Aspects of Gothic Tradition in the Literary Imagination of Nnedi Okorafor

Abstract

The Gothic writing has often been perceived as a form of Western fiction- making. This apparently is based on the fact that Gothic genre originated in Europe in the late 18 th century and has been widely exploited in the West (Europe and North America). Contrary to these assumptions, it can be confirmed that Gothic mode has indeed been appropriated by many non–Western fiction writers. An in- depth interrogation of Nnedi Okorafor’s, selected novels like ‘Who Fears death’, Akata Witch and The Book of Phoenix reveal that she does indeed appropriate Gothic elements. This article therefore critically examines aspects of Gothic tradition in Nnedi Okorafor’s selected novels. It seeks to portray how unique Gothic motifs like monstrosity, villainy and morality have been appropriated, transformed and complicated in Nnedi Okorafor’s selected novels ‘Who Fears death’, ‘Akata Witch’ and ‘The Book of Phoenix’. This study found out that that the three motifs indeed exist in Okorafor’s selected novels and are closely related. Gothic Monsters are generally implicated in subversion of social norms and nature. This often renders them villainous and their defeat, as portrayed in the analysed texts, leads to a restoration of moral order in a given society. Yet the findings affirm that physical or moral monstrosity of a character does not necessarily qualify her or him to be a villain. Villainy is tied to innate monstrosity which manifests itself through characters’ inhuman, unjust, and oppressive attitude towards the perceived other. This piece therefore concludes that Nnedi Okorafor does indeed appropriate the Gothic motifs of monstrosity, villainy and morality in a manner that offers radically fresh means of highlighting Africa’s complex reality.