當代迦納作家阿瑪 ‧ 阿塔 ‧ 艾杜首部作品《幽靈困境》以新舊時空背景的世代隔閡和衝突、傳統與現代觀念對女性期待的落差、當代迦納人的文化認同困境為主題。從 1965 年首度發表至今,此劇在迦納及許多西方國家仍持續演出。《幽靈困境》觸及了非洲後殖民國家必須面對的課題:離散情結、非洲傳統文化價值與西方教育思想的衝突。劇情描述迦納青年Ato Yawson 留學美國完成學業準備回非洲老家,但他事先並未告知迦納親族他將帶著在美國認識並結婚的非裔美國人 Eulalie 一起返鄉。戲劇張力來到高點起於 Eulalie 的突然出現,因她在這趟「溯源」之旅暴露了對非洲的刻板想像和無知的期待。尤其是她因避孕而遭受迦納社會嚴厲指責,被斥為「白種黑女」。她的美式想法和行為,像個幽靈,衝撞了夫家的非洲傳統思想。Ato 的外婆甚至嘲諷她是從迦納被販賣到美洲大陸的黑奴後裔,更批評她毫無部族根源觀念,質問「哪有樹是無根的?」。
「根」是艾杜書寫的核心議題,她擅長刻畫獨立後的迦納人民夾雜在非洲/歐美兩個思想體系所導致的身分認同主體性的反思。本論文以「根源探索」的概念為出發點,將探討艾杜如何透過由 Eulalie 的婆婆適時表達的姐妹情誼,去重塑非洲人對於離散族群與奴隸制創傷的觀點,同時剖析傳統非洲習俗與現代需求之間所產生的衝突,例如性別角色、科技進步以及文化融合等議題。
Ama Ata Aidoo, a contemporary Ghanaian writer, explores themes of gender, race, and sociocultural disparities in her debut play, The Dilemma of a Ghost, published in 1965. The play critically examines the postcolonial challenges faced by African nations, such as the complexities of diaspora and the conflicts between African and Western ideologies. It follows Ato Yawson, a young Ghanaian man returning home from university in the United States with his African-American wife, Eulalie. Her arrival sparks misunderstandings and estrangement from Ato’s family due to her stereotypical views of Africa and her American behaviors, causing her in-laws to label her as a “Black-white woman” with “no tribe” and a “ghost.” Ato’s grandmother questions Eulalie’s roots, underscoring Aidoo’s central theme of identity and the integration of African and Euro-American values.
This paper explores how Aidoo, through the timely expression of sisterhood by Eulalie’s mother-in-law, reshapes African perspectives on the diaspora and the trauma of slavery, while examining the conflicts arising from the tension between traditional African customs and the demands of modernity, such as gender roles, technological advances, and cultural integration.