What Happened to the Postcolonial Novel: The Urban Longing for Form
This essay observes that recent city novels set in the global South often depart from earlier postcolonial fiction, in which the sense of geopolitical possibility remained tethered to the promise and limitations of nation-states. To alter that habit, contemporary fiction updates the novel's cen...
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| Veröffentlicht in: | Novel : a forum on fiction 2017-11, Vol.50 (3), p.409-425 |
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| creator | Marx, John |
| description | This essay observes that recent city novels set in the global South often depart from earlier postcolonial fiction, in which the sense of geopolitical possibility remained tethered to the promise and limitations of nation-states. To alter that habit, contemporary fiction updates the novel's centuries-long preoccupation with city life. Recent novels lend texture and detail to sublime statistics generated by the United Nations and other organizations of enormous and seemingly unmanageable urban growth. When they expand the novel's hoary catalog of urban forms, contemporary writings also urge reconsideration of the relationship between capital-
literature and genre fiction. Freed from an obligation to represent the nation, contemporary postcolonial genre novels can stand out in their eagerness to join commentary from across the disciplines in busily considering the shape that mega-urbanization takes. The essay concentrates on two recent novels suggestive of such engagement: Nnedi Okorafor's 2014 alien invasion thriller
and, in the essay's concluding section, Mũkoma wa Ngũgĩ's 2009 crime novel |
| doi_str_mv | 10.1215/00295132-4195032 |
| format | Article |
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literature and genre fiction. Freed from an obligation to represent the nation, contemporary postcolonial genre novels can stand out in their eagerness to join commentary from across the disciplines in busily considering the shape that mega-urbanization takes. The essay concentrates on two recent novels suggestive of such engagement: Nnedi Okorafor's 2014 alien invasion thriller
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literature and genre fiction. Freed from an obligation to represent the nation, contemporary postcolonial genre novels can stand out in their eagerness to join commentary from across the disciplines in busily considering the shape that mega-urbanization takes. The essay concentrates on two recent novels suggestive of such engagement: Nnedi Okorafor's 2014 alien invasion thriller
and, in the essay's concluding section, Mũkoma wa Ngũgĩ's 2009 crime novel</description><subject>African American literature</subject><subject>African literature</subject><subject>American literature</subject><subject>Critical Theory</subject><subject>Fiction</subject><subject>Genre</subject><subject>Geopolitics</subject><subject>Historical text analysis</subject><subject>Literary Criticism</subject><subject>Literary Theory</subject><subject>Literature</subject><subject>Literature and Literary Studies</subject><subject>Ngugi, Mukoma wa</subject><subject>Novels</subject><subject>Okorafor, Nnedi</subject><subject>Postcolonialism</subject><subject>Theory and Philosophy</subject><subject>Urbanism</subject><issn>0029-5132</issn><issn>1945-8509</issn><fulltext>true</fulltext><rsrctype>article</rsrctype><creationdate>2017</creationdate><recordtype>article</recordtype><recordid>eNp1UM1LwzAUD6LgnN69CAHP1SSvSRNvMpwThnrY8FjSNtmHXVOTVPC_t6NTvPguD97v6_FD6JKSG8oovyWEKU6BJSlVnAA7QiOqUp5ITtQxGu3hZI-forMQtqQfKcQITd7WOuKZblvTmApHh-Pa4FcXYulq12x0jZ_dp6nv8KK_L32hGzx3zWrTrLB1Hk-d352jE6vrYC4Oe4yW04fFZJbMXx6fJvfzpATIYsIrplRBpQRZKShZKmjZv2EpEFNKDkRnKc00y6wolFU2BUtYAVwVhQVBLIzR9eDbevfRmRDzret800fmVEkQgkmAnkUGVuldCN7YvPWbnfZfOSX5vqr8p6r8UFUvuRok2xCd_-UzkUnKGO1xGPCqezdd600If6L_c_0GatpyBQ</recordid><startdate>201711</startdate><enddate>201711</enddate><creator>Marx, John</creator><general>Duke University Press</general><general>Duke University Press, NC & IL</general><scope>AAYXX</scope><scope>CITATION</scope><scope>4T-</scope><scope>C18</scope></search><sort><creationdate>201711</creationdate><title>What Happened to the Postcolonial Novel: The Urban Longing for Form</title><author>Marx, John</author></sort><facets><frbrtype>5</frbrtype><frbrgroupid>cdi_FETCH-LOGICAL-c337t-5d299b18838d93c2461c000f130ec8530a7417a27f6b9f9f43f02b359bbf360f3</frbrgroupid><rsrctype>articles</rsrctype><prefilter>articles</prefilter><language>eng</language><creationdate>2017</creationdate><topic>African American literature</topic><topic>African literature</topic><topic>American literature</topic><topic>Critical Theory</topic><topic>Fiction</topic><topic>Genre</topic><topic>Geopolitics</topic><topic>Historical text analysis</topic><topic>Literary Criticism</topic><topic>Literary Theory</topic><topic>Literature</topic><topic>Literature and Literary Studies</topic><topic>Ngugi, Mukoma wa</topic><topic>Novels</topic><topic>Okorafor, Nnedi</topic><topic>Postcolonialism</topic><topic>Theory and Philosophy</topic><topic>Urbanism</topic><toplevel>peer_reviewed</toplevel><toplevel>online_resources</toplevel><creatorcontrib>Marx, John</creatorcontrib><collection>CrossRef</collection><collection>Docstoc</collection><collection>Humanities Index</collection><jtitle>Novel : a forum on fiction</jtitle></facets><delivery><delcategory>Remote Search Resource</delcategory><fulltext>fulltext</fulltext></delivery><addata><au>Marx, John</au><format>journal</format><genre>article</genre><ristype>JOUR</ristype><atitle>What Happened to the Postcolonial Novel: The Urban Longing for Form</atitle><jtitle>Novel : a forum on fiction</jtitle><date>2017-11</date><risdate>2017</risdate><volume>50</volume><issue>3</issue><spage>409</spage><epage>425</epage><pages>409-425</pages><issn>0029-5132</issn><eissn>1945-8509</eissn><abstract>This essay observes that recent city novels set in the global South often depart from earlier postcolonial fiction, in which the sense of geopolitical possibility remained tethered to the promise and limitations of nation-states. To alter that habit, contemporary fiction updates the novel's centuries-long preoccupation with city life. Recent novels lend texture and detail to sublime statistics generated by the United Nations and other organizations of enormous and seemingly unmanageable urban growth. When they expand the novel's hoary catalog of urban forms, contemporary writings also urge reconsideration of the relationship between capital-
literature and genre fiction. Freed from an obligation to represent the nation, contemporary postcolonial genre novels can stand out in their eagerness to join commentary from across the disciplines in busily considering the shape that mega-urbanization takes. The essay concentrates on two recent novels suggestive of such engagement: Nnedi Okorafor's 2014 alien invasion thriller
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| identifier | ISSN: 0029-5132 |
| ispartof | Novel : a forum on fiction, 2017-11, Vol.50 (3), p.409-425 |
| issn | 0029-5132 1945-8509 |
| language | eng |
| recordid | cdi_proquest_journals_1983662833 |
| source | Jstor Complete Legacy |
| subjects | African American literature African literature American literature Critical Theory Fiction Genre Geopolitics Historical text analysis Literary Criticism Literary Theory Literature Literature and Literary Studies Ngugi, Mukoma wa Novels Okorafor, Nnedi Postcolonialism Theory and Philosophy Urbanism |
| title | What Happened to the Postcolonial Novel: The Urban Longing for Form |
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