Gender, Literature and Religion in Africa

Authors

Elizabeth Le Roux (ed)
Mildred A.J. Ndeda (ed)
George Nyamndi (ed)
F.E.M.K. Senkoro (ed)
Isaac Ssetuba (ed)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.57054/codesria.pub.239

Keywords:

Gender, Literature, Religion, Cairo

Synopsis

Studies in literature and religion are particularly vulnerable to accusations of subjectivity and bias, because by their very nature they deal with subjectivities and people’s perceptions of their own identity. In the past, on the basis of a patriarchal worldview, literature and religion were seen as value-free and neutral, and a gendered perspective was not taken into account. Today, an increasing amount of research is revealing the gendered fault-lines in works of fiction and in religious beliefs.

This volume showcases the diversity and depth of research that is currently taking place on the African continent in this field. The specifically African gendered experience is brought to the fore, through the critical discussion of proverbs, oral histories, resistance, and male dominance. Gender, Literature and Religion in Africa highlights continuing gender bias, often at the level of the sub-culture.

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Author Biographies

Elizabeth Le Roux

is the Director of Publications and Communications at the
Africa Institute of South Africa, Pretoria. With qualifications in French and English
literature and translation, she has published on issues relating to scholarly
publishing, the media, and African women’s writing. She also works in an editorial
capacity on several journals, including Africa Insight, African Identities and Social
Identities.

Mildred A.J. Ndeda

holds a Phd. in history from Kenyatta University and is a
senior lecturer in the Department of History, Archaeology and Political Studies,
Kenyatta University. Her areas of specialisation includes the history of women
and the history of religions in Africa.

George Nyamndi

 studied modern letters at the University of Lausanne in
Switzerland where he obtained a doctorate degree in 1983, and has been on the
staff of the English Department at the University of Buea in Cameroon since.

F.E.M.K. Senkoro

is an Associate Professor of Kiswahili and Literature (with
emphasis on Children’s Literature) and currently Head of Kiswahili Department,
University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. He holds a BA, MA and PhD from the
University of Dar es Salaam, and an MA (Comp. Lit) from the University of
Alberta, Canada. He has published extensively on various aspects of African
literature, especially on Kiswahili literature, including 9 books, two novels and a
collection of short stories. In 2001, he was awarded the prestigious East African
Shaaban Robert Prize for Kiswahili Language and Literature.

Isaac Ssetuba

holds a BA with Education from Makerere (Uganda), a Master in
Comparative Literature from Besancon (France). He has also read the basics of
Arabic and Islamics in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia). He was a CODESRIA Gender
Institute laureate in 2001, in Dakar (Senegal). His working experience has been in
translating, media relations, and teaching. An independent researcher and
translator, he is currently undertaking a professional course in translation/
Interpretation in Buea (Cameroon). Ssettuba's main research interests are in
language, literature and religious thought, but he also enjoys writing poetry

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Published

August 19, 2005

Series

CODESRIA Books
Copyright (c) 2005 CODESRIA Books Publication System