Full text of oral literature in africa internet archive. African literature possessing those qualities that define it as such. For many people around the worldparticularly in areas where history and traditions are still conveyed more through speech than in writingthe transmission of oral literature from one generation to the next lies at the heart of culture and memory. The former are relatively well knownat any rate the recent writings in european languages much work remains to be publicized on earlier arabic and. Oral literature is a spoken word that has been transmitted from generation to generation. It is my contention that africas oral literature derives its strength largely from the preponderance of proverbs and that these proverbs contribute much towards establishing the linguistic character of the continent. Oral literature by ruth finnegan investigates how culture, tradition, and various forms of communication have. Amongst the topics covered are translation problems, understanding proverbs, oral narrative as discourse, the use of audio visual aids in teaching, general and the politics of control, images of women in african oral literature, the relationship with. For many communities around the world, the transmission of oral literature from one generation to the next lies at the heart of cultural practice.
Oral literature by ruth finnegan investigates how culture, tradition, and various forms of communication have been passed down from different parts of africa. Traditional written literature, which is limited to a smaller geographic area than is oral literature, is most characteristic of those subsaharan cultures that have. It forms part of africas rich cultures that are expressed in diverse ways. These clips, together with original photographs taken during her research, will be an invaluable resource to scholars of african literature and culture. Africa possesses both written and unwritten traditions.
African literature the influence of oral traditions on. It deals with the role of theory in the study of oral literature. African literature african literature oral traditions and the written word. Themes in the literary traditions of contemporary africa are worked out frequently within the strictures laid down by the imported religions christianity and islam and within the struggle between traditional and modern, between rural and newly urban, between genders, and between generations. Oral literature in africa world oral literature by ruth finnegan is a comprehensive study guide with a wellresearched look into the history of oral folklore and.
Only when it is clear how the text stands to the performance and the other to the tradition can an analysis of the contents of the message begin, vansina, 1985. Theory and methods in oral literature unit description the unit is an introduction to the theoretical approaches to the study of oral literature. Historical and theoretical perspectives of literature. Ruth finnegans oral literature in africa was first published in 1970, and since then has been widely praised as one of the most important books in its field. Oral literature is an aspect of literature preserved not in written form but in oral form. The oral artists agenda joseph muleka 87 p a g e the oral text naturally text is a crucial component in communicating messages. It is highly valued in africa in general and in igbo in particular mainly because of its didactic nature. It draws attention to the richness of indigenous knowledge contained in oral literature and demonstrates how the ethical and moral gap in the existing educational system can be filled by the moral. Chinweizu maintains that writing traveled from these regions of the nile valley to the mediterranean cultures of crete, greece etc, p. Yet, despite the existence of these books on oral literature, the young generation in africa that has grown under the western school system somehow feels estranged with respect to this oral literature. Ancient egyptian scribes, early hausa and swahili copyists and memorizers, and contemporary writers of popular novellas have been the obvious and crucial transitional figures. In addition to the insights i have gained from the extensive fieldwork and analyses undertaken by my.
The paper argues that while it is easy and desirable to choose a facilitative theory in the analysis of a written work of literature, such a process poses challenges when it comes to the oral type of african literature. It includes a new introduction, additional images and an updated bibliography, as well as its original chapters on poetry, prose, drum language and drama, and an overview of the social, linguistic and historical background of oral literature in africa. Isidore okpewho, nnom 9 november 1941 4 september 2016, was a nigerian novelist and critic. The problems of translating african oral literary texts into 78 issn 20572611print, issn 2057262xonline their western equivalents nnamani, f. Ancient egyptian scribes, early hausa and swahili copyists and memorizers, and contemporary writers of popular novellas have been the obvious and crucial transitional figures in the movement.
Contents online resources illustrations forward by mark turin prefaces acknowledgements abbreviations note on sources. In a challenging article that starts not from the conventional western literary canon. The perception of african oral literature 29 nineteenthcentury approaches and collections. Oral literature in africa pdf open book publishers. Historical and theoretical perspectives of literature anders pettersson encyclopedia of life support systems eolss in an oral culture, there will not only be spontaneous, oneoff utterances, but also more durable, repeatable verbal compositions that could be called texts. The prose is often mythological or historical and can include tales of the trickster character. One way of communicating language is no better than another, but we can learn a lot from each other. Oral literature is the repository of the critical knowledge, philosophy, and wisdom for nonliterate societies. The study and appreciation of oral literature is more important than ever for understanding the complexity of human cognition. The book is available as a free pdf and ebook download thanks to the generous support of interested readers and organisations, who made donations using the crowdfunding website unglue. Oral literature or orature may be in prose or verse.
Oral literature or folk literature corresponds in the sphere of the spoken oral word to literature. That is why i trace response to oral poetic performances as of the udje and ijala and the continuation into modern works in english, french, or portuguese, among others. Interpreting these proverbs to bring out their meaning becomes an interesting activity for one to indulge in. He won the 1976 african arts prize for literature, and the 1993 commonwealth writers prize, best book africa also a classicist and scholar, he has been described as one of the most brilliant men of his generation and one of nigerias most iconic literary figures. Oral literature by ruth finnegan, is a book of history as to how culture, tradition and the various forms of communication has been passed down, to various parts of africa from nigeria and senegal to rwanda. African literature is literature of or from africa and includes oral literature. So much work has been done on african oral literature in the two decades since the publication of ruth finnegans epochmaking and immensely useful oral literature in africa that there is need for a more uptodate critical introduction such as i have tried to provide in this book. An urgent global initiative to document and make accessible endangered oral literatures before they disappear without record. Apr 03, 2016 african literature is literature of or from africa and includes oral literature. What is african literature history of african literature. Mar 20, 20 these clips, together with original photographs taken during her research, will be an invaluable resource to scholars of african literature and culture. In african oral literature for schools, jane nandwa and austin bukenya define oral literature as those utterances, whether spoken, recited or sung, whose composition and performance exhibit to an appreciable degree the artistic character of accurate observation, vivid imagination and ingenious expression 1983. Oral literature in africa is part of the world oral literature series published in conjunction with the world oral literature project.
U directorate of general studies, federal university of technology, owerri amadi, a. Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication wherein knowledge, art, ideas. The theories will then be applied in the analysis of oral literature material. Pdf archived 20080529 at the wayback machine oral tradition 212 2006. Pdf archived 20080529 at the wayback machine oral tradition 21 2 2006. After decades of outstanding research, for which she was awarded an order of the british empire, oral literature in africa remains the book closest to finnegans heart. Introduction african proverbs in african literature. The oral tradition journal, established in 1986, publishes articles on oral traditions and oral literature as well as related research. Sep 17, 2012 world oral literature series volume 1. African literature from the oral tradition to current trends. Based on years of fieldwork, the study traces the history of storytelling across the continent of africa. This revised edition makes finnegans groundbreaking research available to the next generation of scholars. This paper examines the origin, evolution and emergence of folklore oral literature as an academic discipline in africa and its place.
Examples of traditional literature are divination text, drum language, poem, appellation, tales, songs, riddles, proverbs, myths and legends. This course provides an overview of african oral literature, introduces some methodological and theoretical problems, and examines the sociopolitical and cultural relevance of the literature. Throughout africa, oral literature is flourishing, though it is perceived by some as anachronistic to the modern world. African literature, the body of traditional oral and written literatures in afroasiatic and african languages together with works written by africans in european languages. The study analyzes how oral literature relates to media, music, technology, text, gender, religion, power, politics. Project muse introduction to african oral literature and. This work refutes this idea in its entirety by presenting 22 chapters, which firmly place the study of oral literature within contemporary african existence. Oral and written storytelling traditions have had a parallel development, and in many ways they have influenced each other. Interactions and intersections edited by daniela merolla leiden university, the netherlands introduction the studies of oral literature are countless, and the educational function of storytelling is certainly one of recurring topics. African literature african literature the influence of oral traditions on modern writers. Oral literature in africa world oral literature by ruth finnegan is an interesting perspective and study on the tradition of oral storytelling, especially in african countries. Apr 06, 2016 by bernice bessey oral literature is a spoken word that has been transmitted from generation to generation. What are the characteristics of african literature.
This paper grapples with the question of choice of theory in the study of african oral literature. I directorate of general studies, federal university of technology, owerri. Through masterpieces of the oral and the written literature, this book. Modern african literature is the natural inheritor of traditional african literature and though. Traditionally, africans have revered good stories and storytellers, as have most past and present peoples around the world who are rooted in oral cultures and traditions. Oral literature is a broad term which may include ritual texts, curative chants, epic poems, musical genres, folk tales, creation tales, songs, myths, spells, legends, proverbs, riddles, tonguetwisters, word games, recitations, life histories or historical narratives. After an introductory chapter, section 1 includes three chapters, the sources and origins of african oral literature and performance, fieldwork practice and research methodology in oral literature and performance, and archetypes. This article offers the text of remarks given by professor turner on march. It strives for comparative and interdisciplinary consideration of the emergence, passing on and interpretation of all forms of expression in the oral tradition. The former are relatively well knownat any rate the recent writings in european languages much work remains to be publicized on earlier arabic and local written.
In contrast to the common perception of european literature which generally refers only to written documents, african literature greatly involves and includes oral literature. This literature through narrative, poetry, song, dance, myths and fables, and texts for religious rituals provides a portrait of the meaning of life as experienced by the society at its. African literature is literature of or from africa and includes oral literature or orature, in the term coined by ugandan scholar pio zirimu as george joseph notes in his chapter on african literature in understanding contemporary africa, whereas european views of literature often stressed a separation of art and content, african awareness is inclusive. Amongst the topics covered are translation problems, understanding proverbs, oral narrative as discourse, the use of audio visual aids in teaching, general and the politics of control, images of women in african oral literature, the relationship with material culture, and oral literature as part of oral traditions. African literature oral traditions and the written word. Oral literature in africa is part of our world oral literature series in conjunction with the world oral literature project. After this work, african literature will never be the same. Examples of traditional literature are divination text, drum language, poem, appellation, tales, songs. Recent trends in african studies and the revival of interest in oral literature. The importance of song in africa oral literature aucccom. Okpewho department of africana studies suny at binghamton binghamton, ny 9026000 tel.
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