By Sibdou Issifu
“In a world where truth can be stranger than fiction, the power of storytelling has emerged as a formidable weapon against global injustice. Through the lens of literature, authors have shone a spotlight on the darkest corners of our society, giving voice to the voiceless and challenging the status quo.”
Introduction
Fiction has historically functioned as a creative medium for interrogating societal norms, unveiling systemic inequities, and providing a platform for underrepresented groups to share their struggles and challenge the status quo. Authors produce works that exceed mere entertainment, to initiate critical engagement, cultivate empathy, and motivate socio-political activism through fictional writing.
Authors use the creation of fictional worlds to approach sensitive subjects with sufficient detachment, making them easier for a broader audience to engage with. This approach encourages thoughtful reflection and open discussion on contentious issues without isolating readers or confronting their existing beliefs too forcefully.
Section 1: Fiction as a Catalyst for Activism
Fiction holds a unique ability to spotlight societal issues, nurture empathy, and spark intellectual engagement in ways that provoke action. As Durand (2019) asserts, using literature to engage in national discourse and catalyze social change provides immense potential for modern literary education. The process of interacting with fiction allows readers to explore fundamental human values, such as dignity, community, reconciliation, care, and resistance, thus cultivating an awareness that extends beyond the personal to the societal level (Karmakar, 2024).
Fictional narratives often shed light on systemic inequalities and oppressive power structures to encourage readers to critically evaluate existing societal frameworks. For example, works like Joseph Heller’s Catch-22 (1961) and Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale (1985) use fictional narratives to examine the dehumanizing realities of war and gender-based oppression, respectively. These works engage with contemporary social issues by pointing out the absurdity of war and the brutal suppression of women’s rights.
Karmakar (2024) highlights how literature plays a great part in social responsibility by promoting critical intellectual engagement and allowing others to gain varied perspectives without actually living it. Fiction encourages readers to question both the world around them and also their position within it. This makes literary works serve as reflections of societal conditions; calls to action for those seeking to remedy these injustices; and catalysts for societal change.
Section 2: Fiction and Justice
Fiction is used in questioning the gaps in both legal and societal systems. It acts as a reflective mirror the prompts readers to assess societal norms and justice structures critically. Historically, literature has been a powerful tool for protest since it provides authors with an outlet for expressing dissent and channeling frustrations. Writing often serves as a conduit for initiating change, as it encourages readers to confront injustices and take action.
Fluck (2003) discusses how narrative forms expose systemic injustices and making visible the hidden structures of power and oppression. Fiction serves as a vital space for articulating claims for justice, especially as it confronts the growing complexities of power dynamics in modern society. Fluck argues that as definitions of power evolve and individual claims for self-realization become more radicalized, fiction’s role in advocating for justice becomes even more pronounced, allowing for the search for individual and collective justice to be explored in depth.
Section 3: Literary Truth-Telling in Action
Throughout history, many renowned authors have expressed their dissatisfaction with the world by writing stories that address their issues. Let’s consider two.
Case Study 1: Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart – A Critique of Colonialism’s Cultural Devastation
Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart (1958) is a novel depicting the cultural and social destruction of Igbo society under British rule. The novel is about an intricate portrayal of both the internal and external struggles faced by Okonkwo, the protagonist, whose life symbolizes the collapse of his indigenous world due to the invasion of colonial powers. Achebe uses the personal story of Okonkwo to reflect broader themes such as identity, tradition, and resistance, all framed against the historical backdrop of colonial domination.
The truth-telling in Achebe’s novel is centered around the painful reality of cultural erasure, with the arrival of European missionaries and colonial administrators. Achebe’s novel questions the destructive nature of colonialism by focusing on its exploitative motives under the guise of enlightenment (Achebe, 1958). Achebe used Things Fall Apart to challenge readers to reflect on the true cost of colonialism and the ways in which it re-shaped African societies.
Case Study 2: Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things – Exposing Caste-Based Discrimination and Environmental Injustice
Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things (1997) is a novel truth-telling on the social and environmental injustices in post-colonial India. The novel identifies the pervasive effects of caste discrimination, familial trauma, and the exploitation of the environment. Roy wrote beautifully to produce a complex, layered story that spans across generations, and draws connections between personal stories and the broader social issues of caste-based prejudice and ecological damage.
One of the most potent examples of her literary truth-telling is her depiction of how caste and class systems continue to define and divide lives, despite the apparent progress of modern India. Roy describes how the past is a constant, oppressive force, which highlights how historical inequities continue to shape individuals’ fates.
Conclusion
Fiction serves as a powerful tool for addressing societal inequities, developing empathy, and inspiring visceral reflection. Most authors use fiction storytelling to expose the painful realities of injustice, including cultural erasure, caste discrimination, and systemic injustice. Fiction can act as catalyst for activism and agent of change. Fiction enables us to confront uncomfortable truths and challenge the status quo, as well as inspire readers to re-evaluate their stance in the pursuit of justice.
So, what stories will you engage with next to deepen your understanding of global injustices? How might they inspire you to take action?
References
- Karmakar, G. (2024). Literature, Activism, and Transformative Learning. Current Writing: Text and Reception in Southern Africa, 36(2), 101–108. https://doi.org/10.1080/1013929X.2024.2410067
- Fluck, W. (2003). Fiction and Justice. New Literary History, 34(1), 19–42. http://www.jstor.org/stable/20057763
- Nadel, I. (2018). Literary Justice vs. Justice in Literature. Interdisciplinary Literary Studies, 20(1), 33–47. https://doi.org/10.5325/intelitestud.20.1.0033
- Durand, E. Sybil. 2019. ‘Reading for Change: Toward a New Literary Activism.’ Research in the Teaching of English 54 (1): 88–90.
- Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. Heinemann, 1958.
- Roy, Arundhati. The God of Small Things. HarperCollins, 1997.
- Heller, J. (1961). Catch-22.
- Atwood, M. (1985). The Handmaid’s Tale.