Examining Alterity Dynamics Through the Conceptualisation and (Re)Construction of Social and Political Enemy in Post-Independent Francophone African Literature (Published)
The exploration of alterity in francophone African literature offers a rich and multifaceted understanding of identity dynamics and cultural hybridity. By examining the impact of post-independence socio-political landscape, this study provides critical insights into the complexities of otherness. Through the lenses of conflict and postcolonial theories, functionalism, symbolic interactionism, and comparative analysis, the thematic perspective provides a deeper understanding of how the concept of the enemy is constructed, negotiated, and redefined within the alterity framework in francophone African narratives. Using a corpus of five novels, this study not only enriches our understanding of francophone African literature but also contributes to broader discussions on identity, power, and socio-political representation in post-independent Africa. It concludes that the enemy’s identity is fluid, continuously shaped by social interactions and cultural practices, which construct and redefine individual and collective identities in response to evolving social and political contexts.
Keywords: Postcolonial Theory, alterity, conflict theory, francophone African literature, functionalism, symbolic interactionism.
‘A FATHER’ AND ‘FATHERING’ BY BHARATI MUKHERJEE: A COMPARATIVE STUDY (Published)
The literature of the Indian diaspora constitutes an important part of the burgeoning field of Anglophone post colonial literature. Diaspora is an emerging word in post colonial literary scenario. Its emergence has produced a radical transformation or ‘paradigm shift’ in literary and cultural studies. The Indian diasporic writers have attained popularity in the last decade because of the theoretical formulations generated by their works. These writers present a blend of culture of their native homeland and the culture of the host land. Diasporic literature helps in bridging the gaps between different countries, glocalizing the global and even in maintaining universal peace. The diasporic writings feature the quest for identity, uprooting and re rooting, insider and outsider syndrome, nostalgia, nagging sense of guilt etc. The process of survival of the diasporic individual involves the struggles and sufferings from “alienation” to “assimilation”. Bharati Mukherjee is an India born Canadian /American writer. She immigrated from her native land i.e. India to USA. She lived in Canada for about fourteen years before finally moving to USA. Her stay in Canada witnessed racist attacks, which are very clearly depicted in her writings. The author of eight highly praised novels, two collections of short stories and a smattering of non- fiction, shows her personal experiences. An immigrant’s life, full of pain, struggle, nostalgia, sense of belongingness, struggle for survival in the alien land, serves as the background of Bharati Mukherjee’s writings. The paper aims to compare two of her short stories, “A Father” and “Fathering”, extracted from her collections titled Darkness and The Middleman and Other Stories, respectively. The objective of this paper is to undertake diasporic perspective including the post colonial approach to achieve the objective.
Keywords: Alienation, Assimilation, Diaspora, Postcolonial Theory
‘A FATHER’ AND ‘FATHERING’ BY BHARATI MUKHERJEE: A COMPARATIVE STUDY (Published)
Keywords: Alienation, Assimilation, Diaspora, Postcolonial Theory