The basic characteristics of African English Literature are:

1) Written in both African and European languages. The predominant African languages used are Amharic, Zulu, Hausa, and
Swahili.

2) Encapsulates different periods in African history, from ancient Africa to the period of Imperialist domination (15th-19th
centuries), and from the post-colonialist and reconstruction period (19th-mid-twentieth century) to the post-
independent/contemporary period (mid-twentieth century-present).

3) Includes oral and written literature from more than 3,000 ethnic African groups.

4) May be regionally-based, such as West African Literature, North African Literature, South African Literature, or East African
Literature.

5) Oral literature comes in varied forms such as myths, folk tales, proverbs, dramas, songs, and folk tales. They often involve
stories about the creation of the world and legends about how various powerful dynasties originated in African regions.

6) During the colonization period, written slave narratives documented European atrocities and the horrors of slavery. Nationalist
newspapers as well as resistance/liberation poetry critiqued European colonizers and their practices. In the 19th century, various
African authors produced works in English criticizing colonialist ambitions and advocating for independence. These authors
include Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, and Ngugi wa Thiong'o.

8) During the post-colonialist era, various authors denounced the practice of apartheid. These authors include Nadine Gordimer,
Bessie Head, and J.M. Coetzee.

9) Last, but not least, contemporary African literature often documents how corrupt, modern African governments perpetuate
the suffering of the African people.

Tips on how to make a informative speech

 Have lots of examples, narratives, and illustrations for the audience to view while the speaker is talking. Handouts are
a great way to get the audience involved.
 Talk slowly and do not rush through sections.
 Have inflection in your voice and use tone to convey messages.
 Include presentations aids such as; models, photographs, graphs, illustrations, word charts, people, or maps.
 Remember to breath and to stay calm. Having some sort of tissue in your pocket to wipe sweaty palms on or having a
stress ball in your pocket to squeeze while talking can help.
 Deliver your speech 10+ times in front of a mirror and practice, practice, practice!
 Deliver your speech in front of as many people who will sit still to listen as possible; kids, husband, wife, mother, father,
sister, brother, friend, or pet. Doesn’t matter who listens the important thing is repeating the speech over a seend over.
 Say the speech from beginning to end without stopping. If there are errors to be corrected or things to change wait
until the end.
 Write the speech on index cards and create a delivery outline so while you are speaking it is easier to stay on track.