African,Latin American and North

American literature
Presentation By : Group 3
 Objectives :
1. distinguish the texts and authors from African, Latin American and North
American Literature

2. explain the texts in terms of genres and traditions in prose and poetry.
Multicultural Experience
Since the industrial revolution until now, several improvements have been
made which paved the way to present societies having advance communication and
transportation systems. Now, people can travel to anywhere anytime at an accelerated
speed. This breakthrough have allowed people to explore different places of the worid.
Today, it is common to see Africans in America, Chinese in the Middle East, Filipinos in
Latin America among others. This multiculturalism has allowed people to experience the
diversity of peoples and nations in the world.
Africa and Mandela
When people think of Africa, they sometimes think of "darkness", "black," and
poverty. History has shown us how this continent became brutally colonized by white
European traders and imperialists in Congo. Each portion of the continent was divided and
spoiled by western countries like France, the Netherlands, Great Britain, Belgium,
Germany. Portugal, Spain and Italy. Slavery, racism, discrimination including violence and
colonial domination became the reality of most Africans. In ract, most or their natural
resources wnere nigniy exploired and expored to colony Countries.
But Africa is more than just a continent with dark and bitter history, but it is the
World's second largest and second most-populous continent next to Asia.
21 Century Canon of African Literature
• African literature of the 21 century is defined by their long history of colonization, to gaining
independence and now, the rise of present-day globalization. When one is studying African literature,
one cant get away without studying the works of South African writer Nadine Gordimer. She is a
contemporary novelist known for Julys People and Burghers Daughter.
• Aside from Gordimer is Chinua Achebe whose works also represents African literature to world
literature. He is best know for his novel Things Fall Apart. The novel deals about how African
countries are product of colonization.
• Many contemporary artists describe moden African literature as "astonishing and vibrant body of
work, produced in multiple languages and from every part of the continent, including memoir, oral
literature, poetry, short fiction, novels and more.
South Africa
South Africa is a nation with a wonderful and varied culture. This
country has been called The Rainbow Nation, a name that reflects the
diversity of such amazing place. There are forty-five million people
about thirty million are black, five million white, three million colored
and one million Indians.
This is a country where there are people with different beliefs and
traditions, but at the end they are identitied by their pride of being from
South Africa. In 2013, the news of Nelson Mandela's death became like a
wildfire, late that day, a poet, Jim Agustin, wrote a poem as a eulogy to
Mandela's death, entitledThe Breath of Sparows
South African literature
South African literature, the body of writings in either Afrikaans or English produced in what is now the
Republic of South Africa. The rest of African literature is treated in African literature.

South Africa was colonized by Europeans against the resistance of Africans and was for some time afterward a
battlefield between Briton and Boer. Although South Africa became independent in 1910, the nation's varned
ethnic constituents have not yet been unified in a harmonious whole, and the tension arising from the unequal
relations between blacks and whites is the authentic note of much south African literature. Indigenous South
Atfrican literature effectively began in the late 19th century and became taiiy copious in the 20th century.
Jim Pascual Agustin
Jim Pascual Agustin writes and translates in Filipino and English. He
grew up in Manila, the Philippines, during the reign of the late dictator,
Ferdinand Marcos, and moved to South Africa in 1994.
Agustin's latest collection of poetry, Wings of Smoke, was recently
released by The Onslaught Press (Oxford 2017). He is currently working
on a new collection that contains work criticizing the bloody war on
drugs by Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte and commenting on socio-
political events in his South Africa.
Boom in Latin Literature
After World War II, Latin America enjoyed increasing economic prosperity, and a new-found confidence also
gave rise to a literary boom. It was a period of literary flourishing in the 1960s and 70s that brought much of
the area's iterature to an international audience. Famous Boom authors include Julio Cortazar, Carlos Fuentes,
Octavio Paz, Mario Vargas LIosa, and Gabriel García Márquez. Boom writers ventured outside traditional
narrative structures, embracing non-linearity and experimental narration. They launched Latin American
literature onto the world stage, as t was distinguished by daring and experimental novels. Emir Rodriguez
Monegal published his influential Latin American literature monthly Mundo Nuevo which was one of the
Boom's defining novels, which led to the association of Latin American literature with magic realism.
 Post-Boom and Contemporary Literature
Sometimes characterized by a tende ncy towards irony and towards the use of popular genres. Some writers
felt the success of the Boom to be a burden, and spiritedly denounced the caricature that reduces Latin
American literature to magical realism. Other writers have traded on the Boom's success like Laura Esquivels
pastiche of magical realism in Como agua para chocolate.
Contemporary literature in the region is vibrant and varied, ranging from the best-selling Paulo Coelho and
Isabel Allende to the more avant-garde and critically acclaimed work of writers such as Diamela Eltit and
Giannina Braschi.
This 1955 short story by Marquez was written in the style of magical realism, a term that refers to works of art
that include magical elements in an otherwise realist world. The appearances of both the old man and the
spider woman indicate that the story is set in a world where magical things sometimes Occur.

Márquez uses both natural and divine imagery in his descriptions of places,
characters, and events in the short story. In the first paragraph, he writes that "the world had been sad since
Tuesday," when it started raining. This sets the tone for story.

Wings are symbols of freedom, power, and divinity in the story. When the old man flies, he's both literally and
symbolically freeing himself from his years as a Sideshow attraction.
Gabriel Garcia Márquez (1927-2014)
Gabriel José de la Concordia García Márquez was a Colombian
novelist,short-story writer, screenwriter and journalist, known
affectionately as Gabo throughout Latin America. Considered one of the
most significant authors of the 20th century and one of the best in the
Spanish language, he was awarded the 1972 Neustadt International Prize
for Literature and the 1982 Nobel Prize in Literature. He pursued a self-
directed education that resuted in his leaving law School for a career in
journalism.
 American Perspective
North America is the third largest of the world's
continents. The name America is derived from that
of the ltalian merchant and navigator Amerigo
Vespucci, one of the earliest European explorers to
visit the New World. Although at first the term
America was applied only to the southern half of
the continent, the designation soon was applied to
the entire landmass.
 North American Literature
In Studying American literature, it is important to understand that after having been politically and culturaly dominated by England,
it became necessary for Americans to develop a means of expression which could reflect American habits, thoughts and ambitious.
American society demanded a literature expressed in a new style. American culture offered characteristics which greatly differed
from those of the old cultures of Europe: democracy, the frontier, and a new concept of humanity. By its very nature, American
society lacked a definite structure about which to write. Search for identity has always been an Outstanding trait in the American
literature.
It is necessity to remember that the American population has never been homogeneous, since it is comprised of people of
European, African, and Asian ancestry. America has always been a land in which one looked to the future for fulfillment of his
expectations. The emphasis has been upon individualism, dynamism and innovation, rather than upon moderation or respect for an
established social hierarchy. American literature has always reflected the double consciousness of its parent cultures and its Own
youthful ambition. up to the first part of the twentieth century, there had been a trend to avoid topics such as the imperfection of
humanity or the nation. The literature reflected the process of settlement, the conquering of a continent, the growth of political, social
and spiritual ideals.
Major Themes in 21 Century North American Literature

With increasing globalization, intersections of cultures and more vocal

discussions of women's rights and LGBT rights, identity has become a
common theme in 21st century literature. In a world that is now able to
exchange ideas more quickly than ever before via the Internet and other
technological advancements, people have relatively more freedom to draw
from multiple cultures and philosophies and question the concept of the self
and its relation to the body, brain and "soul."
 Marilynne Summers Robinson
Marilynne Summers Robinson is an American novelist and essayist. During her writing career Robinson has
received numerous awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2005, the 2012 National Humanities Medal,
and the 2016 Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction. In 2016 Robinson was named in Time magazine's
list of 100 most influential people. In a sense, Robinson is a kind of contemporary George Eliot: socially
engaged,preoccupied with the environment and the moral progress of man.
The text that you have just read is an essay. An essay Is a piece of writing,
usually from an author's personal point of view. Essays are non-fictional but
often subjective while expository, they can also include narrative. Essays can
be literary criticism, political manifestos, learned arguments, observations of
daily life, recollections, and reflections of the author. The word essay derives
from the French infinitive essayer, to try or to attempt. The first author to
describe his works as essays was the Frenchman Michel de Montaigne (1533-
1592). In general, an academic essay has three parts:
 Three parts of essay
Introduction Body Conclusion

An introduction that A body, or middle A conclusion that

gives the reader an idea section, that provides summarizes the
of what they are about evidence used to prove
to learn and presents an and persuade the reader content and
argument in the form of to accept the writers findings of the
a thesis statement. particular point of view. essay.
Also, the essay made use of figure of speech called as Allusions. Allusion is a brief and indirect
reference to a person, place, thing or idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance. It does
not describe in detail the person or thing to which it refers. It is just a passing comment and the writer
expects the reader to possess enough knowledge to spot the allusion and grasp its importance in a text.
The use allusions are not confined to literature alone. Their occurrence is fairly common in our daily
speech. Examples of Allusions in everyday life are:

a. "Dont act like a Romeo in front of her.- "Romeo is a reference to Shakespeare's Romeo, a
passionate lover of Juliet, in "Romeo and Juliet".

b. "This place is like a Garden of Eden." - This is a biblical allusion to the "garden of God" in the
Book of Genesis.
Thank
You