Revue Hybrides (RALSH)
e-ISSN 2959-8079 / ISSN-L 2959-8060
num. spécial 06 (octobre 2026)
An Ecocritical Study of Thomas Mofolo’s Chaka (1925) as a Romantic Novel
Étude écocritique du roman romantique Chaka (1925) de Thomas Mofolo
Résumé : Cette étude propose une analyse écocritique du roman historique Chaka de Thomas Mofolo, une œuvre souvent reconnue pour ses dimensions historiques, mythopoïétiques et politiques, mais rarement examinée sous l’angle de sa pertinence environnementale. Bien que Chaka ait été étudié à travers les prismes postcolonial, psychanalytique et culturel, l’imaginaire écologique du roman et la représentation de l’environnement naturel comme une force active façonnant la trajectoire tragique du protagoniste demeurent largement inexplorés. L’étude s’inscrit dans le champ de l’écocritique africaine et s’appuie sur les apports théoriques de Cheryll Glotfelty, Lawrence Buell, Greg Garrard ainsi que de théoriciens africains tels que Cajetan Iheka et Byron Caminero-Santangelo; avec pour objectif de démontrer que Mofolo élabore un récit écologique empreint de spiritualité et profondément ancré dans la cosmologie autochtone. L’étude fait recourt à la méthode qualitative et une analyse textuelle pour examiner comment le paysage du roman représente la nature et l’écologie du point de vue symbolique et thématique. Elle démontre l’interaction de l’environnement en tant qu’une entité dynamique et morale avec l’arrivée de Chaka au pouvoir. Elle explore l’aliénation spirituelle de Chaka et son éventuelle démise. Les résultats de l’étude nous éclairent sur les dimensions écologiques du roman. L’étude contribue ainsi à une compréhension plus globale de la littérature africaine qui apparait désormais comme un dépositaire d’une éthique environnementale et d’une philosophie culturelle. Le présent travail de recherche inscrit Chaka dans le champ disciplianire des humanités environnementales; ce faisant, elle offre une fenêtre permettant de réinterpréter les thèmes du pouvoir, du mythe et de la destruction au sein de la tradition littéraire africaine.
Mots-clé : Écocritique, Paysage, Pouvoir, Mythe, Littérature africaine
Abstract: This study presents an ecocritical analysis of the seminal historical novel, Chaka by Thomas Mofolo, a novel frequently recognized for its historical, mythopoeic and political dimensions but rarely interrogated for its environmental consciousness. Although Chaka has been examined through postcolonial, psychoanalytic, and cultural lenses, the novel’s ecological imagination and its portrayal of the natural environment as an active force in shaping the protagonist’s tragic trajectory remain largely unexplored. This study aims to position itself within the evolving field of African ecocriticism and draws on theoretical insights from Cheryll Glotfelty, Lawrence Buell, Greg Garrard, and African theorists such as Cajetan Iheka and Byron Caminero-Santangelo. The paper argues that Mofolo crafts a spiritually charged ecological narrative deeply rooted in indigenous cosmology. The study draws its underpinning from qualitative textual analysis to examine how the landscape, nature, and ecology are symbolically and thematically represented in the novel. The paper explores how the novelist uses the environment not as a setting but as a dynamic and moral entity and its interaction with Chaka’s rise to power, his spiritual alienation and ultimate decline. Since the study foregrounds the ecological dimensions of the novel, its contribution manifest itself in a more inclusive understanding of African literature which reveals itself as a repository of environmental ethics and cultural philosophy. The paper also positions the novel within the broader discourse of environmental humanities which gives an essential tool with which some themes such as power, myth, and destruction are reinterpreted in African literary tradition.
Keywords: Ecocriticism, Landscape, Power, Myth, African Literature
Reçu le : 26/08/2026 · Publié le : 31/10/2026
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