University of Cape Coast Journals
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Reversing the imperial gaze, affirming possibility: Conrad and Fanon in Amma Darko\u27s beyond the horizon
Get PDFDrawing on Bakhtin’s notion of the dialogism of the word, especially double-voiced discourse, this paper examines Darko’s subtle inscription of Conrad\u27s Heart of Darkness and Fanon’s The Wretched of the Earth in her novel Beyond the Horizon (1995). Specifically, the paper examines "horror" and the novel’s title as double-voiced discourse or dialogical sites of contestation and affirmation, respectively. It argues that while the Conradian subtext can be understood in the context of Darko’s reversal of Marlow’s imperial gaze in Heart of Darkness, the Fanonian subtext revolves around Darko’s politics of “beyond the horizon” which is contingent on decentering Europe as the location of hope for postcolonial people. By focusing on Darko’s subtle dialogue with Conrad and Fanon, the paper shows that Darko strategically frames Mara’s encounter with Europe as a journey into the “heart of darkness” and also foregrounds delinking from the West as an emancipatory ethic and thought for postcolonial transformation
“I am his pawn, his slave and his property”: A stylistic analysis of the abuse of women in Amma Darko\u27s beyond the horizon
Get PDFIn Beyond the horizon, Amma Darko uses words in unique ways to bring the subject of gender representations and the abuse of women to the fore. Employing a stylistics framework of analysis, this study investigates the text’s parallelisms and deviations, and interprets and uncovers the implied and underlying meanings of issues related to the abuse of women in the novel. The analysis reveals how through patterned repetitions of words and sentences, as well as some language deviations in the text, men abuse women physically, emotionally, sexually and economically. The paper shows that through the use of patterned repetition of words and sentences, and deviations such as metaphor and simile, Darko reveals the struggles of and unequal relationships between the “pawn”, “slave” and “property” (largely represented by Mara) on one hand, and the “master”, “lord” and “pimp” (represented by Akobi, Oves and Osey) on the other hand
Native and non-native variation in adverbial and adjectival intensification: A corpus-based study of UK and Ghanaian parliamentary debates
Get PDFStudies on the use of adverbs and adjectives by nonnative speakers of English have largely focused on learner corpus. Using Hansards of British and Ghanaian parliamentary debates as data, this paper attempts to partly fill this gap by comparatively examining the use of adverbs and adjectives as intensifiers by British parliamentarians as first/native speakers of English and Ghanaian parliamentarians as second language/non-native speakers of English. Parliamentarians’ use of adverbial and adjectival intensification is consequent on parliamentary debates being truth and validity judgement, which includes speaker involvement and commitment. While both groups of MPs employ intensifiers to strengthen their convictions and arguments, it leads to exaggeration. However, the British parliamentarians use more complex adverbs and adjectives than their Ghanaian counterparts, who use simpler forms. The paper has implications for second language teaching and learning, the theory of nativisation and the characterisation of Ghanaian English
A Communal solidarity and the challenge of intergenerational punitive system in Africa: The Yoruba experience
No full textThe transference of qualitative punitive system in Africa to the next generations is challenged by the hegemonic situations created by the Western colonial ‘theory-maker’. The reality of this formal structure promotes individual character of the law which undermines the transformative cultural principles for intergenerational legal justice in Africa. This paper, therefore, examines the communal solidarity system within the Yoruba culture in order to arrive at the socio-legal sustainability discourse for the next generations. The study employs the conceptual, critical and reconstructive methods of philosophy with a view to sustaining communal solidarity for intergenerational punitive system. The findings show that communal solidarity in Yoruba culture goes beyond the formal Eurocentric principles that celebrate individualistic for a coherent interconnection among social structure, law and belief system towards the certitude and trust making for harmonious human well-being and future generations. Also, it promotes a restitutive principle whereby the offender is reconciled to himself, the victim and the community at large, which seals generational bond not only within the family but the community at large. More so, the notion advances a creative and flexible human activity, whereby human beings are amenable to change and deserve integration into the community with the saying that bi a ba fi owo otun na omo eni, a fi t’osi fa’a mora (when a man beats his child with his right hand, he should draw him to himself with his left hand). Therefore, the study constructively addresses the dispensation of justice with legal certainty, legal diversity and social order for maximally advanced and sustained future
Murdering our promising babies: The Pan-African historical theatre festival (Panafest) factor
Get PDFInternational cultural festivals have attracted researchers and tourists globally for their role in impacting understanding and appreciation of societies and cultures worldwide. Regardless of this recent emphasis, in Ghana, there is paucity of literature on one of the most historically celebrated international historical and cultural festivals of unique significance to the global Pan-African family, the Pan-African Historical Theatre Festival (PANAFEST). Yankah (2012) critiques the Ghanaian PANAFEST by examining the chequered history behind its evolution from a small-scale, culturally local vision to a grandiose event more appealing to tourists than to local citizens. So, deploying the interpretive paradigm and narrative design and with a SWOT analysis, we explored PANAFEST in perspective, seeking to critically examine its genesis, state of affairs for its prime periods, from 1990s to 2010, to expose challenges shackling its sustainability by the Citizens. The findings revealed that a lack of funding, mismanagement, negative perceptions and misgivings, poor planning and organisation, and partisan politics defeat the purpose for which PANAFEST was established. We opine that PANAFEST represents geopolitical, public memory, cultural space and theatrical event, and that it has come to stay and all governments, private individuals, tourists, African diasporans, Pan-Africanists, slave descendants and other corporate institutions should put their shoulders to the wheel in making it a monumental festival for generations yet unborn
Alignment between the intended and enacted practical work component of the Senior High School Integrated Science Curriculum in the Kwadaso Municipality
Get PDFA cursory observation of how Integrated Science Teachers (ISTs) operationalize the Senior High School Integrated Science Curriculum (SHSISC) reveals a neglect of the practical work component of the subject. Thus, this study sought to determine the extent of alignment between the intended and the enacted practical work components of the Senior High School Integrated Science Curriculum (SHSISC) in the Kwadaso Municipality. Sixty-four (64) lessons of eight (8) Integrated Science Teachers (ISTs) were observed using a Classroom Observation Schedule (COS). The data collected were analysed using frequency counts and percentages. The study found that enacted practical work component of the SHSISC was poorly aligned with the intended practical work. This misalignment has significant implications for Government’s attempt to introduce a Standard-Based Curriculum in Senior High Schools (SHSs) in the Municipality. Furthermore, an extensive investigation into the causes of the misalignment is recommended
School-based in-service training programmes: Perceptions of basic school teachers and administrators of East Mamprusi Municipality, North East Region of Ghana
Get PDFEffective teaching and learning at the basic school have often been linked to good teacher professional knowledge and skills, acquired not only through pre-service teacher education but also participation in in-service training programmes. This paper reports on a study which explored the perceptions of basic school teachers in the East Mamprusi Municipality about in-service training programmes. The concurrent triangulation research design was employed in the study, which included 17 public junior high schools in the study area. A sample size of 72 teachers was obtained using the simple random sampling method, while 17 head teachers were purposively sampled. Questionnaire and interview were used to collect data. Frequency counts and percentages were the descriptive statistical tools used for the data analysis. The study established that in-service training programmes are more effective if schools are empowered to organise such programmes for teachers. Also, the study found that participation in-service training programmes enhanced teachers’ knowledge of content in their respective subject areas. The findings further revealed that in-service training programmes enhanced teachers’ knowledge on pedagogy and increased their motivation at work. It was recommended that basic schools be empowered to organise in-srvice education and training (INSET) and take steps to institutionalise its implementation for the continuous professional development of teachers
BETWEEN MOTHER FIXATION AND COLONIAL ATTRACTION: DERACINATION, ILL-FATED MIGRATION, AND REDEMPTION IN KEN BUGUL’S THE ABANDONED BAOBAB
Get PDFThe Abandoned Baobab, Ken Bugul’s brutally sincere autofiction, is the prototypal model of African postcolonial, feminist, and psychological narrative built around the post-traumatic stress disorder, self-flagellation, and “excesses” of a speaking female/colonial subject in desperate need of love. The paper analyzes the protagonist’s alienation, identity crises, and ill-starred sojourn in Europe against the backdrop of maternal attachment and absorption of colonial codes. The study is eclectically anchored on Hendrika C. Freud’s reconstruction of the Electra complex and postcolonial theory. Its major finding is that notwithstanding the protagonist’s anguish at maternal abandonment and her subsequent colonial assimilation, she still employs repressed norms and values associated with the mother/the land/Africa to berate (neo-)colonialists, Westerners, and herself. The paper concludes that the protagonist-narrator redeems herself somehow through the willful adoption of the appellation Ken Bugul, the admission of her errors, and the return to the motherland
EXPLORING HYBRID MASCULINITIES OF THE MALE CHARACTERS IN OKPEWHO’S THE LAST DUTY
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This paper explores the concept of failed hegemonic masculinity to exact its full benefit from the assumed patriarchal privileges that African men ascribe to with intent of subjugating femininity. The failure of both patriarchy and masculinity to accentuate their hold unto these privileges results in a cataclysmic disfigured form of subordinated masculinities that manifest in a hybridism of masculinities. Utilizing Okpewho’s novel, The Last Duty, this paper examines how the novelist’s portraiture of the male characters in the novel reveals a bastardized patriarchy strangled to the point of suffocation; its relevance to society is seen in the infirmary of hopelessness and nothingness. The salvaging element, the paper argues, is to view the male characters through the lenses of hybrid masculinities which interpret the diverse identity projects of patriarchy in gender studies as ephemeral
CHALLENGES OF NIGERIA’S DIGITAL ECONOMY: WAY FORWARD
Get PDFThe digital economy is becoming a more important part of the global economy. The digital economy is worth $11.5 trillion globally, comparable to 15.5 percent of global Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and has risen two and a half times faster than global GDP over the past 15 years. The importance of the digital economy to a nation’s GDP cannot be exaggerated. For all its potential, the digital economy is yet a rough diamond. The paper argues that the government must act as a regulator in order for the country to fully profit from the digital potential available. To be an effective regulator, the government must endeavour to remain ahead of the curve, comprehend the nuances of this type of business, and recognise that the digital economy cannot be governed in the same way as a traditional industry. The government\u27s involvement as a regulator may extend to areas such as intellectual property, taxation, data security, and cyber security. The study applied a conceptual, descriptive and analytical approach, relying on extant literature on the benefits and challenges in the digital economy, focusing on the participation of government to maximize the sectors’ potential. Data were collected from statutes and case laws, relevant books, journal articles, materials from periodicals in these fields and materials from the internet, all data obtained was subjected to content analysis