Chikwenye Okonjo Ogunyemi

Chikwenye Okonjo Ogunyemi (born 1932) is a Nigerian academic and writer. She taught at Sarah Lawrence College and is best known for her articles and books concerning the theory of Womanism.

Chikwenye Okonjo Ogunyemi
Born	1932
Occupation	University teacher
Literary movement	Womanism
Notable works	Africa Wo/man Palava: The Nigerian novel by women (1996)

Career

Ogunyemi published Africa Wo/man Palava: The Nigerian novel by women in 1996. The book examined the work of eight Nigerian women writers, namely Zaynab Alkali, Simi Bedford, Buchi Emecheta, Funmilayo Fakunle, Flora Nwapa, Eno Obong, Ifeoma Okoye, and Adaora Lily Ulasi. Ogunyemi set out a new theory of Nigerian literature based on their works.[1] This theory was womanist and feminist, but Ogunyemi also noted that naming is a political issue and by labelling a theory she was not pigeon-holing the writers.[2] Alongside other critics such as Helen Chukwuma and Omolara Ogundipe-Leslie, Ogunyemi explored postcolonial ideas and argued against the work of "phallic critics".[3]

Ogunyemi was professor of literature and also chair of global studies at Sarah Lawrence College in Yonkers, New York.[4] In collaboration with Tuzyline Jita Allan, Ogunyemi edited an anthology of essays called Twelve Best Books by African Women: Critical Readings which was published in 2009.[5]

Selected works

• Allan, Tuzyline Jita; Ogunyemi, Chikwenye Okonjo (2009). Twelve best books by African women : critical readings. Ohio University Press. ISBN 978-0-89680-266-7.
• Ogunyemi, Chikwenye Okonjo (1996). Africa wo/man palava: The Nigerian novel by women. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 9780226620855.
• Ogunyemi, Chikwenye Okonjo (1985). "Womanism: The Dynamics of the Contemporary Black Female Novel in English". Signs. 11 (1): 63–80. doi:10.1086/494200. ISSN 0097-9740. JSTOR 3174287.

References

1. "Africa Wo/Man Palava". University of Chicago Press. Archived from the original on 2 March 2018. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
2. Oduyoye, Mercy (April 2001). Introducing African women's theology. Sheffield Academic Press. pp. 124–125. ISBN 9780567622501.
3. Nnolim, Charles E. (2010). Issues in African literature. Malthouse Press. p. 237. ISBN 978-9788422365.
4. "Chikwenye Okonjo Ogunyemi · Ohio University Press / Swallow Press". www.ohioswallow.com. Archived from the original on 13 September 2017. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
5. Mukherjee, Sreemati (1 July 2010). "Twelve Best Books by African Women: Critical Readings. Chikwenye Okonjo Ogunyemi and Tuzyline Jita Allan". Contemporary Women's Writing. 4 (2): 156–158. doi:10.1093/cwwrit/vpq005. ISSN 1754-1484.

Further reading

• Arndt, Susan (1 April 2000). "African Gender Trouble and African Womanism: An Interview with Chikwenye Ogunyemi and Wanjira Muthoni". Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society. 25 (3): 709–726. doi:10.1086/495479. ISSN 0097-9740.