Skip to main content

Modern African Poetry


Modern African Poetry
Modern African poetry, or literature, is not only modern in terms of being recent. It is termed modern because it is not traditional African poetry, or literature, and because it is pro and post independence in some region, and because it is recent. Moreover, certain uniform traits exists among poems, and literature, in this era.

Some of these traits, features, characteristics or attributes are evident in their forms and contents. Examples of them are: syntactic jugglery, imagism, fragmentation, neologism, allusiveness, among others. They are also termed Modernist poetry because most of these poets imitates the techniques of the European Modernist poets too.

From North Africa down to South Africa, poems in the early 19th century were mostly either written against oppression, imperialism, colonialism and apartheid. The poets who wrote against colonialism and imperialism, the first set, are regarded as the pioneer poets. Examples are Wole Soyinka, Christopher Okigbo, among others. The writings of these poets emerges in the 1950s and transcends into the post colonial era.

The post colonial era witnessed a lot of African poets and writers and in the scene; probably because of the independence and the freedom of expression. However, this class of poets did not come to sing praises to the ears of their political leaders, but rather to express their political disillusionment in their various country’s administrations.

The literature of disillusionment is the form of literature that expresses the utter disappointments and hopelessness climaxed in the exercise of spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings. It emerges as a result of a cumulative aura of dystopia, disappointment and failed promises that African states, or newly independent colonies, encountered just barely a decade, and less, after self rule or independence.

After independence in many African countries, many people hoped for a better life, rooms for new opportunities and better innovation that will ensure progress. Africans also hoped for better administrations in which every one will be evenly represented. 

However, these did not come into fruition due to the type of rulers that took over from the European colonial masters that vacated the seat.

It is this utter disappointment, sorrow, and anguish the citizens felt towards their government system that literary artists, especially poets, took upon themselves, as a form of social conscience, to serve as the “voice of the street”.



Ayeojuyo, Olamilekan Joshua.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Analysis of "Come Away my Love" by Joseph Kariuki

According to Chinua Achebe, as stated in the Author’s biography, “Come Away my Love” is a love poem. It is a love poem about the trials and tribulation of a love affair between a black man from Kenya and a white woman from England. Analogously, it is about the embodiment of altercations experienced in an inter-racial relationship. That is, this will be the same issue encountered by an Asian espoused to a European/American, or an Indian alongside an African. Being a love poem, the title of the poem gives a hint about the typical lovers’ activities. They come away from the public eyes into a secret/romantic environment where there love, affection and energy can be optimally consummated. However, another meaning can be derived from this title. The meaning that can be derived is that the persona is asking his lover to rendezvous at a secret location away from the society that has proven counterproductive towards their love. The society has been an inhibiting factor for their love be...

JOSEPH KARIUKI

JOSEPH KARIUKI’S BIOGRAPHY. A lot of commentary is written on his existence on earth, but just a little was mentioned about his birth, death, Alma Matter and about his existence. The little that is known about him states that he is a Kenyan, born in Banana Hill. He is educated both in Kenya and abroad: at Makerere and Cambridge.  He is popular for his famous poem which is an ode to the former Kenyan president, Jomo Kenyatta.   However, nothing was said about his date of birth, parents, marriage, occupation and his childhood. Chinua Achebe’s comment about Kariuki goes thus: that he has met Joseph Kariuki through his poems, especially through his love poem “Come Away my Love”.  He opined that the poem is about the trials and tensions of an African in love with a white girl in Britain.

Mayorkun’s “Your Body”: The 2 Meanings Attached to the DMW Artiste’s Song.

  Mayorkun ’s “ Your Body ”: The 2 Meanings Attached to the DMW Artiste’s Song. Produced by Fresh VDM, and released December 4, 2020. Here is the amazing visual rendering of the song by Dammy Twitch . Mayorkun’s “Your Body" was released December 4, 2020. Because the song has grown on us all, we don't really notice that the song hasn't been around that long.  The song was welcomed with love and light by fans all over the world. Especially the ladies. (Quite ironic, right?) because the song is a satire about them. Like many other Mayorkun’s songs with the “ge ge” trademark, it was a hit (back to back).  While many fans vibed to it, a handful of us were ruminating on the lyrics. Asking life saving questions such as: “what could this song mean? Whom is it about?”  “Tell me wetin dey  your body your body….she ki n kaye fun e tori o yodi… gege”. One question keeps popping: is he curious about the innumerable pleasures in the lady’s body? Or, Is he being sarcastic? Sa...