Scientific Director & Chief Editor
Komla M. Avono (Ph.D.)
ISSN 2710-4699 Online
3 issues per year
Migration and Transformation of the Individual in Helon Habila’s Travellers
Abstract
This work examines the trajectories of some key characters, whose migrant status exposes them to precarity across the narrative of Helon Habila’s Travellers. The narrative reflects a number of epistemic paradigms related to the prefixal morpheme Trans-; particularly as it relates to transformation in the context of cross-border mobility. Such journeys entail a process of change that might unfold through experiences of rupture or transcendence and transgression. Drawing on this perspective, the article seeks to conceptualize the migrant’s transformation as a form of deconstruction that operates both on the psychological and identity levels. This dynamic involves a sequence of “alteration and reconstruction” or “deformation and reformation,” which reshapes the modes of self-perception and self-representation. The analysis operates within the theoretical framework of transculturality first developed by Fernando Ortiz (1940) and subsequently articulated by Jean Lamore (1992). It conceptualizes the mutual shaping of human groups through their intercultural contacts and interactions. Thus, this article investigates how migration, in Habila’s novel, generates transcultural spaces that drive diverse forms of identity transformation.
Keywords: Transformation, transculturality, identity, migration, postcolonial
African Proverbs and Patriarchal Discourse: A Cross-Cultural Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) of the Normalisation of Gendered Violence
Abstract
Proverbs are concise, conventionalised expressions through which societies transmit inherited knowledge, moral values, and normative expectations across generations. They function not merely as linguistic artefacts but as culturally authoritative forms of social judgement. As Jon R. Stone observes, proverbs constitute “bits of ancient wisdom” grounded in collective experience (The Routledge Book of World Proverbs xiii). In this sense, proverbial discourse participates in the production and maintenance of ideology, shaping perceptions of legitimacy, authority, and social order. This study undertakes a cross-cultural linguistic analysis of 40 African and non-African proverbs purposively drawn from the Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa, Amharic, Bukusu, and Frafra traditions, as well as from Euro-American and Asian contexts. The proverbs were extracted from published collections and peer-reviewed articles. The study adopts a qualitative, comparative research design grounded in Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) and Feminist Critical Discourse Analysis (FCDA). Following Norman Fairclough’s account of discourse as a site of social power and ideological reproduction (Critical Discourse Analysis 71–75) and the discourse-historical orientation outlined by Ruth Wodak and Michael Meyer (3–5, 15), the study examines how language encodes and sustains relations of dominance. With regard to FCDA, the study foregrounds the discursive construction of gender and the reproduction of patriarchal power (Lazar 1–3, 11–14). The analysis identifies recurrent discursive patterns that position women within hierarchies of discipline, control, and subordination. Particular attention is paid to modality, transitivity, metaphor, and presupposition as linguistic mechanisms through which violence is framed as corrective, inevitable, or socially sanctioned. The findings indicate that certain proverbial formulations contribute to the discursive normalisation of male domination and the moral legitimation of coercion. By embedding hierarchical gender relations within culturally authoritative expressions, such proverbs may subtly shape social attitudes and behavioural expectations, thereby reinforcing broader structures associated with gender-based violence.
Keywords: Culture, dehumanisation, gender-based violence, legitimation strategies, metaphor, paremiology, patriarchy
Transtextuel Other in the theoretical renewal of postcolonialism: vodou art, photography, and painting in novels of Kossi Efoui, Kangni Alem, and Edem Awumey
Abstract
The purpose of this article is to comprehend the theoretical renewal of postcolonialism in the works of Efoui, Alem, and Awumey through the lens of the transtextual Other. It demonstrates the deployment of vodou art, photography, and painting in the following novels: Solo d’un revenant, L’Ombre des choses à venir, Cantique de l’acacia, La Légende de l’assassin, Les Pieds sales and Port-Mélo. Far from being a mere trend or a desire for exoticism, but these images serve the following functions: proof, archive, travesty, counter-narrative, and ritual mediation. The transtextual Other, examined from a postcolonial perspective, renews the approach by shifting postcolonialism towards an analysis of semiotic regimes such as image, ritual, archive, and film, moving away from the critique of the colonial legacy.
Keywords: Vodou art, transtextuel Other, painting, photography, postcolonialism
Sexuality and Resistance: Rethinking Prostitution and Agency Through Nawal El Saadawi’s Woman at Point Zero
Abstract
Prostitution has long been a controversial topic within feminist discourse, with ongoing debates about whether it represents a form of freedom or remains fundamentally exploitative and oppressive. Nawal El Saadawi’s Woman at Point Zero offers a powerful and complex portrayal of prostitution as both a site of resistance and a form of constrained agency within patriarchal structures. This article examines El Saadawi’s depiction of prostitution and its implications for contemporary feminist debates on agency, autonomy, and exploitation. Through close reading and critical analysis of the novel, supported by feminist theoretical frameworks including abolitionist feminism, sex-positive feminism, and intersectional feminism, this study demonstrates that prostitution in Woman at Point Zero functions neither as pure liberation nor as absolute victimization. Instead, Firdaus’s engagement with prostitution emerges as a tactical form of resistance that simultaneously exposes and remains structured by patriarchal, socio-economic, and biopolitical systems. By analyzing Firdaus’s experiences and situating them within the broader socio-cultural and postcolonial context of Egypt, this article argues that El Saadawi presents prostitution as a form of constrained agency. While prostitution allows Firdaus to assert a degree of autonomy and resist certain forms of male domination, it ultimately remains embedded within structures that commodify and regulate women’s bodies. El Saadawi’s narrative therefore challenges binary feminist interpretations of prostitution and reveals the complex and contradictory nature of agency within systems of domination. This analysis contributes to feminist and postcolonial scholarship by demonstrating how Woman at Point Zero reconfigures prostitution not simply as exploitation or empowerment, but as a situated form of resistance that exposes the structural conditions limiting women’s autonomy.
Keywords: Constrained agency, carceral feminism, sex work debates, postcolonial feminism, biopower, commodification
Analysis of the Discursive Strategies at Work in Burkinabe TV Commercials on “Buying Local”
Abstract
This article offers a semiotic analysis of the discursive strategies employed in two Burkinabè public service TV commercials promoting the “buy local” concept, formalized by the Burkinabè State. These two TV commercials were produced by the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Handicrafts (MICA) in partnership with the Burkinabè Marketers Club. Framed within the visual semiotics perspective of Groupe µ, the study examines the plastic, figurative, and axiological dimensions of these commercials to highlight their process of signification and their performativity as objects with a dual purpose. It is in this sense that enunciation is linked to the analytical perspectives. The methodology adopted is based on the description and interpretation of iconic, sound, and interactional sequences. The results show that these commercials primarily deploy discursive strategies with a pathemic and sensitive dominance. These discursive strategies are based on the staging of family settings, scenes of conviviality, and everyday practices. Simultaneously, the visual displays promote a positive value judgment for “Made in Burkina,” associating local consumption with identity-based, moral, and social values such as national solidarity, recognition of producers’ work, and cultural continuity. Furthermore, product quality is presented as a self-evident truth through visual representations that combine safety, reliability, and institutional certification. However, this strong emotional and identity-based focus tends to overshadow the cognitive and informational dimensions related to production conditions and product traceability.
Keywords: TV commercial, moving image, “buying local,” strategies, Burkina Faso
Queering Contemporary Minority Issues through Richard Wright’s Native Son and The Long Dream
Abstract
This paper examines Richard Wright’s novels through a queer lens. Drawing from my Master’s dissertation on Minority Empowerment, it explores how queerness shapes the experience of living as a black individual under Jim Crow laws and the Ku Klux Klan in America. The aim is to demonstrate how Wright’s work illuminates empowerment for marginalized minorities in oppressive contexts. By queering contemporary minority issues through Richard Wright’s Native Son and The Long Dream, this paper can demonstrate how Wright destabilizes heteronormative sexual regulation, exposes the surveillance of Black masculinity, and dramatizes racialized fear as a structuring force of oppression. These novels reveal how queer theory illuminates the intersections of race, sexuality, and power, showing that minority identities are not only policed by racial hierarchies but also by normative expectations of gender and desire. In doing so, Wright’s work anticipates later African American literary interventions that challenge the rigid binaries of masculinity, sexuality, and racial identity. Apart from Queer Theory, the paper uses also psychoanalytic criticism and Intertextuality for the analysis. “Queering contemporary minority issues, has the advantage of understanding the concept “queer” beyond issues of gender. The term “queer” includes several societal issues. The paper sees Bigger Thomas and Rex Fishbelly Tucker, respectively protagonists in Native Son and The Long Dream, as leaders of the marginalized Black-belt community. The two protagonists are in quest of empowerment and self-empowerment to empower others, but they experience trauma and incomprehensible events imposed by white people. This paper argues that the struggles of Wright’s protagonists, who persevere through trauma and adversity, exemplify contemporary minority issues. By analyzing Native Son and The Long Dream, the paper seeks to clarify how literature can address current challenges faced by minorities and propose empowerment through education and self-affirmation
Keywords: AES Exit, Brexit, Hirschman, Regional Integration, Sovereignty, Withdrawal
Initial Assessment Practices and Academic Success among Mathematics–Computer Science and Physics–Chemistry Students at the École Normale Supérieure of N’Djamena
Abstract
This study examines the impact of initial assessments on the academic success of students in mathematics-Informatics and physics-Chemistry at ENS-N’Djamena. It presents a frequency of diagnostic and formative assessment practices, respectively 35,08% and 46,08% according to survey data. She explores the relationship between these initial assessments and academic performance. This study is conducted on a population of 375 students with a sample of 191, from questionnaires and interviews. It confirms that initial assessment practices have a moderate influence on academic achievement with effects between 0,190 and 0,266 of the Cramer V-value. It suggests improvements in diagnostic and formative assessment practices to strengthen academic achievement.
Keywords: ENS, assessment practice, first assessment, academic success, student engagement
Traditional Chieftaincy Put to the Test by Decentralization: The Political Arena of the Commune of Tiéfora in Burkina Faso
Abstract
The Since the 1990s, decentralization in sub-Saharan Africa has been promoted as the hegemonic paradigm for development. This reform has generated a new political figure, the local elected official, who is forced to contend with pre-existing authorities such as traditional chieftaincies. This research analyzes the nature of the socio-political interactions between the municipality and the traditional chieftaincy in the commune of Tiéfora, Burkina Faso. Based on a qualitative methodology combining in-depth documentary research and 23 semi-structured interviews conducted with several categories of stakeholders, the study highlights three major dynamics. First, despite its invisibility within the normative framework of decentralization, the traditional chieftaincy exercises de facto governance. It mobilizes crucial symbolic capital in the areas of community mobilization, conflict resolution, and social mediation. Second, a pragmatic institutional pluralism is at work: the municipality uses customary legitimacy as a means of social anchoring to compensate for the lack of proximity of the formal, legal administration. Finally, this collaboration is hampered by areas of friction, particularly in the land arena. The clash between the eminent domain rights claimed by traditional chiefs and the land management powers legally transferred to local authorities reveals the limitations of this hybrid system. This research demonstrates that decentralization in Tiéfora is not a matter of replacing one order with another, but rather a constant “patchwork” of heterogeneous sources of legitimacy. This research was limited to a single municipality and the analysis of the discourse of the interviewees. To overcome these limitations, it would be relevant to broaden the geographical area and diversify the methodological tools.
Keywords: Decentralization, traditional chieftaincy, municipality, Tiéfora, Burkina Faso
The Production of Affordable Urban Housing in Ouagadougou and Lomé: The Cat Chasing Its Tail
Abstract
Like all cities in sub-Saharan Africa, Greater Ouaga and Greater Lomé, home to the capitals of Burkina Faso and the Republic of Togo respectively, face significant unmet housing needs and a growing future demand for affordable housing for their urban residents. This is due to the strong urban growth of these territories and is particularly evident in urban sprawl and the development of precarious neighbourhoods. How can the growing demand for affordable housing in sub-Saharan African cities be effectively met? This article is based on participant observation conducted during urban planning studies in the Greater Ouaga and Greater Lomé areas between 2021 and 2024. Based on interviews with urban stakeholders, on observations and analyses of public and private real estate initiatives in the production of housing in Greater Ouagadougou and Greater Lomé, using a comparative approach, this article questions public policies through past and current experiences in housing production, in relation to the significant housing gap to be filled and the not only strong but growing demand to come. The article presents the solutions implemented by Burkina Faso and Togo in their respective territories of Greater Ouagadougou and Greater Lomé to meet the demand for urban housing. It reveals that following the real estate operations of the 1980s and 1990s, several operations were initiated after the 2000s without managing to bridge this gap. Then, faced with current deficits and growing needs for additional housing, the article examines the option of diversifying housing supply to meet current and future demand, based on complementary initiatives currently underway to build new towns and regenerate existing towns, notably through urban restructuring, urban renewal, assisted self-build schemes and planned housing estates, including for vulnerable people.
Keywords: Housing, affordable housing, new town, renewed town, public policy
Self-narration as Survival Strategy in Imre Kertész Roman eines Schicksallosen
Abstract
The present article aims to show how the first-person narrator in Imre Kertész’s Roman eines Schicksallosen proves to be resilient through self-narration and reconstructs his fate. It is common for people to be confronted with dangerous or threatening situations in everyday life, which can escalate into trauma. In the face of shocking life situations, people react in different ways. The most effective attitude in such crisis situations is to employ strategies to survive. In the field of literature, this issue of survival in social crises is addressed, with writers staging protagonists in their literary creations who successfully continue to live despite adverse life circumstances. This essay will explore, through psychocriticism, the extent to which the first-person narrator has employed strategies to survive by narrating his traumas. The analysis employs reading of the narrative, adopting a psychocritical perspective that traces recurring metaphorical networks and obsessive motifs in the sense of Mauron.
Keywords: Self-narration, Survival, Resilience, Autofiction, Crisis management, Trauma, Concentration Camp
The Contemporary British Monarchy: Issues, Challenges, and Future Prospects
Abstract
This article examines the British monarchy from 2000 to 2023, one of the world’s oldest and most emblematic institutions, combining constitutional, symbolic, and diplomatic functions. The studied corpus includes royal speeches, official archives, national and international press articles, and public opinion surveys (NatCen, YouGov). The methodology combines documentary and content analysis, media case studies, and comparisons with the constitutional monarchies of Sweden, the Netherlands, and Spain. Key findings indicate that: 1) The monarchy maintains a central symbolic role despite criticisms regarding legitimacy, financing, and political relevance. It continues to serve as an identity reference for the British public and the Commonwealth countries; 2) The institution is gradually modernizing through succession reforms (gender equality), digital communication strategies, and strategic management of public image; 3) Internal tensions and intensified media coverage of family affairs significantly affect public perception and challenge institutional cohesion. The article also explores prospective scenarios, ranging from a modernized monarchy to potential republican transformation, evaluating political, social, and diplomatic implications. This study demonstrates how a historical institution can balance continuity and adaptation, maintaining symbolic authority while responding to contemporary demands for transparency, equality, and modernization. It provides a comprehensive understanding of the current dynamics of the British monarchy, its resilience in the face of criticism, and the mechanisms through which it adapts to socio-political and media transformations.
Keywords: British monarchy, constitutional monarchy, institutional modernization, royal symbolism, public legitimacy, Commonwealth
Purple Rebellion by Alice Walker and Chimamanda Adichie
Abstract
The comparative study of The Color Purple and Purple Hibiscus finds its argument first in the substantive commonality in their titles: purple, which though a paratextual tool, melts in the texts. Second, the books are stories of veiled (un)common forms of oppression into which purple stands as a symbol in a patriarchal atmosphere purporting social constraints, silence and abidance to religious norms. They portray scenes of sexual, generational and religious conflicts coupled with maturity impulses as well, concomitantly building the oppressive social purpleness and overturning it in a constructive way. This paper relies on semiotics and feminist (womanism and radicalism) theory to hold the assumption that male domination has been taking place over time and space and that it relies on some symbols. Oppressed Women and children can overturn these symbols and build communities for symbolic and relational liberation.
Keywords: Community, intertextuality, oppression, rebellion, symbol
Romeo and Juliet or the Sin of Secrecy
Abstract
The sad fate of Juliet and Romeo in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is yet factual that it cannot be confined to the world of imagination, for the theme of the suicide of lovers among the youth remains topical nowadays. The purpose of this article is to explore the crucial role of secrecy in the tragedy between the Capulets and the Montagues. Secrecy involves concealing information from others, even from those close to us whom we should trust. This article points out that secrecy, though necessary in some matters, especially those concerning love, should be moderated to avoid irreversible consequences.
Keywords: Death, love, secrecy, passion, youth
From Engagement to Lyrism: A Thematic and Stylistic Reading of David Diop’s Coups de pilon
Abstract
This study offers in-depth analysis of Coups de pilon by David Diop, a major figure of the Négritude movement, by examining the productive tension between commitment and lyricism in his writing. The choice of this topic is justified by the singular position occupies within Francophone African poetry: he embodies the voice of a generation rebelling against colonial oppression while simultaneously expressing, through a powerful poetic language, the profound emotions of a being torn between suffering and hope. The aim of this research is to demonstrate how Diopian poetry articulates political struggle and aesthetic pursuit, transforming poetic expression into a space of resistance and creation. Accordingly, the methodology adopted relies on a dual thematic and stylistic approach. On the one hand, the analysis of major motifs (freedom, memory, dignity) highlights the poet’s commitment to the struggle for decolonization. On the other hand, the stylistic study reveals the importance of rhythm, repetition, imagery, and metaphor, which endow the text with a strong lyrical intensity. Particular attention to the musicality of verse and to orality makes it possible to grasp the performative dimension of poetic discourse. The findings of this study show that the collection is both a political manifesto and a work of art. In Coups de pilon, Diop succeeds in uniting the cry and the song, revolt and beauty, thereby confirming that poetry can serve as a site where emotion and commitment intertwined.
Keywords: Liberation, oppression, cultural values, negritude, engagement
Architectonic and Freedom: The Dual Process of Pure Reason in Kant
Abstract
The notion of system is central to the Critique of Pure Reason. For Kant, reason constitutes an architectonic whole: it is not a mere aggregate of cognitions, but an organized unity that provides the ground for metaphysics, both theoretical and practical. Unlike the Hegelian totality, the Kantian “whole” designates the structure of reason taking itself as an instance of self-elucidation to demarcate its own boundaries. This study demonstrates that the systematic will originates in this very architectonic nature. We first examine the dual process of reason – acting simultaneously as the subject-matter of inquiry and the tribunal of its own legitimacy – to show how the transcendental method leads to the foundation of the system. Finally, we establish that this architectural unity is the only path toward the realm of autonomy, where freedom acts as the ultimate ground and telos of reason.
Keywords: Freedom, knowledge, metaphysics, reason, system
Gender Equality and Rural Woman’s Access to Information in Chad: Challenges and Prospects
Abstract
Despite a democratic environment and political speeches on behalf of the promotion of women in health, decision-making power, access to education and employment, gender inequality still remains a major challenge in Chad. Being more and more conscious of this situation, Chadian women, in order to improve their actual condition and value the important role they are playing in economic production and social reproduction, join forces to get out of the traditional environment reserved to them. The organisation in 2025 of a fair dedicated to the Chadian woman’s month is part of this dynamism. This fair enabled different institutions and associations as well as women to put on display their works on different kinds of products and meet to think about many topics, exchange and sensitize one another to problems related to inclusion and gender and come out with solutions aiming at lifting social bias and restrictions they are victims. This work aims at examining, in relation with socioeconomical and mediatic realities of the country, challenges in terms of access to information beyond urban area where peasant women. In order to grasp it well, we give priority to empirical method founded on documentary research and field investigation.
Keywords: Chad, equality, gender, information access, rural woman
From Pan-African Speeches to African Unity: Policy Coherence, Institutional Governance, and the Relevance of Abraham Lincoln’s Unionism
Abstract
Pan-Africanism through all the ages has led to some of the most stirring modes of expression, speeches or otherwise, concerning African solidarity and liberation as well as collective destiny. However, the conversion of such rhetoric into a tangible, sustainable unity has been limited. This article explores the causes behind African unity being a goal that is often unattained in reality. It further contends that the main problem is not only the lack of political will but also policy inconsistency and weak institutional governance. Using Abraham Lincoln’s unionism as a point of comparison, this article explains that unity discourse can be effective only if it: first, unmistakably identifies the political “we”; second, bases the duties on shared principles; and third, links the speech to valid and enforceable arrangements. Consequently, the article revisits Pan-African speeches alongside the tangible functions of governance, regional coordination, and institutional harmonization in Africa. It maintains that, under the right conditions, symbolic rhetoric can be converted into coherent public policies, institutional actions that are well-coordinated, and commitments that are measurable and thereby capable of producing integration in the political and economic life of ordinary people.
Keywords: Pan-Africanism, African unity, governance, policy coherence, unionism
Contribution of Hotels and Related Establishments to the Dynamics of the Informal Sector in Kpalimé
Abstract
The city of Kpalimé, located in the southwestern part of Togo’s Plateau Region, is developing against a backdrop of polarization between peri-urban and rural areas and is opening up to other communities at the national and international levels through a booming hotel and tourism industry that is fueling growth in various activities within the informal sector. The research question that must therefore be asked is: How do hotels and similar establishments contribute to the dynamics of the informal sector in the city of Kpalimé, Togo? This question gives rise to the hypothesis that the dynamics of the informal sector in Kpalimé can be explained, in part, by investments in hotels, tourism, and other promising sectors. The research methodology is based on qualitative and quantitative analyses, utilizing individual interview guides and questionnaires as data collection tools for hotel managers and similar professionals, as well as for officials in the municipality of Kloto 1, all of whom were interviewed using a purposive sampling technique. Based on the collected data, it is evident that domestic and international tourist flows contribute to the economic development of the city of Kpalimé through the rapid construction of hotels and related infrastructure, as well as the growth of the fruit industry, the agri-food sector, and the crafts sector. All these areas of activity are experiencing a dynamic driven by the collaborative efforts of multiple stakeholders.
Keywords: Hotel, dynamic, informal sector, tourism flows, Kpalimé
Memory, Fiction and the Heroism of Black Slaves: A Semiotic Reading of the Narratives of Kangni Alem and Wilfried N’Sondé
Abstract
In a context where the memory of the transatlantic slave trade has long been shaped by European narratives centered on abolitionism, this article investigates how contemporary African literature fosters a critical reinterpretation. Drawing on Kangni Alem’s Esclaves and Wilfried N’Sondé’s Un océan, deux mers, trois continents, the study employs a semiotic approach to highlight narrative strategies that foreground the heroism of slaves in struggle. It shows how these narratives weave fiction and memory to outline an alternative framework to dominant accounts, one that emphasizes African resistance to slavery and the active role of slaves in their own emancipation. Ultimately, the article demonstrates that these works challenge historical representations by bringing to light long-marginalized African heroic figures.
Keywords: Transatlantic slave trade, memory, fiction, heroism of the enslaved, semiotics
A Farmer’s Perspective on Aflatoxin and Biocontrols in Burkina Faso: Perceptions, Information Channels, and Adoption of Aflasafe in Tuy Province
Abstract
Aflatoxin is a major health and economic problem for the corn and peanut sectors in West Africa. Despite the existence of biocontrol solutions such as Aflasafe, their adoption by producers remains limited and uneven. This article analyzes farmers’ perceptions of aflatoxin and the factors associated with the adoption of Aflasafe in the province of Tuy, Burkina Faso. The study is based on a survey of 114 maize and/or peanut producers, combining structured questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, and field observations. The results show that 53.33% of producers (n=114) have used Aflasafe at least once, but that its use often remains sporadic and dependent on project initiatives. The main constraints reported relate to access to the product, its cost, and the lack of technical support. Logistic regression analysis highlights the decisive role of cultivated areas and, above all, information channels in adoption. Sociodemographic characteristics appear to be of little significance. The article emphasizes that the low visibility of the aflatoxin risk and the lack of immediately observable evidence of the effectiveness of biocontrol are major obstacles to its adoption. However, the study is based on snowball sampling limited to the province of Tuy; the results should therefore be interpreted with caution and cannot be directly generalized to the whole of Burkina Faso. The results call for the strengthening of training, demonstration, and product access mechanisms in order to improve the effectiveness of aflatoxin control strategies.
Keywords: Aflatoxin, adoption of innovation, biocontrol, aflasafe, risk perception, Burkina Faso
Tradition, Hybridity, and the Quest for Healing: Representing HIV/AIDS in Meja Mwangi’s The Last Plague
Abstract
This study examines Meja Mwangi’s The Last Plague through the lens of postcolonial criticism, drawing on the theoretical frameworks of Lois Tyson and Homi Bhabha to explore how the narrative depicts the human and societal impacts of HIV/AIDS. Mwangi portrays illness not merely as a biological crisis but as a profound social and emotional upheaval that destabilizes communal life. The novel highlights how inherited traditions and cultural practices inadvertently contribute to the spread of HIV/AIDS, while religious figures, both Christian and Muslim, emerge as sources of healing, solace, and moral support. In this way, Mwangi underscores the tensions between tradition, hybridity, and faith, presenting HIV/AIDS as a human tragedy unfolding within a postcolonial society caught between indigenous customs, colonial legacies, and spiritual resilience.
Keywords: Postcolonial criticism, HIV/AIDS, tradition, hybridity, religion, Meja Mwangi
Reterritorializing Oneirism: The Geopolitics and Geopoetics of Fatou Diome’s Les Veilleurs de Sangomar
Abstract
This article offers a critical examination of the interplay between real and imagined spaces in Fatou Diome’s Les Veilleurs de Sangomar. It investigates how the author constructs a spatial narrative that bridges the gap between physical geography and fictional topography. Moving beyond conventional spatial frameworks, the study highlights how Diome reconfigures familiar places such as the island of Sangomar, Coumba’s alcove, and the Atlantic Ocean into dreamscapes imbued with memory, grief, unfulfilled love, and spiritual resonance. By drawing on geocritical and geopoetic approaches, the article demonstrates how these locations become symbolic territories where reality and dream, life and death, intersect. Ultimately, space emerges as a dual interface simultaneously tangible and immaterial, visible and invisible, thereby redefining the novel’s spatial logic.
Keywords: Geocriticism, geopoetics, space, oneirism, spatialization, territorization, heterotopia
Influence of Entrepreneurial Culture and Resilience on the Entrepreneurial Engagement of Ghanaian Women
Abstract
Entrepreneurship in Africa has attracted growing interest due to its potential to generate employment and combat unemployment. However, despite government initiatives, its impact on job creation remains limited, partly because of high unemployment rates and a generally unfavorable perception of entrepreneurship as a career choice. Nevertheless, female entrepreneurship represents a key lever for economic development in Africa, particularly in Ghana, where it contributes to job creation and women’s empowerment. Despite this potential, women’s entrepreneurial engagement remains constrained by structural, sociocultural, and psychological barriers. This study examines the influence of entrepreneurial culture and entrepreneurial resilience on the entrepreneurial engagement of Ghanaian women. It draws on the theoretical framework of entrepreneurial culture developed by Hayton, George, and Zahra (2002), as well as Vroom’s (1964) expectancy theory. A cross-sectional quantitative survey was conducted among 849 women entrepreneurs managing formal businesses that have been operating for five years or less in the city of Accra. Data were collected using standardized questionnaires measuring entrepreneurial engagement, perceived entrepreneurial culture, and entrepreneurial resilience. The results indicate that a favorable entrepreneurial culture has a significant positive effect on women’s entrepreneurial engagement. Moreover, entrepreneurial resilience emerges as a crucial lever for sustaining and strengthening this engagement in an unstable economic environment. This study highlights the combined importance of cultural and psychological factors in promoting sustainable female entrepreneurship in Ghana.
Keywords: Women, entrepreneurial culture, resilience, entrepreneurial engagement, Ghana