Mazisi Kunene: Literature, Activism, and African Worldview - Paperback

by Dike Okoro (Author)

This book examines the life and work of Mazisi Kunene, the only recognized poet laureate of Africa, a Nobel Prize nominee, and a key symbol of African cultural independence.

Kunene is widely recognized for his epic poems that assert cultural identity and condemn the disruption of the growth and development of African culture through colonialism/postcolonialism. This book explores how 'oraliterature' and cultural traditions informed Kunene's poetry, how Kunene's poetry highlights African women and mothers, and how activism, mythology and transnational identities are depicted in his verse to promote cultural and generational continuities from Africa to the Diasporic Africans. Drawing on a range of interviews and comparative studies, the book situates Kunene's work in a wider conversation about South African social struggles.

This book is an important contribution to our understanding of one of the giants of African literary history. As such, it will be of interest to researchers across African literary and postcolonial studies.

Author Biography

Dike Okoro is Associate Professor of English and Chair of the Humanities Department at Harris Stowe State University, USA. He is the author of Lupenga Mphande: Eco-critical Poet and Political Activist (2021). Okoro is a Senior Research Fellow at Ken Saro-Wiwa Foundation and a past visiting scholar at University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa.