FEMINIST ANALYSIS of Tsitsi Dangarembga's Nervous Conditions
    A FEMINIST ANALYSIS OF Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions (1988) P MBATHA: 883007 THIS DISSERTATION IS IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE MASTER’S DEGREE IN SOUTH AFRICAN LITERATURE AND LANGUAGES SUPERVISOR: PROF J P WADE 1 ABSTRACT The thesis provides a feminist analysis of the Zimbabwean women writer Tsitsi Dangarembga’s novel, Nervous Conditions (1988), reading the novel as a critique of African patriarchy. The thesis examines the different ways in which African patriarchy broadly manifests itself regarding the subaltern position of women. It then analyses a range of feminist theories, extracting from them concepts useful to an understanding of the novel. Finally, the thesis analyses in detail Dangarembga’s novel in the light of an understanding of African patriarchy and feminist theories. 2 CONTENTS Chapter Page Chapter 1: Introduction 4 Chapter 2: The Author’s Biography 12 Chapter 3: The Role of Women in African Culture 15 Chapter 4: Feminist Theories 20 Chapter 5: Textual Analysis 36 Chapter 6: Conclusion 55 Bibliography 58 3 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1. INTRODUCTION African women’s literature is of significance for feminist theory because it focuses mainly on issues from women’s perspectives and experiences such as sexism, gender relationships, marriage, politics, education and employment. In essence, African women’s literature portrays their quest for emancipation from male dominance. While recognizing the ambiguities of this term, ‘African’ in the context of this thesis refers to black females of the African continent whose lives were for a long period determined by colonialism. Various forms of sexism are treated in African women’s literature, as understood and experienced by African women.
    [Show full text]
  • A Comparative Analysis of Tsitsi Dangarembga's Novel and Film
    Novel-film interface and postcolonial dystopia: A comparative analysis of Tsitsi Dangarembga’s novel and film 53 Novel-film interface and postcolonial dystopia: A comparative analysis of Tsitsi Dangarembga’s novel and film,Nervous Conditions and Neria Shadreck Nembaware Department of English Universtity of Kwa-Zulu Natal [email protected] ABSTRACT This paper comparatively and contrastively explores two art forms, the novel and film, by the same artist, Tsitsi Dangarembga, with a view to gauging their effectiveness in con- figuring Zimbabwe’s postcolonial dispensation. What is gained and what is lost when an artist shifts from one art form to another? Dangarembga belongs to the protest tradition of Zimbabwean postcolonial artists and the conceptual fibre of this tradition is notably the dystopian themes like disillusionment, cultural confusion, sex-role stereotyping, as well as social power relations. Dangarembga’s canonical novel, Nervous conditions (1988), and the highest grossing film in Zimbabwean history, Neria (1993), are both sterling at- tempts within the feminist tradition. The film and novel mirror a society in the throes of an epochal transition, the sense of impending change giving the works the commonality of an apocalyptic vision. Against a backdrop shaped by the interplay of historical, cul- tural and colonial forces, the works become perceptive anthropological windows into a society replete with multiple contradictions. In both her novel and her film, Dangarembga equips her protagonists, Tambudzai and Neria respectively, with a self-defining voice that questions and subverts the status quo. Salient manifestations of toxic masculinity in this patriarchal society account for the subtlety with which Dangarembga critiques gender relations within and without the boundaries of race and class.
    [Show full text]
  • Tsitsi Dangarembga
    12 ème Assemblée générale Thème: Administrer la sphère publique africaine Date: 07 – 11 décembre 2008 Lieu: Yaoundé, Cameroun. The Popular Arts and Culture in the Texture of the Public Sphere in Africa. Tsitsi Dangarembga INTRODUCTION Good evening learned guests, colleagues, friends. I would like to pass my respects to the General Secretary of CODESRIA and the entire organization for inviting me to give this key note address. We live in an era where many Zimbabweans are being struck off from guest lists, and many other Zimbabweans are being barred from activities due to the situation that prevails in our country. Therefore it strikes me as particularly auspicious and particularly in the spirit of pan- Africanism that I am standing here this evening to share with you some thoughts on the matter of THE POPULAR ARTS AND CULTURE IN THE TEXTURE OF THE PUBLIC SPHERE IN AFRICA. My particular interest in this terrain is to plot a particular trajectory of African experience. My project in plotting this trajectory is that this trajectory should be a single one that does not fall into the trap of binarism, nor the trap of splitting, nor the trap of bifurcation, as that trajectory of African experience which is rooted in neo-liberal 1 discourse does. This departure from a notion of African experience broken up into unrecognizable entities by the discourse of modernity is one crucial objective of my project. And I call it a departure rather than a regaining because my wish is not to regain in a triumph of nostalgia an almost mythical unity, but to transform in an observable way that which is fragmented into a functional whole.
    [Show full text]
  • Nervous Conditions
    Best Integrated Writing Volume 5 Article 6 2018 Self-Destructive Educationin Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions Sarah Miller Wright State University Follow this and additional works at: https://corescholar.libraries.wright.edu/biw Part of the Comparative Literature Commons, English Language and Literature Commons, International and Area Studies Commons, Modern Literature Commons, and the Race, Ethnicity and Post- Colonial Studies Commons Recommended Citation Miller, S. (2018). Self-Destructive Educationin Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions, Best Integrated Writing, 5. This Article is brought to you for free and open access by CORE Scholar. It has been accepted for inclusion in Best Integrated Writing by an authorized editor of CORE Scholar. For more information, please contact library- [email protected]. SARAH MILLER ENG 4470 Self-Destructive Education in Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions SARAH MILLER ENG 4470: Postcolonial Texts, Summer 2017 Nominated by: Dr. Alpana Sharma Sarah recently graduated Summa Cum Laude from Wright State University where she majored in English Literature in the College of Liberal Arts. She is the winner of Sinclair Community College’s Spectrum Award and Legacy Award for an English major. She intends to pursue a Doctorate and serve as a professor and an administrator. Sarah Notes: Reading Nervous Conditions and learning about postcolonial Zimbabwe was an alarming experience for me. Education is such a key part of my identity and has always been a benefit I pursued without question. For Dangarembga’s characters, and thus presumably for other victims of colonialism, it’s not clear whether those benefits of education are worth the enormous personal cost, and I wanted to explore that scary but important problem.
    [Show full text]
  • Tsitsi Dangarembga's Nervous Conditions: an Attempt in the Feminist Tradition
    The African e-Journals Project has digitized full text of articles of eleven social science and humanities journals. This item is from the digital archive maintained by Michigan State University Library. Find more at: http://digital.lib.msu.edu/projects/africanjournals/ Available through a partnership with Scroll down to read the article. Zambezia (1994), XXI (I). TSITSI DANGAREMBGA'S NERVOUS CONDITIONS: AN ATTEMPT IN THE FEMINIST TRADITION ROSEMARY MOYANA Department of Curriculum and Arts Education, University of Zimbabwe Abstract This article discusses Tsitsi Dangarembga's Nervous Conditions as an attempt in the feminist tradition. It begins by examining the meanings of the words 'gender', 'female', 'feminist' and 'feminine' and then goes on to analyse the roles of the men and women in the novel to show why it should be categorized as feminist. It is basically through these roles that Dangarembga gives strength to the woman's voice. IN NERVOUS CONDITIONS1 Tsitsi Dangarembga has portrayed men and women who interact with each other in a certain way. Women in particular have been portrayed from a different perspective from that portrayed in earlier Zimbabwean Literature in English.2 The woman's voice here is significantly feminist and the evidence for this is found at the end of the novel where Tambudzai asserts herself with neither fear nor apology. It is a process of becoming that she describes. Treva Broughton has correctly observed that Nervous Conditions 'is a hopeful book, both in its sense of impending change... and in the scope and subtlety of its critique of gender relations within and beyond the boundaries of race and class'.3 The women in the novel clearly undergo some struggle and they emerge as different persons at the end.
    [Show full text]
  • Nervous Conditions] [Terry Adams] James Madison University Lexia Ÿ Volume V Ÿ 2
    Lexia: Undergraduate Journal in Writing, Rhetoric & Technical Communication Volume V 2016–2017 [Reconsidering the Bildungsroman: Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions] [Terry Adams] James Madison University Lexia Volume V 2 Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions has been universally acknowledged as an established member of the Bildungsroman genre because the novel focuses on the progressive development of its narrator as an individual, a characteristic that harkens back to the category’s name, the “novel of formation.” Yet, while the narrative may satisfy the requirement in this aspect, it also seems to fundamentally trouble the conventions of the genre in that it fails to narrate or illustrate the outcome of this development, that is, the “growing-up” part. Indeed, the only proof that Tambu eventually progresses out of girlhood is in the physical narrative itself, where she takes the role of authorial figure. Even with this occupation as proof of her eventual progression, the novel seemingly fails to complete the second part of the Bildungsroman equation of displaying “human character as it manifests itself in society” (qtd. in Abel et al. 6), a necessary component of development in the genre’s traditional understanding. Regardless, the categorization of the novel within the genre remains, implying that some type of development or formation does take place. But if the latter part of the progression, the growing up and integrating into society, is not there, where does the concept of development work its way into this designated novel of development? The answer to this question is primarily an epistemological concern with ontological implications. In other words, essential to Tambu’s development of a personal identity is her acquisition of the knowledge that she cannot successfully manifest herself into her surrounding society.
    [Show full text]
  • Zulfiqar Chaudhry, Sadia (2014) African Women Writers and the Politics of Gender
    Zulfiqar Chaudhry, Sadia (2014) African women writers and the politics of gender. PhD thesis. http://theses.gla.ac.uk/5202/ Copyright and moral rights for this work are retained by the author A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge This work cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Enlighten:Theses http://theses.gla.ac.uk/ [email protected] African Women Writers and the Politics of Gender Sadia Zulfiqar Chaudhry Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy English Literature School of Critical Studies College of Arts University of Glasgow December 2013 Sadia Zulfiqar 2013 ii Abstract This thesis examines the work of a group of African women writers who have emerged over the last forty years. While figures such as Chinua Achebe, Ben Okri and Wole Soyinka are likely to be the chief focus of discussions of African writing, female authors have been at the forefront of fictional interrogations of identity formation and history. In the work of authors such as Mariama Bâ (Senegal), Buchi Emecheta (Nigeria), Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Nigeria), Tsitsi Dangarembga (Zimbabwe), and Leila Aboulela (Sudan), there is a clear attempt to subvert the tradition of male writing where the female characters are often relegated to the margins of the culture, and confined to the domestic, private sphere.
    [Show full text]
  • Breaking the Boundaries of Literary Theory in Postcolonial Women's
    Faculteit Letteren en Wijsbegeerte Vakgroep Engelse Letterkunde Academiejaar 2014-2015 Breaking the Boundaries of Literary Theory in Postcolonial Women’s Writing Aspects of the Bildungsroman in Tsitsi Dangarembgaʼs Nervous Conditions and The Book of Not Masterproef voorgelegd tot het behalen van de graad van Master in de taal en letterkunde: Engels-Frans door Hannah Deroo Promotor: Prof. Dr. Stef Craps Acknowledgements I would like to thank my research supervisor, Prof. Dr. Stef Craps, for his guidance, understanding, and detailed advice throughout the year. I am especially grateful for his patience and valuable insights, which encouraged me to work harder. I have the utmost respect for his knowledge on postcolonial literature and trauma theory and I am glad to have had the opportunity to write a thesis under his supervision. A special thanks goes out to Lies, Alix, Heleen, Florence and Fien. These brilliant friends have shown endless support, love, and trust throughout our years at Ghent University, and have taught me the meaning of courage; for which I am grateful. I hope we will forever continue the bond we shared during these four years of hard work and adventure. I would also like to thank my family: my parents, Elisabeth and Frederik; my flawless sister, Olivia; and my brothers, Florian and Pepijn for their boundless love. They are the most inspiring, intelligent, talented, and kind people, and I am feel blessed for being a part of their lives. A very special thank you to Florian, who keeps me smiling. Table of Contents Introduction 1 1. The Tradition of the Bildungsroman: An Overview 3 1.1.
    [Show full text]
  • Narrating the Female Body in Tsitsi Dangarembga's This Mournable
    NARRATING THE FEMALE BODY IN TSITSI DANGAREMBGA’S THIS MOURNABLE BODY OTIENO, DANIEL OTIENO C50/8537/2017 A RESEARCH PROJECT REPORT SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN LITERATURE, UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI. AUGUST 2019 Declaration This research project report is my own original work and has not been submitted for examination or award of a degree in any other university. Signature…………………………. Date…………………………….. Otieno, Daniel Otieno C50/8537/2017 This research project report has been submitted for examination with our approval as university supervisors. First Supervisor: Signature………………………… Date……………………………… Dr. Tom Odhiambo Department of Literature University of Nairobi. Second Supervisor: Signature…………………………. Date…………………………… Dr. Makau Kitata Department of Literature University of Nairobi. i Dedication This work is dedicated to the following instrumental people: my old man, Ayub Otieno Oludhe, I am forever grateful for the support and encouragement, Wuod Agoro. My mother, Dina Anyango Otieno, your love for education and support inspire me always, mamana. Mercy Onyango, your love and support inspire me; I dedicate this study to you too. Finally, Ladasha Mafri Otieno, I believe you will grow up to read this. ii Contents Declaration ....................................................................................................................................... i Dedication ......................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]