Animist Realism. Between Contemporary Myth Studies and Comparative Literature Cover Image

Animist realism. Współczesne mitoznawstwo a komparatystyka literacka
Animist Realism. Between Contemporary Myth Studies and Comparative Literature

Author(s): Elżbieta Binczycka
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Comparative Study of Literature
Published by: Wydawnictwo Naukowe Uniwersytetu Szczecińskiego
Keywords: comparative literature; animist realism; magic realism; myth; postcolonial literature; myth studies

Summary/Abstract: Animist realism, introduced by Harry Garuba in his article Ben Okri: Animist Realism and the Famished Genre is a relatively new term. Garuba links it to African literature, while others (Ato Quayson, Graham Harvey) use it in association with a broader spectrum of fiction. The main objective of this article is to redefine the category of animist realism as a subgenre of magical realism with its own connecting characteristics and its formal difference. Author of the article argues that animist realism is applicable especially to postcolonial and indigenous literature permeated with myths and other elements derived from traditional belief systems.

  • Issue Year: 2016
  • Issue No: 7
  • Page Range: 103-115
  • Page Count: 13
  • Language: Polish