See in particular the introduction, pages 24-29, and parts of chapter 5.
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the overwhelming presence of Islam in urban Hausa society percolates into everyday life most prominently through two significantly apolitical phenomena: oral literary productions of which Hausa storytelling within the household is the most well-known genre, and Kano market literature, called Littattfan Soyayya or books of love, a genre of popular romance fiction in Hausa that dwells on such topics as love, romance, and the adventures of young lovers. The magnitude of the Hausa literary movement, as I briefly trace below its history and phenomenal success, on all levels of literary, commercial, social, and religious life, is unarguably breathtaking. My interest in this extremely successful commercial and literary movement lies, however, in its ingenious capitalization of the personal, private, and individual dimensions of the predominant topoi—the personal and private lives of Hausa women—that underwrite Soyayya fiction. Quite simply, it is the interest in women’s personal, private, and individual interactions with Islam that redounds most significantly to the success of Hausa prose fiction. (24)
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In the nature of the Soyayya themes and the aims of Soyayya writers in the heart of Islamic states, despite being in English, Alkali’s The Stillborn, The Virtuous Woman, and The Descendants; Ali’s Destiny; and Gimba’s Sacred Apples are tendered in the spirit of Islam’s presence in women’s personal and private lives. As I discuss more fully in chapter 5, Ali’s Destiny is perhaps closest in style, presentation, and length to the Soyayya novel. Destiny could very well be one of those rare Soyayya novels in English and, therefore, not considered by critics as serious literary work. (29)
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chapter 5, “Frequent Functions and References: Personal Solutions in Sacred Apples and Destiny,” most poignantly intervenes in the common critical stance on Islamic feminism in Africa, that of women’s revolt against Islam when facing persecution and injustice, in Gimba’s Sacred Apples and Ali’s Destiny. Gimba’s and Ali’s protagonists, Zahrah and Farida respectively, experience severe emotional duress in their personal lives, particularly in their marital relationships. But instead of directing their bitterness toward Islam or resorting to assistance from women’s organizations to counter the injustice in their lives, both women resolutely turn to the religion through a deeply-felt and personal desire to heal their losses, emotionally recover from personal setbacks, and reconstruct their lives and futures. Deploying ṣalāt, or the canonical prayer, and dhikr—a form of prayer involving constant remembrance of Allah and a reconnection with the Qur’an for answers on personal matters, especially when debating about polygamy and marriage—Zahrah and Farida abidingly grow in their reliance on Islamic praxis. The means for Zaharah’s and Farida’s happiness and satisfaction—ṣalāt, dhikr, polygamy, and education—inhere within their environment, which is conditioned by both African and Islamic influences and actors, including men, as the two African Muslim women actively partake in Umoja, stiwanism, African womanism, and nego-feminism to negotiate, coordinate, and ably manage difficulties in their personal matters. (33-34)
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Hauwa Ali’s Destiny can be said to lie in the great tradition of a literary genre that has no less than fifty million admirers in West Africa, namely the Littattfan Soyayya, the books of love. (164)
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Destiny is set in northern Nigeria in Kaduna, Kano, and neighboring towns such as Sabon Birni. The sixteen-year-old protagonist, Farida, is a student at a boarding school in Kaduna. She is passionate about a teaching career. She is also in love with Farouk, a schoolmate and childhood friend. Farida has been raised by her guardians, her paternal uncle Abba and aunt Nana. Her guardians are strict, and Aunt Nana, in particular, is domineering, conservative, and quite harsh with Farida, to whom she has never been close. Her guardians have ensured Farida receives a good education. It’s in school that Farida falls in love with Farouk, the son of an ambassador currently stationed in the Congo. As for Farida’s guardians, they prefer a Nigerian groom for their niece. They force her to marry Wali el-Yakub, a pompous local businessman who is against Farida continuing her education. Wali is egoistical, rich, and domineering, lavishing expensive gifts on Farida’s guardians in an effort to convince them to marry their niece off to him. Wali and Farida share nothing in common, and there is a considerable age gap between the two. Their marriage makes Farida extremely unhappy, though she soon gives birth to Faisal, her first child, and adjusts to marital life without, however, losing hope of an opportunity to study further. In the end, destiny intervenes and Farida not only receives the opportunity to further her education, but is also unexpectedly reunited with Farouk as she divorces her unfaithful husband, Wali, who is involved in fraud and adultery and even remarries, taking Farida’s cousin, Ayesha, as his second wife. (166)
See in particular the introduction, pages 24-29, and parts of chapter 5.
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