Demystifying the Labyrinth of the Delta: An Eco-linguistic Analysis of Selected Poems of Tanure Ojaide
Loading...
Date
2024
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Journal of English Language and Literature
Abstract
Ecological issues in the context of Niger-Delta, Nigeria have been approached
mostly from the perspective of environmental degradation, and marginalisation in
previous studies. However, in literary pieces, which are mostly the dominant
objects of analysis in those studies, there are underlying linguistic imports, which
are reflexive of the beauty of the literary discourses revolving around the NigerDelta environment. It is based on this backdrop that this study sets out to examine
selected poems of Tanure Ojaide from an ecolinguistic perspective. To achieve
the aim of the study, five poems are selected purposively from Ojaide’s Songs of
Myself and analysed using both qualitative and quantitative approaches to data
analysis. The data is also examined using the Eco-critical Discourse Analysis
(EDA) approach. The findings from the study reveal the use of rhetorical devices
to converge towards emphasising the beauty of the ecological characteristics of
the physical environment. The use of imagery by the poet draws on readers’
socio-cognitive instincts towards the appealing to their emotive senses. In
conclusion, the use of the eco-linguistic approach to examine the poems has not
only revealed the poet’s intents but has also demystified the myth behind the
ecosystem of the Niger Delta.