SUCCESS STRATEGIES AND AFRICAN WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT: A LITERARY BASED DISCOURSE

Success is an all gender inclusive journey that meets with stumbling blocks at one time or the other. It is a universal phenomenon irrespective of whether a society is patriarchal or not. Most often, sex roles interfere with the success of individuals within the ambivalence of their society. Africa is more patriarchal than matriarchal. Literature which is said to mirror society uncovers the challenges faced by men and women in pursuit of fulfillment in life. Several bodies, women inclusive, have taken steps to ensure that women's empowerment is assured but male chauvinism is still strong in Africa. The millennium developmental goals so far have not been fully accomplished especially in the area of liberating women totally from the grip of patriarchy. The need arises for new cycles of success through diverse strategies for the purpose of gender mainstreaming in the literary world. This therefore calls for verification of modes using the Feminist Literary Theory as a theoretical framework to the discourse of selected literary works.