The works of important Anglophone African novelists, in particular those who have contributed to the growing body of literary criticism, support their claim that there is a distinctive African novel. Their novels clearly demonstrate the attachment of the novel form to the specific cultural, social and political milieu in which it is produced. The thematic concerns of Anglophone African novelists have far-reaching effects on their treatment of subject-matter and on their narrative methods. The structures of certain important novels reveal patterns of experience which are typical of African societies. Symbols and motifs which are used to further structural development in many novels are derived from situations existing within the culture and from traditional oral literature. In depicting character, novelists emphasize African social values and develop characterization with reference to the present problems facing individuals in contemporary African societies. Verbal and narrative style in the novels are also clearly influenced by local idiom and the patterns of the indigenous languages. In general, novels by Anglophone African novelists show how the social motivations of the novelist and his cultural situation control his development of themes and his exercise of technique.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.68629 |
| Date | January 1981 |
| Creators | Johnson, Joyce Walker. |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Doctor of Philosophy (Department of English) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 000139963, proquestno: AAINK58135, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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