RECLAIMING ERASED HISTORIES: CULTURAL RESISTANCE AND MEMORY IN CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE’S “THE HEADSTRONG HISTORIAN”

Publicado em 09/02/2026 - ISBN: 978-65-272-2189-0

Título do Trabalho
RECLAIMING ERASED HISTORIES: CULTURAL RESISTANCE AND MEMORY IN CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE’S “THE HEADSTRONG HISTORIAN”
Autores
  • Abosede Florence Faniyi
  • GENIVALDO RODRIGUES SOBRINHO
Modalidade
Apresentação dos GTs e dos Coordenadores
Área temática
GT-17 (presencial): Ancestralidade e resistência: os saberes das mulheres negras e indígenas no Brasil
Data de Publicação
09/02/2026
País da Publicação
Brasil
Idioma da Publicação
pt-BR
Página do Trabalho
https://www.even3.com.br/anais/sinpolic-624867/1427850-reclaiming-erased-histories--cultural-resistance-and-memory-in-chimamanda-ngozi-adichies-the-headstrong-histor
ISBN
978-65-272-2189-0
Palavras-Chave
Colonialism; cultural erasure; resistance; postcolonialism, cultural reclamation; memory.
Resumo
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a Nigerian writer, feminist and a public intellectual born on September 15, 1977, in Enugu, Nigeria. She studied at the University of Nigeria, then moved to the US, where she attended Eastern connecticut State University, John Hopkins University Creative Writing and Yale University African Studies. This study examines “The headstrong historian”, from the collection of short stories The thing around your neck, with the objective of exploring how colonial power restructures cultural identity and historical memory within an Igbo community. Overall, “The Headstrong Historian” shows that while colonialism may distort identity and silence cultural memory, future generations can revive what was lost. Through storytelling and education, Adichie argues that history can be reclaimed,and that doing so is essential for cultural survival. This study is conducted as a qualitative literary analysis, the research employs a close reading of the narrative alongside postcolonial theoretical frameworks, drawing chiefly on the works of Homi Bhabha (1994), Hall Stuart (1990), Paul Ricoeur (2004) and Maurice Halbwachs (1992). These theories illuminate the processes of cultural erasure, linguistic domination, and the struggle for self-representation under colonial rule. The analysis focuses on three generational trajectories – Nwamgba’s resistance to colonial intrusion, Michael’s assimilation through missionary education, and Grace’s reclamation of suppressed histories. By tracing these generational shifts, the study argues that the text ultimately proposes historical recovery and cultural remembrance as acts of resistance. Despite all odds, Grace gave hope to Nwamgba’s resistance to the colonial domination through her writing. The anticipated result is a deeper understanding of how Post-colonial Nigerian literature can challenge colonial narratives, restore marginalized voices, and assert the validity of indigenous epistemologies in reconstructing the past.
Título do Evento
I SINPOLIC - Simpósio Nacional de Poesia dos Países de Língua Portuguesa
Cidade do Evento
Cuiabá
Título dos Anais do Evento
Anais do SINPOLIC - Simpósio Nacional de Poesia dos Países de Língua Portuguesa
Nome da Editora
Even3
Meio de Divulgação
Meio Digital

Como citar

FANIYI, Abosede Florence; SOBRINHO, GENIVALDO RODRIGUES. RECLAIMING ERASED HISTORIES: CULTURAL RESISTANCE AND MEMORY IN CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE’S “THE HEADSTRONG HISTORIAN”.. In: Anais do SINPOLIC - Simpósio Nacional de Poesia dos Países de Língua Portuguesa. Anais...Cuiabá(MT) UFMT, 2025. Disponível em: https//www.even3.com.br/anais/sinpolic-624867/1427850-RECLAIMING-ERASED-HISTORIES--CULTURAL-RESISTANCE-AND-MEMORY-IN-CHIMAMANDA-NGOZI-ADICHIES-THE-HEADSTRONG-HISTOR. Acesso em: 21/06/2026

Trabalho

Even3 Publicacoes