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Beyond the Savannah: A Feminist Reading of Chinua Achebe\u27s "Anthills of the Savannah"
No full textThis paper offers a feminist reading of Chinua Achebe’s Anthills of the Savannah. Employing a close reading and content analysis methodology, the study interrogates the novel through a feminist lens, particularly focusing on the portrayal of power dynamics, gender roles, and the silencing of dissent. The central research question guiding this analysis is: How does Achebe utilize feminist perspectives to expose the patriarchal structures that perpetuate political corruption and social injustice in post-colonial Africa? The study argues that Achebe’s narrative reveals the insidious nature of patriarchal power, which manifests in various forms, including political oppression, gender-based violence, and the suppression of women’s voices. By examining the characters of Beatrice and Chris, the novel highlights the limitations imposed on women and the dangers faced by those who challenge the status quo. Through a close reading of the text, this paper seeks to identify the specific ways in which patriarchal norms and values contribute to the downfall of the Kangan state. By analyzing the characters’ actions and motivations, the study explores the ways in which gender intersects with power and how these dynamics shape the political landscape of the novel
A Psychoanalytic Examination of Visual Art as a Tool of Protesting Hegemonic Masculinities in Nurrudin Farah’s "Hiding in Plain Sight" and Yvonne Adhiambo Owour’s "Dust"
No full textThis paper examines the role of art in propagating, challenging and reversing hegemonic masculinities. Art in this context is a form of expression that encompasses music, painting, photography and sculpturing among others. Artistic expressions by women who cannot physically confront the hegemonic masculinities serve as an avenue through which the muted voices of the dominated women are voiced, while also acting as a vortex through which the hegemonic male exercises his domination over the vulnerable woman. The paper is thus an investigation of how art is used either as a platform for advancing hegemonic masculinity and/or confronting and challenging male hegemony. It focuses on the characters who express themselves through art as portrayed in Nuruddin Farah’s Hiding in Plain Sight (2014) and Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor’s Dust (2014). Artistic expressions in the two texts are depicted as an articulation of the characters’ imagination, some of which are meant to fill the void created through a dominated, unspoken past. The muted past constitutes the unspoken memories of the atrocities committed by hegemonic males, analyzed through the psychoanalytic theory. The paper makes the assumption that art is a representation of repressed memories or wishes stored in the artist’s unconscious self that are expressed to the conscious self through the artistic expressions where the dominated characters deliver a subtle message of defiance against the socio-culturally constructed patriarchal structures. The paper therefore concludes that in pursuit of freedom from gender binary antagonisms, art as an aspect of culture is a platform through which either domination is exercised and/or challenged by dominated characters to claim their space in society
Socio-Cultural Inhibitors to Beach Operators’ Quality of Life. A Case of Kenya’s North Coast Tourism Circuit
Get PDFThough tourism has been touted as a means of creating equality and improving the quality of life of host communities, negligible evidence relating to its trickle-down to the host communities exists. This is despite them being the ones living and doing business along Kenya’s North Coast Beaches. This study therefore sought to examine the socio-cultural inhibitors of Beach Operators’ quality of life within the North Coast Tourism Circuit. Based on the Social exchange theory, this study adopted a cross-sectional research design using quantitative data. It targeted registered beach operators found along Kenya’s North Coast circuit beaches. The study utilized stratified sampling by dividing the population into three strata representing beach sites, then sub-strata representing Curio Sellers, Water sports operators, Glass bottom boat operators and Massage parlour operators. Simple random sampling was then used to identify respondents to be engaged from each stratum. Questionnaires were used to collect data from the sampled beach operators. The findings from the regression analysis were; F (1,247) =72.110, P<0.000) with an adjusted R2 of 0.226. This finding suggests that socio-cultural inhibitors accounted for approximately 32% of beach operators’ QOL. This implies that the socio-cultural networks of beach operators plying their trade along Kenya’s North Coast tourism circuit greatly inhibited their QOL. This finding will help revitalise legislation at both the County and the National levels by including clauses that enable beach operators to utilise returns from their ventures sustainably and improve on their QOL
The Role of Tour Operators’ Sustainable Environmental Practices on Visitor Choice Behavior in Narok County, Kenya
Get PDFIn Narok County, which hosts the Maasai Mara National Reserve, tourism is a major earner important for Kenya’s economy overall. Nonetheless, the rise in tourism operations in this ecologically sensitive area has caused environmental degradation, endangering the sustainability of the region\u27s natural heritage. Narok County is thus the epicenter of this study. The objective of this study is to examine the contribution of tour operators\u27 sustainable environmental practices on the choice behavior of the visitors. The research design used was mixed method research design. The target population was 314 tour operators and sample population were 176 tour operators that are registered by Tourism Regulatory Authority, are member of Kenya Association of Tour Operators and have access to Narok county. The target population of visitors were 76,217 and sample population was 397 visitors visiting attractions in Narok County. simple random sampling technique was employed to select the tour operators and visitors. Questionnaires were issued to visitors and tour operator staff to collect primary data. Interviews schedules and observation checklist were used to get information from high ranking official of tour operators. Data was analysed using statistical package for social science SPSS software version 20.0. The value of R square was 0.259, an indication that 25.9 percent of visitor choice behavior is caused by tour operators’ sustainable environmental practices. The coefficient of tour operators’ sustainable environmental practices had a positive and statistically significant effect on visitor choice behavior (β=0.557, P<0.05). The beta estimate suggests that a unit change in tour operators’ sustainable environmental practices result to 0.557 units change in visitor choice behavior in Narok County, Kenya. The outcomes of the study lead the to the conclusion that the sustainable environmental practices of tour operators have an impact on the decision-making behavior of visitors. The study recommends for the need of the government to actively involve tour operators in key decisions regarding achieving sustainable tourism in destinations
The Avenging and the Avenged Body: The Paradox of Revenge in Kinyanjui Kombani’s "The Last Villains of Molo"
No full textThis article examines revenge as a response to trauma in Kinyanjui Kombani’s The Last Villains of Molo (2004). It explores the motivations and the goal for revenge and the effects of this revenge on both the perpetrators and the victims of violence and trauma, and those who carry out the revenge. The trauma from violence that is deemed intentional attracts fantasies of revenge, which is aimed at not only inflicting pain on those who harm them but also taking back the power, they feel that they have been robbed from. The article, therefore, examines the use of revenge as a response to the frustration of the body’s inability to react “appropriately” at the time of the hurt and as a way of taking back power lost during traumatic situations by examining the effects of revenge on the avenger and the avenged. Using the ideas of Helsel, Etts, Horowitz, Grobbink, and Collens, among others, the article analyses revenge as a response to an injury that is deemed deliberate. Methodologically the article conducts a close textual analysis of the text to determine the trauma that the characters presented, their response to it at the time it occurred and their response later when they are considered physically and psychologically able to inflict retribution that equals their pain or one that exceeds the damage they once received, and further demonstrate the effect of revenge on those who carry out the revenge and the targets of the revenge. The findings reveal that the author presents revenge as a two-edged sword that affects both the perpetrator of this revenge and the victim
Representations of African Democracy as Prescription for Africa’s Governance in David Mulwa\u27s "Inheritance" and Nelson Mandela\u27s "Long Walk To Freedom"
No full textThe introduction of the nation state and democratic governments in Africa were considered the most appropriate prescriptions for the economic and political malaise in African communities. The nation state supplanted traditional forms of governance, but decades after establishment of nation states in Africa, political upheavals continue to rock the continent. The advent of Western democracy has exacerbated negative ethnicity as leaders mobilize their ethnic communities to attain political mileage. This study examines the merits of African democracy in governance as represented in David Mulwa’s Inheritance and Nelson Mandela’s Long Walk to Freedom. In the recent past, scholars have underlined the need to establish Western democracy despite its susceptibility to binaries uncharacteristic of African culture. Using postcolonial theory, the study juxtaposes traditional and modern systems of government as represented in the two primary texts. Utilizing qualitative inquiry, the study deploys narrative research to analyze data from primary and secondary texts, anchored in the ideas of Edward Blyden and Aimé Césaire as the bases of interpretation, and concludes with attributes of a system of government believed to be best suited for contemporary Africa
Environmental Degradation as a Form of Identity Loss and (Re) Construction in Imbolo Mbue’s "How Beautiful We Were"
No full textA people’s identity is closely related to their environment. Their sense of belonging can be strengthened or eroded based on how they relate to it. This is one of the reasons why communities make efforts in ensuring that their environment is kept clean. However, in some instances, environmental pollution may arise as a result of the decisions made by those in power which may end up having adverse effects on people’s relationships and rituals. This paper examines how the identity of a village named Kosawa in Imbolo Mbue’s How Beautiful We Were is eroded as a result of environmental degradation that is fueled by the greed of local leaders and international corporations. Ironically, these environmental problems provide an avenue for women to redefine their identity by challenging traditional gender norms. The paper employs the theory of postcolonial ecocriticism to demonstrate how environmental problems arise from systems of domination. Taiye Selasi’s concept of identity as relationships and rituals has also been used to demonstrate the link between identity loss and environmental degradation. Additionally, this paper uses Judith Butler’s theory of performativity to discuss identity reconstruction
Enter the Manosphere: Mixed Languages, Misogyny and Gendered Discourse in Kenya’s Online Spaces
No full textOn November 10, 2024, Qatari news channel Al Jazeera released a YouTube feature called “Kenya’s Exploding ‘Manosphere’” decrying the rise of online spaces in Kenya, populated by loudmouths, shock artists, and unapologetic chauvinists.” The report drew reactions of anger, frustration, and derision from a portion of Kenyan commenters, who viewed it as an unfair attack on popular masculinity influencer Eric Amunga, also known as Amerix, and a blind imposition of Western gender realities onto Kenyan masculinity discourse. This paper situates those reactions within a broader literary and linguistic inquiry. Through a thematic analysis of the online comments, it identifies recurring articulations of masculinity in popular Kenyan discourse that Al Jazeera’s framing overlooks. It completes a qualitative reading grounded in critical discourse analysis and social constructionist theory of 20 tweets made by Amerix in 2024, 2 episodes of the Man Talk KE podcast, and 2 episodes of Iko Nini to reveal how Kenyan men use language today to perform and negotiate masculinities in digital spaces and how foreign framing obscures this. Finally, it recommends that scholars undertake a more nuanced inquiry into the languages of African masculinities
Interrogating Diasporic Conditions: A Critical Study of Select Works of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
No full textThis paper examines the complexities of diasporic conditions in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus (2003), The Thing Around Your Neck (2009), and Americanah (2013), with particular attention to how displacement shapes identity, memory, and lived experience. It investigates the interplay between longing for home, nostalgia, and emotional dislocation, highlighting how characters navigate the tension between past and present, and how exile functions as a paradoxical state of both survival and dispossession. Grounded in postcolonial theory, the study draws on Said’s theorization of exile and Hall’s articulation of cultural identity to interrogate the psychological, social, and political dimensions of migration. Findings reveal that domestic rituals, sensory memories, and language mediate the experience of nostalgia, producing fragmented identities shaped by historical and cultural legacies. Memory operates simultaneously as rupture and resistance, enabling characters to reconstruct selfhood through reflection, silence, and imaginative engagement with the past. Displacement is shown to generate persistent psychological exile, as exemplified by forced and voluntary migrations that result in marginalization, emotional fragmentation, and alienation. Characters confront systemic barriers, gendered oppression, and racial hierarchies, which amplify the paradoxical burdens of migration and the disjunction between homeland and hostland. Through these narratives, Adichie portrays diaspora not as linear movement but as a recursive and multifaceted condition marked by loss, longing, invisibility, and uneven belonging
Tathmini ya Mfumo wa Swahilihub katika Ukuzaji wa Kiswahili Nchini Kenya
No full textSwahilihub ni tovuti iliyozinduliwa katika mwaka wa 2012 kwa lengo la kukuza Kiswahili mtandaoni. Makala haya yalitokana na utafiti uliolenga kutathmini mradi wa Swahilihub katika ukuzaji Kiswahili. Ili kulifikia lengo hili, utafiti huu ulikusudia kubaini namna mfumo wa Swahilihub unavyochangia katika ukuzaji Kiswahili nchini Kenya. Mwelekeo mseto wa utafiti unaohusu matumizi ya mbinu za kimaelezo na kijarabati kwa pamoja ulitumika katika utafiti huu. Data ya utafiti huu ilikusanywa kwa kutumia uchanganuzi wa matini mtandaoni, mahojiano nyanjani pamoja na hojaji na mijadala miongoni mwa watumiaji wa Swahilihub katika baadhi ya vyuo vikuu nchini Kenya. Aidha utafiti huu ulitumia ARhefs na Similarweb ambavyo ni vifaa vya tathmini ya tovuti ili kutathmini viwango vya ukubalifu na ustahilifu wa Swahilihub miongoni mwa watumiaji wake. Data ya utafiti huu ilichanganuliwa kutokana na malengo ya utafiti na kuongozwa na mihimili ya Nadharia ya Msambao wa Uvumbuzi ya Rodgers (2003). Matokeo ya utafiti huu yaliwasilishwa kwa njia za maelezo, majedwali, picha, michoro na chati. Aidha utafiti huu ulizua tasnifu kuwa utanuzi wa teknolojia pamoja na ustawi wa Swahilihub ni nafasi nzuri ya uundaji wa dira ya ukuzaji endelevu wa lugha ya Kiswahili mtandaoni