EXPLORING AFROJUJUISM IN AMOS TUTUOLA'S MY LIFE IN THE BUSH OF GHOSTS: SPIRITUALITY, MYTH, AND SURREALISM

Abstract

Abstract: "Afrojujuism", a word that combines traditional African spirituality with the mysticism of "juju", is how the supernatural and the natural are blended in African writings and culture. Amos Tutuola's My Life in the Bush of Ghosts (1954) defines Afrojujuism and its place in African culture. Tutuola's work, one of the first examples of African speculative fiction, opens readers to a world where the magical and the real worlds mix. The concept of “juju” encompasses magical beliefs and practices in African culture, and this theme is present throughout Tutuola's story. The purpose of this article is to examine some of the key passages in My Life in the Bush of Ghosts to explain Afrojujuistic themes and connotations. The novel is about a young man who finds himself in a mysterious bush filled with missing persons, ghosts, and other strange creatures. By exploring the hidden meanings of these supernatural events, examples from the text are presented to show how Tutuola created a unique literary framework that combined Yoruba cosmology with Western literary traditions and ultimately told a unique Afrojujuist story. This research aims to help readers learn more about Afrojujuism as a new idea in African literary studies and how it shaped African science fiction and fantasy.

Keywords: Philology, Western literature, English literature, Afrojujuism, spirituality