Festus Iyayi's "Violence". A Novel of Social Realism?

Akademische Arbeit aus dem Jahr 2014 im Fachbereich Literaturwissenschaft - Afrika, , Sprache: Deutsch, Abstract: This study interrogates the deployment of Social Realism in Festus Iyayi's "Violence" (1979). While some scholars hail Iyayi's "Violence" as an accomplished novel of Social Realism, others do not accord the novel this status. This critical conflict of opinion presents an interesting subject of study. This paper examines whether or not "Violence" should be considered accomplished in accordance with the popular beliefs about works of Social Realism. Towards this end, the concept of Social Realism and its tenets are discussed and applied in the assessment of Iyayi's "Violence". The weaknesses and strengths of Iyayi's deployment of the concept in the novel are thereby identified and discussed. The paper thus concludes that although Iyayi's "Violence" is significant in its treatment of corruption and injustice in society, the novel has some significant flaws in handling the techniques of Social Realism.

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Brief Biography of Dr. Abdullahi Haruna (Ph.D) Dr. Abdullahi Haruna was born on 13th January, 1969 in the village of Wuyaku, Hawul Local Government Area of Borno state of Nigeria. He attended Wuyaku Primary School in 1975 and finished in 1981. He proceeded to the Comprehensive Secondary School Waka Biu in 1981 and completed in 1986. He went to the College of Education Gashua for his NCE (Nigeria Certificate in Education) in September, 1987 and completed in June 1990. He taught English in secondary schools between 1991 and 1995 before proceeding for his first degree in English between 1996 and 1999. He enrolled for his Master s Degree in English (African Literature) in 2000 and graduated in 2014. He took up an appointment with the Borno State House of Assembly as a Senior Legislative Officer and Personal Assistant to the Honourable Speaker in 2014. He left the House of Assembly in October 2015 when he was offered the post of an Assistant Lecturer with the Federal University of Technology, Yola (presently, Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola). He obtained his PhD in English (African Literature) in 2014. Presently, Dr. Abdullahi Haruna is a Senior Lecturer of English in the Department of English, School of General Studies, Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola, Nigeria. He has published several poems and papers on African literature. He is married with a good number of children.