Do Afrofuturist heroes in twenty-first century fictional medialisations adopt, adapt or challenge meritocratic ideas, which are often complicit with a Eurocentric tradition of thought? This project, which investigates conceptualisations and representations of heroes against the backdrop of meritocratic narratives is informed by Afrofuturist traditions, but firmly located in the twenty-first century, which has seen an unprecedented revival of Afrofuturist narratives that tend to project heroic protagonists; it investigates (tensions inherent in) Afrofuturist visual and writing practices from the African continent and across the African diaspora.
Researcher: Josephine Ofei
Guest researcher (summer 2025): Elisabeth Abena Osei (University of Maryland)
Relevant publications:
- Ofei, Josephine Delali. “Review of Afrofuturisms: Ecology, Humanity, and Francophone Cultural Expressions, by Isaac Vincent Joslin.” African Studies Quarterly, vol. 23, nos. 3–4, Dec. 2025, pp. 123–124. African Studies Quarterly
- Ofei, Josephine Delali. "Africanfuturist/Afrofuturist dialogues and the limits of representation: Speculative & Science Fiction: African Literature Today 39, edited by Louisa Uchum Egbunike and Chimalum Nwankwo, Woodbridge, UK, James Currey, 2021, xiv+ 256 pp." Canadian Journal of African Studies/Revue canadienne des études africaines 59.3 (2025): 629-633.
Activities :
Ofei, Josephine Delali “Futures Beyond Boundaries: Transnational Afrofuturist Narratives and the Reimagining of African Identity.” Public lecture, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana, 1 April 2026.
