Journal Article

Afropolitanism and Cultural Ambivalence in Contemporary Nigerian Drama: A Case Study of Ade Solanke's Pandora's Box

Lare, Damlègue

2019

Overview

Afropolitanism refers to the claim of universal citizenship by African migrants. In literary theatrical studies, a debate has been introduced about the cultural status of African immigrants. The main question has been how to strike a balance between their African identity and the new models of identity they are confronted with in host countries. This article examines the articulation of Afropolitanism and cultural ambivalence as identity reconfigurations in Ade Solanke's Pandora's Box (2012). Taking as a point of departure the experience of African immigrants in the UK, it asserts that in a globalized changing world marked by the rapid spatial migration of individuals and cultural interpenetrations, literary discourses have shifted from Afrocentrism (a cultural ideology or worldview that focuses on African history and identity) to Afropolitanism as global citizenship, giving way to the building of a new African identity in a hybrid modern world. The article argues that identity, sometimes a controversial concept, is very flexible and can be reshaped to suit the needs of the times and circumstances. Taking the example of African immigrants living in the UK, as represented in the characters in Pandora's Box, the article asserts that cultural homecoming is essential for the survival of African values.

• Publisher: Indiana University Press
• Subject: Achebe, Chinua / African American literature / African cultural groups / African history / African literature / Afrocentrism / Ambivalence / American literature / Articulation / British & Irish literature / Case studies / Citizenship / Corporate culture / Cultural identity / Discourses / Drama / Dramatists / English literature / GENERAL ESSAYS / Globalization / Identity / Ideology / Immigrants / Internal migration / Juvenile delinquency / Literary theory / Migrants / Migration / Neocolonialism / Nigerian literature / Postcolonialism / Selasi, Taiye / Solanke, Ade / West African literature / Worldview / Worldview (Philosophy)