THE LITERATURE OF THE AFRICAN DIASPORA

 
This course will examine the works of contemporary writers from Africa and the African diaspora. Themes will be analyzed in relation to its overall cultural, political, economic background and will focus on its displaced population around the world. It will expose students to the complexity and richness of African people's heritage and thereby it will promote ethnic tolerance.
This course will be a literary journey, following the forced migration of thousands of Africans during the slave trade, a few centuries ago. Their displacement began in the West Coast of Africa, then extended to the Caribbean Islands, to South America and finally to the United States.
The authors will be presented and discussed in the context of their works. There will be a primary focus on the literary themes specific to the African diaspora, their relation to African traditions and their diverse manifestations, for example:
1/ The importance of religion and family ties in contemporary Africa.
2/  The crisis of identity and the estrangement that many Africans experience when confronted with the Western world.
3/  The Caribbean experience and the denial of spiritual freedom.
4/  Social injustice and the black experience in South America as opposed to the black experience in the United States.
5/  The African-American yearning for Africa.
The course will feature six (6) front-line novels of the African diaspora: