Literature as Resistance: Redefining Identity through Language and Mythopoeia https://doi.org /10.5281/zen od o.14980195

Literature as Resistance: Redefining Identity through Language and Mythopoeia
https://doi.org /10.5281/zen od o.14980195

Author(s): Basundhara Raj Dasgupta

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14980195

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The Criterion: An International Journal in English Vol. 16, Issue-I, February 2025 ISSN: 0976-8165
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https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10448030
Literature as Resistance: Redefining Identity through Language and
Mythopoeia
Basundhara Raj Dasgupta
Independent Research Scholar,
Kolkata, West Bengal,
India.
Article History: Submitted‐29/01/2025, Revised‐07/02/2025, Accepted‐24/02/2025, Published‐28/02/2025.
Abstract:
This paper will examine how literature is a tool of resistance against dominant narratives
and how Amos Tutuola uses myth retellings to create a distinct Yoruba cosmology amidst the
Western imposition of culture and belief systems. The study will analyze the language used by
Tutuola that opposes the Western linguistic system and how the English of the colonizers becomes
a vessel to preserve Yoruba identity. The paper will specifically ask how mythical retellings and
language were used by Amos Tutuola to reclaim the marginalized African voice during
colonization. The research will evaluate cultural retrieval through close examinations of three texts
– The Palm Wine Drinkard, My Life in the Bush of Ghosts, and The Brave African Huntress. The
Palm Wine Drinkard delves into complex representations of Yoruba myths, keeping a fantastical,
magical realistic tale on the surface. My Life in the Bush of Ghosts revolves around the plight of
an African boy lost in the bushes of Africa while trying to flee from the slave merchants and
captures the voice of resistance in the face of the dehumanizing effects of colonization. The Brave
African Huntress presents a courageous figure who single-handedly saves her brothers from
bondage.
Keywords: Mythopoeia, Yoruba culture, Language, African identity.
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Literature as Resistance: Redefining Identity through Language and Mythopoeia
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Introduction
Africa is a continent known for its rich history and cultural heritage. From the brutal
chronicles of colonization to rapid urbanization, Africa still bears the scars of it all and has yet to
reclaim its identity in the global context. Oral tradition is a way of preserving culture through
myths and histories that blend culture with history. Africa is famous for its rich oral traditions,
often under “oral civilizations.” Through their unique traditions and lifestyle, the Indigenous
people of Africa play a great role in preserving and documenting oral culture. The Yoruba refers
to the West African ethnic group who reside in Yorubaland—a collective name for Nigeria, Togo,
and Benin. Widely represented in African literature, the Yoruba culture becomes a focal point for
studying African traditions, especially through the works of authors like Amos Tutuola, Ben Okri,
and Wole Soyinka.
Amos Tutuola is widely known for his Yoruba folk tales and his works are a unique blend
of Yoruba cultural heritage and imagination rooted in the Yoruba storytellings and mythologies.
Tutuola provides an insight into the religious beliefs and practices of the Yoruba people through
mythical retellings in his novels like The Palm Wine Drinkard, which serves as a landmark in
analyzing Nigerian history. His tales appear fantastical with the literary application of mythopoeia
in his books, as he uses traditional folklore to create his own mythical narratives, and his writings
use the elements unique to Yoruba to put forward his philosophical ideas on humanity. Therefore,
myth has a multi-layered purpose of preserving culture and uplifting the same. According to
Northrop Frye, myth is not mere storytelling; it is a symbolic representation of the world we are
living in. Myths help us understand our world better, “In terms of meaning or Dianoia, myth is the
same world looked at as an area or field of activity.”(Frye 136) It is through Tutuola’s mythopoeia
that the readers get to understand the Yoruban psyche. Another striking feature of Amos Tutuola
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is his use of language. In the introduction of The Palm Wine Drinkard, Wole Soyinka comments
on Tutuola’s usage of English, he writes, “Tutuola was not shut off from the correct usage of the
English language, he simply chose to invent his own tongue.” (Soyinka 6) Tutuola meticulously
asserts the thought processes of his people through language, at the same time challenging Western
narratives.
Literature Review

Yoruba mythology plays a significant role in the writings of Amos Tutuola. Not only did
he represent the oral tradition of Yoruba worldwide, but he also produced his own version of the
existing stories through mythical retellings. Through this method, he develops folktales instead of
novels and blends individual imagination with oral tradition. (Obiechina 87) 20th-century post-
colonial Nigeria, which has seen tradition and modernity intertwined, chooses to create a counter-
narrative against colonial devaluation—a constant theme in Tutuola’s works. He employs heavy
mythic elements to accustom readers to Yoruba tradition and how these help to comment on the
social vices. (Onabiyi 3) His incorrect syntax of language further helps to uphold cultural purity,
which has been called “warm human voice” by several critics. (Collins) While the existing research
has evaluated Tutuola’s mastery of language and mythopoeia, this research focuses on the same
being used as tools of resistance against Western dominance.
Myth as Resistance
According to Northrop Frye, “Myth is an art of implicit metaphorical identity.” (Frye, 136)
This suggests that mythopoeia is not simply an expression of reality but also the identity or essence
of reality. Therefore, mythopoeia does not represent reality at a surface level, it does so at a deeper
level, revealing the human condition. Amos Tutuola’s works represent the collective
consciousness of the Yoruba amidst the colonial regime, therefore, using myth and beliefs as a
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resistance to the dominant Western culture. The Palm-Wine Drinkard is a man’s quest for his dead
palm-wine tapster and the unique fantastical experiences he encounters throughout his journey.
The novel opens with how the unnamed narrator was distraught by the death of his palm wine
tapster, the metaphor of death linking him with the past, and palm wine associated with African
tradition as it is an integral part of the culture; therefore, the journey of the narrator is symbolic of
the quest for the lost cultural heritage during colonialism. The concept of death in Yoruba
mythology is significant here. For the Yoruba people, death is not an end of life; it is the new phase
of existence or a transition to the afterlife. This is where the narrator decides to use his magical
powers or juju to bring the dead man back to his world. However, his journey isn’t a straight path
leading him to the destination; he faces several obstacles with supernatural beings and weird,
unearthly creatures, which he can overcome gradually. Hereby, Tutuola craftily uses the Yoruba
myth to critique colonization. In the chapter titled ‘The Description of the Curious Creature,’ he
describes a “complete gentleman.” (Tutuola 15)Different owners have hired each of his body parts.
This echoes the Yoruba creation of human beings by Obatala, who created men from clay, which
implies an image of detachable body parts. Tutuola uses this idea to portray the dehumanizing
effect of slavery, as a “complete man” slowly loses his wholeness when a price tag is placed on
him. In the chapter ‘Three Good Creatures Took Over Our Trouble – They Were – Drum, Song
And Dance’, three creatures indulged in the merriment that resonates closely with Yoruba culture
– music and dance are symbols of Yoruba identity. Apart from being important components of
celebration, these are languages that cultivate a feeling of solidarity among the community. Drums
are mediums to connect with the Yoruba spiritual world, and Yoruba people worship the rhythms
of the drums. This motif promotes the feeling of Pan-Africanism and cultural pride which
challenges the notion of the superiority of Western nations. Stuart Hall in his book Resistance
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Through Rituals talks about cultures communicating defiance through unique behavior, dress, and
music, which gives them a sense of autonomy (Hall 53). Tutuola uses the metaphor of “sold our
death to somebody” and “lent our fear to somebody” to symbolize the loss of independence, as
‘death’ here can mean cultural heritage instead of physical death, and the ‘fear’ was borrowed to
manipulate the colonized. (Tutuola, 66). Through the mythical creatures like the “red people”, a
“dead’s town” where everyone walks backward, horned creatures of three feet height and a hungry
creature who “did not stop crying hungry-hungry-hungry once” (Tutuola 110), Tutuola creates a
counter-narrative to Western realism. He chooses a symbolic representation of the narrator’s
journey, and his struggle to survive through his “juju” to portray the constant fight of the Africans
against the colonial power. Juju or magic is intricately linked with African culture, as it refers to
the religious practices of West Africa, reinforcing social norms. The narrator, therefore, embraces
his tradition to fight against the spirits who threaten his identity.
Tutuola presents a mystical journey in My Life in a Bush of Ghosts. Geoffrey Parrinder
writes, “Fairy Tales can scare, but this is more terrifying than Grimm, as its matter is more serious
and is believed in by millions of Africans today.” (Parrinder, 11) The comparison is relevant
because the Grimms’ stories are usually more structured, while Tutuola presents a dream-like
sequence through his stories that are integral parts of the Yoruba folklore; therefore, Tutuola’s
world is not fantastic; it is believed to be real by many Africans. Tutuola clearly states the backdrop
of the novel: “The slave wars were causing dead luck to both old and young of those days, but if
one is captured, he or she would be sold to slavery for foreigners who would carry him or her to
unknown destinations to be killed for the buyer’s god or to be working for him.” (Tutuola 18) The
narrator finds himself lost in the bush of ghosts while trying to flee from the slave traders. His
struggles start when he is captured by a spirit and forcibly taken to the “7th town of ghosts,” where
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he is transformed into different animals, a monkey, lion, and horse, through juju from time to time.
He is held captive, “then he put reins into my mouth and tied me on a stump with a thick rope.”
(Tutuola 37) The tortures parallel the cruelty of slavery until the narrator steals the spirit’s juju and
uses it to free himself, symbolizing the potential of turning the colonizer’s tools like Western
education and technology against them, notably the rise of “new elites” in Africa who used
Western education to gain more knowledge on political and global rights, questioning the colonial
regime.

Amos Tutuola used rich symbolism and metaphors to portray the Yoruba culture
authentically. Every concept and element incorporated in the texts is an integral part of the Yoruba
culture. For example, in The Brave African Huntress, hunting culture is heavily explored.
According to the Yoruba, hunting is not merely a part of livelihood; it has spiritual implications
that help people connect with the divine world. The Yoruba Orisha (god) of hunting is Ochosi,
who looks after the community’s wellness. In an interview, Tutuola mentions, ”I don’t want our
past to die. I don’t want our culture to vanish.” (Lindfors 143) He also uses these stories to impart
a moral lesson, as African oral tradition is largely based on folktales that give moral guidance. For
example, the quest in The Palm-Wine Drinkard is not a journey searching for his dead tapster but
rather to find wisdom and knowledge at the end. My Life in the Bush of Ghosts ends with “This is
what hatred did” (Tutuola 174), which implies that hatred of the supernatural or the world that is
beyond our understanding leads to alienation, and negative emotions like hatred should not dictate
a man’s rationality. According to Wole Soyinka, “In new societies which begin the seductive
experiments in authoritarianism, it has become a familiar experience to watch society crush the
writer under a load of guilt for his daring to express a sensibility and an outlook apart from, and
independent of the mass direction.” (Soyinka) The idea is relevant in a context where Tutuola’s
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writings were termed unoriginal and denied the status of “novel” due to the emulation of myths,
as Yoruba folktales divert from the dominant narratives and present a unique African sensibility.
Language as Resistance
Amos Tutuola’s non-standardized use of English gained global attention, especially when
it was dismissed by his fellow Nigerian intellectuals. Tutuola received a short nominal formal
education, and he was never bothered by the fact that he was not using polished English to write
his stories. He started writing The Palm Wine Drinkard because he had always been a good
storyteller, “When I was at school I was a good taleteller. Why, could I not write my own? Oh, I
am very good at this thing!” (Thelwall, 186) He assumes the role of an authentic Yoruba storyteller
through his language. However, he uses pen and paper, to keep the authenticity, he uses repetition,
a technique unique to African oral storytelling. While narrating how the narrator will trick Death,
he writes, “I stopped and dug a pit of his(Death’s)size on the center of that road, after that I spread
the net which the old man gave me to bring him(Death)with on that pit.” (Tutuola 11) The constant
repetition of ‘Death’ in parenthesis isn’t necessary while writing, but he writes mimicking how a
person talks while narrating a story. He does not abandon his native way of speaking, giving rise
to a new form of English—the anglicized Yoruba. He uses emphasis in long sentences to put stress
on a particular idea. In My Life in the Bush of Ghosts, while describing the “smelling ghosts,” he
writes, “If any one of these smelling ghosts touched anything it would become a bad smell at the
same moment and it is bad luck for any ghost who is not a native of smelling ghosts to meet a
smelling ghost on the way when going somewhere.” (Tutuola 34) The absence of punctuation and
conjunction makes the sentence fluid in appearance, almost like a dream sequence, adding a surreal
quality to his narrative. He structures the sentences that find their roots in the Yoruba form of
speaking— “Though young and a woman, I am not afraid to go and bring happiness to our village
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and many other villages.” (Tutuola 12) Language expresses cultural heritage here, so Tutuola
consciously resists Western imposition through language.
Western imposition offered standardization of English and to normalize written language,
they introduced a dictionary to apply the correct use of English. Their idea of the English Language
was particularly prescriptive rather than descriptive, and it was implemented mainly for non-native
speakers to ensure linguistic purity. Tutola rejects this through the coinage of unique words and
the creation of a nonconventional vocabulary. Notably, the central character of The Palm-Wine
Drinkard is a “drinkard” and not a drunkard. The term “drunkard” is associated with a negative
meaning, but Tutuola uses the same idea attached to the term to describe “drinkinness” – almost
giving it an accepted meaning. The drunkard is irresponsible, but the “drinkard” is an adventurous
storyteller. As Soyinka rightly points out, “The social opprobrium attached to the grammar strict
word is dissipated, and the anti-hero is accepted as a first-rate raconteur.” (Soyinka 6)
Language is a medium through which one can express oneself; for Tutuola, it is merely a
vessel through which one can transmit cultural identity. He adds vivid imagery in his writing, and
by keeping his dialogues short, he mirrors the traditional oral storytelling that engages listeners.
In The Brave African Huntress, a wooden bugle reveals the king of Ibembe’s secret through a song,
“The head of the King of Ibembe has two horns! The head of the King of Ibembe has two horns!
The two horns are thick and short!” (Tutuola 27) The structure is unconventional, and instead of
constructing a single sentence, the author breaks it down to mimic the rhythm of word flow while
speaking. The dialogues aren’t always comprehensive at first glance, and the author leaves room
for interpretation. When the narrator in My Life in the Bush of Ghosts asks a spirit whether he is
an earthly person, the spirit replies, “I am and I am not.” (Tutuola 53) Tutuola did not mind the
syntax, he intended to erase the border between the physical and the spiritual world and, at the
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same time, not impose any rigidity on the reader’s imagination through self-explanation. He
realized that he needed a different English to portray a world that was “too realistic to be liminal,
too paranormal to be realistic.” (Soyinka 6)
To analyze an African text by the standards of Western linguistic norms leads to the
misrepresentation of African cultural values; rather, the texts should be judged within the
framework of African linguistic concepts. Janheinz Jahn notes, “Every mature artist achieves his
best work when he attaches himself to his own artistic tradition.” (Jahn 207) Amos Tutuola’s
backdrop lies solely on African oral traditions, and he did not vaguely introduce a ‘different’ form
of standardized English; he made sure that the language knows its cultural background. For
example, language is used to portray the African notion of time, as opposed to the Western idea,
according to which time is a mechanical and precise concept. In My Life in the Bush of Ghosts,
time is measured using a ghost’s clock, “…myself went to the church at about ten o’clock, but it
was the ghost’s clock said so.” (Tutuola 59) Time becomes a non-human concept, the precision
and correctness being questioned here. A significant event like a wedding taking place according
to a spirit’s clock suggests that time is a much more complex force, and it can exist beyond human-
governed tools like clocks and calendars. Similarly, the progression of time is non-linear in The
Palm Wine Drinkard as the Drinkard’s journey does not have a clear advancement. There is no
particular sequence or predictability in which the events occur; the primary goal of bringing the
dead tapster back is overshadowed by adventurous narratives like tricking ‘Death,’ a visit to the
‘wraith island,’ and the ‘red town.’ The author achieves this through the abrupt ending of chapters,
like in the chapter titled ‘Not too small to be chosen,’ the narrator begins his journey to the
‘Unreturnable-Heaven’s Town,’ which unexpectedly ends with the description of the inhabitants
of the town— “if anybody entered it, no doubt he or she would not return again, because the
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inhabitants of the town were very bad, cruel, and merciless.” (Tutuola 56) As Sheryl Takacs notes,
“In folklore and specifically in oral storytelling, plot is incidental and plot structure is therefore
loose and episodic by the very nature of this particular genre.” (Takacs 392)
Thus, Amos Tutuola decisively showcases cultural resistance by rejecting Western
linguistic limitations and embedding his legacy in the rich tapestry of African oral traditions,
myths, and conventions. The language of his narrative demands attention; it cannot be understood
in isolation. One must fully consider the cultural, emotional, and historical contexts that shape the
story.
Conclusion

There is no reason why a particular cultural heritage should cease to exist. Both Europeans
and Africans have equal reasons to take pride in their culture. The co-existence of the cultures will
endlessly enrich each other, a vision that Tutuola had a long time ago. “In his quest to recognize
and provide for interconnectedness and interdependencies in lieu of zero-sum games of winner
takes all, Tutuola opts to bring Yoruba and English into a conversation that is fruitful and enriching
to him and the tasks he has at hand.” (Nyamnjoh) He refuses to be given a choice between Yoruba
and the West. He keeps the unique myths alive and does so through a language that is a result of
cultural co-existence, an example to show that English can exist in a non-rigid way and blend
perfectly with indigenous Africa. The language of the colonizer that was used to suppress Africans
through the ages is utilized to express and assert the same African identity. The Western notion of
individual mastery over everything is also challenged through stories of shared human experience,
and how certain ideas exist beyond the realm of human physical existence. Tutuola’s stories will
live to inspire both Africans and the West through captivating narratives, as the stories are meant
to transmit culture, morals, and wisdom globally. “The richness of the material could be a limitless
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source for poets, playwrights, and novelists just as the Greek myths have been for the West.”
(Takacs) In conclusion, global literature will forever be a witness to Amos Tutuola’s brilliance and
resilience of cultural identity and uniqueness.

Works Cited:
Collins, Harold R. “A theory of creative mistakes and the mistaking style of Amos Tutuola.”
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War Britain. Taylor & Francis, 2006. Accessed 28 January 2025.
Jahn, Janheinz. Muntu: An Outline of the New African Culture. Grove Press, 1961.
Nyamnjoh, Francis B.. (2020). Amos Tutuola as a quest hero for endogenous Africa: actively
anglicizing the Yoruba language and Yorubanising the English language. Acta Academica, 52(1),
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Onabiyi, Monilola Abidemi. “Mythological icons in Amos Tutuola’s The Palm-Wine Drinkard.”
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Takacs, Sherryl. “Oral Tradition in the Works of A. Tutuola.” Books Abroad, vol. 44, no. 3, 1970,
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Web References:
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