A SHARED LEXICON OF RAGE: THE COMPARATIVE RECLAMATIONS OF THE ‘ANGRY WOMAN’ TROPE IN THE FICTION OF EL SAADAWI (EGYPT), MORRISON (USA), AND ADICHIE (NIGERIA)

Abstract

This feminist, interdisciplinary study synthesizes narratology with postcolonial and decolonial theories within which transnational feminism is fundamentally situated to investigate the systematic reclamation of the “angry woman” trope in the fiction of Nawal El Saadawi (Egypt), Toni Morrison (USA), and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Nigeria). Moving beyond the traditional boundaries of a comparative literature piece, this research offers a unique angle of analysis by tapping into narrative theory specifically to identify the techniques, including testimonio, the anti-hero, mythopoeia, and satire, used to transform pathologized rage into a rational, epistemic tool. Utilizing a post-colonial lens, the study investigates how these gendered and racialized stereotypes originally weaponized by colonial powers to dismiss political dissent have been perpetuated until they became an integral part of global representation. By integrating Edward Said’s “traveling theory” and Emily Apter’s concept of “untranslatability,” the study explores how the idea of legitimate female anger moves and transforms while respecting unique cultural specificities. Ultimately, this work proposes a “shared lexicon of rage,” arguing that these authors’ literary choices are deliberate political acts that affirm the sanity and sovereignty of the angry woman. By developing this lexicon, the study offers a framework for how other marginalized communities can transform profound emotional responses into rational, epistemic tools for reclaiming human sovereignty and dignity against interlocking systems of social and political pressure.

Date of Award	2026
Original language	American English
Awarding Institution	HBKU College of Humanities and Social Science