Humanities Program Spotlight:

Research in African Literatures

Ever since stories were first told, African writers have produced narratives of their lives, culture, and history in many different forms and many different languages (either indigenous or those of their colonial oppressors). Characterized by its integrity, passion, and honesty, Africa’s oral and written literature has among its creators three Nobel laureates in literature and dozens of other well-known outstanding writers. However, much of African Literature still remains unknown to the general reading world.

Helping to bring this rich genre to light is Research in African Literatures (RAL), the premier journal of African literary studies worldwide. The College is proud to serve as the journal's editorial home. Editor of Research is John Conteh-Morgan associate professor in the Department of African American and African Studies (AAAS) and the Department of French and Italian. He is joined by Managing Editor Ruthmarie Mitsch, a lecturer in AAAS, and is further assisted by associate editors Kwaku Larbi Korang and Alamin Mazrui, faculty members in the Department of AAAS, and Professor Danielle Marx-Scouras, of the Department of French and Italian.

RAL is published four times annually by the Indiana University Press, which describes the journal as providing “a forum in English for research on the oral and written literatures of Africa, as well as information on African publishing, announcements of importance to Africanists, and notes and queries of literary interest.” It includes reviews of current scholarly books and thematic clusters of articles and frequent special issues on such topics as "The Scholar as Storyteller: Essays In Honor of Harold G. Scheub," "Creative Writing In African Landscapes," "Textual Ownership In Francophone African Writing," and "Edward Said, Africa, and Cultural Criticism." RAL also provides lists of theses and dissertations, conference reports, and book reviews in the field.

Founded in 1970, the journal first came to The Ohio State University in 1990 under the editorship of the late Richard Bjornson, professor of French and Comparative Studies. Conteh-Morgan, who served for a decade as associate editor and became editor in 2003, is a specialist in francophone Caribbean literature. His editorship has been credited with ensuring that its traditional coverage of literatures of English and French expression is complemented by the publication of innovative scholarship on Lusophone authors as well as writing in African languages. His imaginative vision of the journal’s agenda has helped to shape the international field of African literary and cultural analysis, across linguistic and geographic boundaries.