This volume reflects a broadening area of English Studies that takes in non-western literatures and places more emphasis on the contexts and broader notions of "writing". It discusses writing from and about Africa and touches on studies in black writing, colonialism and imperialism, and cultural development in the Third World. The collection begins by providing a historical introduction to the main regional traditions, and then builds on this to discuss issues such as: oral traditions; the significance of literature as a Western import; representations of Africa in Western writing; African writing against colonialism; popular writing; and the representation of women.