African Book Week: People of the City

People of the City

People of the City is the debut novel of Cyprian Ekwensi first published in 1954 by Andrew Dakers Ltd. The novel was a predecessor to a number of other city novels in the Nigerian tradition.

Development

Ekwensi began writing the novel while studying pharmacy on scholarship at the University of London.^[2] The novel, originated as a series of stories broadcast on the radio, for West Africans living in Britain after World War II.

Critic Chidi Okonkwo, says that the primary influences for Ekwenksi when developing the novel and his writing style, included "Westerns, detective thrillers, oriental tales like Arabian Nights", "European-hero-in-Africa" tales, like those of H. Rider Haggard, adventure tales like Robert Louis Stevenson's, and Indian films." Okonkwo describes these influences as obscuring Ekwensi's earlier experience translating African indigenous stories into English.

Style

The novel has a didactic tone.

Themes

The novel challenges European colonial dominance in Africa.

Literary criticism

Early reception of the novel was generally positive, focusing on the urban setting.

References

·  Charles E. Nnolim (2010). Approaches to the African Novel: Essays in Analysis. African Books Collective. p. 198. ISBN 978-978-8422-19-8.

·  ·  Adenekan, Shola (2008-01-24). "Cyprian Ekwensi". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2016-02-19.

·  Okonkwo, Chidi (8 April 2014). "People of the City". In Paul Schellinger (ed.). Encyclopedia of the Novel. Routledge. pp. 984–985. ISBN 978-1-135-91826-2.