THE STRUGGLE AND STRUGGLE OF THE AFRICAN WOMAN

BODY AND VOICE IN ANGOLAN POETRY

Abstract

Based on the reading of fragments from the intimate diary of the Angolan guerrilla fighter and writer Deolinda Rodrigues, in addition to the poetry of this author (published posthumously) and two other Angolan poets, Paula Tavares and Isabel Ferreira, the article proposes a reflection on the struggle of Angolan women. It is representative of other women in different African spaces,  amid the persistent struggles for freedom, dignity, and citizenship on the African continent. The histories of colonial oppression, the brutality of wars of liberation, and the internal disputes within revolutionary movements required determination and courage on the part of Africans, a struggle common to all genders. Women, however, were left with a particular struggle against patriarchalism, typical of a legacy of Western culture imposed since colonialism and, concomitantly, originating from some ancestral traditions in which male life and presence were prioritized, deprivileging female life and presence. There are, on the other hand, matriarchal references in African ancestry, with historical characters revealing female empowerment, which influenced the authors highlighted in the article and many other African women in struggle. Likewise, there are influences from feminist and post-colonial movements that, at the same time, underpin African feminism. The female struggles in Africa still require positioning, courage, and expectation, but the advances made by fierce and tireless women can now be celebrated.