Abstract:
One of the problems of Africans in the diaspora is fragmentation of the self—loss of identity, assumption of an inauthentic self, loss of cultural identity, subjugation, alienation, and distorted consciousness e. t. c. All these problems are traced back to the history of colonization via trans-Atlantic slave trade. As a matter of fact, some of these problems still exist among most countries with colonial history; hence authors particularly from African and African-American/Caribbean countries decide to react against the pre-existing norm. To do this, they showcase the problems faced by these countries as well as the way forward in their literary works. It is from one of the themes of these literary works that this research study derives its topic—Quest motif. Quest motif with regards to this study, has to do with a desperate search for one’s authentic or true self which is once distorted or fragmented following an established pattern. The completion of this quest is dependent on the tracing back to one’s ancestral/cultural root. Hence, the quest motif in Paule Marshall’s Praisesong for the Widow and IsidoreOkpewho’sCall Me By My Rightful Name explore how the protagonists—Avey Johnson and Otis Hampton respectively, who were once fragmented, embarks upon a quest following an established pattern which leads to the discovery of their authentic selves. The problem for this research is anchored on the limitation or inevitability of human strength in relation to supernatural force or power compelling one to embark upon such a quest willingly or unwillingly in other to unveil the authentic or aboriginal self yet unknown. This study will also identify the supernatural force (call) in the novels as that which is fascinating and can control the human mind, and invariably leads to self-discovery or unveiling of the aboriginal self. In other to achieve this, this study will use the postcolonial theory which is anchored on Frantz Fanon’s theory of decolonization to establish how the protagonists trace back to their ancestral root to unveil their aboriginal self. In addition to that, the allegorical representations in the texts will be highlighted as they relate to human existence.
