Open Daily: 10am - 10pm | Alley door pickup 10am - 7pm 3038 Hennepin Ave Minneapolis, MN
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  • Open Daily: 10am - 10pm
    Alley-side Pickup: 10am - 7pm

    3038 Hennepin Ave Minneapolis, MN
    612-822-4611

Open Daily: 10am - 10pm | Alley-side Pickup: 10am - 7pm
3038 Hennepin Ave Minneapolis, MN
612-822-4611
The Modern Nation and Culture: A Postmodern reading of southern African fiction

The Modern Nation and Culture: A Postmodern reading of southern African fiction

Nyongesa, Andrew
Gaita, Murimi

Paperback

General Racism & Ethnic Studies

ISBN10: 1779322542
ISBN13: 9781779322548
Publisher: Mwanaka Media and Publishing
Published: Feb 27 2026
Pages: 240
Weight: 0.55
Height: 0.51 Width: 5.50 Depth: 7.50
Language: English

In The Modern Nation State and Culture: A Postmodern Reading of Southern African Fiction, editors Andrew Nyongesa and Murimi Gaita assemble a provocative collection of essays that challenge the foundational myths of modernism within the African context. While conventional literary criticism often addresses the symptoms of modernity-such as political corruption, patriarchy, and mental health crises-this manuscript digs deeper to interrogate the systemic causes rooted in Enlightenment principles indiscriminately imposed during the colonial era. By shifting the critical lens from monotonous modernist canons to the postmodernist theories of Friedrich Nietzsche, Jacques Derrida, and Martin Heidegger, the contributors offer a radical re-evaluation of the nation-state as a construct of organized immorality. The text explores how bureaucratic systems and technological advancements have mechanized humanity, reducing citizens to mere standing reserves or resources within a global capitalist structure. From the unruly culture of apartheid to the disillusionment of the post-apartheid Rainbow Nation, the chapters analyze works by luminaries like J.M. Coetzee, Alex La Guma, and Nelson Mandela to reveal how modernism fragments the wself and alienates the individual from traditional moral horizons. Ultimately, this book exposes the aristocratic glitter of high culture and the subjective gatekeeping of Western literary prizes, which continue to marginalize authentic African voices. The Modern Nation State and Culture is not merely a literary study; it is a vital interrogation of how the pursuit of individuality and universalization has led to the demise of culture and the rise of a neurotic space in Southern African prose. It is an essential read for scholars seeking to understand the intersection of philosophy, politics, and fiction in a rapidly globalizing world.

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