"The Bard Wouldn't Recognize Hamlet": On Medium Specificity and Shakespeare in Africa.

This article examines the transmedia history and postcolonial significance of *Hamile: The Tongo Hamlet* (1965), a Ghanaian adaptation of Shakespeare’s *Hamlet*, situating it within broader debates on media theory, coloniality, and African cultural production. It explores how *Hamile*—produced by th...

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Publicado en:Discourse: Journal for Theoretical Studies in Media & Culture Vol. 47; no. 1; pp. 135 - 165
Autor principal: Blaylock, Jennifer
Formato: Artículo
Publicado: Wayne State University Press Winter2025
Materias:
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
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        atl: "The Bard Wouldn't Recognize Hamlet": On Medium Specificity and Shakespeare in Africa.
      aug:
        au: Blaylock, Jennifer
      su:
        Africa
        McLuhan, Marshall, 1911-1980
        Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616
        Nkrumah, Kwame, 1909-1972
        Media studies
        Cultural production
        Postcolonialism
        Colonies
        Transmedia storytelling
        Cultural adaptation
        Film adaptations
        Playwriting
      sug:
        subj:
          Media studies
          Cultural production
          Postcolonialism
          Colonies
          Africa
          Transmedia storytelling
          Cultural adaptation
          Film adaptations
          Playwriting
          McLuhan, Marshall, 1911-1980
          Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616
          Nkrumah, Kwame, 1909-1972
      ab: This article examines the transmedia history and postcolonial significance of *Hamile: The Tongo Hamlet* (1965), a Ghanaian adaptation of Shakespeare’s *Hamlet*, situating it within broader debates on media theory, coloniality, and African cultural production. It explores how *Hamile*—produced by the Ghana Film Industry Corporation and rooted in Joe de Graft’s stage adaptation—challenges Western notions of medium specificity and racialized media literacy by embodying hybridity across theater, film, television, and dance. The article contextualizes *Hamile* alongside Marshall McLuhan’s media theories and Kwame Nkrumah’s Pan-Africanist politics, highlighting Shakespeare’s complex role as both a colonial symbol and a medium for African anticolonial expression. It further critiques colonial and neocolonial archival practices, emphasizing the importance of embodied and transmedia preservation of African cultural heritage beyond material media formats.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Article
      src: R
    language: English
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