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BATANGASSTATEUNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam HISTORICAL, SOCIOLOGICAL AND PHILOSOPHICAL DIMENSIONS REFLECTED IN THE NOVELS OF SELECTED AFRICAN WRITERS A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the GraduateSchool BatangasStateUniversity BatangasCity In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in English Language and Literature by NGUYEN THI MINH LOAN (SUMMER) 2015 i THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam BATANGASSTATEUNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines TABLE OF CONTENTS Page TITLE PAGE APPROVAL SHEET ABSTRACT ACKNOWLEDGMENT DEDICATION TABLE OF CONTENTS i CHAPTER I: THE PROBLEM Introduction Statement of the Problem Scope, Delimitation and Limitation of the Study Significance of the Study 10 CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF LITERATURE 14 Conceptual Literature 14 Literature and Philosophy of Life 14 Significant Works of African Writers 23 Literary Techniques 30 Critical Approaches for Novel Analysis 32 Research Literature 37 ii THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam BATANGASSTATEUNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines Synthesis of the Literature Reviewed 45 Theoretical Framework 48 Conceptual Framework 54 Definition of Terms 57 CHAPTER III: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 60 Research Design 60 Treatment of Materials 62 CHAPTER IV: ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION 65 CHAPTER V: SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION 179 Findings 180 Conclusion .189 Recommendations 190 BIBLIOGRAPHY 222 THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY Socialist Republic of Vietnam BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM Introduction There is a close link between philosophy and literature While philosophy supplies ideology and themes for literature, literature, on the other hand, provides vivid illustrations of the meaning and abstract thought of philosophy Literature is considered as a channel to show the author’s philosophy of life Indeed, in literature the philosophical theme is conveyed through literary works and is an essential part of their aesthetic value There is a considerable number of well-known works in the world literature in which philosophical views are put forward, suggested, or play a central role such as Dostoyevsky’s Brothers Karamazov, Crime and Punishment, and The Idiot; Tolstoy’s War and Peace; Proust’s In Search of Lost Time; Mann’s MagicMountain, etc By studying literary works, readers are introduced central philosophical issues relating with freedom, responsibility, religious belief, personal identity, etc THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY Socialist Republic of Vietnam BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines Beside reflecting on philosophy, literature also reflects the historical and sociological dimensions of the society That literature is a reflection of the society has been widely acknowledged Literature influences the society, and the society is reflected in literature; therefore, there has been a close interaction between them The readers can explore a variety of historical and socio-political themes in many works of famous writers such as colonialism, post-colonialism, morality, racial identity, oppression, politics, leadership, gender issues, war, etc According to Diamond (1989), a literary work can provide a more detailed picture of a society in terms of cultural, social, religious, and political dimensions more than any history textbooks and anthropological records This is exemplified in the works of many world famous writers For example, Wordsworth creates wonderful poems to praise humanitarian aspect of the French revolution in the earlier phase, but later his poetry focuses on its bloodiness and violence Another example is Charles Dickens’ novels whose themes consist of the consequences of industrialization like the sufferings of the poor, hypocrisy of the privileged class, government corruption, and many others Africa experienced a variety of cultural clashes and political crises from the early colonial days when the Europeans came and conquered this continent Achebe, a Nigerian writer, wrote that the time and place in THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY Socialist Republic of Vietnam BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines which he was raised was “a strongly multiethnic, multilingual, multireligious, somewhat chaotic colonial situation” (Achebe, The Education of a British-Protected Child: Essays, 2009, p.39) These words describe Nigeria in particular and other countries in Africa in the period from the end of the 19th century to the 21st century For the countries in Africa, the experience of colonialism is considered as the one of the most important factors in understanding the present condition of the African continent, the African people and their history Therefore, a close examination of the phenomenon of colonialism is essential to assess not only the economic and political development in Africa but also the African people’s perception of themselves African literature has increasingly gained much interest in literary research for the last three decades Many critics have devoted much energy to identify western influence on modern African literature However, the concept of influence have been subject to re-evaluation and revision because critics often impose Western norms on analyzing African literary works in terms of themes, techniques of writing, philosophy, etc While these studies have made insight interpretations of content and meaning of the African works, less is known of the influence THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY Socialist Republic of Vietnam BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines of the African traditional roots on African literature and the influence of African writers as philosophers on African people’s perception From the beginning of colonial situation, literature was the sharp weapon of African writers to oppose colonialism and proudly assert the values of the cultures that the colonials had tried to destroy Fictional works in many African nations has been very much influenced by the cultural and political experiences of the country Therefore, many of African writers chose to use their works to explore, portray, and expose these social experiences in their different works As Ojaide states, “there is, culturally speaking, no art for art’s sake in Africa Every literary work has a social function” (Ojaide, Modern African Literature and Cultural Identity, 1992, p.44) Among African writers, Chinua Achebe, Ayi Kwei Armah and Tsi-tsi Dangarembgaare the pioneers in using the pen as the weapon against colonialism Chinua Achebe defines his writings as part of a “process of restoring peoples who had been knocked silent by the trauma of all kinds of dispossession” (Achebe, Home and Exile, 2000, p.79) Achebe takes up the responsibility as an Igbo writer who is to help his people regain belief in itself and dignity that is destroyed by Western colonialism Ayi Kwei Armah is undoubtedly one of the most excellent writers of the second generation of African writers which comes after Achebe In THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY Socialist Republic of Vietnam BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines an autobiographical article, “One Writer's Education” (West Africa, 1985), Armah described himself as not simply a Ghanian and a West African but “ most significantly as an African” One of the strengths of his writing is his use of African history and myths to emphasize the originality and complexity of African cultures before the incursion of colonialism into the continent His writings are realistic descriptions of the African continent in such a way that his novels can be seen as a sociological report on the social and politcal situation of Africa Tsi-tsi Dangarembga is a fabulous African female writer Her writings transmit political messages regarding female oppression and colonial domination She earned much praise from literary critics because of her complex depiction of racial and gender struggles in a rural African society Therefore, the researcher intended to analyze the three novels by Achebe, Armah and Dangarembga respectively: No Longer at Ease (1960), Fragments (1971) and Nervous Conditions (1988) because an exploration of the three chosen writers of the three different African countries (Nigeria, Ghana and Zimbabwe) and of two sexes would reveal a number of common concerns in terms of historical, sociological and philosophical dimensions The historical basis for this search is that throughout Africa there are close similarities in both traditional cultures THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY Socialist Republic of Vietnam BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines and contemporary situations The researcher attempted to make comparisons and drawing parallels among these novels by Achebe, Armah and Dangarembga in oder to generalize the whole Africa The wisdom embodied in the selected works of these African writers could be one of the motivating factors that could help readers in the world understand about internal and external pressures African people suffered as well as the values they lost in colonial and postcolonial periods Therefore, the readers may establish their high appreciation of African culture and history Besides, many scholars have already studied the various themes of No Longer at Ease, Fragments and Nervous Conditions such as classes, cultures, corruption, etc However, there is not much analysis on the historical, social and philosophical insights of these novels Also, these African writers’ philosophy of life gleaned from the three novels has not received enough attention from the literary circles Last but not least, Achebe, Armah and Dangarembga’s life, works and life philosophy exemplify noble values of a person and a nation, which is worthy of attention Therefore, as a teacher, the researcher would like to expose her students to literature and culture outside of an Eastern country She wants her students to gain an appreciation of a foreign culture while also gaining insight into their own culture, seeing 215 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam taught to obey and serve their husbands The duties and responsibilities as Victorian wives introduced new restrictions for women Religious practices: -Dangarembga depicts how Tambu adopts the views of social hierarchy by Christian missionaries: [The missionaries] were about God’s business here in darkest Africa They had given up the comforts and security of their own homes to come and lighten our darkness It was a big sacrifice [.] […] [Their] self-denial and brotherly love did not go unrewarded We treated them like minor deities […] Today […] [t]hey are called expatriates […] [b]ut they are deified in the same way as the missionaries were because they are white so that their coming is still an honour […] I used to feel guilty and unnatural for not being able to love the Whites as I ought [I]t did not take long for me to learn BATANGASSTATEUNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines 216 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam that they were in fact more beautiful and then I was able to love them (Dangarembga 105106) - Babamukuru is a member of the Christian missionary church and has adopted the Christian and Western norms For example, to prevent traditional Shona polygamy in his family, Babamukuru forces his brother to have a Christian wedding -When Tambu is offered a scholarship at the nuns convent, Nyasha points out how the colonizers will brainwash her She remarks that “it would be a marvelous opportunity […] [t]o forget who you were, what you were and why you were that” (Dangarembga 182) Educational practices: - A glimpse of the sort of uncritical education colonial school children are exposed to is given by Tambu in the following passage: [O]ur teacher said he had taught us the entire syllabus so it was up to us to embed what he had taught us BATANGASSTATEUNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines 217 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam firmly in our memories So, instead of classes, we had revision periods Mr Sanyati divided us up into groups and sent us outside with the life-cycle of the Anopheles mosquito, the dates of the Boer rebellion, the ordinary, comparative and superlative of irregular adjectives, and expected us to be able to recite them by rote when we came back into the classroom.(176, my emphasis) - When Tambu arrives her new home, she can read “everything from Enid Blyton to the Bronte sisters.” (94) The missionary education’s curriculum was held in consistent accordance with the British syllabus and emphasized religious instruction together with English as the main language - Nhamo willingly imbibes everything western and he claims that he can no longer speak his mother tongue He has thus lost the values of his own people, who disregard him because he can no longer communicate with them, but also his “native” identity - During Tambu’s first visit at the BATANGASSTATEUNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines 218 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam homestead after her stay at the mission, she is disgusted and embarrassed by the dirt and feels estranged from her mother Realizing the change that Tambu undergoes, Mainini claims that Tambu has become ashamed of her -Nyasha is deeply aware of this process She voices discontent with the prospect of colonial education when she points to the fact that “there [are] more evils than advantages to be reaped” from going to a Western-style school: It would be a marvelous opportunity, she said sarcastically, to forget To forget who you were, what you were and why you were that The process, she said, was called assimilation, and that was what was intended for the precocious few who might prove a nuisance if left to themselves, whereas the others -well really, who cared about the others? So they made a little space into which you were assimilated, an honorary space in which you could BATANGASSTATEUNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines 219 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam join them and they could make sure that you behaved yourself (178) - The differences in the quality of European and African schools are pointed out in Nervous Conditions “[E]verybody knew that the European schools had better equipment, better teachers, better furniture, better food, better everything” (Dangarembga 182) - Tambu’s struggle for education also mirrors an entire people’s struggle for education The youth generation strives even more for education and good grades Tambu perceives education as an opportunity to fly from poverty and patriarchy Political practices: - During a mental breakdown, in a very fragmented way, Nyasha condemns the entire colonial system and its manipulation: “[My parents] have done it to me […] It’s not their fault They did it to them too You know they did[.] […] To both of them, but especially to him They put him through it all But it’s not his fault, he’s good […] “Why BATANGASSTATEUNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines 220 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam they it, Tambu, she hissed bitterly, her face contorting with rage to me and to you and to him? […] They’ve taken us away […] All of us They’ve deprived you of you, him of him, ourselves of each other They’ve trapped us But I won’t be trapped, I’m not a good girl I won’t be trapped (Dangarembga 204-205) - The European élite undertook to manufacture a native élite They picked out promising adolescents; they branded them, as with a red-hot iron, with the principles of Western culture; they stuffed their mouths full with high-sounding phrases, grand glutinous words that stuck to the teeth After a short stay in the mother country they were sent home, white-washed Babamukuru represents a member of this native élite Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) in 1965 (p.93) the BATANGASSTATEUNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines 221 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam Achebe Armah Dagarembga BATANGASSTATEUNIVERSITY Republic of the Philippines beginning of the liberation war, the guerilla fighters Philosophy of Life of African Writers Gleaned from the Analysis of their Novels A moralist A teacher A moralist A teacher A philosopher A role model of African women 222 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam BIBLIOGRAPHY Primary Sources Achebe, C.(1960) No Longer at Ease London Heinemann Achebe, C.(2000) Home and Exile Oxford University Press Achebe, C.(1964).The Role of the Writer in a New Nation Nigeria Magazine Achebe, C.(1970) Commitment and African Writers Africa Report Achebe, C.(1988) The Novelist as Teacher In Hopes and Impediments: Selected Essays New York: Doubleday Achebe, C (2009) The Education of a British-Protected Child New York: Random House Armah, A.K.(1971) Fragments Boston: Houghton Mifflin Dangarembga, T (1988) Nervous Conditions 1988 Oxfordshire, UK: Ayebia Clarke Secondary Sources Abrams, M.H.(1981) A Glossary of Literary Terms New York London: Holt Rinchar & Wilson Amuta, C.(1992) Portrait of the Contemporary Artist in Armah’s Novels.Critical Perspectives on Ayi Kwei Armah Ed Derek Wright Three Continents Press 13 - 21 223 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam Azodo, A.U (2010) A Zimbabwean Ethic of Humanity: Tsitsi Dangarembga’s The Book of Not and the Unhu Philosophy of Personhood.New Novels in African Literature Today 27 (2010): 11729 Print Ashcroft, B et al (1989) The Empire Writes Back: Theory and Practice in Post- Colonial Literatures London: Routledge Chennels, A (1996) Authorizing Women, Women’s Authoring: Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions New Writing from Southern Africa Ed Emmanuel Ngara Studies in African Literature Portsmouth: Heinemann, 59-75 Childs, P & Williams, R.J.P (1997) An Introduction to Post-colonial Theory London : Prentice Hall Diamond, L (1989) Fiction as Political Thought African Affairs, 88 (352), 435-445 Eckert, L S (2006) How does It Mean? : Engaging Reluctant Readers through Literary Theory Heinemann Ezeigbo, A.T (1989) Ayi Kwei Armah: Neocolonialism and the African Woman Ernest Emenyonu (Ed) Literature and National Consciousness Ibadan: Heinemann Educational Books Ltd Gelfand, M (1973) The Genuine Shona Gwelu, Zimbabwe: Mambo P Print 224 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam Gikandi, S (Ed) (2009) The Routledge Encyclopedia of African LiteratureLondon: Routledge Taylor and Francis Group Haizel, E A (1993) Education in Ghana In The Life and Work of Kwame Nkrumah Ed Kwame Arhin Trenton: Africa World Press, Inc., Hosillos, L (1984) Originally as Vengeance in Philipine Literature Quezon City, Philipines: New Day Publishers Innes, C.L (1990) Chinua Achebe Cambridge: CUP Irele, A (1971) The Criticism of Modern African Literature In Heywood, C.(1971) Perspectives on African Literature, London: Heinemann Madubuike, I (1974) Analaysis Achebe’s Ideas on Literature Black World Mugo, M.G (2004) African Orature and Human Rights in Gikuyu, Shona, and Ndebele Zamani Cultures Harare, Zimbabwe: Sapes Books Ngugi Wa Thiong’O (1981) Writers in Politics London: Heinemann Publishers Ltd Nwala, T.U (1985) Igbo Philosophy Lantern Books, Ikeja, Lagos Ogede, O (2000) Ayi kwei Armah Radical Iconoclast Pitting Imaginary Worlds Against the Actual Ohio Uuniversity Press 225 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam Okpewho, I (1992) African Oral Literature: Backgrounds, Character, and Continuity Bloomington: Indiana University Press Otite, O & Ogionwo.W (1979) An Introduction To Sociological Studies Ibadan: Heinemann Rachels J (1999) The Elements of Moral Philosophy (3rd ed.) Singapore: McGraw-Hill Rand, A (1975) Romantic Manifesto: A Philosophy of Literature New York: Penguin Books Ltd Reyes, S.S (1985) Philippine Literature since 1972: A Discourse in Disorder In The Romance Mode in Philippine Popular Literature and Other Essays Manila: De La Salle University Press Said, Edward W (1978) Orientalism New York: Vintage Books.’ Said, Edward W (1993) Culture and Imperialism New York: Vintage Books Schmidt, M.R (2002) Constructing a Life Philosophy: Opposing Viewpoint Greenhaven Press, Inc Suter, W N (2012) Introduction to Educational Research: A Critical Thinking Approach Thousand Oaks, CA, Sage Teoxon, L.J.F (1990) The Quest for Truth Quezon City, Philipines: New Day Publishers 226 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam Tomeldan, Y V., et al (1986) An Introduction to Literature Manila, Philippines: National Bookstore Publishers Veit-Wild, Flora (1992) Teachers, Preachers, Non-Believers: A Social History of Zimbabwean Literature London: Hans Zell Walsh, J P (1972).History Is Fiction The Horn Book Webb, A.C (2001) Literature & Lives: A Response-Based, Cultural Studies Approach to Teaching English National Council of Teachers of English Unpublished Theses and Dissertations Ayivor, M.G.K (1998) A Saga of black Deglorification: the Disfigurement of Africa in Ayi Kwei Armah’s Novels Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation University of Cape Town Axiotou, G (2008) Breaking the Silence: West African Authors and the Transatlantic Slave Trade Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation The University of Edinburgh Brown, M.L (2008) Scream Somehow Echoing: Trauma and Testimony in Anglophone African Literature Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation University of Maryland Bubenechik, M (2012) Trauma Novels in Postcolonial Literatures: Tsitsi Dangarembga, Nervous Conditions, and Tomson Highway, Kiss 227 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam of the Fur Queen Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation Heinrich-HeineUniversität Düsseldorf Ho, Ann-lin, Wendy, (1997) A Study of Chinua Achebe’s Five Novels in Relation to Fredric Jameson's Concepts of "National Allegory" and "Third World Literature Unpublished Master Thesis University of Hong Kong Jappe, T.S (2001) The Search for Identity in Things Fall Apart, A Man of the People, Anthills of the Savannah and Selected Essays by Chinua Achebe.Unpublished MasterThesis University of Hong Kong Nash, H (1997) A Novel Approach to Education and Development: Insights from African Women Writers Unpublished MasterThesis Massey University Rodgers, R.J (2013) Representations of Women, Identity and Education in the Novels of Tsitsi Dangarembga and Kopano Matlwa Unpublished MasterThesis Stellenbosch University Shen, B (2000) Strangers in Their Own Land: the Issue of Social Class & the Dilemma of Individuals in Three Novels by Chinua Achebe Unplublished Master Thesis University of Regina Periodicals Alkire, S Teaching Novels in EFL/ESL Classes The English Learning and Language Review Retrieved from 228 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam http://www.lingua.org.uk/novteach.alkire.html 10/10/2014 Ashaolu, A.O (1980) “A Vision of Society in the Novels of Ayi Kwei Armah” Ashaolu, A.O and Asein, S.O (Eds) Studies in the African Novel Vol Ibadan: Ibadan University Press Dzobo, N.K."African Symbols and Proverbs as Sources of Knowledge" in Person and Community: Ghanaian Philosophical Studies, I eds Kwasi Wiredu and Kwame Gyekye, CRVP.Series II Africa, VOL.1, 85 Maleki, N & Navidi, M (2011) Foregrounding Achebe’s Things Fall Apart: A Postcolonial Study Canadian Social Science, Canada, v.7, n.6, p.10-15 Ogungbesan, K (1975) Symbolism and Meaning in the The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born African Literature Today, Number Ojaide, T (1992) Modern African Literature and Cultural Identity African Studies Review Vol No.3 pp.43-57 Ponsaran, A G (2007) The philosophical foundations of Viktor Frankl's logotherapy Philippiniana Sacra, 42(125), 339-354 Seidel, J V (1998) Qualitative Data Analysis (Originally published as Qualitative Data Analysis in The Ethnograph v5.0: A Users Guide, Appendix E, 1998, Colorado Springs, CO: Qualis Research.) 229 THAINGUYENUNIVERSITY SocialistRepublic of Vietnam Staudt, K The Characterization of Women in Soyinka and Armah Ba Shiry (University of Wincosin, Madison), 8, 2, pp.63-69 Websites Braiman,J.(2007).Literary Devices Retrieved from https://kohner.wikispaces.com/file/view/LITERARY+DEVICES.pdf http://literarydevices.net ... traditional Africa Philosophical approach Philosophical criticism can be defined as a philosophical framework or an approach of constructing interpretation by applying philosophical schools of... The Stranger if they know something about existentialist philosophy Another philosophical approach to literature is to use different philosophical framework to help interpret a work The researcher... simply employ philosophical contexts to understand a piece of literature For example, readers can understand Voltaire’s Candide if they know something about Hindu and Buddhist philosophies, and