Magic Realism in Odili Ujubuonu’s Pride of the Spider Clan and Iweka’s So Bright a Darkness

Abstract

Literary works often explore the forces behind the strangeness of things and occurrences in human life, and also try to clarify the doubts bestowed on them. These works showcase the cultural sophistication of the society, and as well celebrate aspects of culture which serve as gateway to the enlightenment of minds wallowing in doubts on the existence of supernatural forces in the affairs of man. So, ever since man’s existence on earth, certain things have been left at the background due to his inability to decode them. They have been made sacrosanct even when proofs exist, and should stir man in investigations to unravel the mysteries surrounding them. But unfortunately, these proofs have also been slammed with doubts. The aim of this paper, is to highlight these issues, particularly on magic realism with evidence from Odili Ujubuonu’s Pride of the Spider Clan and Chidubem Iweka’s so Bright a Darkness. Sociological criticism and the reader-response theories were employed to critically depict the existence of supernatural manipulations in the world of man. In the works under study, the novelists left no stone unturned in their explorations of these supernatural involvements as mysterious in the affairs of man. Thus, the study brought to light the impacts of supernatural forces in human lives and society, and also clears the doubts which readers/scholars may have in their minds for years as regards the concept of magic realism.