Papers for Volume 3, No.2
Papers for Volume 3, No.2
OGBAZULUOBODO Volume 3, No. 2 Preliminary Pages
NO LONGER AT EASE AND THE THINKING OF LIMITS
Abstract
Chinua Achebe’s works can be deceptive in their classical simplicity. Such is the
case with No Longer at Ease (1960). For critics used to referring the work to what
is thought to stand behind it (which it represents) or to what stands before it,
which it is aiming to correct or give normative direction to, this second novel of
Chinua Achebe is particularly disappointing, apparently lacking what Samuel
Johnson calls a ‘moral purpose’. The power of the text, however, becomes
manifest when the action is analysed as a significant pattern; and the pattern in
question is literary tragedy. In this particular tragic pattern, the character begins
his career, with all certainty about his personal freedom, but goes on to discover
from episode to episode that he is locked in a situation of constraint, and ringed
round by limits he cannot pass over or sidestep. In this paper we shall examine the
narrative in the light of these limits and this constraint.
Keywords: anguish, anguished freedom, boundary situation, deliberation,
lifeworld, tragic constraint, tragic discovery, tragic struggle
No
AMECHI N. AKWANYA
THE CLASH OF WILLS: EXPLORING THE NEO-COLONIAL STRUCTURES IN AKACHI ADIMORA-EZEIGBO’S THE LAST OF THE STRONG ONES
Abstract
The reconstruction and redefinition of African cultural identity has been like a
hallowed mission embarked upon by most postcolonial African writers. Akachi
Adimora-Ezeigbo, in The Last of the Strong Ones, has excited literary
scholarship in this regard. However, many critics have only seen this text as that
which chiefly alters the patriarchal praxis that holds sway in early Nigerian
fictions as it introduces a strong female narrative voice. For others, it is a text
that priorities African democracy as opposed to western democracy, given the
inclusive nature of its cultural world. As such, little or no study has been carried
out on it as a postcolonial text that critically unveils what Edward Said sees as
the infamous actions or drives of those who speak for the West and for what
the West did. This paper embarks on this critical study through the lens of
postcolonial literary theory. It demonstrates that other than the text’s feminist
and cultural orientations, that it exposes some neo-colonial structures that
sustain the vestiges of such social pathologies as loss of meaning and African
identity. It argues that these structures do not only hamper the authentic
process of de-colonization but they also create doubt whether this process will
ever alter the hegemonic “normality” created by colonialism. The paper
concludes by calling for a more activist representation of these retarding
structures by African writers for it will continue to initiate a rethinking process
that might lead to the eventual rediscovery of the African true self.
Keywords: post-colonialism, neo-colonial structures, clash of wills, identity
CAROLINE OLUBUNMI NWAKA, ANDREW CHIGBUCHIGBU, ANTHONIA-GREG NWANEKWU CHIBUOKE
INTERROGATING HEGEL’S LEVELS OF CONSCIOUSNESS AS FACTORS OF CHANGE INFEMI OSOFISAN’S NO MORE THE WASTED BREED
Abstract
Change as used in this paper is the reformulation and realignment of social
structures to achieve a new order. Friedrich Wilhelm Hegel was a German
philosopher and theorist whose idea of change is encapsulated in the dialectic.
Femi Osofisan is a Nigerian playwright whose idea of change is sustained by the
dialectic. However, while Hegel’s view of change through the dialectic is
idealistic, Osofisan’s conception of change through the dialectic is practical.
There are divergent views among scholars and critics regarding a more potent,
viable process of change, whether idealistic according to Hegel or practical
according to Osofisan. This paper establishes that both processes of change are
intricately interwoven, therefore can be reconciled. It also demonstrates that
both processes of change can be understood in their reciprocal alignment. The
change which takes place in Osofisan’s No More the Wasted Breed is
subliminally embedded in the three stages of Hegel’s Consciousness, Sense-
Certainty, Perception and Force & Understanding. In utilizing the rich potential
of Hegel’s dialectic, the paper portrays that all the characters in the play
embody the attributes of Hegel’s Consciousness in accordance with the roles
assigned to them by the playwright. Given that the characters’ experiences are
mediated by the three stages of Hegel’s Consciousness as mentioned above,
they become agents of change to a degree which informs their social and
economic awareness. In this way, this paper proves that both Hegel and
Osofisan’s methods of change provide a unified paradigm for the
understanding and appreciation of change.
Key words: Change, Dialectic, Sense-Certainty, Perception, Force &
Understanding
PROMISE ADIELE
MIGRATION AND NEO SLAVERY AS SIGNIFICANT FEATURES OF THE 21ST CENTURY – LESSONS FROM COVID-19
Abstract
Slavery is a crime against humanity. It was abolished in the 19th century after a
long struggle. Unfortunately, it appears to have become a significant feature of
the 21st Century calling into question the continued validity of the laws prohibiting
the same. It appears that migration, particularly, international migration, has
become a vehicle for the re-introduction of slavery in the 20th and 21st centuries.
There is every need to monitor migration and take steps to ensure that migrants
do not unwittingly end up in slavery and slavish conditions in the name of seeking
for greener pastures abroad.
C. A. OGBUABOR, CLARA C. OBI-OCHIABUTOR & JOSEPH ONUGWU
EMPATHY AND PURPOSE IN SELECTED POEMS OF REMI RAJI
Abstract
This essay examines how Remi Raji, through his poetry, projects empathy and
purpose in Webs of Remembrance and Gather My Blood Rivers of Song. It focuses
on selected poems from both collections. Thus, the paper argues that Raji uses
his poetry to engage social issues, and to proffer solution(s) to societal
problems. It is also observed that Raji’s poetry of engagement expresses a
fidelity to art that has easily become a commitment to the nation-space. It is for
this reason that each persona, in each poem, is shown to be engaging in a
dialogue with the reader in particular and the society in general.
Keywords: Empathy, Poetry, Nigeria, Remi Raji
SAMSON OSARIEMEN EGUAVOEN & OBARI GOMBA
INDUSTRIALIZATION, POLLUTION AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH IN APAPA-IJORA COASTAL COMMUNITIES OF LAGOS, 1970-2018
Abstract
This study examines the multiple layers of environmental degradation and
associated challenges in Lagos coastal communities between 1970 and 2018
especially within the context of sanitation in Nigeria’s commercial capital. It
historicizes sanitation in Lagos amidst unhealthy practices that threaten the
livelihood of residents. Largely man-made, the study zeroes in on Apapa-Ijora
communities by interrogating waste management systems, squatter
settlements and flooding. Above all, the study affirms that poor health and
dwindling life expectancy in these coastal communities owe their conditions to
unplanned industrialization and unchecked/inappropriate land reclamation
initiatives. The study, contributing to the debate on urban environmental
despoliation adopts a qualitative approach in methodology and applies a
historical narrative model for its analysis; utilizing both primary and secondary
sources of data.
Keywords: Pollution, industrialization, Slum, Settlement, Sanitation,
environmental degradation
UGO EKEMEZIE, OGECHI CECILIA UKAOGO & VICTOR O. UKAOGO
MARGINALIZED IN NIGERIA, MARGINALIZED IN IGBOLAND: AN APPRAISAL OF THE CRISES AND DYNAMICS OF SELF MARGINALIZATION IN CONTEMPORARY IGBOLAND
Abstract
This study contends that while it is painful and probably normal to see and
lament the alien status of the Igbo in the Nigerian project as evidenced in their
verified marginalized condition, it is even more painful and lamentable that the
Igbo are also alien and discriminated against in core Igbo heartland. It affirms
that the popular refrain of Igbo marginalization in Nigeria is less painful when
juxtaposed with the reality that greater number of the Igbo are even more
marginalized in Igbo land. With sundry state policies targeted against indigenes
of ‘other’ Igbo states in the labor market especially in the civil service and the
retaliatory responses there from, including despicable social relations amongst
the constituting peoples, government/culture-induced social stratification
remain on the increase within the enclave. The superiority claims and
assumptions of some sections of the Igbo fuse into attitudinal dispositions of
government leading to certain marginalized Ndigbo alleging rights infringement
that further buttress the crack on the unity-wall of the Igbo nation. The study
argues that the central pursuit of sovereignty of the Igbo from Nigeria will be of
no consequence if the cracked walls of unity that engender national
consciousness and patriotism are not fortified to withstand the challenges of
resistance to independence. It concludes by insisting that calls for a free Nigeria
necessarily puts a duty on the Igbo to embrace a similar social condition because
discriminatory disposition of Igbo state governments against Igbo nonindigenes
as well as the assumption of cultural and material superiority of one
Igbo group over the other signpost natural ingredient for rancor and
disintegration that must be avoided by all means.
VICTOR O. UKAOGO, UCHE UWAEZUOKE OKONKWO & OGECHI CECILIA UKAOGO
NGUGI’S WOMEN: FEMALE REVOLUTIONARIES & GENDER AESTHETICS IN SELECTED LATE WORKS OF NGUGI WA THIONG O
Abstract
Ngugi’s affinity to strong female characters can be regarded as archetypal of his
late fictions and nonfictions published from the 1980s. In Matigari, Wizard of the
Crow and Devil on Cross, Wrestling with the Devil: A Prison Memoir, and In the
House of the Interpreter, Ngugi introduces a women-driven revolution through
which the society is emancipated. This work attempts to define true revolution
which comes to term with the fact that the African patriarch is unable to unshackle
his society with its attendant manacle, dearth and debacle, which only the woman
can cleanse and rationalize. The Jungian theory of archetypes interrogates the
hero in Ngugi’s most outstanding women in his late fictions, as part of a collective
unconscious which is urgently typical of mankind.
Keywords: Revolutionaries, Heroines, Tragedy, Jungian Theory of archetypes,
Gender Aesthetics
IFEOMA CATHERINE ONWUGBUFOR
A HORNEYAN READING OF LOLA SHONEYINS THE SECRET LIVES OF BABA SEGI S WIVES
Abstract
This is a Horneyan reading of Lola Shoneyin’s The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s
Wives (2010). This paper adopts the use of Karen Horney’s Psychoanalytic Social
Theory as its framework. It argues that characters’ personalities are influenced
by past traumatic experiences and pressures from family or society with the
objective of fitting them into existing stereotypes already created by the
society. This paper reveals that cultural or traditional and societal practices play
are very important in the formation of an individual, whether fictional or real. It
also identifies how patriarchy and societal expectations have an effect on the
characters examined. It also shows that individuals adopt certain ego defence
mechanisms to cope with whatever problems they encounter. These
mechanisms also known as neurotic needs, are chosen based on what helps the
character to feel comfortable and satisfied in his environment. This entails
moving towards, against, or away from situations and people in general. The
paper recommends the application of Horney’s psychoanalytic social theory in
literary analyses because it gives insight into why certain characters behave in
certain way and manner in literary texts and even real life situations.
Keywords: Neo Freudian, personality,
JAMES E. ONYEASHIE
DISPLACEMENT AND THE COMPLACENCY OF THE AFRICAN ARISTOCRATS IN NGUGI WA THIONG OS MATIGARI: AN ARCHETYPAL READING
Abstract
As terrorism erodes the ethnic cohesion of most African states in very harsh and
subtle manner, the need to identify these approaches becomes urgent. It is an
obvious fact that recent extremist attacks especially in Africa unveils an
undertone of displacement resulting sometimes in ethnic cleansing. A study of
Ngugi wa Thiong’o’s 1986 fiction, Matigari first released in Gikuyu language as
Matigari Ma Njiruungi and the relevance of the represented archetypes in these
works using the Archetypal Criticism, are the foci of this study. This work
intends to expound the identity, displacement and land archetypes which are
central to the sociocultural composition of the African continent; as well as call
attention to the backdrop of calculated attacks targeted at disheveling Nigeria
as a leeway to penetrate other nation. The era of neocolonialism in the African
polity, especially in Nigeria and Kenya, has aided and still aids attacks by violent
non-state actors. A textual analysis research approach will provide the basis for
analyzing the thoroughly the text under study, in order to establish the urgency
of a collective responsibility to ward off activities of violent non-state actors
from the African terrain once and for all.
Keywords: Displacement, Archetypes, Justice, Truth, Kenyan Aristocrats
SAIDU JOSEPHAGYO & IFEOMA CATHERINE ONWUGBUFOR
ROLE REDEFINITION IN FLORA NWAPA’S EFURU AND NEED FOR DYNAMIC GENDER BALANCE IN CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY
Abstract
This paper is the second in a series written by the researchers in honour of Flora
Nwapa. Here, the researchers’ interest is on Efuru, Nwapa’s debut novel,
published in 1966, fifty-four years ago, Apart from correcting the distorted
image usually painted of the African woman as weak, thoughtless and totally
dependent on the man, Efuru also raises the issue of changing gender roles, an
issue that is quite topical even in contemporary times. The present paper here
explores the latter concern. Specifically, the paper seeks to assess the roles
played by the male characters, compared to the female characters, in the novel,
Efuru. The major objective is to draw attention to the weaker roles men are
beginning to play in their families and society, as reflected in the novel. Lastly,
the paper advocates for a dynamic gender balance in modern society. Much as
women cry out for empowerment, they do not seek for the ‘disempowerment’
of men, for the input of both men and women is required for a successful family
and society. The discussion has relied mainly on the gender role theories.
Keywords: gender role, redefinition, Flora Nwapa’s Efuru, gender balance,
modern society
OJEL CLARA ANIDI, NNENNA GERTRUDE EZEH & UZOAMAKA CHIOMA OGOR
THE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE ENTERPRISES IN NIGERIAN MASS TRANSIT: A STUDY OF ENUGU STATE TRANSPORT COMPANY (ENTRACO) AND PEACE MASS TRANSIT (PMT), 2010-2020
Abstract
In Nigeria, the government aside from formulating policies that regulate the
road transport sub sector is also directly involved alongside private individuals in
operating the transport business under the mass transit programme which has
been in place for many years. The seeming non-performance of the
government-run commercial mass transit has prompted debates over whether
the governments in Nigeria should continue to plunge the tax payer’s resources
into direct running of mass transit agencies or whether the government should
encourage the private sector through financial support to solely drive the sector.
This study will investigate two transport outfits; government owned and
managed Enugu State Transport Company (ENTRACO) and privately owned
and managed Peace Mass Transit Company (PMT) with a view to assessing the
growth or decline of ENTRACO and PMT. The intent is to appraise the success
of public and private transport businesses and their contributions to State and
National Development. Data for the study, which will cover the period of 2010 –
2020, will be obtained from the statistical units of the two companies.
Keywords: mass transit, private sector, public sector, transport
IKPECHUKWUKA E.IBENEKWU NGOZI AGUJIOBI-ODOH & IFEANYI E. IWUNDU
HEALTH CARE DELIVERY SYSTEM AMONG WOMEN IN IGBO TRADITION: PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS
Abstract
Women in a general sense are regarded as the weak sex, therefore, for health
reasons, cautions are taken in dealing with them. The Igbo are not an exemption
in this worldview. At the birth of a girl-child, special care is taken among the
Igbo. But the problem this study identifies is that while in some cases, the Igbo
think they offer the female gender care health wise, they place them on higher
health risks. For example, while they clitoridectomize or mutilate their genital
organ (clitoris) to reduce the risk of contracting sexual transmitted diseases
because of the belief that it reduces early pregnancy and excess sexual urge
abortion, these children face more health dangers connected to infectious
diseases. They are restricted from some physical and social engagements
because of their biological or physiological features. Some of these physical and
social restrictions also affect their lives negatively. It is found in this research
that these traditional and cultural misconception and restrictions have scared
modern women away from paying attention to positive health advantages in
the Igbo traditional health care delivery system in women’s lives. The research
aims at closing the gap between the wrong perceptions and applications of
traditional healthcare system among modern women with the traditional Igbo
women. The study uses historical and phenomenological research method. Data
were sourced from secondary and primary materials. Data gotten were analyzed
with deceptive method of data analysis. It is finally recommended among other
things that both traditional and modern women should harmonize the health
discrepancies between old and new Igbo world.
Keywords: Healthcare Delivery System, Women, Igbo Tradition, Problems and
Prospect
EMMANUEL IKENNA OKAFOR
CENTURY POWER AND VIRTUAL TEAMING IN NIGERIA
Abstract
As ICT penetration increases across the globe, the use of virtual teams grows
everywhere. Whereas the growing use of virtual teams in such emerging
markets as China, India and Brazil has received considerable mention in the
management and engineering literatures, virtual teaming in Africa has largely
been ignored. This paper fills in this gap by examining how a new indigenous
company, rather than a Western multinational operating in the country, has
adopted the system in the building of a big power plant in Nigeria, Africa’s
largest economy. This paper looks at the benefits the firm is deriving from using
a virtual team but also the challenges, since members are from Asia, Europe,
North America and Africa. It also recognizes the special challenges in the use of
a virtual team in a country where basic infrastructure is still in poor condition
and concludes, in light of the extant literature, that virtual teaming will continue
to complement conventional teams rather than replace them.
Keywords: Virtual teams; co-locations; power project; cultural differences;
Century Power; Nigeria.