Africa, Colonialism, Civil Wars and Their Reflections in African Literature

Year 2023, Volume: 11 Issue: Afrika, 256 - 271, 30.09.2023

Eren Bolat

https://doi.org/10.18506/anemon.1287854

Abstract

Wars are at the forefront of events that shape human history and deeply affect people’s lives. To date, hundreds of wars have occurred on the global scale. Apart from these wars, there have been localised civil wars within the borders of the countries. Due to the destructive effects of colonialism and the formation of social structures among various ethnicities, the number of civil wars, especially on the African continent, has been quite high. Thus, the theme of civil war is a prominent and compelling element in African literature, as depicted in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Half of a Yellow Sun (2014), Nuruddin Farah’s Maps (1999), Ismael Beah’s A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier (2007), and Helene Cooper’s The House at Sugar Beach: In Search of a Lost African Childhood (2008). These works provide powerful narratives that explore the impact of civil war on individuals, families, and communities in Africa. The authors of the selected works, with their unique characters and evocative storytelling, shed light on the relentless consequences of the civil war while at the same time reflecting the resilience and strength of the human spirit in the face of difficulties. In line with all this information, the purpose of this study is to investigate the post-colonial civil wars in Africa in the context of their reflections in the selected works.

Keywords

Africa, Colonialism, Civil War, Oppression, African Literature

Afrika, Sömürgecilik, İç Savaşlar ve Afrika Edebiyatındaki Yansımaları

Abstract

İnsanlık tarihine yön veren ve insanların hayatlarını derinden sarsan olayların başında savaşlar gelmektedir. Günümüze kadar global ölçekte yüzlerce savaş meydana gelmiştir. Bu savaşların dışında bir de lokal bazda ülke sınırları içinde gerçekleşen iç savaşlar mevcuttur. Özellikle sömürgeciliğin yıkıcı etkisi ve toplum yapılarının çeşitli etnisitelerden oluşması nedeniyle Afrika kıtasında gerçekleşen iç savaşların sayısı oldukça fazladır. Bu nedenle, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’nin Half of a Yellow Sun (2014), Nuruddin Farah’ın Maps (1999), Ismael Beah’ın A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier (2007) ve Helene Cooper’ın The House at Sugar Beach: In Search of a Lost African Childhood (2008) kitaplarında tasvir edildiği gibi, iç savaş teması Afrika edebiyatında öne çıkan ve merak uyandıran bir unsur haline gelmiştir. Bu eserler, iç savaşın Afrika’daki bireyler, aileler ve toplumlar üzerindeki etkisini inceleyen güçlü anlatılar sunmaktadır. Bu çalışmaya konu olan eserlerin yazarları, özgün karakterleri ve çağrıştırıcı hikâye anlatımlarıyla iç savaşın amansız sonuçlarına ışık tutarken, aynı zamanda insan ruhunun zorluklar karşısındaki direncini ve gücünü de yansıtmaktadır. Bu çalışma, aktarılan bilgiler doğrultusunda Afrika kıtası özelinde sömürgecilikten sonra meydana gelen iç savaşları, seçilen eserlerdeki yansımaları bağlamında ele almayı amaçlamaktadır.

Keywords

Afrika, Sömürgecilik, İç Savaş, Baskı, Afrika Edebiyatı

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