Dialogical Subjectivity, Epistolary Gaze, and Temporalities of Becoming in Mariama Bâ’s So Long a Letter (1979).
This article argues that So Long a Letter (1979) constructs African female subjectivity as a dialogical self forged through the confessional epistle’s denouncement of colonial and patriarchal forces that have long sought to bend African women’s heads to external and internal orderings of their socie...
| Publicado en: | African Studies Quarterly Vol. 23; no. 3/4; pp. 86 - 102 |
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| Formato: | Artículo |
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African Studies Quarterly
Dec2025
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| Acceso en línea: | Ver este registro en EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=hlh&AN=190636077&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: hlh uiTerm: 190636077 longDbName: Humanities International Complete uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: jinfo: jid: 21522448 AV6 jtl: African Studies Quarterly issn: 21522448 maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: Dec2025 vid: 23 iid: 3/4 pid: 18480 pub: African Studies Quarterly artinfo: ui: 190636077 10.32473/asq.23.3/4.139596 ppf: 86 ppct: 16 formats: fmt: @attributes: type: P size: 1.2MB tig: atl: Dialogical Subjectivity, Epistolary Gaze, and Temporalities of Becoming in Mariama Bâ’s So Long a Letter (1979). aug: au: BENTAHAR, SOUMIA affil: Associate Professor of Contemporary Anglophone Literature in the Department of English at Amar Telidji University of Laghouat, Algeria. Ph.D. from Belabbes University. su: Subjectivity So Long a Letter (Book) Bâ, Mariama Patriarchy Epistolary fiction sug: subj: Subjectivity So Long a Letter (Book) Bâ, Mariama Patriarchy Epistolary fiction keyword: Affective continuum African female subjectivity colonial and patriarchal chrononormativities Dialogical subjectivity Epistolary gaze ab: This article argues that So Long a Letter (1979) constructs African female subjectivity as a dialogical self forged through the confessional epistle’s denouncement of colonial and patriarchal forces that have long sought to bend African women’s heads to external and internal orderings of their society. It contends that Bâ carves temporal and narrative spaces for African women by casting a subversive gaze on the interlocking systems of oppression that repress their sense of agency. Through the enabling potential of epistolary writing, the Senegalese writer fashions her heroine into a subjectivity that is neither given nor fixed, but constructed in the shifting positions of friend, wife, mother, widow, and at times Bâ’s own mouthpiece, and through a continuing dialogue with past memories, present dilemmas, and alternative temporalities beyond dominant chrononorms. Drawing on Bakhtinian dialogism, Anzaldúa’s mestiza consciousness, Freeman’s chrononormativity, and Barrett’s affective continuum, this analysis therefore seeks to offer a transdisciplinary investigation into the ways how the novel reimagines African female subjectivity as a dialogic process of becoming emanating from the interstices of epistolary voice, affective temporalities, and the repudiation of colonial and patriarchal chrononormative imperatives. Ultimately, the paper concludes that the novel becomes a canvas onto which Bâ inscribes alternative modes of self-articulation, collective agency, and female futurity for African women. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: Article src: R language: English refInfo: copyright: @attributes: flag: Y custom: Copyright of African Studies Quarterly is the property of African Studies Quarterly and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. item: African Studies Quarterly holder: African Studies Quarterly dt: @attributes: year: 2025 holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
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