Intra-cultural congruity in Ignatius Mabasa’s portrayal of sexual harassment discourse in Shona novels

Abstract

This article examines sexual harassment in the novels Mapenzi and Ndafa here? Cases of sexual harassment at home, workplace and in other spheres of life are on the surge, making life difficult for both men and women in Zimbabwe. Remarkably, most artists who serve as the fountains of knowledge and cultural ambassadors continue to portray stereotypical images of African/Shona women and men on sexual harassment. Against that background, we argue that an unconscious reading of the novels can lead one to erroneously dismiss the novels as feminist protest literature where the male is a perpetrator of violence. Such a vision obscures the complexity of postcolonial Africa. It is a society defined by schism and competition, and this oftentimes breeds gender-based violence with the female as the victim. The article argues that skewed gender relations are a recipe for disaster as they perpetuate toxic masculinity. Using Africana womanism as the theoretical underpinning, the article concludes that Mabasa’s portrayal of women clinging to uncaring husbands (which is considered unacceptable in feminist circles) is a positive projection of African/Shona women who are strong and flexible role players.