A “strong assertive hero who is in charge and oozes power” (Caldwell): the romance alpha hero is as familiar as he is monolithic. This model of hegemonic, alpha masculinity is generally applied to romance across the world, yet how ubiquitous is such a model of masculinity? Would it be visible in heterosexual romance novels published in Africa, written by African authors? As Connell and Messerschmidt theorize, masculinities are “configurations of practice that are constructed, unfold, and change through time” and place (Connell and Messerschmidt 852). Thus, drawn from narrow and specific cultural, national, and racial contexts, the romance alpha hero is far from universal. This article investigates the construction of African heroes in ten titles published by Nigeria’s Ankara Press (2015-2017), “a new imprint bringing African romance fiction into the bedrooms, offices and hearts of women the world over” (“About Us”). Ankara Press promises “[a] new kind of romance” (“About Us”)—this article asks: does it also provide a new kind of hero? I explore the ways Ankara heroes reveal local ideas about gender and culture, while simultaneously offering a rejoinder to the ubiquity of the Western alpha. Ankara Press romances partially reject Western alpha masculinity, locating the perceived toxicity of alpha masculinity in African culture and in “other,” non-heroic men. These novels offer a space to explore African masculinity and its challenges while simultaneously, I argue, decolonising romance, allowing us to emerge with a more nuanced appreciation of the alpha hero and his universality.
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Ammann and Staudacher note that in Africa, “new masculine ideals related to egalitarianism, compassion, and love are currently emerging” (762). Such ideas align with what Ankara Press’s founder Bibi Bakare-Yusuf identifies as “examples of gentle masculinity” (Shercliff, “Ankara Press: Q&A with Publisher Bibi Bakare-Yusuf”).
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The vulnerability of Ankara heroes similarly undercuts and redefines Western alpha masculinity while at the same time critiquing patriarchal ideas drawn from older generations.
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The most obvious way in which Ankara Press romances critique the links between capitalism and masculinity is through the hero’s profession. Wendell and Tan argue that “[t]he hero’s occupation often forms a short-hand to his character” (91). Most Ankara heroes are business owners, managing directors, and millionaires, and all but two heroes end the novel with career and financial success. However, the ten novels also feature heroes with the “alternative careers” encouraged by the submission guidelines, including a tailor, actor, artist, and photographer. Moreover, the books acknowledge the gendered expectations for heroes to hold particular jobs, challenging the exclusion of feminised professions for romance heroes—Wendell and Tan note that roles like “kindergarten teacher” are “questionable … unless they involve athleticism or also carry considerable cultural cachet” (92). In Love Next Door, the heroine is surprised that Kopano, the hero, is a primary school teacher.
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While Ankara heroes might not always conform to typical wealthy archetypes, they are committed to a neoliberal ideology of individual labour and the value in work (a reimaginging, perhaps, of what Allan calls the valorisation of “successful labouring” (“The Purity of His Maleness” 33). What Ankara Press titles do, I argue, is situate this work and its value in caring for others.
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Ankara texts are filled with examples of smaller, domestic acts of care. Almost all Ankara heroes are unusually good cooks and prepare food for the heroine. They bring the heroine cake and share it with her (Love Next Door), wash up (Love Next Door, The Seeing Place), iron the heroine’s clothes, wear aprons and make breakfast in bed (Finding Love Again).
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While Ankara romances construct their heroes in opposition to the Western alpha hero, certain traits associated with the archetype—dominance, sexual aggression, anger—are still visible in the books. However, these traits are not seen in the hero, but are displaced onto other men—collectively and individually—and to local culture and customs, being labelled as toxic in the process.
Here's the abstract:
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