Niyi osundare, interview with martijn meijer, 2002 see poetry. It gives a detailed summary of niyi osundare s poem titled the leader and the led with line by analysis and the styes used in writing the poem. Niyi osundare poems, quotations and biography on niyi osundare poet page. Founded in 1996 by the academy of american poets, natio. Niyi osundare born 1947 is a nigerian poet, playwright, essayist, and scholar. Two days after i saw the festival flyer, i found myself at the venuelead city university, ibadan. The written world a classroom resource using the poem raindrum by nigerian poet niyi osundare. Osundares poetry and the yoruba worldview pdf paperity. He reminded us of simple pleasures based on things you can touch and feel. And with that, a book, and the trajectory of the enchanted life of one of africas most prominent published poets began. Not my business by niyi osundare the radical truth. Oral poetry was part and parcel of everyday life of africans. Niyi osundare poems poems of niyi osundare poem hunter.
A nigerian of yoruba extraction,his poetry is richly coloured by common expressions of traditional life likeproverbs and songs which reflects the world view of his people. Why do you think the poet chose to set them out in this way. Niyi osundare is a nigerian prolific poet, dramatist and literary critic. He won many awards including the association of nigerian authors poetry prize, the cadburyana poetry prize, commonwealth poetry prize, and the noma award. Oclcs webjunction has pulled together information and resources to assist library staff as they consider how to handle coronavirus. Previously a professor at the english institute of the university of ibadan, he is. This poem talks about human activities which are directly affecting the environment and creating crisis all around the planet. Osundare advocates the poetry of performance performance instructions and musical effects are part of the poems as at once creative and deeply political. Niyi osundare was born in ikereekiti, nigeria, in 1947.
A nigerian of yoruba extraction,his poetry is richly coloured by common expressions of traditional life likeproverbs and songs which. The katrina poems by niyi osundare online at alibris. Poet, dramatist, critic, essayist, and media columnist, niyi osundare has authored over ten volumes of poetry, two books of selected poems, four plays, a book of essays, and numerous articles on literature, language, culture, and society. We in nigeria as a whole need to look to sri lanka and see what could be if we. This paper is an attempt to access selected poems from the nigerian poet, niyi osundare. Niyi osundare born in ikereekiti, nigeria, in 1947 is an essayist, writer for the theatre, lecturer and one of nigerias most celebrated poet.
The essentials of niyi osundares poetry researchgate. The poet niyi osundare was born 1947 in ikere ekiti, ekiti state, nigeria. Alliteration and assonance in niyi osundares songs of the marketplace. Niyi osundare as a poet of african journals online. Ebscohost serves thousands of libraries with premium essays, articles and other content including osundare s poetry and the yoruba worldview. Comparing hurrican hits england and not my business essay comparing hurrican hits england and not my business the two poems i am to compare are grace nichols hurricane hits england a poem that shows that the whole world is one world and how a storm reminds a caribbean woman of home. It can be said with considerable justification that niyi osundare is one of the most fecund poets writing in africa today. He regards his calling as a writer and his profession as a teacher as essentially complementary. Niyi osundare has also published four plays and essays on literature, politics and culture. The present collection testifies, wholly convincingly, to the poets belief that language the word defines personal and social history, expression. Books by niyi osundare author of city without people.
The visiting africanafrican diaspora artist series is a partnership between the university of michiganflint and the flint public library, funded in part by the ruth mott foundation. Not my business structure look closely at the first three stanzas of not my business by niyi osundare what is unusual about the way they are set out on the page. Alliteration and assonance in niyi osundares songs of the. A pragmatic analysis of some selected poems in osundares.
Waiting for the rain for hugh masekela by niyi osundare. I have read some of his worksincluding his valedictory lecture the universe in the university and his monograph the writer as righterand watched him speak on many occasions. Several studies have been carried out on the old poetry of niyi osundare using both literary and linguistic approaches. Interestingly, niyi osundare seems to draw at once upon almost all of these poetic subgenres when composing his poems. The study used ecocriticism, an aspect of literary criticism, as its theory, and interfaced this with the comparative literary approach.
Niyi osundares most popular book is so long a letter. Niyi osudare not my business poem by african poems. Analysis of not my business by niyi osundare naija poets. Random blues is a poetry comprising fifty five poems. Between the rich and the poor, niyi osundares excursion. Oct 26, 2010 jalessa morris october 26,2010 niyi osundare they too are the earth niyi osundares poem they too are the earth focuses on things that make up the earth. Numerous and frequentlyupdated resource results are available from this search.
Apr 11, 2012 niyi osundare alupayida metamorphosis i stay very long in the river and i become a fish with a head made of coral and fins which tame the distance of billowing depths i stay very long in the fish and i become a mountain with a mistcradled crest and feet carpeted by. The essentials of niyi osundares poetry flinders academic. Wisheswish i could still laugh with the lotuson the bank of the nile take off my clothes and dive into the zambezi join spirit dancersin the middle of the. Analysis of the leader and the led by niyi osundare youtube. He is a new orleansnigerian poet, dramatist, critical essayist, and columnist.
Two poems by osundare, niyi world literature today, vol. The character of literary forms always evolves with the passage of times. Songs of the marketplace niyi osundare pdf, download bookworm adventures volume 2 free full version, this thesis, entitled niyi osundare and the tradition of modern nigerian poetry. In fact, oral african poets have been commenting on. Songs of the marketplace 1983, village voices 1984, a nib in the pond 1986, the eye of the earth 1986, moonsongs 1988, and waiting laughters 1990.
Niyi narrated the poem through the third and the first person point of view. The author has won numerous awards for his poetry including the commonwealth poetry prize 1986, the cadbury poetry prize 1989 and in 1991 the noma award, africas most prestigious book prize. Waiting laughters is osundare s second volume of poetry, published to critical acclaim. Although african literature in its written form as against the traditional oral form has a relatively short pedigree, it has not failed to constantly renew itself by evolving, principally in its social functionality, either as an avenue to demonstrate a cultural point of view or a satirical vista. Random blues is a poetry comprising fifty five poems random blues 155 with. Waiting for the rain for hugh masekela by niyi osundare the world woke up today to the shocking news of the passing of hugh masekela, one of the most consequential african musicians. Phenomenal woman, still i rise, the road not taken, if you forget me, dreams.
Not my business they picked akanni up one morning beat him soft like clay. As i listened to the prose, poetry and the discussion which followed, i was constantly reminded of the militarisation of the niger delta from ken sarowiwa to the present rise of militancy. This poem evokes earths well being in the future through his optimistic voice which does not believe that the earth will end. The series brings authors, poets, playwrights, and journalists of african descent to flint, michigan. He gained degrees at the university of ibadan ba, the university of leeds ma and york university, canada phd, 1979. Literary historians in nigeria are wont to credit niyi osundare with being the leading light or. Anyokwu postulates that osundare appears to combine in his work concepts and traditions of yoruba culture and marxist ideology which, as anyokwu argues, locates osundare with other revolutionaryminded radical poets such as pablo neruda. Reflection of the struggle for a just society in selected. In his article myth and history in the poetry of osundare christopher anyokwu examines the interrelation of myth and history from an african perspective. Besides, hispoetry is accessible because in it he assumes the voice of the unletteredpeasants and. They picked akanni up one morningbeat him soft like clayand stuffed him down the belly. One of the striking things about this poem is osundares way of seeing his father, the farmer, in the metaphor of. In not my business, the people around the voice of the poem are unjustly taken in nigeria, but the voice says that it is not his business if he is not taken.
The very first time i saw not my business by niyi osundare, i so much liked it. It can be said with considerable justification that niyi osundare is one of themost fecund poets writing in africa today. Osundares poetry and the yoruba worldview by christopher. He regards his calling as a writer and his profession as a teacher as. A number of factors account for the historicizing imperative in his formal verse. It is a poetic irony refecting the journey as undertaken by the poet through the. Harry garuba, by niyi osundare premium times opinion.
Niyi osundare wrote not my business in accusation of the murderous dictatorship of general sanni abacha who ruled nigeria from 1993 to 1998. Niyi osundare has 18 books on goodreads with 619 ratings. It offers three different stories of oppression followed by the experience of the speaker. Previously professor from 1989 and head of english 199397 at the university of ibadan, he became professor of english at the university of new orleans in 1997. Festival held at the university of ibadan, nigeria, may 2627, 2015. Poetry not my business mrs thomsens virtual english class. In songs of the marketplace, osundare sets forth the essentials of his poetry, particularly in his manifesto poem captioned poetry is. He is professor of english at universities of new orleans and ibadan. In his article osundare s poetry and the yoruba worldview christopher anyokwu analyses the use of indegienous yoruba concepts found in niyi osundare s texts. Not my business by niyi osundare by stephanie burke on prezi. An approach to selected poems of niyi osundare sryahwa. From the level of technical maturity, it is apparent that the poems of a nib in the pond.
Niyi osundare is a nigerian poet, dramatist, and academic and has authored over ten volumes of poetry and four plays. He was formerly professor of english at the university of new orleans, usa. Professor niyi osundare is a teacher of language, a mild activist and a member of the association of nigerian authors ana. Widely regarded as one of africas preeminent writers and scholars, niyi osundare is a nigerian poet, playwright, essayist, humanenvironmental rights activist, and distinguished professor of english. Hailing from nigeria, niyi osundare finds an outlet in his poem not my business to express his views of the actions taken by repressive regimes such as the one that exists in his own country. Other poems written by the poet are they too are the earth, not my business, earths eye view, ours to plough not to plunder, and many more. Among his many prizes are the tchicaya u tamsi award for african poetry generally regarded as africas highest poetry prize and. Niyi osundare is currently visiting professor of african literature at. Eventually, he is taken but there is noone left to save him. A survey of themes and technique aderemi bamikunle niyi osundare has published six books of poetry.
Reliable information about the coronavirus covid19 is available from the world health organization current situation, international travel. Niyi osundare and earth poems mildred baryas house of life. African poetry and osundare s poetry poetry in africa did not start with the coming of the colonialists. Nneoma metala rated it really liked it feb 11, 2017. Analysis of the leader and the led by niyi osundare samuel enunwa. The poetry of osundare, to all intents and purposes, is committed to social change. Write a full paragraph explaining detailing analysing the message osundare makes in this poem. Two days at niyi osundare international poetry festival. The data for this work were sourced from niyi osundares random blues, a collection of poems that was birthed through the inspiration which the poet drew from a group of his enthusiastic students at the university of new orleans. This is what i try to express in my english lines too. Dec 01, 2009 osundare dramatises the role of the poet in his volume of poems entitled a nib in the pond 1986. The data for this work were sourced from niyi osundare s random blues, a collection of poems that was birthed through the inspiration which the poet drew from a group of his enthusiastic students at the university of new orleans.
Osundare have used poetryto promote a healthy and sustainable environment. The first three stanzas of this fourstanza poem are identical in structure. This study therefore examines the language use in one of his. Jul 09, 2012 besides jack mapanje, we had niyi osundare, whom we loved because of his allegory, his closeness to earth, how so attached he was to land. Osundare has been variously labelled by critics who have popularized. The poems of niyi osundare essay african literature. Not my business is far beyond a poem, a poem sculptured by a professional poetic artist which recalled a past experience. He goes from modern times mentioning snakeskin shoes and mercedes tyres to centuries continue reading. Read, highlight, and take notes, across web, tablet, and phone. How does it change challenge support your perspectiveviews. Niyi osundare s free verse poem not my business is about the way that tyranny grows if not opposed.
In 1991, it won the noma award for publishing in africa, the most prestigious book prize for new works published within the african continent. Osundare is an intensely political poet and a vehement champion for human rights. He has published 18 volumes of poetry, several plays, essays, articles and criticism. Excursion is considered a fairly long poem built in niyi osundare s poetry collection songs of the marketplace. Pdf a stylistic analysis of selected poems in niyi osundares. Niyi osundare s most popular book is so long a letter. The event referenced in the first chapter of the book was necessary to ground the reader in the time and situation of. This story is set in nigeria but could apply to other countries too. Songs of the marketplace, a nib in the pond and village voices, yield language that contrasts with this torrent of abuse is therefore. Read all poems of niyi osundare and infos about niyi osundare. Activities in this resource are aimed at pupils in lower secondary school s1s3. Niyi osundare s poetry s cholarship on the poetry of the nigerian writer niyi osundare continues to privilege the social and political content of his work, in addition, of course, to his fascinating appropriation of the techniques of indigenous yoruba poetry. Every month is a good month to appreciate poetry, but in april its an official thing. Songs of the marketplace 1983, village voices 1984, a nib in the pond 1986, the eye of the earth 1986, moonsongs 1988.
One of the most prolific and highly regarded of nigerias contemporary poets, osundare s work utilizes a wide. Analysis of the leader and the led by niyi osundare. Aug 03, 2015 prof niyi osundare reads a poem at hargeysa international book fair 2015. Other published volumes of poetry include songs of the season 1987, moonsongs 1988, waiting laughters 1990, selected poems 1992, midlife 1993, the word is an egg 2000 and tender moments 2006. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. Six poems from niyi osundare in african writingonline. An ecocritical perspective by fortress isaiah a ayinuola cupg0401 a thesis submitted to the department of languages, college of development studies cds of covenant university ota, nigeria in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of doctor of. Premium times march 21, 2020 harry garuba, by niyi osundare 20200321t17. Poet, dramatist, critic, essayist, and media columnist, niyi osundare has authored 18 books of poetry, two books of selected poems, with individual poems in over 70 journals and magazines across the world, four plays, a book of essays, and numerous monographs and articles on literature, language, culture, and society. The people voted stoh blues eco conflict in niyi osundare s horses ufahamu a journal of african stus 0715cd017 of ilorin sensual and sensuous imagery as eco critical ysis the poem our earth will not niyi osundareeco conflict in niyi osundare s horses of memory anniyi osundare and derek walcott b 1947 smemory and homeing. The aim was to show how the poets spaciotemporal realities undergird their delineations of the natural environment in their poetry.
Like many of the postmodern poetry that blossomed in the twentieth century. Use evidence quotes and make reference to the language features. Pdf a stylistic analysis of selected poems in niyi. Pdf the leader and the led analysis by niyi osundare. In yoruba, you dont say i am going to read poetry, you say i am going to sing, to chant poetry. Among his many prizes are the tchicaya u tamsi award for african poetry generally regarded as africas highest poetry prize and the fonlonnichols award for excellence in.
270 1042 1533 928 1286 321 7 939 3 298 1412 603 754 1275 1107 1083 1519 1568 636 191 1159 198 1587 1448 833 889 293 860 846 268 1293 873 1307 486