DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH AND LITERATURE

This study explored the literary representation of schizophrenia not merely as a mental condition, but as a symbolic and subversive form of rebellion in selected African short stories: “The Madman” by Chinua Achebe, “The Beauty of Madness” by Adekunle Mamudu, and “Angwo Tanda” by Chiweizu. Drawing from postcolonial theory and psychoanalytic criticism, the research analyzed how madness was employed as a metaphorical tool to challenge socio-political oppression, cultural expectations, and personal alienation. The protagonists in these stories exhibited both conscious and unconscious forms of rebellion: through silence, spectacle, retreat, and disruption, their perceived insanity became a means of reclaiming voice, agency, and resistance in postcolonial African society. Ultimately, the paper argued that schizophrenia, within these texts, transcended pathology to serve as a mirror reflecting fractured systems and a weapon wielded—whether knowingly or not —against normative structures that silenced dissent.

This study delves into Festus Okwekwe’s poetry collections, Our Mother Is Not a Woman and Second Class Breeds, which serve as a powerful critiques of the patriarchal worldview prevalent within Igbo society and across Nigeria. These works expose the multifaceted nature of gender inequality, highlighting the subjugation of women, the rigid enforcement of traditional gender roles, and the resulting imbalances of power. Through a combination of stark realism and evocative imagery, Okwekwe’s poems depict the consequences of patriarchal dominance, focusing on women's experiences of marginalization, exploitation, and violence. The collections challenge the notion of women as mere objects or possessions, disrupting the prevailing narratives that define women solely through their reproductive capacity and domestic roles. The collections employ a range of poetic techniques, including metaphor, symbolism, and narrative voice, to deconstruct oppressive structures and expose their inherent contradictions. Okwekwe’s poetry doesn't merely represent the struggles of women; it actively engages with the sources of their oppression, offering a platform for resistance and the envisioning of more equitable gender relations.

This study interrogates the notion of recodification as an act of resistance in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart and Chigozie Obioma’s An Orchestra of Minorities. Though separated by decades, both novels converge thematically in their defiance of cultural erasure and their reclamation of Igbo indigenous identity through narrative innovation. The research analyses how Achebe and Obioma adapt, bend, and blend language employing proverbs, idioms, myth, cosmology, and oral tradition not merely as stylistic choices but as deliberate strategies of epistemic and cultural resistance against colonial and neo-colonial forces. Using a qualitative, interpretive methodology grounded in close reading and informed by postcolonial theory and cultural studies, the study examines narrative structure, symbolic representation, and linguistic hybridity to uncover how both authors recode English to carry Igbo rhythms, ontologies, and worldviews. Building on the works of Said, Bhabha, Spivak, Ngũgĩ, and Hall, the analysis demonstrates that recodification functions as a decolonial praxis a recentering of African epistemologies within global literary discourse. The thesis argues that both Achebe’s Things Fall Apart and Obioma’s An Orchestra of Minorities use recodification through the adaptation, bending, and blending of language, myth, and oral tradition as tools for resisting colonial and modern dislocation, rewriting identity, and reclaiming cultural power.

This study examines how unconscious fears, trauma, and repression shape female identity in Amma Darko’s Faceless and Bayo Adebowale’s Lonely Days. Using the psychoanalytic theories of Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung, complemented by feminist perspectives, the research investigates how internal psychological conflicts mirror the external realities of patriarchal societies. The analysis demonstrates that both authors employ narrative realism, imagery, and interior monologue to reveal how women internalise fear, pain, and silence as mechanisms of survival. In Faceless, Fofo and Maa Tsuru represent the psychological consequences of abandonment, social neglect, and sexual exploitation, while in Lonely Days, Yaremi embodies the trauma and repression caused by widowhood and cultural marginalisation. The study finds that these psychological experiences, though destructive, ultimately inspire self-awareness and resistance. The research concludes that Darko and Adebowale portray African womanhood as both wounded and resilient. Through psychoanalytic interpretation, the study establishes that women’s repressed emotions and fears become instruments of identity reconstruction and liberation within oppressive social structures. Keywords: Psychoanalysis, Unconscious Fears, Trauma, Repression, Female Identity, Patriarchy, Faceless, Lonely Days.

This research drawing on postcolonial theory and subaltern concept examines voice and memory in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Half of a Yellow Sun and Amma Darko’s Faceless by examining how voice and memory reclaim silenced narratives, expose social injustices and highlight the struggles of marginalized groups. It also shows how these elements serve as tools for healing, resistance and social transformation. This research analyzes the role of storytelling and remembrance as means of healing and resistance against historical erasure. The findings reveal that Adichie and Darko use voice and memory not merely as artistic expressions but as important tools for confronting the past and redefining African identity. This research concludes that literature serves as a powerful medium for preserving individual and collective memory and also promoting social awareness in postcolonial contexts

This study explores the use of gendered language in Ayobami Adebayo‘s Stay with Me and Sefi Atta‘s Everything Good Will Come, highlighting how women resist patriarchal control and assert their autonomy through speech. It examines how characters like Yejide and Enitan transform language from a tool of oppression into a weapon of empowerment, challenging societal expectations around marriage, fertility, obedience, and female silence. In Stay with Me, Yejide‘s assertive declarations reclaim her body, identity, and choices, confronting oppressive family and cultural norms. In Everything Good Will Come, Enitan‘s voice evolves from compliance to defiance, symbolizing personal liberation and resilience, while inspiring a new vision of womanhood for future generations. This study demonstrates that language in these novels is not merely communicative but performative, shaping resistance, resilience, and empowerment. It contributes to understanding how contemporary Nigerian literature portrays women‘s struggles and triumphs in reclaiming agency in a patriarchal society.