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Male Absence and Single Parenthood in Black Writing: a Study of Richard Wright's Black Boy, Toni Morrison's Beloved, And MALE ABSENCE AND SINGLE PARENTHOOD IN BLACK WRITING: A STUDY OF RICHARD WRIGHT’S BLACK BOY, TONI MORRISON’S BELOVED, AND LAURETTA NGCOBO’S CROSS OF GOLD BY SAMAILA, REBECCA SHANUM (MRS) (MA/ARTS/08443/2008-2009) A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE SCHOOL POST GRADUATE STUDIES, AHMADU BELLO UNIVERSITY, ZARIA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF MASTER OF ARTS DEGREE IN LITERATURE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH AND LITERARY STUDIES, FACULTY OF ARTS FEBRUARY, 2014 Declaration I hereby declare that the work in this thesis titled, ―Male Absence and Single Parenthood in Black Writings: A Study of Richard Wright‘s Black Boy, Toni Morrison‘s Beloved and Lauretta Ngcobo‘s Cross of Gold” was performed by me in the Department of English and Literary Studies, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, under the supervision of Prof. T.A.N Abubakar and Dr. Abel Joseph. The information derived from the literature has been duly acknowledged in the text and a list of references provided. No part of this work has been presented for another degree or diploma at any institution. ---------------------------------- -------------------------- Samaila, Rebecca Shanum Date ii Certification This thesis titled: ―Male Absence and Single Parenthood in Black Writings: A Study of Richard Wright‘s Black Boy, Toni Morrison‘s Beloved and Lauretta Ngcobo‘s Cross of Gold‖ meets the regulations governing the award of the Degree of Masters of Arts in Literature, Ahmadu Bello University, and is approved for its contribution to knowledge and literary presentation. ------------------------------------ ------------------------ ---------------------- Prof. T.A.N. Abubakar Chairman, Supervisory Committee (Signature) (Date) ------------------------------------ ------------------------ ---------------------- Dr. A. Joseph Member, Supervisory Committee (Signature) (Date) ------------------------------------ ------------------------ ---------------------- Dr. A.A. Liman Head of Department (Signature) (Date) ------------------------------------ ------------------------ ---------------------- Prof. A.A. Joshua Dean, School of Postgraduate Studies (Signature) (Date) iii Dedication This work is dedicated to Almighty God for His faithfulness and the life-changing training He gave me in the course of this study. Also, to the memory of my late father whose love for knowledge and godly counsel has brought me this far. iv Acknowledgements It is and has been no one but you LORD!!! I will never forget your benefit through these challenging years; may my love and commitment to YOU never wax cold in Jesus name. I owe a lot to many people whose contributions and support made this study a success. Although space will not permit me to list every contributor‘s name, I express my appreciation to my able supervisors; Prof. T.A.N. Abubakar and Dr. A. Joseph for their guidance, commitment and cooperation which enhance the completion of this research in good time. Sirs, may the Lord honour your efforts by equally committing Himself to address all that concerns you in Jesus name. To all academic and non-academic staff of the Department, particularly, Dr. E.S. Akuso who has been a father and constant encouragement to me and Dr. O. Keston, Dr. E. Abah, Prof. A.A. Aliyu, Dr. Mrs. S.O. Omokore, Mal. Maiwada, Mal. Bappah, Mal. Rabiu, Prof. E. Idegu, Dr. A. A. Liman, Oga Steve, Mr. O. Ekpeme, Dr. Abaya, Mr. D. Fwanshishak and Mr. Ambi, your individual support, contributions and encouragement towards the success of this work, will ever be remembered. To my husband, friend, companion, love and eminent encourager, I will live to remember every benefit, uncommon speed and courage that your trust, confidence, support and understanding have brought to me at the challenging moments of this study. Though many God-fearing husbands have done well but you remain the best of them all. Also, to my dear mother, I appreciate the fact that you always stand prayerfully in the gap for me. May the success realized by your committed prayers be richly rewarded in Jesus name. To Obed, my little angel, your coming has crowned the essence of this study. I v pray that God will give your Daddy and I the grace to parent you maximally in Jesus name. To all my in-laws and especially Doofan and Emmy Nyon, your timely responses to my needs and encouraging text messages have greatly strengthen me. You are indeed, the very replacement of my siblings – Martha and Emmanuel Samaila. May God continue to strengthen you in all things. To my siblings, I sincerely appreciate the zeal and encouragement which your concerted support has offered me through this journey so far. May the spirit of love, togetherness and help inculcated in the family remain an ever green shelter to all our acquaintances in Jesus name, amen. To the Zaria discipleship team and especially my discipler, Dr. E. Kogi, I will eternally remain grateful for the love, attention, advice and parental care I received from you and your wife; even the acceptance I enjoyed among your children has been a source of strength and comfort to me in the challenging moments of this study. I pray that your efforts be richly rewarded in Jesus name. I am equally grateful to Mr. and Mrs. Yahaya who like the Kogis have given me reason to appreciate God‘s faithfulness and ever-present care in my life. For everything you have done which has immensely contributed to the successful completion of this study, I pray that God remembers you in all things and cause your children to always find help wherever they go in Jesus name. vi Abstract This study employs Realism as an analytical tool to assess the various dimensions of male absence and single parenthood in Richard Wright‟s Black Boy (1945), Toni Morrison‟s Beloved (1987) and Lauretta Ngcobo‟s Cross of Gold (1981). This research is thus a comparative study of male absence and single parenthood in Black writing in the United States and South Africa. The study posits that the spread of male absence and single parenthood (female-headed homes) among African Americans and Black South Africans are not unconnected with the socio-historical events experienced in the United States and South Africa respectively. Whereas African American men are generally considered and presented as deliberate deserters due to their inability to handle their sole provider responsibility, male absence and single parenthood among Black South Africans largely results from men‟s response to familial needs which usually takes them to the mines in urban areas as well as other governmental policies basically designed to blow especially black families into fragments. vii Table of Contents COVER PAGE -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- i DECLARATION ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ii CERTIFICATION --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- iii DEDICATION ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ----------------------------------------------------------------------- v ABSTRACT --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- vii TABLE OF CONTENTS ----------------------------------------------------------------------- viii 1.0 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ------------------------------------------------------ 1 1.1 General Background ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1 1.2 Statement of Problem ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 4 1.3 Aims and Objectives ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 6 1.4 Methodology --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7 1.5 Scope and Delimitation --------------------------------------------------------------------- 7 1.6 Justification of Study ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 8 1.7 Male Absence and Single Parenthood in African American Families --------------- 9 1.8 Male Absence and Single Parenthood in Black South African Families ----------- 17 1.9 Realism as Theoretical Framework ------------------------------------------------------ 26 1.10 Literature Review -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 40 Works Cited -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 60 2.0 CHAPTER TWO: ABSENCE AND SINGLE PARENTHOOD IN AFRICAN AMERICAN FAMILIES IN RICHARD WRIGHT‘S BLACK BOY AND TONI MORRISON‘S BELOVED --------------------------------------------------------73 viii 2.1 Introduction -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 73 2.2 Male Absence and Single Parenthood in African American Families -------------- 74 2.3 Divergent Views on Male Absence and Single Parenthood in Richard Wright‘s Black Boy and Toni Morrison‘s Beloved ------------------------------------------------ 95 Works Cited -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 100 3.0 CHAPTER THREE: RACIAL DISCRIMINATION AND THE DISRUPTION OF BLACK SOUTH AFRICAN FAMILIES IN LAURETTA NGCOBO‘S CROSS OF GOLD ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 105 3.1 Introduction -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 105 3.2 Racial Discrimination and the Disruption of Black South African Families ------ 106 Works Cited --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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