poets-from-nigeria

"From my experience, I got to know that it is better to be jailed than to be put in detention. While in jail, you can have access to visitors but such would never happen if you are in detention. They will take you away in the night and you will not know where you are being taken to."

"This is an insightful drama about people groping in the dark in their search for the truth until they come into contact with the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ ( The Way, The Truth and The Life, The Only Way back to God), give their lives to Jesus, accept Him as their personal Saviour and Lord and have eternal life."

"This definition introduces the element of ethnicity or regionalism."

"A system of communication which consists of a set of sounds and written symbols which are used by the people of a particular country or region for talking or writing"

"It describes vividly the role played by Nigerian educational institutions in shaping African Literature.The presentation makes it abundantly clear that Nigerian educational institutions (both formal and informal) play a significant role in shaping creative African Literature through encouraging creative writing programmes and workshops, establishing literary clubs and organisations, hosting literary festivals and events, providing resources and mentorship, among others.A few recommendations are proffered. Parents at home and school authorities in schools should encourage the young ones to develop their creative writing abilities and have a great passion for African Literature."

"The study shows that the evidence is overwhelming: prevention is a crucial and effective way to address substance use and disorders associated with it. By investing in prevention programmes and strategies, we can actually reduce the risk factors which lead to substance use disorder, improve the overall health and well-being and save lives. It is high time we shifted our focus from treating solely substance use disorder to also investing in prevention."

"The issue of which language is most appropriate for expressing an authentic African experience in creative African writing is a polemic one. Opinions are divided on what can best express African Literature and what African Literature is. This essay makes a synopsis of the views of the various schools of thought on both subjects before taking a position. It maintains that the medium of African literary expression, in the particular circumstance, French, faces the challenges of globalization and liberalization so much so that it has passed from its derogatory status of colonial master's language/Foreign or European Language in colonial African Literature to sarcastic but more acceptable inherited or imported language in postcolonial Francophone African Literature. The present trend, in postmodern African creative writing of French Expression, shows a marked evolution and transformation ..."

"A language is shared by an ethnic group or a particular country or region."

"An award is a landmark for any writer, because it shows that it is a measure of a standard that you have improved in your writing."

"...Not many of us have done it, yet that hope pulses within us like a beacon."

"A person must have many other lives on Makoko in order to eat and sleep."

"The Nigerian government likes to pretend that we don’t exist, but we’ve been here for hundreds of years, our wooden houses resting proudly on their stilts above Lagos’s charcoal-coloured lagoon. We’ll remain here for some time, no matter how many attempts they make to push us out."

"Parents dream of us leaving Makoko and doing better than they did for them- selves, and eventually we dream it too, all the while knowing it to be an elusive fantasy."

"Makoko is what the outsiders had originally called our settlement hundreds of years ago, due to its abundance of akoko leaves, and the name stuck for the community on the Lagos coast just across from the Third Mainland Bridge. To strangers, it’s a slum, a metallic and wooden eyesore built over a stinking bed of ever-mounting sewage, spreading out across the smoke-filled horizon. For the government, it’s the impediment between even larger coffers for them and prime waterfront real estate. But to us, who are from here, Makoko is simply home."

"If they ask you to come and carry any filth, because of your love for money you will help them to carry it. And it will spoil the name you have been building from your youth."

"Onwueme’s creative works continue to influence and generate significant interest around the world, as they are widely produced/staged, studied, taught, and written about in scholarly books, dissertations, theses, book chapters, journal articles, and international media. Onwueme’s works have a wide range of social, political, historical, cultural and environmental concerns of the masses in the global community today, with emphasis on women, youth in continental Africa and the Diaspora."

"Internationally renowned for her award-winning plays, Dr. Tess Onwueme is the literary soul-mate of Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, and Ngugi wa Thiong’o. She is the first African woman dramatist to break into their ranks, so that What Mama Said, Tell it to Women, Shakara: Dance-Hall Queen, The Missing Face, The Desert Encroaches and the Reign of Wazobia become staples of international college and university curricular in the 21st century."

"Tess Onwueme's play is a spellbinding theatre work! It is written as if Dr. Onwueme is composing a symphonic work... Along with her other masterwork, The Missing Face [this drama] places Tess Onwueme in the ranks of Wole Soyinka, Athol Fugard, and Derek Walcott."

"In her work, Onwueme has shown daring in her exploration of ideas even if they lead to subjects and themes which may seem taboo. Onwueme is eminently a political dramatist, for power affects every other aspect of society. She explores these themes with a dazzling array of images and proverbs. Her drama and theater are a feast of music, mime, proverbs, and story-telling...[thus] Onwueme consolidates her position among the leading dramatists from Africa."

"Through the voices of women, Onwueme draws out universal themes of conflict. She uses the dramatic form to express an optimism for the future, for change and challenge to the repressive powers over people’s lives."

"People create social conditions and people can change them."

"Our mothers and grandmothers exerted influence and control over our fathers and grandfathers. But they knew how to do so gently and respectfully. That way, they had their way while the man remained in charge, unchallenged. And everybody was happy. This is what I will tell the women in the boardroom today. Women being in positions of authority is good, because they will bring a different aspect and approach to the way things are being done. Women are not stupid and they have a lot to offer the society too. We don’t look at things the way men look at things. As mothers and wives, we are most likely to give a deeper consideration to things before taking actions."

"A woman at this stage of her life no longer sought to be sexually attractive to men, and was no longer in sexual competition with other women. Matrons, in order to succeed economically and wield power, had to free themselves of 'messy' and 'demeaning' female domestic services, which included sexual services. Woman-to-woman marriage was one of the ways of achieving this. The younger wife would then take over the domestic duties."

"“Since women were basically seen as producers, the principals of control and protection applied to them throughout their productive period, whether as daughters, wives, or mothers. It is said when a woman outgrows the question, 'whose daughter is she?' people then ask, 'whose wife is she?' Only as matrons were women no longer valued in their sexual or reproductive capacity; matrons were, therefore, beyond control."

"In the traditional society, a flexible gender system meant that male roles were open to certain categories of women through such practices as nhaye, 'male daughters,' igba ohu, 'female husbands. These institutions placed women in a more favourable position for the acquisition of wealth and formal political power and authority. Under colonialism, these indigenous institutions – condemned by the Church as 'pagan' and anti-Christian – were abandoned or reinterpreted to the detriment of women."

"She is said to have had about 24 wives… the qualities attributed to her were hard work and perseverance. She was … a clever woman, who knew how to utilize her money."

"“The fact that biological sex did not always correspond to ideological gender meant that women could play roles usually monopolized by men, or be classified as 'males' in terms of power and authority over others. As such roles were not rigidly masculinized or feminized, no stigma was attached to breaking gender rules. Furthermore, the presence of an all-embracing goddess-focused religion favoured the acceptance of women in statuses and roles of authority and power."

"I bought Male Daughters, Female Husbands on the title alone, expecting it to be an anthropological study discussing how an indigenous society had made space and roles for queer people. I was very wrong. Instead, Ifi Amadiune presents a brilliant study of how the Nnobi of Nigeria made space and roles for women, and how the Christian patriarchy took those roles away. Amadiune challenges her fellow anthropologists and western feminists about their assumptions about African societies. (Namely, that colonialism helped African women get out from under the thumb of bad African men, yet they still need western feminists to save them further. Amadiune clearly demonstrates how neither of these things are true and how these kinds of simplified views of any indigenous society are steeped in racism."

"This fine collection of poetry on love, nature and Sufism bursts forth with pure humanity and elegance of language. Dominated by the presence of beautiful, dignified womanhood that is tough but loving, giving and grateful, the poems peel off layers of time to reveal memories that refuse to dissipate. A celebratory voice singing the beauty of fall colors and the magic of Africa's star-studded sky and enchanted moonlit night is interlaced with a strong, unyielding moral voice that speaks against the injustice and bullying of the powerful, and the pillage and greed of empire. Amadiume's beautiful, moving, and well-crafted collection returns to nature what belongs to it--simplicity; and reminds humanity of what it has lost--the love that is divine. Love is Great!"

"Extremely powerful and assertive women were able to dominate their husbands."

"Ifi Amadiume's Circles of Love speaks with passion of love gained, love lost, love desired. These are poems which embrace the pains and joys of exile--memory, sweetness, history and a sense of peace with the landscapes of home wherever these may be."

"Love is a many splendored thing and Ifi Amadiume spins the wonder of love in circles of memory, humor, joy and even political satire with a lyrical and often intimate voice that describes family, friends and special places. Here are poems you will want to read and remember."

"… a flexible gender system … meant … certain women could occupy roles and positions usually monopolized by men, and thereby exercise considerable power and authority over both men and women."

"Read for my Anthropology of Gender class. This is an incredibly thorough ethnography that traces the history, colonisation, and modern traditions of a small area in Nigeria. Amadiume doesn’t just reclaim, explain, and evaluate the customs of the Igbo people from the town where she was born, she also demonstrates the long history of how colonialism has distorted, misconstrued, and tried to erase them. It makes me wonder how many indigenous religions we’ve completely lost due to the efforts of colonisation trying to either mould them to the “White Christian ideal” or wipe them out completely. It’s a sad thought, but I’m still glad Ifi Amadiume is here to speak for herself, taking back the fierce power of anthropology from those who would use it for ill."

"As men increased their labour force, wealth and prestige through the accumulation of wives, so also did women through the institution of "female husbands.‟ When a woman paid money to acquire another woman, the woman who was bought had the status and customary rights of a wife, with respect to the woman who bought her, who was referred to as her husband, and the "female husband‟ had the same rights as a man over his wife."

"Man seems to have wanted… to give the universe his own gender…anything believed to have value belongs to men and is marked by their gender…he gives his own gender to God, to the sun."

"The men were no longer known by their own names, but by reference to their role as husband."

"It was with pride that Nwokocha Agbadi returned the twenty bags of cowries to his former son-in-law and he even added a live goat as a token of insult."

"Social emotional skills are very important skills, they need to be developed and showed."

"Restorative Practices are about focusing on capacities rather than deficits. It is about holding circles and talking to generate solutions and build valuable abilities in students."

"The truth is that restorative practice is a proven approach to discipline in schools that favours relationships over retribution, and has been shown to improve behaviour and enhance teaching and learning outcomes."

"Women should take advantage of technology to secure good health, improve their finances, and foster personal development."

"Taming our speech, mind and heart would contribute in achieving peace in the society, thus promoting it at a global level"

"Research has shown that where women’s inclusion is prioritized, peace is more probable, especially when women are in a position to influence decision making."

"Reading clubs in school were important because it encourages critical thinking and increases the ability of understanding and advised students to have deeper engagement with stories in their communities and beyond."

"India is a country where great influencing personalities of the world have born and are remembered for their teachings."

"Children orientation, mind shifting programme, These projects have greatly impacted on the lives of many children and youths in the society."

"Artists work in war zones, refugee camps and conflict ridden communities using their creativity to stimulate and deepen knowledge in violence prevention and ultimately support peace building through building resiliency, conflict resolution and reconciliation from the community level. This chapter will explore the traditional art concepts and creativity in the past and the current understandings of peace as seen in our literature, poetry, mime, drama, dance, songs, paintings, sculptures, graffiti’s, stories, adages and from social psychology that has been great ways of building peace, non-violence and positive social development."

"There is a strong connection between hands-on, participative creative arts and the creation of non-violence as a key element of peace building. The nature and meaning of peace and non-violence is synonymous to that powerful aspect of creative arts that build peace and promote non-violence. The arts’ has capacity to help develop skills for peaceful problem-solving through the comprehension of fundamental principles in conflict resolution, and violence prevention."

"It will show how the creative arts stimulates and support peace building and non-violence particularly in Africa. The impact that violence prevention goals of community-based art program has are enormous, the production of art supports and expand non-violent conflict resolution skills. It the artworks that educates and advocates for peace and non-violence plays a critical role in learning the concepts of non-violence and peace building in Africa."