Precarious unmoorings : women’s voices in the Anglo- and Lusophone literature of Adichie, Chiziane and Mohamed

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dc.contributor.advisorSteiner, Tinaen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorLim, Rose Joannaen_ZA
dc.contributor.otherStellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of English.en_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2023-02-13T07:42:35Z
dc.date.accessioned2023-05-18T06:58:07Z
dc.date.available2023-02-13T07:42:35Z
dc.date.available2023-05-18T06:58:07Z
dc.date.issued2023-03
dc.descriptionThesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2023.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractENGLISH SUMMARY : African women’s writing has firmly established itself in the arena of postcolonial literatures. It has long walked on from the clamour of the great African language debate on the use of Europhone versus Afrophone languages in African fiction. This dissertation studies the enigma of unmoored African women’s articulations from the perspectives of narratives written in Anglo- and Lusophone mediums. Unmoored, ‘orphaned’ women’s language has taken on a life of its own and disengaged from its colonial-era Europhone sensibilities. It has unobtrusively established unmistakable footholds in the realms of African literature. I argue that the women-centric unmoored language in the narratives of African women writers exist within the ambits of culture and society and yet demonstrate vagabond tendency to wander and engage with further potentialities of articulation. My dissertation examines selected novels from the literary repertoires of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Paulina Chiziane and Nadifa Mohamed respectively. The main impetus for my study is to engage with the phenomenon of unmoored African women’s writing and the manner in which the narratives reflect and create registers in which the experience of women takes centre stage. In particular, attention is drawn to the multivalent articulations of the texts’ women protagonists and other supporting characters, and the routes through which they subversively express themselves in hostile patriarchal settings. The core chapters of this dissertation identify three main strands of such women-centric unmoored articulations, namely the role of imposed and strategic silence in Adichie’s narratives, a reliance on collective expression in Chiziane’s work and geo-poetic spatial contemplations in Mohamed’s texts. The variegated nuances of these different narrative features draw out the diverging approaches to articulation in selected narratives of these three African writers. Writing from Lusophone Africa, Chiziane offers an additional contrast to the Afro-Anglo-perspectives of Adichie and Mohamed. My dissertation contends that these women-centred narratives amplify the heterogenous stances of African women, whose voices do not conform to societies’ prevailing tenets.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractAFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING : Afrika-vroueskryfwerk het ditself stewig gevestig in die arena van postkoloniale letterkundes. Dit het lank aangestap van die kabaal van die groot Afrika-taaldebat oor die gebruik van Eurofoon teenoor Afrofoontale in Afrikafiksie. Hierdie proefskrif bestudeer die raaisel van onvasgemeerde artikulasies van Afrika-vroue vanuit die perspektiewe van narratiewe geskryf in Anglo- en Lusofoon mediums. Onvasgemeerde, 'verweesde' vrouetaal het 'n lewe van haar eie gekry en het ontkoppel van haar koloniale-era Eurofoon-sensitiwiteite. Dit het onopvallend onmiskenbare vastrapplekke in die ryke van die Afrika-letterkunde gevestig. Ek argumenteer dat die vrou-gesentreerde, onvasgemeerde taal in die vertellings van Afrika-vroueskrywers binne die omstandighede van kultuur en samelewing bestaan en tog 'n vagabond-neiging toon om te dwaal en betrokke te raak by verdere potensialiteite van artikulasie. My proefskrif ondersoek geselekteerde romans uit die literêre repertoriums van onderskeidelik Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Paulina Chiziane en Nadifa Mohamed. Die hoof stukrag vir my studie is om betrokke te raak by die verskynsel van onvasgemeerde skryfwerk van Afrika-vroue en die wyse waarop die narratiewe reflekteer en registers skep waarin die ervaring van vroue die middelpunt is. Die aandag word veral gevestig op die multivalente artikulasies van die tekste se vroue-protagoniste en ander bykarakters, en die roetes waardeur hulle hulself subversief uitdruk in vyandige patriargale omgewings. Die kernhoofstukke van hierdie proefskrif identifiseer drie hooftrekke van sulke vrou-gesentreerde onvasgemeerde artikulasies, naamlik die rol van opgelegde en strategiese stilte in Adichie se narratiewe, 'n vertroue in kollektiewe uitdrukking in Chiziane se werk en geo-poëtiese ruimtelike besinning in Mohamed se tekste. Die uiteenlopende nuanses van hierdie verskillende narratiewe kenmerke trek die uiteenlopende benaderings tot artikulasie in geselekteerde narratiewe van hierdie drie Afrika-skrywers na vore. Chiziane skryf uit Lusofoon Afrika en bied 'n bykomende kontras tot die Afro-Anglo-perspektiewe van Adichie en Mohamed. My proefskrif beweer dat hierdie vrou-gesentreerde narratiewe die heterogenetiese standepunte van Afrika-vroue versterk wie se stemme nie ooreenstem met samelewings se heersende beginsels nie.af_ZA
dc.description.versionDoctoralen_ZA
dc.format.extentviii, 164 pagesen_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/126970
dc.language.isoen_ZA
dc.publisherStellenbosch : Stellenbosch Universityen_ZA
dc.rights.holderStellenbosch Universityen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshWomen -- Africa -- Social conditionsen_za
dc.subject.lcshWomen authors, African -- Political and social viewsen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshAdichie, Chimamanda Ngozi, 1977-en_ZA
dc.subject.lcshAfrican literature -- Women authors -- History and criticismen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshChiziane, Paulina, 1955-en_ZA
dc.subject.lcshAfrican diaspora in literatureen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshMohamed, Nadifa, 1981-en_ZA
dc.subject.lcshPostcolonialism in literature -- Africaen_ZA
dc.subject.nameUCTD
dc.titlePrecarious unmoorings : women’s voices in the Anglo- and Lusophone literature of Adichie, Chiziane and Mohameden_ZA
dc.typeThesisen_ZA
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