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Alienation or empowerment? Reading, writing, and orature in God’s Bits of Wood

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Abstract

The article presents the significance of reading, writing, and orature in Ousmane Sembene’s classic novel, “God’s Bits of Wood” in light of theories regarding education and foreign language reading particularly in the context of a decolonizing West Africa. A close reading of the text reveals Sembene’s preoccupations with the politics and utility of literature and orature. Ultimately, Sembene can be seen to allow for a hybrid text and culture where written and oral language are both used to serve the interests of a community.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Modern Languages, University of La Verne, La Verne, CA, 91750, USA

    Gerard Lavatori

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  1. Gerard Lavatori
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Correspondence to Gerard Lavatori.

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Lavatori, G. Alienation or empowerment? Reading, writing, and orature in God’s Bits of Wood . Neohelicon 41, 175–184 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11059-013-0195-8

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