The Stranglehold of English Lit

Felix Mnthali's poem titled The Stranglehold of English Lit is about his dislike for English literature. He believes that the Africans shouldn't have to read and learn English literature if they don't want to. He talks about questions that relate to language and class. He asks, “How could questions be asked at Makerere and Ibadan, Dakar and Ford Hare’—with Jane Austen at the centre?”. He brings up a good point with Jane Austen and how her people don't work in her books. He explained how her books trick the Africans into thinking that the British are such great people. He says "Jane Austen lulled the sons and daughters of the dispossessed into calf-love" which means that the literature is deceiving. Although Jane Austen's books are very popular, he does make a valid point on how her literature tricks the African's into thinking that the British lead such great lives. It doesn't seem fair that if you take literature in Africa, you take British literature and that's final. I can't imagine what it would be like if the roles were reversed. If we have to read only African literature, I don't think I would understand why. Especially if the Africans were taking over our land while we were reading about how they were such great people.