AFRICAN-EUROPEAN LITERATURE AND SCIENCE ENCOUNTERS
Successful literary debate on Ngugi wa Thiong’o’s Wizard of the crow (2006)
Our 2nd literary debate, which dealt with Ngugi wa Thiong’o’s magnum opus Wizard of the crow (2006) was also a success. The debate took place on April 28, 2015 in the Concordia Press Club. The literary, literary-scientific, cultural, intercultural and political aspects of Wa Thiong’o’s novel were explored, questioned and questioned. The debate examined the question, both intrinsically and extrinsically, of the extent to which Wa Thiong’o’s novel is an archaeology or diagnosis of the phenomenology of power in the post-colonial African context. The question of writing and language, which is an important concern for Ngugi wa Thiong’o, was also one of the core points of the debate. AFRI-EUROTEXT is grateful to the many guests who attended and enjoyed the debate. We hereby inform AFRI-EUROTEXT friends, sympathizers and those interested in literature and culture that Ngugi wa Thiong’o and his texts are one of the focal points of
our literature program this year in 2015 and next year in 2016. Our next literature debate will be announced here, by email, and on our Facebook and Twitter pages soon. Here are a few pictures of the Ngugi wa Thiong’o debate:
Successful opening literature debate
Our opening literature debate, which took place on February 3, 2015 at the Concordia Press Club, was a success. We would like to thank all of the guests who attended, as well as our cooperation partners.
The focus was on Franz Kafka’s Letter to his Father (1952) and Mongo Beti’s Visit to Kala (1957) (French original title Mission Terminée (1957). Both texts were examined contrapuntally and inter(con)textually, with reference to individual passages and with particular attention to the father-son conflict, and their current relevance was questioned.
OUR NEXT LITERATURE DEBATE
Ngungi wa Thiong’o’s novel Wizard of the Crow (2006) or an archaeology of power in the post-colonial African context
Texts from Austrian, African and European literature provide an in-depth look at the issues and concerns of respective societies and can contribute to a differentiated view of African and European conditions. This project therefore aims to make a contribution, firstly, to educational policy through public contrapuntal debates on selected texts from African, Austrian and European literatures. Participation, secondly, to contribute to a sustainable exchange of knowledge or to the expansion of knowledge and thirdly to a differentiated view of African, Austrian and European conditions. Six events on this topic are planned for the 2015 activity year.
Our second event on the topic mentioned is a literary debate on Ngungi wa Thiong’o. In speculation about last year’s award of the Nobel Prize for Literature, Ngungi wa Thiong’o name was mentioned in many ways. His work is characterized by a constant and unswervingly steadfast political commitment. His novel Wizard of the Crow (2006), which is generally described as a critique of post-colonial Africa, is another paradigmatic example of this. The current debate aims to examine, both intrinsically and extrinsically, the question of the extent to which Wa Thiong’o’s novel conducts an archaeology or a diagnosis of the phenomenology of power in the post-colonial African context. The question of writing and language, which is an important concern for Gungi wa Thiong’o, will not be ignored.
Location: Presseclub Concordia, Bankgasse 8, 1010 Vienna
Date: April 2015 (Exact date will be announced here.)
For organizational reasons, please register at the following email address: afrieurotext@gmx.at. (Snacks provided)