Revisiting the colonial past and its margins: memory and escrevivencias (writing-as-living) in Tsitsi Dangarembga (Zimbabwe, 1980-2020)

Abstract

This article examines the literary and essayistic production of Zimbabwean novelist Tsitsi Dangarembga, focusing on her novel Nervous Conditions (1988) and the construction of narratives about the colonial past, utilizing Michel Pollak’s concept of “subterranean memories.” The objective is to investigate how Dangarembga employs literature to reinterpret the past and challenge dominant historical discourses, with particular attention to the representation of marginalized groups and the agency of Zimbabwean women in colonial and postcolonial contexts. The methodology is based on documentary criticism and theoretical dialogue between History and Literature, viewing literature as a tool to critically address political contexts in contemporary African history. The study also incorporates Conceição Evaristo's notion of “escrevivências” (writing-as-living) to explore forms of resistance that transcend armed struggle, such as everyday practices and peripheral memories. The article discuss how Nervous Conditions and Dangarembga’s essays revisit the colonial past and interrogate post-independence nationalist narratives, shedding light on the tensions between official discourses and marginalized experiences. Her work offers new perspectives on memory and uses of the past in postcolonial societies, reaffirming literature as a critical instrument to reinterpret complex histories and resist historical exclusions.