Vol. 6, Issue 2, Part H (2024)

The research paper explores the profound journey of self-discovery and cultural reconnection undertaken by the protagonist, Avey Johnson, in Paule Marshall’s celebrated novel. The narrative centers on Avey’s spiritual and emotional transformation as she moves from a life of material comfort and cultural disconnection to a deeper understanding of her ancestral roots and heritage. Through symbolic landscapes, ancestral voices, and ritual practices, the novel foregrounds the role of cultural memory as both a healing force and a source of identity reclamation for diasporic individuals. Marshall’s memory not just as a recollection of the past, but as a living, dynamic presence that shapes identity, restores historical continuity, and reconnects the African American experience with its African origins. The echoes of ancestry across geographical and psychological terrains, the novel emphasizes the importance of cultural rituals, communal bonds, and ancestral legacy in restoring wholeness to fragmented lives. Ultimately, Praisesong for the Widow becomes a powerful meditation on the necessity of remembering, honouring, and reclaiming one’s cultural inheritance in the face of displacement and assimilation.