Naturalizing Africa

Ecological Violence, Agency, and Postcolonial Resistance in African Literature

Nonfiction, History, Africa, Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism
Cover of the book Naturalizing Africa by Cajetan Iheka, Cambridge University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Cajetan Iheka ISBN: 9781108187770
Publisher: Cambridge University Press Publication: December 7, 2017
Imprint: Cambridge University Press Language: English
Author: Cajetan Iheka
ISBN: 9781108187770
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Publication: December 7, 2017
Imprint: Cambridge University Press
Language: English

The problem of environmental degradation on the African continent is a severe one. In this book, Cajetan Iheka analyses how African literary texts have engaged with pressing ecological problems in Africa, including the Niger Delta oil pollution in Nigeria, ecologies of war in Somalia, and animal abuses. Analysing narratives by important African writers such as Amos Tutuola, Wangari Maathai, J. M. Coetzee, Bessie Head, and Ben Okri, Iheka challenges the tendency to focus primarily on humans in the conceptualization of environmental problems, and instead focuses on how African literature demonstrates the interconnection and 'proximity' of human and nonhuman beings. Through this, Iheka ultimately proposes a revision of the idea of agency based on human intentionality in African literary studies and postcolonialism: that texts yoke the exploitation of Africans to the despoliation of the environment, and they recommend responsibility toward human and nonhuman beings as crucial for ecological sustainability and addressing climate change.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The problem of environmental degradation on the African continent is a severe one. In this book, Cajetan Iheka analyses how African literary texts have engaged with pressing ecological problems in Africa, including the Niger Delta oil pollution in Nigeria, ecologies of war in Somalia, and animal abuses. Analysing narratives by important African writers such as Amos Tutuola, Wangari Maathai, J. M. Coetzee, Bessie Head, and Ben Okri, Iheka challenges the tendency to focus primarily on humans in the conceptualization of environmental problems, and instead focuses on how African literature demonstrates the interconnection and 'proximity' of human and nonhuman beings. Through this, Iheka ultimately proposes a revision of the idea of agency based on human intentionality in African literary studies and postcolonialism: that texts yoke the exploitation of Africans to the despoliation of the environment, and they recommend responsibility toward human and nonhuman beings as crucial for ecological sustainability and addressing climate change.

More books from Cambridge University Press

Cover of the book The Cambridge Companion to the African Novel by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book The Politics of Gay Marriage in Latin America by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book Aulus Gellius and Roman Reading Culture by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book Making Sense of Corruption by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book The Fascists and the Jews of Italy by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book Self-Organized Criticality by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book Fundamentals of Computer Vision by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book Relevance Theory by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book Language, Migration, and Identity by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book Intellectual Shamans by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book Textbook on Spherical Astronomy by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book Statistical Modeling and Inference for Social Science by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book Growing Public: Volume 1, The Story by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book Frontier Democracy by Cajetan Iheka
Cover of the book Corporate Governance in the Common-Law World by Cajetan Iheka
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy