CHALLENGING 'OTHERING' MECHANISMS. REPLACING AFRICAN DARKNESS AND ABSENCE WITH THE LIGHT OF PRESENCE AND CELEBRATION IN CHINUA ACHEBE'S NO LONGER AT EASE AND THE EDUCATION OF A BRITISH-PROTECTED CHILD

• Published in: Studia Universitatis Petru Maior. Philologia no. 17; p. 93
• Main Author: Culea, Mihaela
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Targu-Mures Universitatea Petru Maior 01.07.2014
• Subjects: Achebe, Chinua; African literature; Ethnicity; Literary criticism; Novels; Postcolonialism
• ISSN: 1582-9960; 2286-3206

The focal point of this paper is the exploration of Nigerian author Chinua Achebe's (1930-2013) literary criticism of 'othering' and the solutions and earnest appeals he launches for eradicating conceptions of difference resulting from colonial ideology. The investigation focuses on both fiction and non-fiction, with special focus on the novel No Longer at Ease (1960/2010) and the collection of autobiographical essays The Education of a British-Protected Child (2009/2011). The close reading of the two texts discloses Achebe's response to the prevalent themes of darkness and difference associated with the condition of Africans, a response which is redemptive, conciliatory and deeply humanistic. Colonial 'othering' was negatively constructed in terms of ethnicity and race and the writer posits at its core central themes like darkness, absence, and difference. Another common theme of the colonial discourse was its insistence on dehumanizing perceptions of Africans, and Achebe seeks precisely to reinstitute the humanity of his people. The analysis also explores celebration as a key-paradigm proposed by Achebe in order to repudiate the themes of darkness and absence. The denial of the African identity by the colonizer is another key-concern in Achebe's writings, so he also calls forth the recovery of the Africans' name, an act which coincides with the redemption of their abused identity. Finally, the paper focuses on Achebe's view of literature as a celebration of humanity in its diversity, which constitutes yet another type of response to the mentality which harmfully represented the Africans as 'others'.