Performing the African Identity in Ama Ata Aidoo’s The Dilemma of a Ghost (1965), Wole Soyinka’s Death and the King’s Horseman (1975), Ngũgĩ wa Thiongo and Ngũgĩ wa Mĩriĩ’s I Will Marry When I Want (1977), and Athol Fugard’s A Lesson from Aloes (1978)

Abstract

Ibrahim, Zainab Mohamed. Performing the African Identity in Ama Ata Aidoo’s The Dilemma of a Ghost (1965), Wole Soyinka’s Death and the King’s Horseman (1975), Ngũgĩ wa Thiongo and Ngũgĩ wa Mĩriĩ’s I Will Marry When I Want (1977), and Athol Fugard’s A Lesson from Aloes (1978).Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation, University of Ain Shams, Faculty of Al-Alsun, 2015. Through their work in the field of performance studies, J.L.Austin, Judith Butler, Richard Schechner as well as a number of other philosophers have examined the manners by which identity is passed or established through performance. Every dramatist, whether knowingly or unknowingly, contributes to the framework of identity that is assigned to a subject. Through applying Alan Deutschman's paradigm for reformation, dramatists may ensure the preservation and development of their people's identity. Four authors from four countries which struggled against colonialism and are rising from the aftermath of the long years of being subjected to a culture, language, and constitution other than their own have been chosen to examine their resistance to an identity forced upon them. They implement performance to scrutinize an imposed identity, putting prominence to the negative aspects of the colonial identity and highlighting the possible potential of a novel identity that integrates the positive synthesis of both the novel and traditional identity. The thesis examines how Ama Ata Aidoo’s The Dilemma of a Ghost (1965), Athol Fugard’s Lessons from Aloes ( 1981 ), Ngugi wa Thiongo’s I Will Marry When I Want (1982), and Wole Soyinka’s Death of the King’s Horseman (1987 ) perform the African identity through applying the methods of performance studies. It examines the African feminine identity in the plays through feminine performance theory. In addition, a thorough study of the African identity is also examined through postcolonial performance theory. Key Words: Performance Studies, Identity, African Performance

Acknowledgments Much gratitude is due to the distinguished Professor Laila Galal Rizk for her supervision of this dissertation. If it were not for her constructive guidance and support, this work would not have been completed. Dr. Enass Mohamed Ali Othman also kindly provided illuminating suggestions and constructive feedback. I am blessed to have had both these eminent scholars to direct me.