Abstract:
This paper interrogates the perennial idea of literature associated with clairvoyance and the writer himself as a prophet of some sort. Literature, an artistic representation of society and its heritage, has for ages served as a repository of generational values and ethical code. While it delights and instructs, literature has essentially broken paths for humanity and rightfully predicted what may likely happen in the future. The writer is a troubadour, teacher and clairvoyant of his generation. The paper deploys the theoretical instrument of Psychoanalysis to interrogate the relationship between literature and clairvoyance in Kelechi Ngwaba’s The Generations, drawing from the activities of the major characters in the historical play, which phenomenally covers four generations. The methodology used in the study is qualitative, involving aspects of characterization and plot of the novel. In addition, relevant excerpts from critical works are used to underpin the thesis of the discourse. The major finding of the research is hinged on the reinforcement of literature as a veritable tool for predicting what lies ahead for humanity (clairvoyance) and, of course, the artist as a “prophet”.
Keywords: Literature, Clairvoyance,
Psychoanalysis, Humanity, Characterization, Plot
DOI: www.doi.org/10.36349/tjllc.2025.v04i02.021
author/Dr. Ugochukwu Ogechi Iwuji & Dr. Chimeziri C. Ogbedeto
journal/Tasambo JLLC 4(2) | July 2025 |
