African 406: Women Writing Africa

The course surveys contemporary African fiction written by women. We are asking how women are changing the way Africa is imagined in fiction. African fiction has come a long way since texts like Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart where African worlds are depicted as inexorably male-centered. Focusing on novels and stories published within the last five years, the course looks at how women writers are reimagining African lives and redefining the rules on representing African worlds in fiction. More broadly, the course explores the contributions of these texts to current debates around innovation in literary form, feminist discourse, and digital culture.

Fiction

Girl With the Louding Voice by Abi Dare

My Sister the Serial Killer by Onyinkan Braithewaite

Bird Summons by Leila Aboulela

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

The Shadow King by Maaza Mengiste

Theory (excerpts)

The Seven Necessary Sins for Women and Girls by Mona Eltahawy

Sensuous Knowledge by Minna Salami

These Bones Will Rise by Panashe Chigumadzi

Feminism Is by Jen Thorpe