The People's Right to the Novel

War Fiction in the Postcolony

Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism, African, Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, International
Cover of the book The People's Right to the Novel by Eleni Coundouriotis, Fordham University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Eleni Coundouriotis ISBN: 9780823262342
Publisher: Fordham University Press Publication: September 15, 2014
Imprint: Fordham University Press Language: English
Author: Eleni Coundouriotis
ISBN: 9780823262342
Publisher: Fordham University Press
Publication: September 15, 2014
Imprint: Fordham University Press
Language: English

This study offers a literary history of the war novel in Africa. Coundouriotis argues that this genre, aimed more specifically at African readers than the continent’s better-known bildungsroman tradition, nevertheless makes an important intervention in global understandings of human rights.

The African war novel lies at the convergence of two sensibilities it encounters in European traditions: the naturalist aesthetic and the discourse of humanitarianism, whether in the form of sentimentalism or of human rights law. Both these sensibilities are present in culturally hybrid forms in the African war novel, reflecting its syncretism as a narrative practice engaged with the colonial and postcolonial history of the continent.

The war novel, Coundouriotis argues, stakes claims to collective rights that contrast with the individualism of the bildungsroman tradition. The genre is a form of people’s history that participates in a political struggle for the rights of the dispossessed.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

This study offers a literary history of the war novel in Africa. Coundouriotis argues that this genre, aimed more specifically at African readers than the continent’s better-known bildungsroman tradition, nevertheless makes an important intervention in global understandings of human rights.

The African war novel lies at the convergence of two sensibilities it encounters in European traditions: the naturalist aesthetic and the discourse of humanitarianism, whether in the form of sentimentalism or of human rights law. Both these sensibilities are present in culturally hybrid forms in the African war novel, reflecting its syncretism as a narrative practice engaged with the colonial and postcolonial history of the continent.

The war novel, Coundouriotis argues, stakes claims to collective rights that contrast with the individualism of the bildungsroman tradition. The genre is a form of people’s history that participates in a political struggle for the rights of the dispossessed.

More books from Fordham University Press

Cover of the book Exploring Lincoln by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book Religion of the Field Negro by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book Renaissance Posthumanism by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book Teaching Bodies by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book Shades of Green by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book A Pact with Vichy by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book Contested Loyalty by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book Practicing the City by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book Scandalize My Name by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book Mental Language by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book Phantom Limbs by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book The Fall of Sleep by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book Lessons in Secular Criticism by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book Nietzsche's Animal Philosophy by Eleni Coundouriotis
Cover of the book In Dante's Wake by Eleni Coundouriotis
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy