Tejumola Olaniyan (April 3, 1959 – November 30, 2019) was a Nigerian academic. He was the Louise Durham Mead Professor of English and African Cultural Studies, and the Wole Soyinka Professor of the Humanities at the
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...
. A former President of the African Literature Association (2014-2015), Olaniyan has approximately 35 of his works in over 100 publications, and all in one language. He died on November 30, 2019.
Early life
Olaniyan earned his bachelor's degree from the
University of Ife
Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) is a federal university in Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria. The university was founded in 1961 and classes commenced in October 1962 as the University of Ife by the regional government of Western Nigeria, which w ...
in
Nigeria
Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...
in 1982. Three years later, he received his Master of Arts degree there. Olaniyan attended
Cornell University
Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...
where he earned an MA (1989) and PhD (1991). Sandra Smith Isidore, a former member of the
Black Panther Party
The Black Panther Party (originally the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense) was a Marxism–Leninism, Marxist–Leninist and Black Power movement, black power political organization founded by college students Bobby Seale and Huey P. Newto ...
, became Olaniyan's mentor and introduced him to the history, the ideology, and the personalities of the
Civil Rights Movement.
Career
Olaniyan's main interests were:
Africa and its diaspora;
African-American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...
,
Caribbean
The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...
, and
African literature
African literature is literature from Africa, either Oral literature, oral ("orature") or written in African languages, African and Afro-Asiatic languages, Afro-Asiatic languages. Examples of Precolonialism, pre-colonial African literature can be ...
s; criticism, post-cultural studies, history, theory and the
sociology
Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...
of
drama
Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...
; and pop culture (art, music, and architecture). His works included ''Arrest the Music!: Fela and His Rebel Art and Politics'' (2004, 2009; nominated for Best Research in World Music by the Association for Recorded Sound Collections in 2005) and ''Scars of Conquest/Masks of Resistance: The Invention of Cultural Identities in African, African American and Caribbean Drama'' (1995). He was co-editor of ''African Literature: An Anthology of Criticism and Theory'' (2007, with Ato Quayson), ''African Drama and Performance'' (2004, with John Conteh-Morgan), and ''African Diaspora and the Disciplines'' (2010, with James H. Sweet). Olaniyan practiced different approaches, which allow others to experience new perspectives. He stated, "My deep interest is transdisciplinary teaching and research; my goal is the cultivation of critical self-reflexivity about our expressions and their many contexts."
Olaniyan focused on the post-colonial African state. In this research, Olaniyan explored pop culture while trying to depict the state's "elite" cultural aspects. His research encompassed music, architecture, literature and political cartooning. Understanding how the State influences these practices helps in composing a cultural biography of the postcolonial African State. His larger goal was to resolve the social crisis through increased understanding.
Works
"Uplift the Race!"
"Uplift the Race" is an in-depth look at films such as ''
Coming to America
''Coming to America'' is a 1988 American romantic comedy film directed by John Landis, based on a story originally created by Eddie Murphy, written by David Sheffield and Barry W. Blaustein, and starring Murphy (in various roles), Arsenio ...
'' and ''
Do the Right Thing
''Do the Right Thing'' is a 1989 American comedy-drama film produced, written and directed by Spike Lee. It stars Lee, Danny Aiello, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Richard Edson, Giancarlo Esposito, Bill Nunn, John Turturro and Samuel L. Jackson an ...
''. This article discusses this idea of 'uplifting the race' and how the portrayal of this appears in films. The article begins with a quote from
Eddie Murphy
Edward Regan Murphy (born April 3, 1961) is an American actor, comedian, and singer. He had his breakthrough as a standup comic before gaining stardom for his film roles; he is widely recognized as one of the greatest comedians of all time. H ...
who basically says the white majority has created a system in which powerful black men feel the need to whisper 'white' in their own office. Olaniyan then discusses a quote from
Michael Foucault that describes the situation Murphy talks about in his quote. Olaniyan quotes
Paul Rabinow
Paul M. Rabinow (June 21, 1944 – April 6, 2021) was a professor of anthropology at the University of California (Berkeley), director of the Anthropology of the Contemporary Research Collaboratory (ARC), and former director of human practices ...
from "Representations Are Social Facts: Modernity and Post modernity in Anthropology" on the power of representation. Olaniyan states that Rabinow is saying "To be in control of (the means of) representation is therefore, to be in a position of power: that is, to be in control of the production, promotion, and circulation of subjectivities". Olaniyan finds it interesting that in popular opinion, both films failed do that. He discusses how ''Coming to America'' 'others' the African people. First, he discusses how the forest and house scenes support this exoticized idea of Africa. He suggests that the film shows Hollywood's idea of Africa's 'civilized' culture. He discusses the role of black women, claiming that they are the "scenery". He then discusses how ''Coming To America'' freezes African culture in a "one-dimensional frame" whereas ''Do the Right Thing'' gives its audience an unexpected and unapologetic view.
Lee
Lee may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Lee'' (2007 film), Tamil-language sports action film
* ''Lee'' (2017 film), Kannada-language action film
* ''Lee'' (2023 film), biographical drama about Lee Miller, American photojournalist
* ''L ...
displays three-dimensional characters. In the end, Lee fails because he loses sight of the goal of 'uplifting the race'. Olanyian says that they both failed due to their representations of women. He felt that both failed to see the
intersectionality
Intersectionality is an analytical framework for understanding how groups' and individuals' social and political identities result in unique combinations of discrimination and privilege. Examples of these intersecting and overlapping factor ...
of gender and race, therefore not uplifting the race.
Terms
*'' Postcolonial Incredible'' – The Postcolonial Incredible emerges in Olaniyan's analyses of Afrobeat music and designates a regime of crises and morbidities as normative elements of Postcolonial states. Olaniyan writes: "the 'incredible' inscribes that which cannot be believed; that which is too improbable, astonishing, and extraordinary to be believed. The incredible is not simply a breach but an outlandish infraction of “normality” and its limits. If “belief,” as faith, confidence, trust, and conviction, underwrites the certainty and tangibility of institutions and practices of social exchange, the incredible dissolves all such props of stability, normality, and intelligibility (and therefore of authority) and engenders social and symbolic crisis."
*''Race/Racial Uplift'' – A description of the responses of black leaders, activists and spokespersons to the racial discrimination marked by the assault on civil and political rights of
African Americans
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa ...
. Many of these leaders feel a need to defend the good intent and honor of African Americans, while also countering negative black stereotypes. Olanyian mentions race uplift throughout "Uplift the Race" and questions why it is a favorable mode of response to racial subjectification. The author questions why race uplift is 'privileged' as a response to the unequal power relations in America. In Olanyian's discussion of ''Coming To America'' and ''Do The Right Thing'', he presents the idea that racial uplift can actually lead to 'othering' of African Americans.
*''Othering'' – Othering is defined by wordnik.com as "the process of perceiving or portraying someone or something as fundamentally different or alien." It is an egocentric viewpoint in which a person sees themselves at the heart of society and the different or others to be less-important and less-connected to the group. This undermines social progress. Olanyian discusses othering, claiming that racial uplift others the African Americans it is trying to help by dividing them from their leaders.
*''Coevalness'' – Multiple things of the same time, duration or age. The purpose of coevalness is to provide authenticity, acknowledgment that something does exist.
*''Appropriation'' –
bell hooks
Gloria Jean Watkins (September 25, 1952 – December 15, 2021), better known by her pen name bell hooks (stylized in lowercase), was an American author, theorist, educator, and social critic who was a Distinguished Professor in Residence at Be ...
states that appropriation violates another culture by creating a "fake" or a cheap imitation therefore always falling second to the original. Olaniyan says that appropriation denies the native "other" and denies coevalness in the sense that it establishes an authoritative idea (a "dominant gaze"). This poses the questions of whose ideas are dominant and therefore more important. Furthermore, whether this dominant idea provides a fair representation and whether the author's word dilutes the idea's authenticity.
*''Power of Representation'' – This power comes from the ability to create one's own reality. Participation enables original constructions and better understanding of the result. Furthermore, participants can create their own reality. Controlling one's representation is a position of power. The power conferred by controlling representation is transformed into a metaphorical and symbolic domination.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Olaniyan, Tejumola
1959 births
2019 deaths
American literary theorists
Cornell University alumni
Nigerian academics
Obafemi Awolowo University alumni
University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty
Scholars of African literature