The dimensions of female militancy in African and African-American women's fiction: Buchi Emecheta, Nawal El-Saadawi, Alice Walker, and Gloria Naylor (Nigeria, Egypt)

In literature, the subject of female militancy has received very little attention. Consequently, it has eluded concise definition or interpretation. This problem, the writer argues stems partly from gender bias, and the obscurity shrouding women's militant involvements in cultural and historical terms. As a result, this comparative study establishes a model of militancy for evaluating female actions in literature. The female is thus the focal reference point in the definition of militancy.; The writer perceives militancy as a three-stage growth process and argues that the stages are not only inter-related, but also necessary for a character's attainment of militant status. Examining selected novels by Buchi Emecheta, Nawal El-Saadawi, Alice Walker, and Gloria Naylor, the writer projects peculiar female modes of achieving self-actualization and liberation from social constraints. In addition, the study also explores the influence of cultural prescriptions and myths about womanhood on female potentials or ability to attain militant heights. Thus, the point is made that the female character's militancy is defined by her resilience and self-actualizing actions.; Existing comparative studies on African and African-American women's literature emphasize the "cultural nexus". This study establishes new comparative areas by projecting the literary significance of female actions or responses to social realities. It makes visible the less recognized ways by which women seek empowerment in society. Furthermore, the study enhances the female character as a complex being with a desire for growth rather than as a stereotype. While offering a model for evaluating female roles, the writer also emphasizes that the context of female action in literature is clarified against the background of the militancy model.