1.1 Introduction
Osundare’s nature poetry earth and the rain have great relevance and significance. Earth is considered to be the source of life and wealth. But between earth and man, there is the rain serving as an agent or regulator. Osundare’s concern with physical nature is varied. Apart from showing the importance of earth (nature) it is also used to show that the earth (nature) signifies wealth and all the life-giving forces. It is mother-earth and natural laws demand that the wealth accruing from nature should be used for the advancement of society. In the collection ‘The Eye of the Earth’ Osundare has the capacity to evoke a mood of romantic nostalgia and introspection. This very method affords the poet the opportunity to experiment with contrasting situations.
As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Limitations of the Study and Definition of technical terms.
1.2 Background of Study
African oral aesthetics or social relevance is the verbal components of African oral literature. They are equipments of traditional vernacular rhetoric’s and “traditional modes of linguistic expression”3. They are indicators of the oratorical skills of a setting, where the art of narration flourish for long before the arrival of writing. Traditional oral aesthetics include poetry of all kinds: Praise poetry, Zorges, Maiden chants, hunters chants, panegyrics, and a lot more as distinctively associated with different traditional settings, proverbs, chants, incantations and succinct witting sayings are parts of the traditional aesthetics. The aesthetics of these compositions are traceable to the artistic verbal associations of cleverly woven words and expressions that often involve a rhythmic and harmonious interplay. Their philosophical and ethical imports often indicate the height of their aesthetics.
In African oral traditions, poetry carries the existential experience of Africans. In Yoruba cosmology for instance, there is a recitations called ‘Ewi’, for some professionally trained Orators known as ‘Akewi’, which narrates and express communal, moral and at times, romantic subject. At times, it becomes a fundamental commentary on some injustices in the traditional community. Without poetry among the Yoruba’s and Africans as a whole nothing can never be achieve in their world of traditional. In other words, there is a huge dependence on the traditional African community, as it outlines the society they live in.
African poets appear to have demonstrated a well-marked departure from traditional poetic conventions. Their work portrays and demonstrates a radical rupturing or dislodging of traditional conventions. Among the modern poets which belongs to the third generation, there abound quite a number often in “a deliberate artistic effort imaginatively transfer materials from oral, literature” and use them to handle modern themes in an amazingly creative fashion. The modern poets further reflects identity and national usefulness as a unifying subject matter; it speaks the mind of the pioneer poets such as Nnamdi Azikwe, Dennis Osadebey, David Diop, Sedar Senghor and their contemporaries against colonialism and imperialism. Their poems are response to the happenings of the society. While the responses to the happening are decrying rule of the Europeans over their environment and demanding self-government, the Franco-phone poets especially in West Africa, grow more protestant assertive of African culture and values. The degree of the latter’s reaction gives birth to an ideology called Negritude – “the cultural heritage, the values and above all the spirit of Negro-African civilization”.
Therefore, in Nigeria where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to know the Social Relevance of Niyi Osundare's Eye of the Earth.
1.3 Statement of Problems
Investigation revealed that sometimes, people are aware that they have societal problems but may not know the source of those problems or take upon themselves to find out and may be reluctant towards rising to the occasion and fighting their way out of the problems especially when they are caused by their self-chosen leaders who use their privileged positions and authority to oppress them. Thus, ultimately, these societal ills are revealed to incite revolution to cause a change.
1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study
The aim of the study is to scrutinize the Social Relevance of Niyi Osundare's Eye of the Earth. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:
- To examine the use of socio-cognizance of Osundare in the poet titled “Eye of the Earth”.
- To embark on a scholarly voyage in analyzing the poet creative effort.
- To observe the reason why poet is not merely reproducing the social artifacts.
- To ascertain the social relevance in the field of oral literature in the poetic genre.
1.5 Research Questions
The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:
- What is the reason why poet is not merely reproducing the social artifacts?
- What is the social relevance in the field of oral literature in the poetic genre?
- What is the use of socio-cognizance of Osundare in the poet titled “Eye of the Earth”?
1.6 Justification/Significance of Study
This study is paramount for the purpose of scholarship. It is also significant since it will illustrate the path of studies in oral literature in a way to stimulate other scholars’ interest in the field. And it will also ignite interest of contemporary and functional artistic imprints. It will also help to sound a call for the need to further functionality domesticates African poetry.
This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.
1.7 Scope of Study
The scope of the research is focused on the Social Relevance of Niyi Osundare's Eye of the Earth. Niyi Osundare has quite a number of works on poetry. For the purpose of this study of his work will be studied.
This is the Eye of the Earth. The collection is of poems therein the Eye of the Earth is chosen for this study because a thorough study of these indicates that they relate to thematic concern of the study.
1.8 Limitations of the Study
During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:
- Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
- Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
- Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
- Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection.
1.9 Methodology
All the poems in The Eye of the Earth will form the population of this research. The selection of poems will be done through systematic sampling method, the relevance of each sample shall be determined by its consonance to the crux of this treatise, which is centered on the use of socio-cognizance. The theory of formalism will be the base, which the sample will be analyzed.
According to Wumi Raji, (1999:212) ed. E. Adegbija: formalism refers to the emphasizing of formal element in a work of art thus emphasis of the school of formalism is the language which is ‘for grounded’ and this is especially true of the ports language as will be revealed.
The recorder will consult the library for available data, while enhance the relevance of the study to scholarship.
1.10 Autobiography of Niyi Osundare
Niyi Osundare was born in Ikere-Ekiti, Ondo State in 1947. he studies language and literature at Ibadan, Leeds and Toronto Universities. He is a Professor and heads the English faculty of Ibadan University. In his county, he is well known for his literacy reviews, comments and columns in the Nigeria Sunday Tribune in Series of article titled Says of the Season air at making poetry accessible.
