Universität Wien

140066 VO Contemporary African Literature: Resistance and Social Engagement (2015W)

3.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 14 - Orientalistik, Afrikanistik, Indologie und Tibetologie
Moodle

Details

Language: English

Examination dates

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

  • Tuesday 13.10. 15:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Tuesday 20.10. 15:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Tuesday 27.10. 15:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Tuesday 03.11. 15:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Tuesday 10.11. 15:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Tuesday 17.11. 15:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Tuesday 24.11. 15:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Tuesday 01.12. 15:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Tuesday 15.12. 15:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Tuesday 12.01. 15:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Tuesday 19.01. 15:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03
  • Tuesday 26.01. 15:00 - 17:00 Inst. f. Afrikawissenschaften, Seminarraum 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2M-O1-03

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

African literature has always been a literature of resistance, since resistance against colonialism was the impulse of its emergence. This course will explore the development of resistance discourse in African literature in English since the 1960s to present, marking a shift from the previous preoccupation with colonialism and its legacy to an interest in the issues of continued social injustice, economic inequality, and the absence of civil society. Authors explore the impact of corruption, neocolonialism, and globalization on the African economies, societies and the environment; organized crime and its eruption in civil wars; ethnic strife, genocide, and gender violence; the exoticization and commodification of Africa in the West; as well as the continuation of corrupt practices in exile and diaspora. At the same time, contemporary African literature demonstrates changes in thinking about African identity and the nation, the future of Africa and the meaning of oppression and victimhood. Rather than focusing just on the political aspect of this literature, this course will study postcolonial African literature by emphasizing the relationship between the politics, aesthetics and socio-historical and material context in order to explore the role of the literary text in the circulation of a global image of Africa. We will examine a variety of genres and narrative trends, including the novel, the short story, drama, poetry, the memoir, the Bildungsroman, and the detective thriller, and explore their function and effectiveness.

Assessment and permitted materials

Final essay (10-12 pages), due March 30, 2016. Correction essays can be submitted by the end of June 2016 (3 attempts at correction are possible).

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

On completion of this course the student will have developed the ability to:
.) identify, analyse and understand key political and aesthetic issues in contemporary African writing
.) apply close reading skills to a variety of literary texts and be able to analyze them from a literary-critical perspective
.) reflect critically on the relations between primary texts and relevant secondary texts

Examination topics

Reading list

There will be some reading of short stories and novel excerpts to be discussed in class. These will be sent in pdf form by email.

Association in the course directory

ÜAL1, ÜAL2, EC-148;
SPL-13: BA-5 und 8, MA 3
SPL-12: MA 844: M-07

Last modified: Mo 07.09.2020 15:34