Jack Mapanje

Who is Jack Mapanje?

Jack Mapanje is a Malawian poet and linguist widely regarded as one of the most important voices in modern African prison and exile literature. Born in the Kadango area of Malawi's Zomba district, he studied linguistics and became a lecturer at the University of Malawi, where he chaired the Department of English. His debut poetry collection, "Of Chameleons and Gods" (1981), used allegory and ambiguity to comment obliquely on life under Hastings Banda's authoritarian rule, a style that drew official suspicion. In 1987 he was arrested without charge or trial and held for nearly four years, an imprisonment that became a rallying cause for PEN International and Amnesty International until his release in 1991. He later settled in Britain, taught creative writing and African literature, and published further collections including "The Chattering Wagtails of Mikuyu Prison," documenting his years in detention.

Sources: Mapanje, Jack, "The Chattering Wagtails of Mikuyu Prison" (1993) · PEN International case archives on Jack Mapanje · Encyclopaedia Britannica / African literature reference entries on Jack Mapanje