Female Narratives in Nollywood Melodramas

Book excerpt: This book investigates how identities for West African women are created and recreated through the broad interplay of Nollywood film viewing on social and individual levels. Since many Nollywood films are freely accessible online, the role of online communities repurposes Nollywood films. Female Narratives in Nollywood Melodramas addresses if this is a good or bad promoter of critical consciousness, as many of the films depict the stifling of women. The authors examine nine Nollywood melodramas through Black feminist, cultivation, audience reception, and social identity theories. Readers will gain an understanding of how Nollywood is a product and contributor to evolving processes of globalization. Recommended for scholars of film studies, communication, African studies, and women studies.