AUGMENTED REALITIES: POWER, IDENTITY, AND REVOLUTION IN THE POST-COLONY

Akua Agyeiwaa Manieson

Abstract


This paper explores the intersection of body augmentation, power, identity, and resistance within postcolonial contexts, focusing on African societies. It delves into how bodily modifications, from traditional practices like scarification, circumcision, and elongation to contemporary technological enhancements, serve as expressions of self-empowerment and cultural identity. The paper draws on key theoretical frameworks from postcolonial studies and the work of scholars like Victoria Pitts, the study examines the symbolic and literal significance of the body as a battleground for race, identity, and power dynamics. Using Ngugi wa Thiong’o’s Wizard of the Crow as a primary text, the paper investigates the role of bodily augmentation in the post-colony, particularly among people of African descent. It highlights how characters in the novel undergo various forms of physical and spiritual transformations to navigate and resist oppressive regimes. This literary analysis is juxtaposed with historical and contemporary practices of body modification, such as the use of tribal marks for identity, circumcision for cultural rites of passage, and the oppressive use of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and limb shortening during conflicts like the Liberian civil war. The paper argues that bodily augmentations in African cultures, whether for traditional, aesthetic, or oppressive purposes, reflect deeper societal values, power structures, and the ongoing impact of colonial legacies. It posits that these practices, while rooted in cultural traditions, are also sites of resistance and negotiation, challenging dominant narratives imposed by colonial powers and contributing to the discourse on postcolonial identity and agency. Through this exploration, the study aims to illuminate the complexities of body politics in postcolonial Africa and the diverse ways individuals and communities reclaim agency and assert their cultural identity.

 

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postcolonialism, body augmentation, identity, power dynamics, resistance

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References


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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejls.v6i1.601

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