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- Title
More than Just Warriors Mythical and Archetypal Images of the Hero in Swahili Literature.
- Authors
Acquaviva, Graziella
- Abstract
Since ancient times till today the image of the hero has universally influenced literary works. The "hero" becomes mythical only after his death, and through a form of remembrance realized in literary productions where his figure is recreated and transmitted through fictitious characters. The central focus of the paper is to examine, within the archetypal theories on myth and "hero," the figures of two Swahili warriors, namely Liongo Fumo, one of the greatest warrior-hero figures of the Swahili oral tradition, and Chief Mkwawa of the Hehe people, who fought against the German rule in former Tanganyika, and whose deeds have been reinvented and described in modern written literature. Both Liongo Fumo and Mkwawa have acquired the status of mythical warriors, and, as other East African heroes, have inspired poets and writers and become symbols of bravery and national consciousness to which the historical and cultural memory of old and new generations refer. A second part of the work is devoted to the presentation of those who can be defined as "minor heroes" and who nevertheless represent a new way to look at literature and a bridge between tradition and modernity through the use of historical and mythical memory.
- Subjects
TANGANYIKA; HEROES in literature; COLLECTIVE memory; FICTIONAL characters; NATIONALISM; MODERN literature; ORAL tradition; LITERARY festivals
- Publication
Kervan: International Journal of Afro-Asiatic Studies, 2019, Vol 23, p13
- ISSN
1825-263X
- Publication type
Article