Narratives Narrate

12/05/2025

KNOW YOUR AFRICAN WRITERS | CHINUA ACHEBE.

Chinua Achebe (/ˈtʃɪnwɑː əˈtʃɛbeɪ/ ⓘ; born Albert Chinụalụmọgụ Achebe; 16 November 1930 – 21 March 2013) was a Nigerian novelist, poet, and critic who is regarded as a central figure of modern African literature. His first novel and magnum opus, Things Fall Apart (1958), occupies a pivotal place in African literature and remains the most widely studied, translated, and read African novel. Along with Things Fall Apart, his No Longer at Ease (1960) and Arrow of God (1964) complete the "African Trilogy". Later novels include A Man of the People (1966) and Anthills of the Savannah (1987). Achebe is often referred to as the "father of modern African literature", although he vigorously rejected the characterization.

Born in Ogidi, Colonial Nigeria, Achebe's childhood was influenced by both Igbo traditional culture and colonial Christianity. He excelled in school and attended what is now the University of Ibadan, where he became fiercely critical of how Western literature depicted Africa. Moving to Lagos after graduation, he worked for the Nigerian Broadcasting Service (NBS) and garnered international attention for his 1958 novel Things Fall Apart. In less than 10 years he would publish four further novels through the publisher Heinemann, with whom he began the Heinemann African Writers Series and galvanized the careers of African writers, such as Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o and Flora Nwapa.

Achebe sought to escape the colonial perspective that framed African literature at the time, and drew from the traditions of the Igbo people, Christian influences, and the clash of Western and African values to create a uniquely African voice. He wrote in and defended the use of English, describing it as a means to reach a broad audience, particularly readers of colonial nations. In 1975 he gave a controversial lecture, "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness", which was a landmark in postcolonial discourse. Published in The Massachusetts Review, it featured criticism of Albert Schweitzer and Joseph Conrad, whom Achebe described as "a thoroughgoing racist". When the region of Biafra broke away from Nigeria in 1967, Achebe supported Biafran independence and acted as ambassador for the people of the movement. The subsequent Nigerian Civil War ravaged the populace, and he appealed to the people of Europe and the Americas for aid. When the Nigerian government retook the region in 1970, he involved himself in political parties but soon became disillusioned by his frustration over the continuous corruption and elitism he witnessed. He lived in the United States for several years in the 1970s, and returned to the US in 1990 after a car crash left him partially paralyzed. He stayed in the US in a nineteen-year tenure at Bard College as a professor of languages and literature.

Winning the 2007 Man Booker International Prize, from 2009 until his death he was Professor of African Studies at Brown University. Achebe's work has been extensively analyzed and a vast body of scholarly work discussing it has arisen. In addition to his seminal novels, Achebe's oeuvre includes numerous short stories, poetry, essays and children's books. A titled Igbo chief himself, his style relies heavily on the Igbo oral tradition, and combines straightforward narration with representations of folk stories, proverbs, and oratory. Among the many themes his works cover are culture and colonialism, masculinity and femininity, politics, and history. His legacy is celebrated annually at the Chinua Achebe Literary Festival.

07/05/2025

During a mathematics course at Columbia University, a student fell asleep and woke up to the sound of his classmates talking. As the lesson ended, he noticed the lecturer had written two problems on the whiteboard. He assumed these were homework assignments, so he copied them into his notepad to tackle later.
When he first attempted the problems, he found them quite difficult. However, he persevered, spending hours in the library gathering references and studying until he was able to solve one of the problems, though it was challenging.
To his surprise, the lecturer didn’t ask about the homework in the next class. Curious, the student stood up and asked, "Doctor, why didn’t you ask about the assignment from the previous lecture?"
The lecturer replied, "Required? It wasn’t mandatory. I was simply presenting examples of mathematical problems that science and scientists had not yet solved."
Shocked, the student responded, "But I solved one of them in four papers!" The solution he discovered was eventually credited to him and documented at Columbia University. The four papers he wrote on the issue are still on display at the institution.
The key reason the student was able to solve the problem was that he didn’t hear the lecturer say, "No one has found a solution." Instead, he believed it was a problem worth solving and approached it without frustration, ultimately succeeding.
This story serves as a reminder: don't listen to those who tell you that you can't achieve something, as many young people today are surrounded by negativity and doubt. Some people intentionally plant seeds of failure and frustration.
You have the power to achieve your goals, overcome obstacles, and fulfill your aspirations. Simply trust in God and keep trying.
The student was George Dantzig, and the problem came from Math Stack Exchange.
"Dantzig demonstrated that, in the context of Student's t-test, the only way to create a hypothesis test whose power is independent of the standard deviation is to use an absurd test that always has an equal probability of rejecting or failing to reject, which, of course, is not practical."

07/05/2025

know African writers

KNOW YOUR WRITERS | CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie[b] (born Grace Ngozi Adichie;[1] 15 September 1977) is a Nigerian author. She has written five novels, two collections of short stories, one memoir, and many articles and short stories for many newspapers, magazines, and periodicals. She is widely regarded as a central figure in postcolonial feminist literature.

Born into an Igbo family in Enugu, Nigeria, Adichie was educated at the University of Nigeria in Nsukka, where she studied medicine for a year and half. She left Nigeria at the age of 19 to study in the United States at Drexel University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and went on to study at a further three universities in the U.S.: Eastern Connecticut State University, Johns Hopkins University, and Yale University.

Many of Adichie's novels are set in Nsukka, where she grew up. She started writing during her university education. She first wrote Decisions (1997), a poetry collection, followed by a play, For Love of Biafra (1998). She achieved early success with her debut novel, Purple Hibiscus (2003). Adichie has written many works including novels, Purple Hibiscus, Half of a Yellow Sun (2006), Americanah (2013), and Dream Count (2025); essay collections, We Should All Be Feminists (2014) and Dear Ijeawele, or A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions (2017); a memoir, Notes on Grief (2021); and a children's book, Mama's Sleeping Scarf (2023). She has cited Chinua Achebe and Buchi Emecheta as inspirations, and Adichie's writing style juxtaposes Western and African influences, with particular influence from Igbo culture. Most of her works explore the themes of religion, immigration, gender and culture.

Adichie uses fashion as a medium to break down stereotypes, and in 2018 was recognised with a Shorty Award for her "Wear Nigerian Campaign". She has a successful speaking career: her 2009 TED Talk "The Danger of a Single Story" is one of the most viewed TED Talks; her 2012 talk, "We Should All Be Feminists", was sampled by American singer Beyoncé, as well as being featured on a T-shirt by Dior in 2016. Adichie's awards and honours include academic and literary prizes, fellowships, grants, honorary degrees, and other high recognition, such as a MacArthur Fellowship in 2008 and induction into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2017.

07/05/2025

KNOW YOUR WRITERS | CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie[b] (born Grace Ngozi Adichie;[1] 15 September 1977) is a Nigerian author. She has written five novels, two collections of short stories, one memoir, and many articles and short stories for many newspapers, magazines, and periodicals. She is widely regarded as a central figure in postcolonial feminist literature.

Born into an Igbo family in Enugu, Nigeria, Adichie was educated at the University of Nigeria in Nsukka, where she studied medicine for a year and half. She left Nigeria at the age of 19 to study in the United States at Drexel University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and went on to study at a further three universities in the U.S.: Eastern Connecticut State University, Johns Hopkins University, and Yale University.

Many of Adichie's novels are set in Nsukka, where she grew up. She started writing during her university education. She first wrote Decisions (1997), a poetry collection, followed by a play, For Love of Biafra (1998). She achieved early success with her debut novel, Purple Hibiscus (2003). Adichie has written many works including novels, Purple Hibiscus, Half of a Yellow Sun (2006), Americanah (2013), and Dream Count (2025); essay collections, We Should All Be Feminists (2014) and Dear Ijeawele, or A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions (2017); a memoir, Notes on Grief (2021); and a children's book, Mama's Sleeping Scarf (2023). She has cited Chinua Achebe and Buchi Emecheta as inspirations, and Adichie's writing style juxtaposes Western and African influences, with particular influence from Igbo culture. Most of her works explore the themes of religion, immigration, gender and culture.

Adichie uses fashion as a medium to break down stereotypes, and in 2018 was recognised with a Shorty Award for her "Wear Nigerian Campaign". She has a successful speaking career: her 2009 TED Talk "The Danger of a Single Story" is one of the most viewed TED Talks; her 2012 talk, "We Should All Be Feminists", was sampled by American singer Beyoncé, as well as being featured on a T-shirt by Dior in 2016. Adichie's awards and honours include academic and literary prizes, fellowships, grants, honorary degrees, and other high recognition, such as a MacArthur Fellowship in 2008 and induction into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2017.

30/04/2025

KNOW AFRICAN WRITERS | WOLE SOYINKA

Wole Soyinka (born July 13, 1934, Abeokuta, Nigeria) is a Nigerian playwright and political activist who received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1986. He was the first Black African to be awarded the prize and was cited by the Nobel Committee for his “vivid, often harrowing” works “marked by an evocative, poetically intensified diction.” Soyinka sometimes writes of modern West Africa in a satirical style, but his serious intent and his belief in the evils inherent in the exercise of power are usually evident in his work as well.

A member of the Yoruba people, Soyinka attended Government College and University College in Ibadan before graduating in 1958 with a degree in English from the University of Leeds in England. Upon his return to Nigeria, he founded an acting company and wrote his first important play, A Dance of the Forests (produced 1960; published 1963), for the Nigerian independence celebrations. The play satirizes the fledgling nation by stripping it of romantic legend and by showing that the present is no more a golden age than was the past.

Soyinka wrote several plays in a lighter vein, making fun of pompous, Westernized schoolteachers in The Lion and the Jewel (first performed in Ibadan, 1959; published 1963) and mocking the clever preachers of upstart prayer-churches who grow fat on the credulity of their parishioners in The Trials of Brother Jero (performed 1960; published 1963) and Jero’s Metamorphosis (1973). But his more serious plays, such as The Strong Breed (1963), Kongi’s Harvest (opened the first Festival of Negro Arts in Dakar, 1966; published 1967), The Road (1965), From Zia, with Love (1992), and even the parody King Baabu (performed 2001; published 2002), reveal his disregard for African authoritarian leadership and his disillusionment with Nigerian society as a whole.

Soyinka has long been a proponent of Nigerian democracy. His decades of political activism include periods of imprisonment and exile, and he founded, headed, or participated in several political groups, including the National Democratic Organization, the National Liberation Council of Nigeria, and Pro-National Conference Organizations (PRONACO). In 2010 Soyinka founded the Democratic Front for a People’s Federation and served as chairman of the party.

From 1960 to 1964 Soyinka was coeditor of Black Orpheus, an important literary journal. From 1960 onward he taught literature and drama and headed theater groups at various Nigerian universities, including those of Ibadan, Ife, and Lagos. After winning the Nobel Prize, he was sought after as a lecturer, and many of his lectures were published—notably the Reith Lectures of 2004, as Climate of Fear (2004).

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26/05/2024

Thomas Fuller the African maths genius also known as "Negro Tom" and the "Virginia Calculator", was an enslaved African born in today Benin 🇧🇯 1710 and died in 1790 USA renowned for his mathematical abilities. Also known as a mental calculator.
shipped to America as a slave in 1724. He had remarkable powers of calculation, and late in his life was discovered by antislavery campaigners who used him as a demonstration that blacks were superior not inferior to whites in academics.
In this report, Rush stressed the credibility of Hartshorne and Coates. Rush retold how Hartshorne and Coates tested Fuller's mathematical abilities as follows:
First. Upon being asked, how many seconds there are in a year and a half, he answered in about two minutes, 47,304,000.
Second. On being asked how many seconds a man has lived, who is seventy years, seven- teen days and twelve hours old, he answered, in a minute and a half, 2,210,500,800.
One of the gentlemen, who employed himself with his pen in making these calculations, told him he was wrong, and that the sum was not so great as he had said-upon which the old man hastily replied, “top, massa, you forget de leap year.” On adding the seconds of the leap years to the others, the amount of the whole in both their sums agreed exactly.
Third. The following question was then proposed to him: suppose a farmer has six sows, and each sow has six female pigs, the first year, and they all increase in the same proportion, to the end of eight years, how many sows will the farmer then have? In ten minutes, he answered, 34,588,806. The difference of time between his answering this, and the two former questions, was occasioned by a trifling mistake he made from a misapprehension of the question.
Despite Fuller's perfect answers, it appeared to Hartshorne and Coates that his mental abilities must have once been greater. Rush wrote:
He was grey-headed, and exhibited several other marks of the weakness of old age. He had worked hard upon a farm during the whole of life but had never been intemperate in the use of spirituous liquors. He spoke with great respect of his mistress, and mentioned in a particular manner his obligations to her for refusing to sell him, which she had been tempted to by offers of large sums of money from several persons. One of the gentlemen, Mr. Coates, having remarked in his presence that it was a pity he had not an education equal to his genius, he said, "No, Massa, it is best I had no learning, for many learned men be great fools."
No one could challenge his abilities in mathematics.

26/05/2024

The boy pictured below was called Kalulu, a 12 year old enslaved African boy who drowned in Livingstone Falls in the Congo while working as a porter for British explorer, Sir Henry Morton Stanley, who also appears in one of the photos.

He was sold to Stanley by an Arab merchant in Zanzibar. His real name was Ndugu Mhali,but because Stanley didn't like the name he christened him Kalulu.

Between 1872 to 1873, Kalulu accompanied Stanley around Europe and America, and during that time posed for a wax model which was later installed at Madame Tussaud’s museum in London .

Stanley briefly enrolled him at a school in Wandsworth, South West London, where the headmaster later noted that he was " clever and progressing in English."

After the death of Dr David Livingstone in Zambia in 1874 , Stanley who was keen to carry on with Livingstone's exploration work, withdrew Kalulu from school and the two returned to Africa.

In 1877, Stanley while using Kalulu as his servant, embarked on an expedition in the Congo to find the Source of river Nile.

Unfortunately during this trip Kalulu died in a tragic accident after his canoe plunged hundreds of feet down a water fall on the Congo River. The waterfall was later named 'Kalulu Falls' in his honour.

12/05/2024

He is George McLaurin the first Blàck man admitted to Oklahoma University in 1948, he was fòrced to sit in a còrner away from his fèllow white men.
⁣
But his name remains on the honor list as one of the top three students in college.
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These are his words:
⁣
''Some colleagues looked at me like I was an a.nimal, no one spoke to me, for teachers I didn't ever exiśt, they rarely answered my questions. I dedicated so much to myself, that after my teammates started looking for me and teachers started considering me. I stopped being invisiblè to them."
⁣
Edùcation has more pòwer than weapòns.

Source:

08/05/2024

08/05/2024

Meet Nyaboth Tut. Born on 13/5/1959,
The first Nuer girl who won her first marathon in 1973 while
barefooted. She's the first Rol
Nath female athletes to win a medal
at the commonwealth Germany in 1974.
# Narratives Narrate