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Periodical article Periodical article Leiden University catalogue Leiden University catalogue WorldCat catalogue WorldCat
Title:African hybrids: exploring Afropolitan identity formation in Taiye Selasi's 'Ghana must go' and Chimamanda Adichie's 'Americanah'
Authors:Ucham, Emelda
Kangira, JairosISNI
Year:2015
Periodical:Journal for Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences (ISSN 2026-7215)
Volume:4
Issue:1
Pages:42-50
Language:English
Geographic terms:Ghana
Nigeria
Subjects:novels
women writers
diasporas
African identity
About persons:Taiye Selasi (1979-)ISNI
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (1977-)ISNI
Abstract:This article discusses the representation of Afropolitan identity formation in Taiye Selasi's debut novel 'Ghana must go' (2013), and Chimamanda Adichie's novel 'Americanah' (2013). Selasi and Chimamanda are women writers from Ghana and Nigeria, now living abroad. The aim of the article is to discuss Afropolitan identity formation as presented in the two novels using Selasi's (2005) essay 'Who is an Afropolitan?' as a benchmark. In this essay Selasi defines Afropolitanism as 'not being citizens but Africans of the world.' The analysis concludes that not only do Afropolitans need to craft an identity on three levels according to Selasi (2005, para. 9) 'national, racial, cultural - with tensions in between', but the experience can be traumatic and painful, both emotionally and physically. Bibliogr., sum. [Journal abstract, edited]
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