GENDER DECONSTRUCTION IN AKWAEKE EMEZI’S FRESHWATER AND TENDAI HUCHU’S THE HAIRDRESSER OF HARARE

This study explores gender deconstruction in Akwaeke Emezi’s Freshwater and Tendai Huchu’s The Hairdresser of Harare. It examines how both writers question traditional gender norms and present identity as fluid and socially constructed. Drawing on Queer Theory and Judith Butler’s concept of gender performativity, the research analyzes how characterization, narrative technique, and symbolism are employed to challenge heteronormative ideals within African societies. Emezi’s Freshwater portrays the protagonist’s fragmented identity through spiritual and psychological dimensions, redefining gender beyond Western binaries, while Huchu’s The Hairdresser of Harare explores gender and sexuality within a conservative Zimbabwean context, revealing through irony and social critique the marginalisation of queer identities. Using a qualitative analytical approach, the study concludes that both texts disrupt fixed gender categories and reimagine selfhood as performative and evolving. Through this, Emezi and Huchu expand the discourse on gender and identity in contemporary African literature, emphasizing diversity, self-definition, and the freedom of individual expression.