The portrayal of a dehumanized individual in twists of fate by Gichaba Nyantino
Abstract
This study interrogates the portrayal of the degraded individual by Nyantino in Twists of Fate. The study focuses on the contemporary world, particularly Kenya. The study seeks to show socio-environmental factors and dehumanization, psychological tendencies emanating from dehumanization, and the writer's style of presenting deviant characters in the text. The deviated behaviour of characters then shows how the society has been fragmented, as a result of dehumanization of individuals. The study engages a theoretical framework that embraces psychoanalytic, formalism and cultural theories. The theories assist in revealing the characters' behaviour, how the writer's writing strategies unravel the extent to which the behaviour of the various individuals in the text affects the society. The importance of this study is to specifically show the loss of humanness in the society's people and yet as human beings we need each other's support and company.
The study intended to find out how literature deals with the question of why social etiquette among people has become almost invisible, a practice that is prominently
featuring in social institutions. People have become strangers to each other. Besides the primary text, works on the relevant theories as well as various sources on the subject of dehumanization were consulted. The study seeks to show how society is teamed with dehumanized persons who have led to a degeneration of society.
The study engaged in the primary methodology tha~ involved a close literary analysis of the text. An analysis of the thoughts of the characters as presented by the author was key to understanding the extent of dehumanization.
Publisher
University of Nairobi, Kenya