Namwali Serpell's The Old Drift as a Postcolonial Text: A Semiotic, Linguistic and Onomastic Analysis

This essay analyses Namwali Serpell’s seminal novel The Old Drift from a postcolonial perspective. In pursuing this goal, the utilises some aspects of theory, semiotics, onomastics and linguistics. particular, it looks at how Serpell reinterprets history colonial Zambia as projected interpreted by writers. findings suggest that epitomises new drift in Zambian literature. problematises views imperial centre exemplified literature suggests colonisers used gun, fraud, deception, language names means subjugating local people dispossessing them their land. Therefore, whole enterprise was pursued for benefit white settlers expense motivated greed, selfishness self-aggrandisement.