Chikwenye Okonjo Ogunyemi Explained
| Chikwenye Okonjo Ogunyemi |
| Occupation: | University teacher |
| Nationality: | Nigerian |
| Movement: | Womanism |
| Notable Works: | Africa Wo/man Palava: The Nigerian novel by women (1996) |
Chikwenye Okonjo Ogunyemi (born 1939) is a Nigerian academic, a literary critic and writer. She taught at Sarah Lawrence College and she is best known for her articles and books concerning the theory of Womanism and the African Diaspora.[1]
Career
Ogunyemi published Africa Wo/man Palava: The Nigerian novel by women in 1996. The book examined the work of eight Nigerian women writers, namely Zaynab Alkali, Simi Bedford, Buchi Emecheta, Funmilayo Fakunle, Flora Nwapa, Eno Obong, Ifeoma Okoye, and Adaora Lily Ulasi. Ogunyemi set out a new theory of Nigerian literature based on their works.[2] This theory was womanist and feminist, but Ogunyemi also noted that naming is a political issue and by labelling a theory she was not pigeon-holing the writers.[3] Alongside other critics such as Helen Chukwuma and Omolara Ogundipe-Leslie, Ogunyemi explored postcolonial ideas and argued against the work of "phallic critics".[4]
Ogunyemi was professor of literature and also chair of global studies at Sarah Lawrence College in Yonkers, New York.[5] In collaboration with Tuzyline Jita Allan, Ogunyemi edited an anthology of essays, entitled Twelve Best Books by African Women: Critical Readings, which was published in 2009.[6]
Selected works
- Book: Allan . Tuzyline Jita . Ogunyemi . Chikwenye Okonjo . Twelve best books by African women : critical readings . 2009 . Ohio University Press . 978-0-89680-266-7.
- Book: Ogunyemi . Chikwenye Okonjo. Juju Fission: Women’s Alternative Fictions from the Sahara, the Kalahari, and the Oases In-Between . 2007 . Peter Lang . 978-1-4331-0089-5.
- Book: Ogunyemi . Chikwenye Okonjo. Africa wo/man palava: The Nigerian novel by women . 1996 . University of Chicago Press . 9780226620855.
- Ogunyemi . Chikwenye Okonjo . Womanism: The Dynamics of the Contemporary Black Female Novel in English . Signs . 1985 . 11 . 1 . 63–80 . 10.1086/494200 . 3174287 . 0097-9740.
Further reading
- Arndt . Susan . African Gender Trouble and African Womanism: An Interview with Chikwenye Ogunyemi and Wanjira Muthoni . Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society . 1 April 2000 . 25 . 3 . 709–726 . 10.1086/495479 . 0097-9740.
Notes and References
- Web site: Ogunyemi, Chikwenye Okonjo Encyclopedia.com. 7 April 2021. www.encyclopedia.com.
- Web site: Africa Wo/Man Palava . University of Chicago Press . 3 May 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180302211050/http://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/A/bo3683673.html . 2 March 2018 . live .
- Book: Oduyoye . Mercy . Introducing African women's theology . April 2001 . Sheffield Academic Press . 9780567622501 . 124–125.
- Book: Nnolim . Charles E. . Issues in African literature . 2010 . Malthouse Press . 978-9788422365 . 237.
- Web site: Chikwenye Okonjo Ogunyemi · Ohio University Press / Swallow Press . www.ohioswallow.com . 3 May 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170913010050/http://ohioswallow.com/author/Chikwenye+Okonjo+Ogunyemi . 13 September 2017 . live .
- Mukherjee . Sreemati . Twelve Best Books by African Women: Critical Readings. Chikwenye Okonjo Ogunyemi and Tuzyline Jita Allan . Contemporary Women's Writing . 1 July 2010 . 4 . 2 . 156–158 . 10.1093/cwwrit/vpq005 . en . 1754-1484.
