AESTHETICS IN MODERN NIGERIAN POETRY: THE USE OF PROVERBS IN AKACHI ADIMORAEZEIGBO’SHEART SONGS

Lotachukwu Loveth Amalukwue

Abstract


The place of oral tradition or orature in modern Nigerian poetry cannot be over emphasized. The prominence and acceptance which the third generation of Nigerian poets enjoys are attributed totheir ‘appropriation of oral and traditional linguistic elements grounded in their social cultural milieu (Akingbe: 237)’. This paper studied how the poet (Akachi AdimoraEzeigbo) adapted the oral form (proverbs) in some of the poems in her collection of poetry- Heart Songs to create poetry that is perceptibly and aesthetically African. The study showed how she stylistically deployed proverbs as a means through which the ills in her society were criticized. She decried these ills in proverbs. This study is predicated on the Formalist critical theory (New Criticism) because of its stance on the literary work (poetry) as the sole source of evidence for interpreting it. Thus the researcher based the analyses of the collection of poetry studied on the evidence provided by the poems analyzed. The paper analysed only one of the genres of orature (proverbs) incorporated in the work. The research is qualitative as it showed the ingenuity of the poet studied in creatively adapting the oral elements ( proverbs) in the written environment in such a way that it added to the aesthetic quality of the work. This study concluded on the note that the oral forms are varied and could be adapted into the written environment. Poets are encouraged through this research to employ them (oral forms)more as they device novel ways in which they could be harnessed in their poetry.

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