@article{ART003343735},
author={Young Kim},
title={Space Occupation and Youth Subject Formation - A Visual Archive of Aya de Yopougon -},
journal={Journal of Humanities},
issn={1598-8457},
year={2026},
number={101},
pages={213-242}
TY - JOUR
AU - Young Kim
TI - Space Occupation and Youth Subject Formation - A Visual Archive of Aya de Yopougon -
JO - Journal of Humanities
PY - 2026
VL - null
IS - 101
PB - Institute for Humanities
SP - 213
EP - 242
SN - 1598-8457
AB - This study analyzes the animated film Aya de Yopougon to examine how young people in Yopougon, Abidjan, in the late 1970s ‘constructed’ and ‘inhabited’ their identities within a specific spatiotemporal context. The analysis integrates Michel Agier’s urban anthropological insights with Achille Mbembe’s discourse on the postcolonial subject.
First, drawing on Agier’s concept of the ‘invention of the city’, the study shows that Yopougon is not merely a periphery but a dynamic space continually reshaped by the everyday practices of its residents. Second, applying Mbembe’s concepts of ‘intimacy’ and ‘conviviality’, it examines how Aya and her peers form their identities amid patriarchal authority and precarious futures. Third, it explores the transhistorical resonance between the spatial-temporal practices of this group and contemporary MZ generation cultures, exemplified by the ‘God-saeng’ (diligent life) lifestyle, multi-layered identities, and Newtro aesthetics.
In conclusion, the study argues that Aya de Yopougon moves beyond dominant tragic frames and narratives of African cities by visualizing the dignity of everyday life and serving as a ‘visual archive’ that reconstructs social memory in a contemporary form. It also suggests that such works can serve as a medium through which contemporary young people engage with processes of historical and cultural identity formation. In doing so, the study extends African visual media research into urban and youth studies and contributes to discussions on the shared conditions of postcolonial modernity.
KW - Aya de Yopougon;Michel Agier;Achille Mbembe;Invention of the City;Youth Identity
DO -
UR -
ER -
Young Kim. (2026). Space Occupation and Youth Subject Formation - A Visual Archive of Aya de Yopougon -. Journal of Humanities, 101, 213-242.
Young Kim. 2026, "Space Occupation and Youth Subject Formation - A Visual Archive of Aya de Yopougon -", Journal of Humanities, no.101, pp.213-242.
Young Kim "Space Occupation and Youth Subject Formation - A Visual Archive of Aya de Yopougon -" Journal of Humanities 101 pp.213-242 (2026) : 213.
Young Kim. Space Occupation and Youth Subject Formation - A Visual Archive of Aya de Yopougon -. 2026; 101 : 213-242.
Young Kim. "Space Occupation and Youth Subject Formation - A Visual Archive of Aya de Yopougon -" Journal of Humanities no.101(2026) : 213-242.
Young Kim. Space Occupation and Youth Subject Formation - A Visual Archive of Aya de Yopougon -. Journal of Humanities, 101, 213-242.
Young Kim. Space Occupation and Youth Subject Formation - A Visual Archive of Aya de Yopougon -. Journal of Humanities. 2026; 101 213-242.
Young Kim. Space Occupation and Youth Subject Formation - A Visual Archive of Aya de Yopougon -. 2026; 101 : 213-242.
Young Kim. "Space Occupation and Youth Subject Formation - A Visual Archive of Aya de Yopougon -" Journal of Humanities no.101(2026) : 213-242.
