MOLARA OGUNDIPE (1940 - 2019)

Africa has produced many remarkable female literary critics and academics over the decades - like Ama Ata Aidoo (Ghana), Assia Djebar (Algeria), Menan Du Plessis, Zoe Wicomb (both South Africans) ... Nigeria's Molara Ogundipe-Leslie, like Aidoo, was one of the Black women literary pioneers from west Africa.

Leslie contributed a lot to the growth and promotion of African literature, from inception. She appreciated the early established African wordsmiths - males - but was never afraid to criticise them. She had early respect (her writings reveal this) for the greats like Wole Soyinka and Ayi Kwei Armah, but if she felt they should be censored, she did so in her earnest manner. Hence if she found some aspects distasteful in their disparate writings, she would pount this out, be it suggestions of "chauvinism" or "narcissism". In her many critical essays her intellectualism and nous stood out, with the broad canvas and striations all grist to her mill. Omolara Leslie's style of writing/criticism was direct, lucid and passionate. And well researched. Her message and thrust was delivered quite simply and made a lot of sense. She knew what she was all about and essentially basked in the writings of assorted writers and books. Early on, Leslie began to write splendid reviews for journals and magazines, including Okike from the early 70s. It was clear that she could not stand women being undermined. Her books are also a testament to her. She was born in Lagos, and attended Queen's School, Ede, and went on to become the first woman to obtain a first-class BA Honours degree in English at University College, Ibadan, then a college of the University of London. She also studied at Leiden University which has extensive studies/material on African Writing. She became a globally recognised scholar and writer. As a scholar, critic, educator and activist, Ogundipe is of course recognized as one of the most prominent and innovative writers on African women and feminism. Her works creatively capture most the nuances and complexities of African life. She died in 2019.

Published works Sew the Old Days and Other Poems, 1985 Re-Creating Ourselves: African Women and Critical Transformations, 1994 (ed.) Women as Oral Artists, 1994 (ed. with Carole Boyce Davies) Moving Beyond Boundaries, April 1995 (two volumes). Gender and subjectivity. Readings of "Song of Lawino". Dissertation Leiden University. Leiden, CNWS, 1999

ABDULRAZAK GURNAH (Tanzania)

 

 

By I. M Soqaga

 

Every time when the Nobel Prize winner in literature would be announced the news will invariably arouse great interest to literary pundits and literary aficionados.  Consequentially, in Africa news of the Nobel Prize winner in literature is welcome with an ambivalent feeling.  For the fact that this year 2021 Nobel Prize in literature has been awarded to an African writer from Tanzania, Abdulrazak Gurnah, certainly Africa is very ecstatic about the news.

 

Abdulrazak Gurnah whose indigenous language is Swahili evaded the soil of Africa when he was a teen and opted to live in England.  He essentially writes in English and his proverbial writings are generally popular abroad where he lives.  Although he had been writing for many years now and his first novel, Memory of Departure (1987), would give a conspicuously picturesque that Professor Gurnah is indeed a well-established writer.

 

Nevertheless, he is a known Zanzibar refugee whose current home is England, after receiving the prestigious Nobel Prize in literature he described the winning of the award as ‘truly remarkable’, and said that it was a great honour for him to be given an award that had been given to so many talented writers worldwide.

 

The Nobel Committee lauded Gurnah: "for his uncompromising and compassionate penetration of the effects of colonialism and the fates of the refugee in the gulf between cultures and continents''

Fundamentally to the surprise of African critics and literary pundits, the Nobel Prize Committee in literature remains in essence a Western Political committee whose discretion on selections for the ultimate winner remains questionable.  Over the years and even this year 2021 outstanding African wordsmiths like Kenyan Ngugi waThiong’o and Somalia’s Nuruddin Farah were shrugged off when there was an explicit prospect that surely, they should be the recipients of the prestigious Nobel Prize.  Moreover, Wole Soyinka himself emphasised on receiving the Nobel Prize in 1986 that “he would not to accept the prize on a personal level... but as a tribute to the heritage of African literature, which is very little known in the West.'

Indeed, a robust Nigerian critic, Chinweizu has already ridiculed the Nobel Prize when he strongly expounded that “the conceit that a gaggle of Swedes, all by themselves, should pronounce on intellectual excellence for the whole wide world.  The Nobel Prize, is neither a world prize rather it is a Western European reward for those rendering a specific kind of service to Western power and Western global hegemony… A Nobel award to any African, therefore, is not a matter for rejoicing.’

Nevertheless Gurnah is a top notch writer whose works over the years include:

Memory of Departure (1987)

Pilgrims Way (1988)

Dottie (1990)

Paradise (1994)

Admiring Silence (1996)

By the Sea (2001)

Desertion (2005)

The Last Gift (2011)

Gravel Heart (2017)

Afterlives (2020)

Yet one must point out that Africa has many great veritable writers who even write in indigenous languages.  It is a fact that Africans whose literary lives are basically in Europe and America will to some certain be recognized and adored by the Western Institutions like the Swedes famous Western Europe control Nobel Prize. But let us still congratulate the polished man of Letters, Gurnah!!

CAMAGU SOMANA (South Africa)

Many readers - Africa in mind here - find short stories in particular tantalising and gripping.  Such creative works are much easier to read and follow  compared  to novels. And some writers are specialists in this genre. A world class example that easily comes to mind is Katherine Mansfield.

Many, if not most of Africa's best writers, including novelists over the decades, published a lot of short stories too. Like Achebe, Mphahlele, Ekwensi, Marechera, Ngugi, Mabel Segun etc. Among the younger generation many literary pundits associate short stories with the polished Lesotho writer, Leseli Mokhele. He began to write short fiction from a young age.

So did CAMAGU SOMANA, whom those in the know would dub a born writer. He was barely 20 when he was publishing fiction of the shorter variety in South Africa. The flow was remarkable to the extent that very early in Ntate Somana's career, the late critic Peter Moroe wrote and published a fine critique of his work.

Literary critic Pule Lechesa, who has published many books on Literature, authors, and literary appreciation, says: "I read many of the early fiction of Camagu Somana.  It was glittering talent from a very young age. It seemed to fizzle out... ? At the moment, one can describe him as a marmoreal wordsmith but brimming with promise.  Will he fulfil his literary potential?"

And Camagu writes a lot of poetry too, quite polished poetry, an astonishing amount of it accessible on the internet.  A cerebral, sensitive, vivid character, his works cover a large canvas.

 

A selection of stories published by Camagu Somana

FESTUS IYAYI (Nigeria)

 

FESTUS IYAYI

By the mid 80s - decades ago Festus Iyayi was already ensconced as a major imaginative writer thanks to 3 superb novels published within a short time: Violence, The Contract, and Heroes.

The writer was famed for his treatment and denunciation of immorality and corruption in his native country. It was mind boggling, even more disturbing as the situation has if anything got even worse over the decades!!

Why was it that the country was enmeshed in endemic horrifying shameless corruption? Why were women ruthlessly exploited in the process? Could any "decent" person go against the system? The author was occupied with these posers amidst a welter of others. 

In his books, we can see the whole nauseating picture against the background of convincing characters and plots. Obviously the author flinched at the unedifying situation too, as we see from his works.

Here is an extract from one of Iyayi's major novels, Violence, which touches on the situation;

 "Not far off were the houses where which sweat and labour had already erected... labour had left its positive mark, the labour of hundreds and thousands of workers, working either in the intense sunlight or in the biting cold or in the blinding rain, piling the blocks higher and highet and wiping the salt and sweat from their eyes and their forehead s with the backs of their hands, and all underpaid, underfed and treated no better than slaves - the highest form of violence maintained and jealously guarded by a greedy, unfeeling class of exploiters, greedy moneymakers, conservative and reactionary public officers took all the credit for the achievements of (cheap) labour..."

To his credit also, Iyayi in his books also often infuses some women with special characteristics, noble, heroic even if they be poor. Women are living enviable beings in his work 

Books by Festus Iyayi

Violence

Heroes

The Contract

Awaiting Court Martial 

DORA OKEYO (Kenya)

 

By I. Mzwandile Soqaga (South Africa)

When we think of Kenyan Literature our minds often automatically go to outstanding writers like Ngugi wa Thiong'o, Meja Mwangi, David Maillu.

All men? Yes. But then again there are revered female literary voices from the country, like Grace Ogot. And in recent times we have new female voices from Kenya like the outstanding DORA OKEYO.

Dora is a quintessential bibliophile, a prolific reader, writer, review et al. Some have dubbed her as a one-woman literary industry.  And it is not even an exaggeration.

She had published many books herself- see a selection of her works at the end. She writes on many genres. She might remind you of Walter Scott because of her penchant for historical writings.

She also writes a lot for children.  In South Africa the likes of Gcina Mhlophe are revered for this; just like Mabel Segun in west Africa. So Dora is in good company!

Dora’s sheer enthusiasm and passion for the world of writing is extraordinary (to put it mildly). She regularly performs endearing services to Literature (including African Writing) by presenting and reviewing sundry books for the literary world.

What a lady!

 

A Selection of Dora Okeyo's Books

Water

I love you This Much

Fire

Choose Me

Say You Love Me

Memories

Roses and Lies

Sifuna

Earth

The Crown of the Sea

You and I

SIPHO MNYAKENI (South Africa)

  

It was a sad sad day when Sipho Mnyakeni, South African writer, poet, motivator, inspirational icon and educationist suddenly breathed his last in 2020. Mnyakeni was a veritable man of letters.

He published a number of striking, thought-provoking books, including his debut work, THE WINNING COMBINATION which was a stirring, quality compendium that garnered praise across the board.

Lupna Avery e.g wrote about the book:

"Strange how these things happen. I never expected to have the chance to read this book right here in west Africa, but I did. This is a very intelligent author and a thinker; he can be critical in his analysis but all this is linked to what he knows about life, and his motherland (South Africa). It is also clear that he likes football a lot (unlike me), but that is neither here nor there. As for the wonderful poems later on in the book, what can one say? There can be no doubt that these poems can stand on their own as a mini-book. A remarkable author..."

Raphael Mokoena, an impressive man of letters himself, also commented:

"An original, awe-inspiring work. The author covers a wide range of ideas geared to forge ahead - and ends this book with remarkable poems that seem to go on and on..."

Mnyakeni did not disappoint with his next book,  titled, BLACK TENDENCIES.  His intellectual, analytical objective mien was again to the fore again. The book illustrates how much he cares and ponders about the proliferating people of Africa.

Ishmael M. Soqaga, well known bibliophile and widely published critic, says: "It was a horrific experience learning that a stratospheric bard like Mr. Mnyakeni was gone... alas, we (Black) Africans tend to undermine ourselves as the late Mnyakeni knew only too well. As a writer, he was polished, refined, innovative and a visionary. His talent as a poet was such that he was easily one of the best in Africa..."

 

Books by Sipho Mnyakeni

The Winning Combination

Black Tendencies

NTOMBAZANA: My Girl, Be

LOCKDOWN POETRY: Poets Ponder

IFEOMA OKOYE (Nigeria)

IFEOMA OKOYE suddenly began to carve a niche for herself in the early 80s (almost 40 years ago) in African literature with the publication of two novels: Behind the Clouds (1982) and Men Without Ears (1984)

It was clear from the beginning that the author was a competent writer . Her works also had the stamp of integrity, balance, and moral restraint.  No wonder she was well received from the beginning and likened to established literary female icons like Flora Nwapa and Buchi Emecheta.

In recent times, OKOYE is essentially regarded as an illustrious writer for children, and for her short stories. Certainly her collection, The trial and other stories, further augmented her lofty standing in the world of creative writing.

For decades she has been warmly embraced and respected for her dedication to quality versatile writing, her penchant for marmoreal writing as she is regarded among other things as a prose stylist in her own right.

"It warms the cockles to see Ma Ifeoma Okoye, a grand lady writer,  still with us, like the legendary Mabel Segun" reviewer Henry Ozogula has said. (Mabel Segun is over 90 now, whilst Okoye is in her 80s)

A contemporary (female) book enthusiast, Lupna Avery has written about Okoye thus, whilst focusing on her first novel, Behind the Clouds:

‘ The plight of African women...over the decades, centuries in Africa. Our outstanding writers have shown that it has always been pretty bad, horrendous (since) many years ago. ..It is not so different in this early book written by one of Nigeria and Africa's top female writers.

The main female character in Behind the Clouds, Ije, is in a relationship where she has to endure a lot though her man, Dozie, is a relatively good man under the circumstances. But the fine qualities of the woman make her outstanding, and it is so painful when she proves to be "barren", though it is actually the fault of the man. Ije pulls out all the stops to make her man happy, though of course he would go on to betray her and bring another woman into their lives. It is so poignant when it gets to the stage where a close friend, Beatrice, strongly advises Ije to seek the help of "faith healer Apostle Joseph" who would unfailingly sleep with her and make her pregnant!

We are aghast when we read: "Ije...(my new baby) is Apostle Joseph 's". Ije was shocked.

"You don't mean it!..." And Beatrice with the weight of society on her neck, responds: "I do and I don't regret my action. My infidelity has saved my marriage... at least I'll have a child who will look after me in old age. A childless woman in our society does not realise the extent of her handicap until she grows old..."

Note that Ije does get to somewhat smile in the end, but in real life it seems unrealistic ...hence the plight of our women even now surely lingers on...’

 

IFEOMA OKOYE: Select Bibliography

Behind the Clouds

Men Without Ears

The Trial and other Stories

The Fourth Wall