That the present modern day African writer is battling between two worlds as far as his or her writings are concerned cannot be disputed or denied by any knowledgeable or authoritative cultural expert or literary critic.
This is so because modern African literature is comparatively young to Euro-American literature and also Asian literature.
The dawn of modern African literature occurred between the immediate period before and the end of the Second War in 1945.
Since the dawn of modern African literature, African writers have been behaving like a child of two worlds or a bat. He's neither in the European world nor the African world in the context of his or her writings.
This state of affairs with the modern African writer puts him or her in an awkward situation or dilemma; as he or she cannot espouse or articulate implicitly and explicitly the pertinent values and ideals that his indigenous African society upholds and extols for its survival, progress and development.
The modern African writer finds himself in a dilemma in his creative output because he has received literary education that is rooted in Europe or Alien orientation which is incompatible and inharmonious to African roots and cosmology.
Due to this unpleasant and awkward situation, the modern African writer finds himself much handicapped to express himself naturally to conform to his African environment and cosmology. He's therefore limited in a way to bring out all that is inherent in himself ideally as a creative person of African roots to relate to the African environment and cosmology.
In his professional career as writer, African writer can be aptly described as a bat. He's neither here (Africa) nor there (Europe) in the context of his writings. He cannot conveniently and expertly situate his writings in the African environment to reflect typically the African way of life. Conversely, he cannot write authoritatively to reflect the European way of life pertaining to the European environment and cosmology.
However, a few experienced modern African writers are making attempt to break new grounds by thrusting in to the typical African milieu and cosmology.
This can be clearly seen in the area of drama, one of the main genres of literature.
They are what one can aptly describe as avant-gardeplaywrights.
In the pursuits of their endeavours, they have devised concepts such as "ogunism by Wole Soyinka", "Anansegoro by Efua Sutherland" and "Abibigoro by Mohammed Ben Abdallah" to espouse their ideas in an authentic African world view or cosmology for that matter. Some of these few avant-garde writers have gone further to write and express themselves in major African languages such as Swahili, Kikivu, Hausa etc.
In my opinion, the three radical Bolekaja critics of Nigeria made up of Cheiweizu, Chemei, Madubuki who in their significant "Decolonisation of African Literature" advocates for authentic African literature and declares that African literature should not become an appendage of European literature are right in their radical stand; although some who are concerned with the development of African literature may differ a little from the views of the Bolekaja critics.
I think African literature is of age now; and there is a need for African literature to go under drastic transformation to reflect the typical African world view by all African writers in their writings; the content, the structure and the style. All these elements must be of African outlook.
I state categorically that mimicking and apeing the Europeans pattern by African writers must be a thing of the past now in this 21st century in the annals of African literature. To this end, African writers must change their orientation in the context of their works.
This will definitely go a long way to contribute significantly to the development of the African continent. This is because reading and writing builds nations and for that matter continents. Writers are great asset who shape thoughts and ideas to incite progress and development of their societies or nations for that matter.
Europe and America are highly developed owing to the fact that their writers shape and situate their writings to suit the needs of Euro-American environments and cosmology.
I have the firm belief and opinion that if modern African writers will write and situate their writings well in the cosmology of the African environment to espouse African values and ideas, it will contribute significantly to awaken Africans from their ignorance which have become a formidable veil to hinder Africans from seeing their way clearly in their efforts to experience progress and development.
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The Chinese has a proverb which says; a journey of a thousand miles begins with a step. And so if few Africans writers are writing and espousing the African ideal it is hopeful that this spirit will sooner or later engulf other African writers to follow suit in their writings.
Because African writers are great potential and asset to the progress and development of the African continent today, they must write to situate their writings in the environment, philosophy and cosmology of Africa.
This will definitely incite speedy development of the African continent which is still under developed comparatively to Euro-America and Asia; and is at the present time struggling to experience optimum economic growth, development and prosperity.
In conclusion I state that, African writers must write now with the sole aim of building their nations; and this must supersedes any other aim or whatsoever!
Michael Akenno; Theatre Critic
