MODULE 1: AFRICAN LITERATURE

MODULE 1
African Literature

Prepare to Learn
Welcome to the English 8 module on African Literature.
In this module, you will have a brief recap about literature and its genre. Moreover, you
will explore Africa and its literature. This contains activities that will develop your verbal and
written skills and designed to provide you with fun and meaningful learning opportunities. As
you accomplish this at your own pace and space, you will become an independent learner and
acquire the 21st-century skills that you essentially need.

If you encounter any difficulty in answering the tasks in this module, do not hesitate to
consult your teacher. Always bear in mind that you are not alone in this journey. As written in
James 1:5 “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without
finding fault, and it will be given to you.”

Have fun while learning!

Desired Learning Outcome

After going through this module, you are expected to:

 EN8LT-Ia-8: Describe the notable literary genres contributed by African writers

 Analyze the poem Africa by David Diop
 Write an acrostic poem about Africa.

IFL: Galatians 3:28 “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no
male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

Values on Focus: Appreciation and Respect to One’s Culture

MODULE 1: AFRICAN LITERATURE

Scaffolds for Learning

Observe the following pictures.

Impression Check: Based on the pictures above, evaluate the following statements about Africa.
Write whether you agree or disagree, and provide realizations upon your answer.

Agree or Disagree Statement Realizations

Africans are war-freak
people.

Africans know nothing about

the world.

Africans do not know how to

adapt to changes.

Africans have rich culture.

The continent of Africa is
unexplored.
MODULE 1: AFRICAN LITERATURE

Learning Explorations

A. Fun facts about Africa: Watch the video using the link below to explore the continent of
Africa. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fuc8thqoe1o

B. African Literature.

C. African Literary Genres and Authors

1. Poetry - a collection of spoken or written words that expresses ideas or emotions

in a powerfully vivid and imaginative style. It is often sung or recited in a sing-
song voice.
Types: narrative epic, occupational verse, ritual verse, praise poems

Author Literary Works

“Africa”
David Diop
(Senegal)
MODULE 1: AFRICAN LITERATURE

“A Wall”
Omotara James
(New York City)

“In Another World”

Rasaq Malik
(Nigeria)

2. Folktales - African folktales, also known as myths, are believed to have the power
to hold the community together: the ancestors, the living, and those not yet born.
They serve to communicate traditions, customs, lessons and morals to the young
in preparation of life's obstacles. Traditionally, adults passed these stories down
by word of mouth to the children while gathered around a village fire, under
moonlight. 

Examples: The Leopard (Central Africa), The Two Brothers (Egypt),

3. Novels – African novel defies easy genre boundaries. It is, in short, more epic,
more. political, more didactic, and more connected to its literary antecedents.

Authors Literary Works

Nadine Gordimer Burger’s Daughter
(Nobel Prize for Literature)
Chinua Achebe Things Fall Apart (1958)

4. Autobiography - Retrospective prose narrative written by a real person concerning

his existence, where the focus is his individual life.
MODULE 1: AFRICAN LITERATURE

5. Drama - African drama as the name implies, is any drama that embodies the

yearnings, experiences and the sensibility of the African people. This could be
written by an African or a non-African but it most picture the experience of the
people and their environment.
“My Children!
My Africa!”
by Athol Fugard

“Sizwe Banzi is Dead”

by Athol Fugard, John Kani, and Winston Ntshona

D. African Poetry – As you travel farther to the beautiful land of Africa, let’s explore it
through the poem, “Africa” by David Diop. You can also watch an illustrated version on
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fw_xzgrjPWA.

About the author

David Diop, (born July 9, 1927, Bordeaux, Fr.—died
1960, Dakar, Senegal), one of the most talented of the younger
French West African poets of the 1950s, whose tragic death in
an airplane crash cut short a promising career.
MODULE 1: AFRICAN LITERATURE

Though he himself grew up and lived most of his life in France, his strong opposition to
European society was reinforced by time spent living in Africa, teaching school first
in Senegal and later in Guinea.

*This poem is about the effects of colonialism on Africa. It traces the history of pre-colonial
Africa, then shows the torture that Africans underwent in colonialism and how Africa is starting
afresh like a young tree.

AFRICA
by David Diop

Africa my Africa
Africa of proud warriors in the ancestral savannahs
Africa of whom my grandmother sings
On the banks of the distant river
I have never known you
But your blood flows in my veins
Your beautiful black blood that irrigates the fields
The blood of your sweat
The sweat of your work
The work of your slavery
The slavery of your children
Africa tell me Africa
Is this you this back that is bent
This back that breaks under the weight of humiliation
This back trembling with red scars
And saying yes to the whip under the midday sun
But a grave voice answers me
Impetuous son that tree young and strong
That tree there
In splendid loneliness amidst white and faded flowers
That is Africa your Africa
That grows again patiently obstinately
And its fruit gradually acquires
The bitter taste of liberty.
MODULE 1: AFRICAN LITERATURE

Assessment for Learning

Name: _______________________________________________________________________

Grade and Section: ___________________________ Date: ________________________

Activity 1. Describe the notable literary genres contributed by African writers.

Literary genre Description

1. Poetry

2. Folktales

3. Novels

4. Autobiograph
y
5. Drama

Activity 2. Text Analysis. Reread the poem “Africa” by David Diop and answer the following
questions.

1. Who is the one speaking in the lines of the poem?

_______________________________________________________________________
2. To whom does the speaker of the poem is talking to (addressee)?

_______________________________________________________________________

3. Cite a line from the poem that describes about the identity of Africans.

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________
MODULE 1: AFRICAN LITERATURE

4. The addressee seems to have experienced torture and humiliation. Cite 2 lines from the
poem that expressed this tragedy.

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

5. Cite 2 lines from the poem that describes on how the addressee recovered from torture
and humiliation.

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

6. What do you think is the message that the poem wants to deliver to its readers?
_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

Activity 3. WRITING ACROSTICS: Using the letters of the word “AFRICA,” provide a
creative description of how you perceive such concept.

A- _______________________________________________________________________

F- ________________________________________________________________________

R- ________________________________________________________________________

I - ________________________________________________________________________
MODULE 1: AFRICAN LITERATURE

C- _______________________________________________________________________
A- ________________________________________________________________________

Below is a rating scale to be used in evaluating your acrostic poem.

Criteria 5 4 3 2
Excellent Good Developing Fair
Originality, Relevance,
Significance
Emotional
Appeal/Impact
Language/ Creative and
Artistic Expression of
Thoughts
Total Score:

Comments/Suggestions:

What I have Learned?

Exit Slip: Fill out the exit slip to summarize what you have learned from this module.
MODULE 1: AFRICAN LITERATURE

References

30 of Africa's most amazing places to visit. (2019, November 16).

https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/africa-amazing-places/index.html

African Folktales: Importance, Commonalities & Changes. (n.d.)

https://study.com/academy/lesson/african-folktales-importance-commonalities-
changes.html#:~:text=African%20folktales%20are%20timeless%20and,live%20a%20trouble
%2Dfree%20life.

David Diop. (n.d.) Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/biography/David-Diop

Macha, N. (2009, March 25). Africa: What is African Drama?

https://globalvoices.org/2009/03/25/africa-what-is-african-drama/#:~:text=African%20drama
%20as%20the%20name,the%20people%20and%20their%20environment.

Okoh, L. (2018, May 25). What Is a Griot and Why Are They Important?
https://theculturetrip.com/africa/mali/articles/what-is-a-griot-and-why-are-they-important/
Salaam, D. (2018). Analysis of the Poem “Africa”. Retrieved from
http://samwiterson.blogspot.com/2018/05/analysis-of-poem-africa-david-diop-
by_15.html#:~:text=The%20poem%20is%20about%20the,afresh%20like%20a%20young
%20tree.

Sullivan, J. Redifining the Novel in Africa. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3821235?seq=1

Three Poems from New-Generation African Poets. (2018, April 26).

https://lithub.com/three-poems-from-new-generation-african-poets/
MODULE 1: AFRICAN LITERATURE