Maame

Maame is a novel that captures the Ghanaian British experience. The Gold Coast (now known as Ghana) was occupied by European colonists starting in 1600. In 1872, the British took control of Ghana. Centuries of colonization, especially those before 1872, included the start of the Transatlantic slave trade. The Cape Coast Castle was a major port for the enslavement and shipment of human beings to North and South America, as well as Europe, for enslavement. This long history of British colonialism and slavery ended when Ghana became the first sub-Saharan African country to win independence from Great Britain in 1957. Because of the history between Britain and Ghana, as well as Britain and other African countries such as Nigeria, Malawi, Sierra Leone, Gambia, and others, there are still many connections between England and Africa. There is a large diaspora of immigrants and their children from Africa within the United Kingdom. This history, as well as the modern plight of microaggressions and overt racism that Black people face in the Western world, is often reflected in contemporary literature.

Zadie Smith is one of the most prominent voices in modern British literature today. As a Black woman, her novels are informed by the experiences of immigrants and people of color in England. Her novels, such as White Teeth (2000), On Beauty (2005), NW (2012), and Swing Time (2016), expose the ingrained racism in British society but also celebrate the Black British experience. Smith celebrates Black culture and history, and her novels are a crucial contemporary approach to reclaiming marginalized voices in predominately white societies.

Yaa Gyasi published her novel about the Ghanaian diaspora, Homegoing, in 2016. Approaching the novel from an American standpoint, Gyasi’s novel begins with two half-sisters, Effia and Esi, whose lives take different turns in 1700s Ghana. One sister’s descendants become enslaved in America and deal with centuries of oppression by white supremacy. The other sister’s descendants bear witness to the complexities of turning the Gold Coast into an independent nation. Overall, Homegoing studies the history of the Ghanaian diaspora and its impact on contemporary American life.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is another female voice in literature who champions the African diaspora and Black experiences in Western countries. Her modern classic Americanah (2013) follows a Nigerian woman, Ifemelu, who moves to America for college and experiences racism and a transformation of her self-perception of Black identity. Adichie’s first novel, Half of a Yellow Sun (2006), explores the impact of British colonization on Nigeria.

Literature that tells the story of the African diaspora is a new subgenre of literature that has captured the attentions of readers worldwide. These novels deal with subjugation, reclamation, and the complexities of language and identity and ultimately celebrate the impact of African culture on the Western world.