Africans in the Americas have a great héritagefrom which to draw upon. If nurtured andallowed the... more Africans in the Americas have a great héritagefrom which to draw upon. If nurtured andallowed the Opportunity to pursue elements of theirhéritage they will be enabled to make significantand greater economic and social contributionsto their countries.(IDB Report, 1996) L’expérience transafricaine au Pérou remonte à la période d’exploration et de conquête du continent sudaméricain. Les premiers africains arrivèrent au Pérou en tant que membres de l’expédition de Franscisco Pizarro vers 1532. Pe..
Cette communication se propose d\u27examiner, dans la production culturelle du journaliste, profe... more Cette communication se propose d\u27examiner, dans la production culturelle du journaliste, professeur d\u27université, essayiste et poète afro-dominicain Blas Jiménez, le processus de récupération et de ré-articulation de ce que Victoria Lavou a appelé « la mémoire assignée », comme stratégie d\u27affirmation d\u27identité culturelle et ethnique dans un espace topographiquement, politiquement et économiquement fragmenté comme l\u27est la Caraïbe. Partant de l\u27« afrorealismo », concept analytique et théorique proposé par le critique et écrivain costaricain Quince Duncan, ce travail tentera d\u27examiner comment Blas Jiménez Abreú, s\u27appuie sur un projet littéraire, lyrique, fragmenté du point vue typographique pour recréer et décrire un espace caribéen fragmenté et, au passage, articuler une plateforme discursive dont l\u27objectif est d\u27inscrire l\u27africanité et la transafricanité dans la caribeñidad (culturelle y géographique). Le projet culturel de Jiménez Abreú ouvre ...
The experiences of displacement, exile, and the recovery and articulation of memory have been ext... more The experiences of displacement, exile, and the recovery and articulation of memory have been extensively thematized in African literatures in transcontinental languages from the coming of independence to the present. The specific focus of this study is the analysis of recovery and articulation of memory in African Hispanic poetic expressions of Equatoguinean writers in exile. Despite the fact that Equatorial Guinea is the only country in sub-Saharan Africa with a literature written in Spanish, only recently has this cultural production received the critical and theoretical attention it deserves. Given the cultural, historical, and politico-geographical experiences of the Spanish colonial subject, the Spanish language and Hispanic culture continue to play a central role in the formation of national identity discourses. Within this context, "Hispanidad" - or Spaniskness - stands out as a reality that informs and mediates this cultural production. Scholars and authors draw upon this aspect of the country's historical heritage to analyze and articulate discourses on national identity. Hispanic heritage is, in this sense, part of a variety of materials called upon in discussions pertaining to the articulation of "guineanidad." Unlike many African countries where there is an effective autochthonous lingua franca that enables members of different ethnic groups and linguistic communities to communicate, in Equatorial Guinea, the Spanish language - and, to a lesser extent, Pidgin (the so-called invisible language) on the Island of Bioko - is the main vehicle of interethnic communication. Pancracio Esono asserts that "El espanol hablado y escrito de todos los niveles constituye no solo un medio eficaz para las comunicaciones interetnicas y administrativas, sino tambien el ingente superestrato cultural que reafirma la identidad hispano-bantu e hispano-guineana de sus hablantes en los contextos subregional y mundial"(41). Independence, along with nation-building and the establishment of new institutional structures, favored the emergence of a new political and cultural discourse, described in some countries as a National Project. The African post-independent reality became the site for the emergence of national literatures and other cultural expressions. Igor Cusack argues that, "Writing a national identity is an oversimplification insofar as different individuals and groups within a given territory may perceive what constitutes their national identity in different ways or varying emphases" (207). In Equatorial Guinea, as in many African nations, the multiethnic composition of the population fostered the close association of the formation of national identity with "territory bounded by fixed international borders and recognized and upheld by the international community" (Cusack 207-8), but also by a common national project. Due to the complexity of the territorial demarcation inherited from the colonial period, these existing borders did not respect social, ethnic, political or geographical realities, and they made the articulation of the national project highly problematic; such borders nonetheless became a defining platform upon which most "new" African nations relied to build nationhood and nationality. Cusack writes that "The 'official' national identity therefore emerges as a collage or assemblage constructed out of different materials" (208). In the case of Equatorial Guinea, Senegalese scholar Mohamadou Kane notes, "The African independent state is not [Fang], it is not ruled according to [Fang] traditions. It is a mosaic of peoples and cultures. It is composed of multiple identities that are not necessarily compatible" (22) .' The country is inhabited by several ethnic groups, including the Fang, Ndowe, Bubis, Fernandinos, Benga, Baseke, Balengue, Annobonese, and Bujeba. Given the pluralism of traditions and heritages, nation-building and the formation of national identity could not be based on ethnic homogeneity, or even on the perspective of one single ethnic group at the expense of marginalizing the others. …
There is no better way to start this piece than by acknowledging E. C. Eze's invaluable contr... more There is no better way to start this piece than by acknowledging E. C. Eze's invaluable contribution to philosophy in general, and to African philoso phy in particular. His transition to, and membership in, the other world has created a void and a vacancy that will be impossible to fill. As a fellow African from the Democratic Republic of Congo, I take pride in the fact that this rising academic star from Nigeria spent part of his education years in Kinshasa, DRC. So I am humbled and honored by Africa Today's request that I write these comments, which I would like to treat as my tribute to Dr. Eze, whose American dream was ended by death. His commitment to African philosophy was rooted in his experience of living in more than one African country, as well as in his experience in the African diaspora. He fully understood the meanings of "publish or perish" and the Latin saying Verbum volat, scripta manent "the word flies away, written things remain." May he be remembered forever through his Afrocentric publications, and may he repose in peace! In the twenty-first century, African philosophers and scholars should have overcome the twentieth century's fear of not being taken seriously simply because of the Eurocentric belief that there was or is no such thing as African philosophy. I am referring to the old arguments around Placide Tempels's Bantu Philosophy, which dominated most debates about philoso phy in Africa for most of the last century. Many Africans and Westerners have managed to make a name for themselves through their belief of disbe lief in ethnophilosophy. Dr. Eze did so by showing, through his spoken and written words, that African and philosophy are not diametrically opposed terms; however, like many of us who have been exposed to, and affected by, the legacy of disbelief about African philosophy, he could hardly ignore old stereotypes about African philosophy and the unnecessary dichotomy between cultural philosophy and so-called professional philosophy?Western philosophy. Many Afrosophical manuscripts have gone unpublished simply because they are not "philosophical" enough. African thinkers must declare their independence from Eurocentrism and feel free to philosophize using any data, including African experiences. The cultural and the philosophical
Este articulo explora el tema de la ciudad y el lugar que ocupa en la literatura africana de expr... more Este articulo explora el tema de la ciudad y el lugar que ocupa en la literatura africana de expresion francesa poscolonial y, en particular, en Niiwam del escritor y cineasta senegales Ousmane Sembene. Tema poco estudiado, la ciudad africana moderna no solo es un espacio alienado y alienante, sino tambien un lugar de profundas contradicciones y de conflictos. A traves de los personajes de Niiwam y de Thierno, nos proponemos analizar esa nueva realidad geografica, politica y socio-economica que es la ciudad africana, marcada por una estructura binaria, la cual es, en ultima instancia, el reflejo de la sociedad global. Por un lado esta el pais oficial y visible, y por el otro, el pais real, profundo e invisible representado por individuos como Thierno que viven en un universo situado al margen del pais oficial. En este sentido, la ciudad es, sin duda, una de las manifestaciones mas ilustrativas del fracaso de los diversos proyectos nacionales surgidos tras la independencia de la mayoria de los paises africanos
Africans in the Americas have a great héritagefrom which to draw upon. If nurtured andallowed the... more Africans in the Americas have a great héritagefrom which to draw upon. If nurtured andallowed the Opportunity to pursue elements of theirhéritage they will be enabled to make significantand greater economic and social contributionsto their countries.(IDB Report, 1996) L’expérience transafricaine au Pérou remonte à la période d’exploration et de conquête du continent sudaméricain. Les premiers africains arrivèrent au Pérou en tant que membres de l’expédition de Franscisco Pizarro vers 1532. Pe..
Cette communication se propose d\u27examiner, dans la production culturelle du journaliste, profe... more Cette communication se propose d\u27examiner, dans la production culturelle du journaliste, professeur d\u27université, essayiste et poète afro-dominicain Blas Jiménez, le processus de récupération et de ré-articulation de ce que Victoria Lavou a appelé « la mémoire assignée », comme stratégie d\u27affirmation d\u27identité culturelle et ethnique dans un espace topographiquement, politiquement et économiquement fragmenté comme l\u27est la Caraïbe. Partant de l\u27« afrorealismo », concept analytique et théorique proposé par le critique et écrivain costaricain Quince Duncan, ce travail tentera d\u27examiner comment Blas Jiménez Abreú, s\u27appuie sur un projet littéraire, lyrique, fragmenté du point vue typographique pour recréer et décrire un espace caribéen fragmenté et, au passage, articuler une plateforme discursive dont l\u27objectif est d\u27inscrire l\u27africanité et la transafricanité dans la caribeñidad (culturelle y géographique). Le projet culturel de Jiménez Abreú ouvre ...
The experiences of displacement, exile, and the recovery and articulation of memory have been ext... more The experiences of displacement, exile, and the recovery and articulation of memory have been extensively thematized in African literatures in transcontinental languages from the coming of independence to the present. The specific focus of this study is the analysis of recovery and articulation of memory in African Hispanic poetic expressions of Equatoguinean writers in exile. Despite the fact that Equatorial Guinea is the only country in sub-Saharan Africa with a literature written in Spanish, only recently has this cultural production received the critical and theoretical attention it deserves. Given the cultural, historical, and politico-geographical experiences of the Spanish colonial subject, the Spanish language and Hispanic culture continue to play a central role in the formation of national identity discourses. Within this context, "Hispanidad" - or Spaniskness - stands out as a reality that informs and mediates this cultural production. Scholars and authors draw upon this aspect of the country's historical heritage to analyze and articulate discourses on national identity. Hispanic heritage is, in this sense, part of a variety of materials called upon in discussions pertaining to the articulation of "guineanidad." Unlike many African countries where there is an effective autochthonous lingua franca that enables members of different ethnic groups and linguistic communities to communicate, in Equatorial Guinea, the Spanish language - and, to a lesser extent, Pidgin (the so-called invisible language) on the Island of Bioko - is the main vehicle of interethnic communication. Pancracio Esono asserts that "El espanol hablado y escrito de todos los niveles constituye no solo un medio eficaz para las comunicaciones interetnicas y administrativas, sino tambien el ingente superestrato cultural que reafirma la identidad hispano-bantu e hispano-guineana de sus hablantes en los contextos subregional y mundial"(41). Independence, along with nation-building and the establishment of new institutional structures, favored the emergence of a new political and cultural discourse, described in some countries as a National Project. The African post-independent reality became the site for the emergence of national literatures and other cultural expressions. Igor Cusack argues that, "Writing a national identity is an oversimplification insofar as different individuals and groups within a given territory may perceive what constitutes their national identity in different ways or varying emphases" (207). In Equatorial Guinea, as in many African nations, the multiethnic composition of the population fostered the close association of the formation of national identity with "territory bounded by fixed international borders and recognized and upheld by the international community" (Cusack 207-8), but also by a common national project. Due to the complexity of the territorial demarcation inherited from the colonial period, these existing borders did not respect social, ethnic, political or geographical realities, and they made the articulation of the national project highly problematic; such borders nonetheless became a defining platform upon which most "new" African nations relied to build nationhood and nationality. Cusack writes that "The 'official' national identity therefore emerges as a collage or assemblage constructed out of different materials" (208). In the case of Equatorial Guinea, Senegalese scholar Mohamadou Kane notes, "The African independent state is not [Fang], it is not ruled according to [Fang] traditions. It is a mosaic of peoples and cultures. It is composed of multiple identities that are not necessarily compatible" (22) .' The country is inhabited by several ethnic groups, including the Fang, Ndowe, Bubis, Fernandinos, Benga, Baseke, Balengue, Annobonese, and Bujeba. Given the pluralism of traditions and heritages, nation-building and the formation of national identity could not be based on ethnic homogeneity, or even on the perspective of one single ethnic group at the expense of marginalizing the others. …
There is no better way to start this piece than by acknowledging E. C. Eze's invaluable contr... more There is no better way to start this piece than by acknowledging E. C. Eze's invaluable contribution to philosophy in general, and to African philoso phy in particular. His transition to, and membership in, the other world has created a void and a vacancy that will be impossible to fill. As a fellow African from the Democratic Republic of Congo, I take pride in the fact that this rising academic star from Nigeria spent part of his education years in Kinshasa, DRC. So I am humbled and honored by Africa Today's request that I write these comments, which I would like to treat as my tribute to Dr. Eze, whose American dream was ended by death. His commitment to African philosophy was rooted in his experience of living in more than one African country, as well as in his experience in the African diaspora. He fully understood the meanings of "publish or perish" and the Latin saying Verbum volat, scripta manent "the word flies away, written things remain." May he be remembered forever through his Afrocentric publications, and may he repose in peace! In the twenty-first century, African philosophers and scholars should have overcome the twentieth century's fear of not being taken seriously simply because of the Eurocentric belief that there was or is no such thing as African philosophy. I am referring to the old arguments around Placide Tempels's Bantu Philosophy, which dominated most debates about philoso phy in Africa for most of the last century. Many Africans and Westerners have managed to make a name for themselves through their belief of disbe lief in ethnophilosophy. Dr. Eze did so by showing, through his spoken and written words, that African and philosophy are not diametrically opposed terms; however, like many of us who have been exposed to, and affected by, the legacy of disbelief about African philosophy, he could hardly ignore old stereotypes about African philosophy and the unnecessary dichotomy between cultural philosophy and so-called professional philosophy?Western philosophy. Many Afrosophical manuscripts have gone unpublished simply because they are not "philosophical" enough. African thinkers must declare their independence from Eurocentrism and feel free to philosophize using any data, including African experiences. The cultural and the philosophical
Este articulo explora el tema de la ciudad y el lugar que ocupa en la literatura africana de expr... more Este articulo explora el tema de la ciudad y el lugar que ocupa en la literatura africana de expresion francesa poscolonial y, en particular, en Niiwam del escritor y cineasta senegales Ousmane Sembene. Tema poco estudiado, la ciudad africana moderna no solo es un espacio alienado y alienante, sino tambien un lugar de profundas contradicciones y de conflictos. A traves de los personajes de Niiwam y de Thierno, nos proponemos analizar esa nueva realidad geografica, politica y socio-economica que es la ciudad africana, marcada por una estructura binaria, la cual es, en ultima instancia, el reflejo de la sociedad global. Por un lado esta el pais oficial y visible, y por el otro, el pais real, profundo e invisible representado por individuos como Thierno que viven en un universo situado al margen del pais oficial. En este sentido, la ciudad es, sin duda, una de las manifestaciones mas ilustrativas del fracaso de los diversos proyectos nacionales surgidos tras la independencia de la mayoria de los paises africanos
Este trabajo se propone examinar, de forma específica, la literatura colombiana producida por muj... more Este trabajo se propone examinar, de forma específica, la literatura colombiana producida por mujeres de ascendencia africana desde la periferia del llamado “canon literario”, y que nosotros definimos como institucionalidad cultural oficial. Para ello, nos apoyaremos en el texto ¡Negras Somos! Antología de 21 mujeres poetas afrocolombianas (2008), una de las primeras colecciones de su género publicada en Colombia y quizás en Latinoamérica, dedicada exclusivamente a la producción cultural de las mujeres escritoras de ascendencia africana. Por un lado, se examinará el discurso lírico como plataforma de recuperación y de construcción de un espacio de expresión personal y colectiva y, por el otro, como medio de afirmación de identidad, pero de una identidad multifacética: femenina, negra y colombiana; en otras palabras, la experiencia de “ser-mujer y negra” dentro de un espacio nacional y de soberanía internacional llamado República de Colombia.
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