الفهرس 
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Abstract
This dissertation explores the ways in which selected fictional narratives by Chinua Achebe, Ayi Kwei Armah, Wole Soyinka, and Ngugi wa Thiong’o figure the African world in its post-colonial condition. It seeks to determine whether or not four African writers who experienced different colonial traditions but share a common ideological perspective portray independence differently in their literary works. Selected post-independence novels by these writers are studied. The novels selected are Achebe’s A Man of the People (1966), Armah’s The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born (1969), Soyinka’s The Interpreters (1965) and Ngugi’s Petals of Blood (1977). What unites Achebe, Armah, Soyinka and Ngugi is their major preoccupation with the novel as an ideological weapon for reasserting political and cultural identity. What their selected novels have in common is a common concern: their exposure of the betrayal of African independence and the condemnation of Africa’s new ruling elites. This dissertation is divided into five chapters. Chapter I is an introductory chapter. It provides a historical, cultural, social, economic and political background to the novels discussed in this dissertation. Chapter II studies Chinua Achebe’s A Man of the People (1966) to explore Achebe’s vision of post-colonial Nigeria in this literary work. Chapter III deals with Ayi Kwei Armah’s The Beautifyl Ones Are Not Yet Born (1969) to examine Armah’s portrayal of post-colonial Ghana. Chapter IV studies Wole Soyinka’s The Interpreters (1965) which depicts the disillusionment felt in post-colonial Nigeria. Chapter V studies Ngugi wa Thiong’o’s Petals of Blood (1977) to analyze his delineation of post-colonial Kenya. The conclusion sums up the findings of the study. It states some of the affinities and differences among the writers of the study. It also refers to a controversy regarding appreciation of African fiction. Questions concerning the future of African fiction in English are also raised.