Oral poetry

The existence, quality and value of African indigenous oral poetry were a matter of debate until
about five decades ago. However, the controversy over the authenticity of African oral poetry as
‘true’ poetry motivated African oral literature scholars to collect, and analyse samples of African oral
poetry. Assiduous efforts have been made to disprove the argument that there was no poetry in
Africa until the arrival of European civilization. This assertion was made by some European and
eurocentric scholars. According to Isidore Okpewho (1985:5), such scholars argue that poetry is a
mark of advanced culture or civilisation and the business of men of specialised skill and training who
devote their time to observing and commenting on life with beauty and seriousness. Traditional
African societies were, in the view of these critics, still groping in the dark with elementary problems
of existence, and had not yet attained the level of achievement whereby men could indulge in the
pursuit of poetic excellence. Besides, their languages were not yet sufficiently developed to cope
with the complex techniques of poetic expression. Nevertheless, it has been proved beyond doubt
that, “oral poetry possesses all the beauty of language, content and style associated with the best of
written poetry. The case for the recognition of oral poetry as true poetry has been most successfully
made.” (Olajubu 1981:71).
Similarly Aderemi (1985:48) contends that instead of defensive criticism, textual analysis of our
literature should concern oral literature scholars. This is so because “we should disregard “the pre-
judicial judgement of western critics who in ignorance said the most atrocious things about oral
literature.” What is the nature of African oral poetry? Oral poetry has been defined by various
people and many explanations have been offered on its nature. Emovon (1981:205) opines;
Traditional oral poetry must be seen within the context of folklore – that is songs or recitations
having measured rhythm and dealing with verbal aspects of customs, observances etc of a people...
Essentially, a traditional poetry is a song that very often tells a story. It is a poem that no matter how
composed has been transmitted primarily by word of mouth and learnt by imitation or example.
This definition underscores the musicality of oral poetry.

Finnegan (1992:16) also states; “oral poetry essentially circulates by oral

rather than written means in contrast to written poetry. Its distribution, composition or
performances are by word of mouth and not through reliance on the written or printed word.” She
nevertheless warns that many generalizations made about oral poetry are over-simplified and
misleading. According to Finnegan, oral poetry can take many different forms and occur in many
cultural situations. It does not manifest itself only in the one unitary model as argued by some
scholars.
By Finnegan’s critical standards, Emovon’s definition quoted earlier is an over simplified view of oral
poetry. Emovon reduced oral poetry to traditional songs only. Isidore Okphewo (1985:9) on the
other hand, explains that “there are two types of music which we generally hear in the performance
of oral poetry. One of these is the instrumental music... the other kind of music we hear in oral
poetry is vocal or tonal”. From Okphewo’s assertion, we can deduce that music, either instrumental
or vocal is a component of oral poetry but there are still other features. Finnegan (1992:26) states
further;
What we must look for is not one absolute criterion but a range of stylistic and formal attributes –
features like heightened languages, metaphorical expression, musical form and accompaniment,
structural repetitiveness like recurrence of stanzas, lines or refrains, prosodic features like metre,
alliteration, even perhaps parallelism so that the concept of poetry turns out to be a relative one
depending on a combination of stylistic elements no one of which need necessarily and invariably be
present.

Praise poetry
A praise poem is a poem of tribute or gratitude. To praise means to
express admiration, give homage, and/or to proclaim positive
attributes. Praise poetry is part of the literary tradition of many
cultures.

Praise poetry was popular in medieval literature and during the

Renaissance, when it often expressed worship of or admiration for
heroes, kings, or deities. Praise poetry has also long been one of the
most widely used poetic forms in parts of Africa and continues to be
a familiar literary form in various African cultures. 

In African literary tradition, a praise poem refers to a series of

laudatory epithets applied to gods, people, animals, places, etc. that
capture the essence of being praised. These poems are often an
important part of an oral tradition as professional bards, who may
be both praise singers to a chief and court historians of their tribe,
chant the poems. These poems offer imagery and storytelling
related to a person and their history. 

Analysis

The praise poetry

Deɛ ɔnnim ɔtumfoɔ no
Ɔma me nkyerɛ no
Na ɔforoo abaanwa!
bubuu ahennwa nkaeɛ
de kyekyeree ne deɛ
na ne Sikadwa Kofi
yɛ abosom nsa ano anwinnieɛ
na ne awenntwoma da mu fua.
Na ɛho ahintasem deɛ
Ananse nkutoo na ɔnim
na nipadɔm a edi n'akyi te sɛ nkranee.
na epono biara mu to wɔ n'akyi!
na ne kyiniiɛ kron te sɛ ɔdadeɛ nwunu
na nea ɔdwane kotoa no, wagye no atenase
na ne nsammerane yɛ apawa a ɛkyerɛ
n’abakosɛm
na wei kɔma nea ɔpɛ mpaninnsɛm ɛtie:
"Kwasi broni de n'atubena baa ne
Kwaeɛ mu,
nanso ne kwaeɛ no dii n'atubena no so
nkunim".

Translation
He who doesn’t know the Otumfoɔ
Let me present him
He has mounted the throne
Dissolved many a throne
To concretize his own
His Golden Stool
Is a handmade of the gods
His cloth is a woven one of a kind
The secret only Ananse knows
He passes like a train of army ants
With every door shutting behind him
His umbrella is a shade of baobab
The defenseless seeks refuge and lives
And His appellation is a long record of epic
And for those who care to know:
"The white man brought his cannons to
His bush,
But His bush was stronger than his
cannons"

In oral culture, words do not only indicate meaning but also a thought process. We process the
information so that we can remember. The oral culture creates images that are very difficult to
forget. This helps for easy recall and so the oral culture uses certain techniques to help people think
memorably. In the first lines of the extract above, it could be observed that mnemonics have been
used to create images which will help to retrieve what is kept in the mind. Words like ‘abaanwa’
which is the stool which is used by most African Kings who ascend the throne of authority. It is a
symbol of authority and power for most African kings. In the Ashanti kingdom, the most powerful
and respected stool is the ‘sikadwa Kofi’ ( the golden stool) and the extract create the image of this
historic golden stool which is used as a sign of great power and authority. Hagan (2018) asserts that
‘the symbol of political authority in Ashanti is the Stool. Every political unit in Ashanti - division,
vicinage, village or lineage- has a stool which is the symbol of the authority of its leadership. All
such stools, needless to say, are parochial symbols which focus attention
and sentiment on segmental identities and factional interests. The Golden
Stool is the sole exception to this. As the symbol which stands for the widest
expanse of political authority (and all other stools fall under it), the Golden
Stool enshrines the common fundamental values which all the segments of
the nation espouse and cherish. It is the focus of the collective sentiments
which Ashantis feel as members of one nation, And Ashantis believe that it contains the collective
spirit of the whole nation. To Ashantis, the Golden Stool is the source of the nation's
vitality and strength.’
This shows how powerful the recognition and believe the Ashantis have for the golden stool, and
through the use of mnemonics in oral poetry, the extract brings to fore the belief of the Ashanti
people.
The extract also appropriates human form to help in the memorability of the information being
given. The abstract ‘god’ is reduced to the concrete and made to look like human as seen in line
seven

‘na ne Sikadwa Kofi

yɛ abosom nsa ano anwinnieɛ’

The gods are considered by the Ashantis for having divine power and control over the land
and the people . The Golden Stool is a sacred symbol of the Ashanti nation believed to
possess the sunsum (soul) of the Ashanti people. According to legend, the Golden
Stool -- sika 'dwa in the Akan language of the Ashanti -- descended from heaven in a
cloud of white dust and landed in the lap of the first Ashanti king, Osei Tutu, in the
late 1600s. The king's priest, Okomfo Anokye, proclaimed that henceforth the
strength and unity of the Ashanti people depended upon the safety of the Golden
Stool. Drawing upon the Akan tradition of a stool indicating clan leadership, the
Golden Stool became the symbol of the united Asante people and legitimized the
rule of its possessor.

One element of oral literature which is myth has been successfully used here as the
mythology of the golden stool has been used to communicate the divinity and power
of the Asantehene.

Here the extract reveals to us that the ‘golden stool’ which is a symbol of power and authority of
the King of the Ashanti kingdom is a handiwork of the gods. And based of this belief, it does tell us
that the power of the Asantehene is divine and his authority is ordained by the gods, therefore he
represents the gods on earth as the utmost ruler of the Asante kingdom.

One of the elements of orature is folklore. In bringing to light folktales as an element of Akan
literature, the extract makes reference to the central character of folktales which is Kwaku Ananse.
The extract makes reference to Ananse in lines 9 and 10 which reads

‘Na ɛho ahintasem deɛ

Ananse nkutoo na ɔnim’

The story of the golden stool is considered a mystery for the people of Ashanti. The extract draws
our attention to this fact by reminding us that the only person who could unravel this mystery of the
golden stool is none other than the mystic character in the traditional Akan folktale, Kwaku Ananse.
Amongst all the African folktale characters that exist, Kwaku Anansi is the most popular and
important. The West African folktale character is a spider with human characteristics from the
Akan culture of Ghana. In the Akan setting, Kwaku Anansi is a character with a witty and cunning
personality. He embodies wisdom and survival tactics. In the short stories told of Kwaku Anansi, we
find that he is usually too smart for himself and ends up facing difficulties which he tries to get
out of it.
The extract therefore reminds us that no human being could ever be able to tell the mystery of this
golden stool except the mystic character Ananse. He is the only person since he himself is mystic for
any human to know him. This gives the Aantehene enough divinity and so he is considered as such
by his people.
Another element of orature in the extract is the use of agonistic where things are situated in
conflicts. The extract compares the kingdom of Ashanti to other kingdoms through the use of
agonistic. That is the authority and power of the Asantehene is compared to others in the extract.
Lines 4 and 5 of the extract read

‘Ɔbubuu ahennwa nkaeɛ

de kyekyeree ne deɛ’

The Asante kingdom has been placed in contrast with other thrones as the lines above indicate that
the Asante kingdom dissolved many thrones and solidly formed its own kingdom. This brings to fore
the many battles the Ashantis fought with other kingdoms before they could establish a very
formidable kingdom. These lines thus tell us that the Asante kingdom is a very powerful one and no
other throne can overpower them.

The extract also make use of anecdote to tell some of the historical events of the Asante people. .
Anecdote is defined as a short amusing story about a real incident or a person's private life.
are often used to explain either
Anecdotes are useful because they
doctrines or duties to dull understandings.
The history of the battle between the Ashantis and the white colonialists is highlighted in the last
lines of the extract as seen below

‘’Kwasi broni de n'atubena baa ne

Kwaeɛ mu,
nanso ne kwaeɛ no dii n'atubena no so
nkunim".

History has it that in 1900, the British governor of the Gold Coast in west Africa - today's Ghana -
travelled to Kumasi, capital of the Ashanti tribe. There, he delivered a provocative speech, in which
he demanded that the Ashanti produce the Golden Stool, the tribe's most sacred object, so he could
sit upon it. Nana Yaa Asantewaa, an Ashanti queen mother, rallied her people into resistance, in
what came to be known as the War of the Golden Stool. Thousands took up arms, and Asantewaa
was appointed war leader of the Ashanti. The Ashanti were eventually defeated and annexed to the
Gold Coast, but retained their autonomy. They also did not produce the Golden Stool. By not
producing the golden stool which represent the soul, the power, and authority of the Asante
Kingdom, the Ashantis believe the British were not able to overpower them and that the kingdom
won over the British.

The use of this anecdote reminds everyone of this historical event and reiterates the power and
strength of the Asantehene and the Asante kingdom.

The extract also uses dialogue, another element of oral poetry, to tell the story and reveal the life
experiences of the Asante people and their beliefs, culture and customs. The extract appears to be
told by someone addressing the audience. The conversational tone of the extract makes one be part
of the oratory. The first lines of the extract addresses the audience and makes it seem as though
there is the presence of the audience as it reads
‘Deɛ ɔnnim ɔtumfoɔ no
Ɔma me nkyerɛ no’

These lines seem to address a group of people about the kind of person the Asantehene is. It it is
done through the use of dialogue.

The last lines of the poem also make use of dialogue as can be read as

‘’na wei kɔma nea ɔpɛ mpaninnsɛm ɛtie:

"Kwasi broni de n'atubena baa ne
Kwaeɛ mu,
nanso ne kwaeɛ no dii n'atubena no so
nkunim".

The historical event is told to the audience through the use of dialogue.

Conclusion
It could be observed that the praise poetry of the Asantehene is an oral poetry which tells the
history and the customs behind the throne of the Asantehene. The oral traditions and customs of
the Asante kingdom are highlighted in the praise poetry of the Asantehene. The oral poetry also
brought to light some of the historical events of the Asante kingdom. The life experiences and beliefs
of the people of the Ashanti kingdom could also be observed through the analysis of the praise
poetry of the Asantehene.

References

Bodunde, Charles. "Oral Traditions and Modern Poetry: Okot p'Bitek's Song of Lawino & Okigbo's
Labyriths". African Literature Today, 3 (1992): 24-34. Web August, 2016.

Fairclough, N. (1995) Critical Discourse Analysis. Longman.

London.

Okphewo, I, (1985) (ed) The Heritage of African Poetry - Essex:

Longman.

Olajubu, O. (1981) "Yoruba Oral Poetry: Composition and Performance.

Oral Poetry in Nigeria. Abalogu U.N et al (eds) Nigeria
Magazine, Lagos: 71-85.

Aderemi, B.. (1985) "The Criticism of Oral Literature in Nigeria-

An Assessment of some critical views." Nigeria Magazine
53:3: 44-49

Emovon, A. (1981) "Preservation and Development of Traditional Oral Poetry: The Edo (Bini)
Example" Oral Poetry in Nigeria AbaloguU.Net al (eds) Nigeria Magazine: Lagos:265-282.
Finnegan, R. (1992). Oral Poetry: Its Nature, Significance and Social
Conter Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana U.P.,. First
published 1977.