Comparison and Contrast of the Short Story and Oral Narrative. By Henry Kwaghkule.

The short story and oral narrative are subgenres of prose fiction. The short story refers to a literary text with a considerable small length that can be read within a day which discusses one major issue. It is usually less than a novel in size and treats one major issue using few characters,a concise and condensed language and straight plot. It has abrupt starting, a single setting, singleness of event among others as its basic features. According to Edgar Allan Poe as cited in The substance of Literature by Tyoor Victor, "short story is enough to be read in one sitting and constructed to create a single effect" This means a story writer has one particular issue to tackle. Oral narrative on the other hand, is an aspect of oral literature that refer to moonlight stories told with the chief aim of teaching moral lessons especially the younger ones. Oral narrative usually has a lively beginning known as opening glee and state its lessons at the end. In African continent, the trickster's story features a wise and crafty animals often finding itself in terrible situation but amazingly using it craftiness and wisdom to escape as in the Heir in Tiv KwaghLom and the Tortoise in Yoruba Ijapa, all are brief examples of common oral narrative in African setting. A striking feature that contrast the short story and oral narrative is that, the short story neither requires an opening glee nor ending that States the lesson derivable from the story. The tradition of oral narrative is to teach moral lessons to younger generation hence the narrator is expected to state the lesson learnable from the story. Also it is dramatic in nature, the oral narrative begins with an opening glee that invites the already sited audience in the story. The case with the short story is different. Even though it is possible to derive a lesson from a short story the author does not state in his or her narration what he or she considers to be the lessons but allow the readers to judge on their own. Also the beginning of a short story does not include an opening glee at all but rather begins with an action that is so arresting to attract the readers. Because of its advance nature, the short story uses narrative techniques that the oral narrative may not care to use such as suspense, Flash back media res etc. These techniques enable the author to tell a long story in a narratively short time. Media res , for instance is a technique employ by the short story writer to writers in which part of the story is left untold thus the narration begins to the climax. In a layman explanation, a short story has a copy that one can touch but one can't touch a copy of oral narrative as is done orally. Although comparatively, they are aimed at entertaining, educating and informing the society etc. Another point of comparison and contrast is that every short story has a legitimate authorship that creates and makes public the creativity of his ideas for consumption by reading the story. A story of a man who revenge to kill some one base on the primary of insult that occurred for 50 years ago title "The cask of Amontillado" is authored by Edgar Allan Poe and he is known as the owner of the story anywhere in the world. In oral narrative people cannot claimed authorship because the stories are handed down from generation to generation. More so, oral narrative can be move from one place to another with slight modification either by the narrators or their sources. To crown it all in a brief conclusion, oral narrative and short story are sub- genres of prose fiction that works in similar ways because they both need a narration to be realized, they are intended to create a single effect, etc . However they can also be contrasted in the sense that, short stories have authors. While oral narratives do not have authors but are handed down from generation to generation But aims to inform, entertaining, educate and correct things. 

Henry Kwaghkule A short story writer and a script writer. Kwaghkulehenry@gmail.com 08064795340

Realism in Maya Angelou's 'Singin' and Swingin' and Gettin' Merry like Christmas.' By Henry Kwaghkule

Realism often refers to the artistic movement which began in France in the 1850's. It is a theory that can be seen as an accurate, detailed unembellished depiction of nature or contemporary life. It rejects imaginative idealization in favour of a close observation of outward appearance, it rejects the artificiality of both the classicism and romanticism of the academics. The writer gives a composite picture of every day life and unveil motivation that are more than admirable. He or She comprehend something for people to understand either Social or Critical realism which Maya Angelo is not an exception in Critical study of realism in documenting and testifying to the deteriorating conditions of the society such as exploitation, violence, poverty, racial segregation, corruption etc.

In American literature, the term "Realism" encompasses the period of the time from civil war to the turn of the century during which scholars like William Jean Howells, Rebecca Harding, Henry James, Mark Twain and many others wrote frictions devoted to accurate representation and exploration.

American lives in Various context, as the United States grew rapidly after the civil war the increasing rates of democracy and literacy was in progress form, the rapid growth in technology, industrialization, and urbanizations, an expanding population base due to immigration and relatively  rise in middle class affluence providing a fertile literacy movement for readers and scholars to put interest in understanding these rapid shift in culture.

African Americans are well known as Blacks in America, they constitute the second largest racial and ethics minority in the United States which started in 15, 16th century with Africans forcibly taken to Spanish and English colonies in Northern America as slaves. The Blacks were use as labourers in farming, Instruments for the civil war and possible use Blacks women for sex and abandoned them. After the United States come in to being, black people continued to be enslaved and treated inferiors as the native sons and daughters of the country, the circumstances were change by reformation, reconstruction, peace movement, and equality of human beings been black or White, some blacks communities like Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, etc were developed based on the black participation in the great Military  conflicts of the United States.

Despite the struggles of Blacks in developing America they were not recognize in any affairs of the country. The elimination of racial segregation and civil rights movement brings hope for some blacks and in 2008, Barrack Obama became the first black Man to be elected as president of the United States.

Maya Angelo in her Singin and Swingin and Gettin Marry Like Christmas, she portrays the realistic happening within her struggle to achieve in life as a Black woman which presents Angelo's confinement resulting from racism, suppression, oppression, injustice, slavery, maltreatments, religious bigotry, inferiority, segregation, etc. 

She succeeds in using critical realism to mirrored the American society in its state of Corruption, racial segregation and prejudice etc against the African Americans known as blacks. In her autobiographical text

One will sort out the following realism as captures

Denial or right and opportunity from Whites to Blacks. In the text, Maya Angelo works with Purple Onion Club and Porgy and Bess as a singer but the whites who manage those clubs at the end of every Show, gives her a little money saying "blacks  songs are not competitive enough" and the manager of those clubs Don  Lyold could not allow her to go out for other clubs that wishes to sign her for her musical profession. Example in the text shows where Bernard Bobby and Bem who comes for Maya Angelo to join them in their forth coming production but Purple Onion turn down the wishes of the musicians.

Sexual Abuse: The whites finds advantage of seducing the blacks, as Maya Angelo Sing and Swing on stage the whites touches her breast and wish to sleep with her in the hotel rooms.

Betrayal of trust: In the text, Tosh Angelo betray the trust that Maya has in him confidently, concerning marriage where one day Tosh Angelo confirms to Maya that " I think I am just tired of being married " page 37. This result to Tosh to divorce Maya quickly and Maya comes to Arkansas where she stays with her grandmother until she fully recover  from her failed marriage and betrayal of trust from Tosh Angelo. Any marriage between black and White never last for years as whites feels blacks are inhuman and chimpanzees.

In fact Maya Angelo shares many ill facts about the Whites to African Americans in all her books as a renounced and influential voice of African Americans. Hailed as a global Renaissance woman,

a poet, memoirist, novelist, educator, dramatist, film producer actress, Singer, historian, and civil rights activist who was born April 4th 1928 in St Louis Missouri and died on 28th May, 2014.

Also one can see her struggle as  a black woman who is proud of her Black identity in her following books:

I know why the cage Bird Sings ( 1969).

Gather Together in my Name ( 1974).

Just give me a cool drink of water fore I diie (1971)

Including her " Pulse of Morning " a recited poem at the President Bill Clinton's innuaguration in 1993. The first poet to make an inaugural recitation since Robert Frost at JF Kennedy's innuaguration in 1960. She was highly honored for her body of work and including being awarded other 30 honorary degrees.

In Conclusion, Realism is a very strong instrument for literary analysis, weather critical or socialist realism. In Nigeria,  Tyoor Victor in his book Substance of Literature, and Joshua Agbo in  Beyond the dark Cloud never exclude any of the two realism, Femi Osifisan, Wole Soyinka, Ngugi wa thiongo, Moses Tsenongu, Maria Ajima, David Ker, Joseph Iorhii, Terzungwe Qua-Aondo, Andrew Aba,  Su'eddie Vershima Agema, Sewe Leah, Sarah John, Vershima Terzungwe Tasco, Chris UKANDE, Terwase Shittu  etc equally uses those realisms in  their intellectual schollary works to call for change either in Short story, poems, novels, plays and paper presentations on the contemporary life and happenings of 21st century. ( A close reading of their literary works)

Realism therefore, is a good tool that writers can be use to exposed ills in their societies and possible effect changes. Today , the experience of Blacks Americans in America society is not harsh, hard or unbearable as it used to be due to efforts of realist Writers like Maya Angelo and many others to present the real life situation of their society and make adequate need for change.

Literature represent society and the society is in Literature as writers write for society.

 

Henry Kwaghkule is a Poet.

kwaghkulehenry@gmail.com.

Ikoyi, Lagos.

Nigeria.

Mother Tongue: A close look at Parents and Children. By Henry Kwaghkule

Mother language or Mother tongue, which is also widely known as dialect or native language, is the indigenous language of one’s parents which is usually the first language learnt by him/her. In the same vein, it is also referred to as the language of one’s ethnic group. Suffice to say that, one’s mother tongue is an apparent indication of where he/she hails from.

Mother language is often regarded as one’s ‘first language’.Therefore by contrast, a second language is any language that one speaks other than his or her first/native language.

The mother language is noted as ‘first’, because it is regarded as the most important language spoken by anyone due to its hereditary value as well as its cultural impact on the concerned individual.

No doubt, mother language or first language contributes immensely in a child’s personal, social, cultural, intellectual, educational and economic lives. Personal, in the sense that a child’s first (native) language is critical to his or her identity. Social, in the sense that when the native language of a child is not maintained, important links to family and other community members may be lost. Cultural, in the sense that sustaining a child’s mother tongue would help the child to value his or her culture and heritage, which contributes to positive self-concept

Furthermore, the intellectual aspect of it is that, when students who are not yet fluent in their second/official language such as English or French, but have switched to using only the said official language, would have the tendency of functioning at an intellectual level below their age thereby resulting to academic failure. Educational-wise, students who learn second language and continue to develop their native language would have chances of higher academic achievement in later years than those who learn their second language at the expense of their first language.

More so, economically, there are available better employment or job opportunities in Nigeria and this help with the ability of language flexibility. A Hausa man prefer working with a native speaker of Hausa language for easy flow of the sector wisely in language mutual and the ability to understand the language.

THE UNCIVILIZED ATTITUDES OF SOME PARENTS TO THE MOTHER TONGUE.

In the 21st century, the era of globalization, economic experience and civilization, most parents have deviated from impacting domestic education and proper teaching of their immediate language to their children, they prefer teaching them English, French and possible Spanish. Most parents talk to their children in English not knowing that the child is not originally English mother tongue.

A thoroughly research have shown in Nigeria that most people don't pray in their mother tongue. They look at English as a Heavenly language that if one pray using the language God will answers the prayer quick. There is no language that is inferior to God. You can not subject your culture or what God has given to you.

Also some parents in our contemporary society makes a hick and uncivilized statement that " My children don't speak their language unless you speak English to them." As you teach your children English, try to teach them your native language as well.

A case was observed in Aliade 2008 where a Tiv guy who was born and brought in a barracks through his parents serving Nigeria Army. The man and his wife been Tivs could not teach their children Tiv language. They never one day greet their children in Tiv Language.

After retirement from from Nigerian Army, he took his children to Aliade. In Aliade the children were very stubborn, his first son had a serious issue with another boy from a different family that calls for the interrogations.  The boy was known to be speaking Vulgar languages as English.

The elders of the community ask him what is his preferred language since he can't speak  native language.

The boy answer he will speak English, when they allowed him to speak English language. The boy that his father nurture English in him could not speak the English he claimed to know. The other boy was ask to speak, He speak Tiv language fluently with wise words and proverbial talks of the Tiv people making him to win over the English barracks boy who the parents speak English day and night.

Many people have confidence in mother tongue, because it has less errors than English. So parents who don't teach their children in their mother tongue are ashamed of their God given language. If you as a parent you do not teach your children the mother tongue, they will surly grow up and feel like they don't have that connection with their culture.

Parents should endeavors to awaken the spirit of communicating to their children in their mother tongue and encourage them to speak it as well.

Parents should also encourage their children to always listen to Cultural songs oral poets of their indigenous language. Example in Tiv language poets, parents can allow their children to listen to songs of Augustine Tarkaa Golozo, Hemen man Dondo, Kuje Yum, Ignatius Tondo Kumbur,  Gari Kwagh-bo, etc to get intouched with Africanality. Gospel songs of language too is a good recommendations.

Also parents should always try to interpret Proverbs our their languages to their children equally children should value their mother tongue.

CONCLUSION, Language is an arbitrary vocal symbols by which we communicate to many others but it differs in Languages. If you a Tiv man you must know how to speak Tiv fluently and do it to your children, not silence them. As they learn English as an official language, endeavors to teach them your dialect as well.

Negative impressions on our mother tongue is becoming inferior, we must deviate from this impression and rethink to value what God has given to us...

Henry Kwaghkule is a poet, and a script writer.

Kwaghkulehenry@gmail.com

Ikoyi Lagos.

08064705340.

Feminism in Amma Darko’s ‘Faceless’

Feminism is the ideology and belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities. Reading Amma Darko’s ‘Faceless,’ we are presented with the malaises in the African society and the problem an African woman faces, of which abuse and negligence are primary focal points. We cannot deny the fact that African culture gives little value to women regardless that they contribute more in building a home. Darko addresses this problem from a rather tragic perspective – perhaps in a message that there is nothing more tragic than treating a woman like she’s not actively important.

Living in a society where women are used as pawns and little regard given to, Dina divorces her husband and starts an NGO organization, MUTE, where she addresses society’s troubling issues more critically. Darko presents a situation where only women work in this organization which supports the claim that women can do as well as men in any position.

On the other hand, Kabria shares the same independent view as her friend and boss, Dina. She is married with three children, but often, she disagrees with her husband’s point of view. Darko shows that both educated and uneducated African men are not different in issues of marriage. Her husband still holds the view that he is not supposed to do any other work in the house so long as he has a job and provides for the family. Kabria, however, does not agree with this. She too has a job which she combines with house chores, taking care of the children and always running off from work to pick them from school. Meanwhile, her husband, who expects his meal to be ready as soon as he comes back, doesn’t see her as a busy woman. Let’s react to this:

“Adede’s car horn sounded at the gate about an hour after Kabria and the children had all eaten and bathed and were settled behind the television. She managed a smile for him at the door after Abena had opened the gate for him. But inside, she fumed as she reflected upon all that long and easy talk about how if a woman wanted to keep her marriage always fresh and her husband all to herself, she had better make him feel good at home. ‘Welcome him home with a smile,’ they say, ‘look good for him. Wear a mini skirt for him if he loves seeing you in one. Pamper him. Do him this. Do him that. Gosh! Who pampered her when she returned home tired from work, only to go and continue in the kitchen… who met her with a smile? Who wore Levi’s jeans and an open neck polo shirt, which she loved so much on, for?” (57)

The problem we have in this except is that women are taught how to keep their men at all cost, whereas men are not taught the same. Here, Adede represents the majority of African men who see women just as housewives and a man’s tool for sexual satisfaction. These men don’t bother themselves with other things that make a woman happy so long as they have a job that puts food on her table. We can also argue that such men know a lot about the engine of their cars than they know about their wife’s feelings, what they really need, and what makes them tick. Kabria knows what she must do to make her husband happy and keep her family together, but Adede believes every other thing is settled on his path providing he pays the family bills. Most of the efforts that are needed to keep the family together are expected from the women while the men only give orders and when they are bored with events at home, they go out to spend time with friends, but it becomes a problem if the reverse serves the case.

On another instance, unlike Kabria, Maa Tsuru is an uneducated character that represents a timid and illiterate African woman who has no knowledge of what she is doing or what she’s supposed to do. Though her plight is nobody’s fault but Darko presents a sad situation of how a woman without standard; a women of total conformity is treated in the society. Maa Tsuru, like most African women, holds the view that her only role as a woman is to have children and so she does not see herself as more valuable in other things. Her ignorance and vulnerability makes her become a sex tool to men. In her time, she has met a lot of men who take advantage of her and walk away. Darko shows a circumstance where things always go wrong for most women as soon as a man comes into their lives. Maa Tsuru has five children without a husband. Her first four children are with a man who comes back severally as her husband and runs away at the birth of each child. The children all fend for themselves on the street and the first two girls, at fifteen and fourteen, are already sexually exposed. In fact, a neighbour who has two children with two separated women takes advantage of this and rapes one of the underage girls.

 We are introduced to a kind of Sodom-and-Gomorrah Street life where both boys and girls are living in but it is the boys who are in control. The boys are comfortable because they live like kings in the street and use the girls’ plights to their own advantage. This act demonstrates that the society has no pity for defenseless women.

The image of feminine gender in Faceless depicts the evil in treating women as second-rates. We are exposed to the situation where the woman tries harder than the man to keep the family together; a society where vulnerable and susceptible women become tools of sport for men, even when they are still underage and need protection.

More so, ‘Faceless’ reminds us of a society in which there is no joy for a mother who has no male child.