Spirit of Dialogue, A
Book Description
Christopher Okonkwo presents a profound exploration of how ancient African spiritual wisdom continues to shape contemporary storytelling and understanding of life's deepest mysteries. Through careful scholarly investigation, this work reveals the enduring presence of West African beliefs about spirit children—souls known as "Ogbanje" and "abiku" who exist between worlds—within modern African American literature.
Drawing from extensive research across multiple disciplines, Okonkwo demonstrates how these traditional concepts of spirits who choose when to come and go from earthly existence have quietly influenced three decades of African American narrative writing. The author examines how contemporary writers have woven these ancient understandings into stories that grapple with themes of loss, continuity, and the relationship between the living and the departed.
This scholarly yet accessible study offers readers insight into how spiritual traditions transcend time and geography, finding new expression in modern literary works. For those interested in understanding how ancestral wisdom informs contemporary perspectives on mortality, grief, and the nature of existence, Okonkwo's analysis provides a unique lens through which to view both African spiritual heritage and its ongoing influence in American culture.
The work bridges academic rigor with spiritual inquiry, making visible connections that have previously gone unrecognized in literary scholarship while honoring the depth of traditional African cosmological understanding.
Who Is This For?
📖 Reading Level: Medium (200-400 pages) (~7 hours)
📄 Length: 266 pages
What You'll Discover
- ✓ Explore History and criticism
- ✓ Explore Mourning customs
- ✓ Explore English literature
- ✓ Explore African Americans in literature
- ✓ Understand death from spiritual perspective
- ✓ Explore African americans, intellectual life
- ✓ Explore American literature
- ✓ Explore American literature, african american authors
