Reading most of contemporary Africa’s media and literature texts, one notices two basic thematic motif running across the entire corpus of this genre — the themes of pain and disillusionment. This development indicates that although independence sought to ultimately liberate Africans, nothing tangible has happened to resolve our crises. In a sense, contemporary African journalism and literature reflect social and political realities of the post-independence era in which political elite replaced the coloniser.
African journalism and literature were tools for celebrating the heroic grandeur in the past; later they were used in the anti-colonial struggle and presently they are being employed as veritable weapons for depicting the postcolonial disillusionment in African countries.
Colin Legum, in his book Africa Since Independence, categorises some periods in the history of the continent. He says our continent has historically gone through three periods: Romantic, Disillusionment and Realism. Legum’s classification of our continent’s history helps us better understand and analyse developments in our continent’s political history.
The Romantic period can be described as an epoch in Africa’s history that was characterised by high levels of optimism and confidence as the liberation struggles throughout the continent led to independence. This milestone was important as it created the possibility for the African people to take charge of their countries’ development.
The period of Disillusionment refers to the general despair that defined the entire continent as a result of the continent’s failure to realise its visionary dreams, which were part of the driving forces for the struggle of independence.
The period of Realism refers to the harsh political realities that defined our history immediately after independence. The continent and her people were rudely awakened to the sad and painful political truths marked by political betrayals, dictatorships, assassinations, detentions, civil wars, high levels of corruption, tribalism, nepotism, regional and gender inequalities. In summary, gross political mismanagement has finally led to abject poverty and low living standards.
Romantic period
Thus, it is imperative for us to pose this question not only to the political class, but also to ourselves, the ruled: How far, in terms of political shift, has the continent forged ahead with Legum’s postulations on African renaissance or rebirth? This is a crucial, fundamental issue that should invite evaluative and transformative discourse from every soul currently living in Africa, regardless of one’s social position, with the sole intention of assisting the continent come out of this sickening abyss.
On their part, many African journalists and writers should be commended for their avowed and enduring propensity for social and political commitment. Their texts mostly reflect and refract the socio-political events in their societies. Even where, according to some of them, the barrel of the pen has proved insufficient at transforming political leadership, we have seen some of them dying on the battlefields.
Perhaps, Ben Okri in his poem Memories Break lamentably reminds us what we have done to ourselves in the past while at the same time, and in a visionary tone, suggesting a possible solution to the sad situations:
We celebrate our future deaths
We cut out the tongues
Of our prophets
We hail our murderers
We gild our traitorous
We poison our healers
And we walk with our eyes wide open
Into our own abyss.
Break this cycle
Break this madness
Let new fevers rise in this
Radiant act of faith
Destroy this temple of living hell
Let us join our angers together
Forge a new joy for the age
Create
New breaks.
This short poem shows Okri’s handling of Disillusionment and paints a virulent critique of the African past and present, and a pessimistic view of future evolution. Just like other African journalistic and artistic works, Okri’s poem does not fall short of capturing a disheartening picture of a continent warped in the ideals of neo-colonialism — disharmony, mediocrity and violence. In fact a closer analysis of African mainstream media and literature of the past two decades has transformed the theme of disillusionment. Initially the coloniser was once the sole object of criticism, now African technocrats, cadres and government officials are depicted exploiting the poor majority. And so, just like in Ken Saro-Wiwa’s short story, Africa Kills Her Sun, Africa has killed and mercilessly continues, without rational thought, to kill her sons. Hence, making the African renaissance an idea stuck on her memory and far from attainable heights.
The writer is a literature and communications lecturer.
aludanngunzulu@yahoo.com
