African

Literature
Africa and its People
During the Middle Ages, the Arabs came to Egypt and conquered
them. This happened fast, and soon they were in charge of all of
North Africa. When the Arabs came, they spread Islam to North
Africa and converted everyone there.
After 800 AD, Northern Africa began
to have organized kingdoms. What
were these? These were the powerful
kingdoms that monopolized trade with
the Arabs and other countries up north.
They traded gold and slaves for luxury goods and salt – those which
Africa does not have. These kingdoms were known to be Ghana (a
kingdom rich with gold), Ife of Southwest Nigeria (they made
terracotta sculptures and bronze statues), Benin, Mali (which grew so
powerful that, in its prime, its people traded gold, slaves, horses, and
salt), Songhai, and Kanen-Bornu (which traded metal.)
Many great people are Africans.
Nelson Mandela or “Mandiba” was a
citizen who fiercely fought for Africa’s
independence and eventually became
the first black and democratically
elected as president of South Africa. He
is known to be the “Father of the
Nation.”
Another one is Desmond Tutu who
was fierce opponent of the
apartheid in Africa. He was the
first black South African bishop of
Cape Town and because of his
exhaustive efforts to promote
peace, he has won several awards,
which include the Nobel Peace
Prize and the Gandhi Peace Prize.
Probably another familiar to you is Charlize Theron who has acted in
many blockbuster films in Hollywood and has won countless of
awards for her talent. She is known as the first South African to win
an Academy Award or an Oscar.
The Philippines was also challenged the same way that Africa
had been as a continent. As a citizen of a country that has been
colonized extensively before, it is normal that you still
experience the stirrings of the kind of history that your country
has gone through. The turbulent yet challenging
history of Africa is also
mirrored not only by these
aforementioned people, but also
by their literary writers.
Wole Soyinka
Nadine Gordimer
Nelson Mandela
Civilian and Soldier
By Wole Soyinka
What do you think is the
experience of the author in
his country, Africa, upon
writing this kind of theme of
a poem?
 Civilian and
Soldier My apparition rose from the fall of lead,
By Wole Soyinka Declared, 'I am a civilian.' It only served
To aggravate your fright. For how could I
Have risen, a being of this world, in that hour
Of impartial death! And I thought also: nor is
Your quarrel of this world.
 You stood still
Civilian and For both eternities, and oh I heard the lesson
Of your train sessions, cautioning -
Soldier Scorch earth behind you, do not leave
By Wole Soyinka A dubious neutral to the rear. Reiteration
Of my civilian quandary, burrowing earth
From the lead festival of your more eager friends
Worked the worse on your confusion, and when
You brought the gun to bear on me, and death
Twitched me gently in the eye, your plight
And all of you came clear to me.
 Civilian and I hope some day

Soldier Intent upon my trade of living, to be checked

In stride by your apparition in a trench,
By Wole Soyinka
Signaling, I am a soldier. No hesitation then
But I shall shoot you clean and fair
With meat and bread, a gourd of wine
A bunch of breasts from either arm, and that
Lone question - do you friend, even now, know
What it is all about?
How is civil war reflected
in the poem?
 How does Soyinka’s
literary technique help
enhance the message of
the poem?
 How do you think can
the experience of being
in a war change you as a
person? Will it make you
a better person or not?
Explain your answer.
 Do you think the poem
really portrayed the history
of Africa? What do you
think is the most probable
scenarios that can be seen
in Africa then and now?
Directions: Using the Venn Diagram below, compare and contrast the
two words below according to how you understood and analyzed the
poem of Wole Soyinka.
Civilian Soldier