ARTS

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    A COGNITIVE SEMANTIC STUDY OF METAPHORS IN FULFULDE
    (2023-07) ABDULLAHI, HADIYAH
    This studyis on cognitive semantic analysis of the metaphors in Fulfulde. Fulfulde language belongs to the West Atlantic geographical grouping within the Niger Congo family and the language has six dialectal areas. The objectives of this research are to examine how Fulfulde conceptualises metaphor, the relationship between the components of metaphor, and the deliberateness of the metaphor as propounded by Steen‟s (2017) Deliberate Metaphor Theory. The theoretical framework chosen for this study is Deliberate Metaphor Theory (DMT). The data were collected through surreptitious recording and stratified random selection of different registers such as anger, marriage, politics, religion, and reality. The data comprises of corpus design and recordings. Upon the analysis, the findings obtained corresponded with the research questions by answering how Fulfulde knowledge representation through conceptualization does not follow the pattern of target (abstract) and source (concrete) domains. The study reveals that Fulfulde conceptualisation of metaphor can be potentially deliberate or non-Deliberate in knowledge representation by choices of lexical items. The study concludes thatFulƃe metaphorical expressions through experiences can constrain the representation of metaphors and these metaphors are sometimes culture specific
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    A FUNCTIONALIST ANALYSIS OF EXPRESSIONS AND EXPRESSIVENESS OF HAUSA ORATURE IN DAMAGARAM
    (2023-09) BOUNOU, OUSMANE
    This study attempts a functionalist analysis of expressions and expressiveness of Hausa orature of Damagaram and demonstrates the social function each of the types fulfills. The study examines the functions and expressiveness of this tradition of Hausa orature in the region. It is important also to specify certain socio-cultural practices as a result of foreign contacts and attitudes of dispossession or distortion of the cultural values in Damagaram. The stifling of some features of ancestral values was accelerated through the education system at every level, leading to abandoning of the professional initiations and certain family occupations. This study was carried out of a very critical time for orature in Niger Republic, particularly in Damagaram because of a wave of deaths of some eminent artists of this area some of whom included Yerima Malam, Ma‘azu Ɗan Alalo and Zabiya Hurera. Methodologically, for the primary source of data, four teachers were selected as research assistants for data gathering, identifying the most famous artists in Damagaram, their places of origin, their target audience and collecting some items of their performances. Later, the researcher conducted the validation of the corpus by attending to the artists and areas in different zones. The findings of the study revealed how the Hausa orature in Damagaram area from the point of view of expressions and expressiveness is relevant in the spectrum of orature in the social function it was supposed to perform. The form and the modes of expression are the same; but because of the diversity of the environment, the genius of expressiveness remains the base of authenticity. Also, it was found that Ma‘azu Ɗan Alalo had different tunes and manners from Ɗanƙwairo not because the first was in Niger Republic and the second in Nigeria, but the fate of contexts played on the personality of each of the two and makes the first what he was, and not an adapter of the second. This is also valid between Ɗan Alalo and Zabiya Furera or Yerima Malam for the same arguments on the myth of human personality. The study concludes that each orature material – proverb, folktale, song, lullaby, sarcasm of women, epithet, innuendo, riddle, counting rhyme – carries specific message and function. Also, each performer uses his/her technique or manner – which is called expressiveness - to express oneself or pass on a message. And the more expressive a literary message is, the more likely it is to accomplish the social function to which it is destined
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    ABDULLAHI B. FODIO AS A MUSLIM JURIST
    (1977-05) Abubakar, Aliu Gwandu
    This work is a critical and objective study of Abdullahi as a Muslim jurist. Chapter one deals with the background to 'Abdullahi's society and gives a brief account of the political, social, economic and religious conditions of the peoples of the Hausa States in the 18th century. Chapter two gives a brief account of 'Abdullahi's life. It covers his education and preaching, and the part which he played in the Sokoto Jihad. It concludes with a brief sketch of his character. In chapter three we have tried to trace the personalities that most influenced 'Abdullahi's thinking. It is hoped that a knowledge of these personalities would help to account for 'Abdullahi's views. Chapter four deals with 'Abdullahi's ideas on constitutional theory and government, and in particular his conception of the Caliphate and various departments of its administration. Chapter five deals with 'Abdullahi's ideas on Islamic society and the vital role which he ascribed to religious revival in the process of social reform. It deals with his ideas on the significance of rituals and the relationships between the various sections of Islamic society, and his attitude towards non-conformists like rebelsand zindiqs. It deals with 'Abdullahi's ideas on the institution of marriage, the upbringing of children, and the lawful and unlawful means of the acquisition of wealth. In chapter six we have attempted to make a critical assessment of 'Abdullahi as a mujtahid or an independent Muslim jurist.We dealt first with the principles which guided him in formulating his opinions. While stressing his independent juristic approach, we placed him as a mujtahid within the Malikl School of Law. We also showed how his choice of sources extended to the three orthodox schools of law.
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    ABSTRACT TRANSFORMATION OF STILL-LIFE OF FRUITS AND VEGETABLES IN PAINTING
    (1994) LAURETA, IROABUCHI CHIGOZIRI
    ABSTRACT Abstract Transformation of S t i l l - L i f e of F r u i ts and Vegetables in Painting By IROABUCHI CHIGOZIRI LAURETA (B.A. Hons Fine Arts, A.B.U) Abstract transformation of s t i l l - l i f e of f r u i t s and vegetables in painting is a studio research in painting which dealt with the use of some selected f r u i t s and vegetables commonly found in our markets in Zaria to develop and create a b s t r a c t painting. The research was considered an experimental painting study of n a t u r a l f r u i t s and vegetables for the purpose of evolving a unique and personal mode of expression. The aims of t h is study were to elevate s t i l l - l i f e painting to a s t a t e of a b s t r a c t i o n with the hope that t h i s will extend the ways of expression in s t i l l - l i f e painting in contemporary Nigeria painting. The data collected for t h i s study were selected f r u i ts and vegetables from the markets in Zariaf study paintings and sketches based on personal observation and d i r e c t visual study of the objects under study. - vii - The method of study started by the simple study of representational still-life of selected fruits and vegetables to a systematic, complex and conceptual studies that were expressively individual. This was followed by making some preliminary studies in semi-abstraction. These were later carried out freely and spontaneously into pure abstraction. The experimental paintings represented in this study were done with conventional media. These include: the artist oil colour, pencil and water colour wash. The works were exhibited at the end of the research, they formed the basis of findings of the study and are represented in the project report as plates and figures. Among the findings of the study were: 1) The ability to create interesting compositions from still-life study. 2) The ability to create a mode of painting that is expressively individual. 3) The need for documentation of artistic development in Nigeria. 4) The research has educationally elevated the study of still-life to a point of abstraction where ordinary objects have been embacked with different interpretation and meaning.
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    ACCESSIBILITY OF AGRICULTURAL CREDIT BY RURAL WOMEN AND THE IMPLICATION ON NIGERIA AGRICULTURAL OUTPUT: A CASE STUDY OF JEMA’A AND KAURA LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF KADUNA STATE
    (2009-04) ISA, GRACE HEZEKIAH
    This study investigated rural women access to agricultural credit and the effect on agricultural output. Primary data were collected through the use of structured questionnaire and Focus Group Discussion (FGD). Two Local Government Areas (LGAs) were selected based on women involvement in agricultural activities. These were Jema’a and Kaura (LGAs). A multi-stage random sampling technique was applied in the selection of eighty (80) women farmers. Each local government areas had (40) respondents. A high percentage of the questionnaires administered during the research were retrieved. A total number of 78 questionnaires out of the 80 questionnaires administered were retrieved, representing 98% response rate. The analytical tools used include among others frequencies, mean, and percentages. The chi-square was also used to test the null hypotheses that there was no significant relationship between socio-economic factors and access to credit and also no significant relationship between amount accessed and output. The results show that there were two main sources of agricultural credit in these areas. They are formal and informal agricultural credit. It was discovered that 17% of these rural women sourced credit from formal sources (commercial banks/ Agricultural banks) and 83% of them got theirs from informal sources like friends, relatives, NGOs, and personal saving. The women in the study area encountered problems like inaccessibility of credit institution, lack of collateral security, administrative bureaucracy in accessing formal sources of credit. Problems like insufficient amount and high interest rate posed challenges in accessing informal sources of credit. The study proffered solutions like the establishment of banks in the rural areas, minimization of procedure in getting loans and implementing programmes that will facilitate women access to credit facilities. The cross tabulation/chi-square analysis showed that occupation education and land ownership had influenced on access to agricultural credit. Socio-economic factors like age, family size, farm size had no influence on access to credit. Finally, the chi square analysis proved that there was a significant relationship between amount accessed and level of output. Women who received higher amount experienced increase in their agricultural output.
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    ACHIEVING UNITY AND COHERENCE THROUGH CONTRADICTIONS IN THE NOVELS OF ACHEBE, IYAYI AND HABILA
    (2015-05) UBIEM, AGATHA
    This study attempts an exploration of how unity and coherence through contradictions are achieved in Achebe‟s Things Fall Apart, Iyayi‟s Violence and Habila‟s Measuring Time. It is significant to state that the choice of these texts is informed by the need to comprehend how various generations of Nigerian writers have negotiated the contradictions, tensions, distortions and challenges, which have characterized the social, historical and political landscape of Nigeria. In addition, this study reflects the many dimensions of contradictions, distortions, tensions, injustice and disillusionment prevailing in the selected texts. It touches on character juxtaposition, comparative analysis, differences and interrelationships among structures in the texts. It however achieves unity and coherence by showing the connection of representations in the texts. For instance, Achebe‟s Things Fall Apart projects unity and coherence of the African culture as well as Western religion through distortions and tensions evident in the text. The writer‟s skilful portrayal of the two cultures, co-existing side by side, is one of such structuralists binarism achieved in this study. Iyayi explores unity and coherence by pointing out the insensitive nature of the government. He encourages the masses to unite in the struggle towards a desirable and functional social order in the country. Habila‟s Measuring Time depicts family disunity and its effect on the individual character. He achieves unity and coherence in the text, emphasizing on individual contributions towards the unity and development in the community. Structuralism as a reading method is appropriate. This is in relation to its distinctive features of binary oppositions, the primacy of the text and the generation of meaning through differences, etc. The deployment of these features enhances the understanding of the contradictions, distortions and tensions predominant in the texts. The study therefore establishes that in spite of these contradictions, complexities, disintegrations and distortions the texts display some levels of unity and coherence towards a desirable functional society.
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    ADABI DA TARIHANCI : NAZARIN WASU WASANNI NA RUDOLF PRIETZE
    (2018-01) LAWAL, NASIRU
    Historicism is a literary theory that focuses on historical events in works of art. It thus depict how historical issues are embedded in literature. The research entitled “Adabi da Tarihanci: Nazarin Wasu Wasanni Na Rudolf Prietze”(Literature and Historicism: An Analysis of Some Plays byRudolf Prietze) looks at how historical phenomena were encapsulated in Turbar Qudus (1898), Turbar Tarabulus (1902) and Tarihin Rabeh (1902). In its attempt to analyse the plays based on historicism, the workhas reviewed and ascertained the history of Rabeh (Fadl Allah), Jerusalem (Qudus) and Trans-Saharan trade and so many related issues for the purpose of reference.And the research analyses the literary appreciation in the plays, notably the plot, the theme, the characters, and the language style (figure of speech). In conclusion, the research has highlighted how Prietze‟s plays reflect the historical phenomena inJerusalem and in Hausa societies in different aspects of life around 1898 and 1902, The research discovers that the playwright uses true life story to buildliterature. In Turbar Qudus,thehistory of Christianity which comprises the holy place where Prophet Isah (Yesu) was born is examined, and the categories of peoplelive in Jerusalem that largely originated from Germany, Moscow and Francewere noted.Thethesis observed the applicability of supremacyof power in Turbar Qudusby the emir of Istanbul over other emirs. Similarly, in the play Turbar Tarabulus the historical life of commercial or Trans-Saharan trade between Hausaland and Maghreb states (North Africa) have been studied. The life in the desert and its dwellers notably the Shamba Arabs were noted.While in Tarihin Rabeh, the history of Rabeh and how he conquered Borno empire and its neighbors have been discovered
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    ADABI DA TARIHANCI : NAZARIN WASU WASANNI NA RUDOLF PRIETZE
    (2018-01) LAWAL, NASIRU
    Historicism is a literary theory that focuses on historical events in works of art. It thus depict how historical issues are embedded in literature. The research entitled “Adabi da Tarihanci: Nazarin Wasu Wasanni Na Rudolf Prietze”(Literature and Historicism: An Analysis of Some Plays by Rudolf Prietze) looks at how historical phenomena were encapsulated in Turbar Qudus (1898), Turbar Tarabulus (1902) and Tarihin Rabeh (1902). In its attempt to analyse the plays based on historicism, the work has reviewed and ascertained the history of Rabeh (Fadl Allah), Jerusalem (Qudus) and Trans-Saharan trade and so many related issues for the purpose of reference. And the research analyses the literary appreciation in the plays, notably the plot, the theme, the characters, and the language style (figure of speech). In conclusion, the research has highlighted how Prietze‟s plays reflect the historical phenomena in Jerusalem and in Hausa societies in different aspects of life around 1898 and 1902, The research discovers that the playwright uses true life story to build literature. In Turbar Qudus, the history of Christianity which comprises the holy place where Prophet Isah (Yesu) was born is examined, and the categories of people live in Jerusalem that largely originated from Germany, Moscow and France were noted. The thesis observed the applicability of supremacy of power in Turbar Qudus by the emir of Istanbul over other emirs. Similarly, in the play Turbar Tarabulus the historical life of commercial or Trans-Saharan trade between Hausaland and Maghreb states (North Africa) have been studied. The life in the desert and its dwellers notably the Shamba Arabs were noted.While in Tarihin Rabeh, the history of Rabeh and how he conquered Borno empire and its neighbors have been discovered.
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    ADAPTATION AS A CREATIVE RESPONSE TO SOCIETAL CHANGE:
    (1995-12) ISAH, MUHAMMAD RABI'U
    ABSTRACT The experimental alternative theatre practice of the Drama Village, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria could be said to have achieve a definite and established results. This is evident in the area of entertainment and instruction. This achievement is recorded against the challenges faced by the experiments. One, the already established Drama Practice of the Ibadan School which extended from the Elizabethan and classical tradition of theatre practice of the West, and two, the rapid dynamism of the Nigerian Society. This experimental alternative theatre is called by some people as Popular theatre. This Popular theatre manifest in the famours community theatre of the Drama Village and also in the style of presentation of the formal theatre conventions. One of the method of its presentation of the conventional drama is by way of adapting plays through collective improvisation. Adaptation which is the alteration of the context of an existing drama or story to create a new one is done either to up date the issues in the original version, or to radically change the issue to a new context. In the drama Village's case issues raised in original version of plays were radically altered to address critical societal issues. Some selected plays of this nature are hereby chosen for analyses in this thesis. These plays are The Five Kobo Opera, Perpetua And The Habit Of Unhappiness and Na So E Be. To enhance our understanding of the works at Drama Village three plays adapted by notable Nigerian Dramatists are also discussed. The plays are The Gods' Are Not To Blame by Ola Rehmi, Another Raft by Femi Osofisan and Opera Wongosi by Wole Soyinka. The discourse in this thesis is an attempt to provoke serious minded scholarship to critically consider seriously the aspect of dramatic adaptation which is in the Nigerian Drama history. Also it attempts to by way of documentation preserved a serious and important aspect of dramatic practice within the Nigerian and to some extent African dramatic practice.
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    AN ADAPTATION OF KWAGH-HIR PUPPETS TO CREATE KINETIC PAINTINGS
    (2014-07) AGAKU, SAGHEVWUA AMOS
    The research titled An Adaptation of Kwagh-hir Puppets to create Kinetic Paintings is aimed at creating paintings inspired by kwagh-hir figurines, figures and masquerade figures; the problem of this study is to interpret the kwagh-hir puppets as paintings, with an aim of creating paintings that can give illusion of movement. The study at hand reviewed works that are based on African sculptural images and proportions, and motion. Photographs; interviews explorative methodologies were engaged during the collection of data. Series of sketches and drawings of the selected puppets were made in the preliminary stages of the study to explore the diverse appearance and motion of the puppets. The population was stratified into three groups, which are figurines, figures and masquerade puppet categories. The works in each category were executed in three stages of transformation from the known to the unknown as follows (i) Representational stage; (ii) Exploratory stage (iii) Transformed stage. The study revealed that kwagh-hir sculptural form and motion could be adapted to create visual kinetics in painting, through rhythms created by repetition of forms, shapes and lines. Findings within the course of the research show that the research has drawn out motion from kwagh-hir a doing art realm of theatre into a visual art realm of painting. Having studied and understood that the visual motion exhibited by the 20th century arts and their stemming modernist movements. There was an affinity in their use of repetitive elements to create optical illusion of motion in painting. As such the study at hand propound: elements x repetition = rhythm/movement as a formula for creating visual motion in painting.
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    ADAPTATION OF THE DAGI MOTIF FOR PAINTING
    (2011-09) IBRAHIM, UMORU
    ABSTRACT The research titled: “Adaptation of the Dagi Motif for Painting” is aimed at bringing to light the aesthetic qualities that are inherent in Northern Knot motif which bears the nomenclature “Dagi” with the view to further advance the study of the ubiquitous icon as a source for artistic purpose (particularly for painting. The data for the study were therefore, based on selected Dagi Motif as found on palace gate, door post of houses, embroidery and other household utensil found in Zaria Emirate council. However, similar forms of interest in books and previous paintings were also made use of. They served as creative models for the study. Result and findings of this study are presented as plates followed by discussions. At the end of the research, certain observations were made. It was found that in exploring the Dagi motif, mere visual representation could be carried further to highly complex visual sophistication as a play of light upon the dagi motif can be interesting with certain areas reflecting or refract light with fascinating results. Thus, painters should continue to tap into “Dagi” inspirational depth to further advance modern painting.
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    ADAPTATION OF THE FRONTAL VIEW OF CHURCH ALTAR FABRIC DRESSING INTO PAINTING
    (2016-07) EZEAKABUDU, PHILOMENA CHINYERE
    The research titled “Adaptation of the frontal view of Church Altar fabric dressing into painting” was inspired by the frontal view of Church Altar fabric dressing. It has its target on the creation of installation art by adapting altarpiece fabric decorations. From the exploratory stage of the study to the developmental one, the researcher was able to conduct the research on three different objectives; to produce fabric installations in painting by adapting the features of the frontal view of the Church altar decoration, to create altarpieces that are non-figurative in painting and to adapt the symbolic liturgical colours of the Catholic Church and their symbols into fabric installations. The colours are red, green, white, purple and gold. Selected Altarpiece paintings and fabric installations were reviewed as they are found to relate to the study. The researcher collected data from the Parishes of Catholic Diocese of Zaria, Kaduna State. The data collected were analysed using exploratory and studio based research methods. Seven paintings were produced during the preliminary study which are grouped as category one. Ten fabric installations also were produced at the developmental stage and are grouped as category two. The researcher found out that the elements and principles of art in the Church fabric altar dressing can spur and inspire artists to produce art works. The researcher produced nonfigurative fabric altarpiece installations employing the symbolic liturgical colours of the Catholic Church.
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    THE ADMINISTRATION OF COLONIAL TAXATION IN ZARIA PROVINCE: A CASE STUDY OF KAGARKO DISTRICT, 1902 -1960
    (2015-07) LAMBA, Luka Jane
    This thesis is a study of the Administration of colonial taxation in Kagarko District 1902-1960. The period chosen marked the incursion of British colonial activities into the area. The study of colonial taxation in the area revealed that taxation was used as an instrument for subverting the resources of the area. Colonial taxation has in no small measure rendered Africa dependent of the Colonial economy. Colonial taxation was a major tool used by the colonialists to achieve capitalist ambitions in Nigeria. It helped in the creation of the colonial economy whereby taxes were only allowed to be paid in British currency. In addition to all these, the use of forced labour in the tin mines and railway construction contributed immensely to the success of the colonial economy. Colonial taxation brought a setback on agricultural activities and other means of livelihood of the People such as mat making and bee-keeping. Colonial taxation led to forced migrations, increase in social vices like stealing and lying, child labour and slavery and other dehumanizing activities like the sales of children for money to pay tax. In a nutshell, the administration of colonial taxation in Kagarko District did not in any way adhere to the tenets of taxation as propounded by many economic scholars. It also impoverished the society of Kagarko.
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    ADO ASIRIN MATA: NAZARI KAN ADON JIKIN MATA JIYA DA YAU
    (2015-10) TUKUR, BILKISU
    Over the years, researchers have overlooked the general body make-up of the Hausa women. This research entitled: Ado Asirin Mata: Nazari kan Adon Jikin Mata cimpiled surveyed the past work of the writers. The research explores the different categories of the body make-up. These include: Hair dressing, skin care or make-up and other related part. These general body make-up are considred as the major theme of bringing out the beauty of the women.
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    AESTHETICS AND UTILITARIAN VALUES OF SELECTED AFRICAN AMERICAN NEGRO SPIRITUALS AND GOSPEL SONGS
    (2015-06) SHIRU, VICTOR BABATETE
    This study examines African American songs as an embodiment of black American identity, experience, socio-economic realities, and African Americans‟ perception of the world located as they are within the American society. Although, the subject of African American Music has produced a large and varied literature, the inattention to questions of beauty and functions of the songs seem to neglect the contribution and distinctiveness of the genre in addressing the African American crisis and predicament. In an attempt to fill this gap, the study focuses on selected songs of two song types belonging to the black tradition - Spirituals and early Gospel Songs of Charles Albert Tindley and Thomas Dorsey - as forms which widely explain the circumstances of black life in white dominated America. In particular, the study attempts to establish the aesthetic and utilitarian values of the aforesaid song types. In order to achieve the goals of the study, twelve songs are analysed: six songs from each song style. They include “De Winter‟ll Soon be Ober,” “I Got Shoes,” “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot,” “We are Clim‟in‟ Jacob‟s Ladder,” “Crucifixion,” and “Soon I Will Be Done.” Others include: “I‟ll Overcome Someday,” “We‟ll Understand It Better By and By,” “Here I May Be Weak and Poor (God Will Provide for Me),” “Take My Hand, Precious Lord,” “Peace in the Valley” and “I‟m Going to Live the Life I Sing About in My Song.” A close scrutiny of the songs reveals two important issues. The first illustrates that the two vernacular styles, developed at different times and environments, provide and at times share a definitive set of aesthetic and stylistic features. Some of them include: allegory, allusion, rhyme, repetition, verse and chorus structure, call-and-response pattern, improvisation, amongst others. Second, the artistic forms – Negro Spiritual and Gospel Songs, - beyond their religious functions, serve as expressive outlets of social, cultural and political circumstances of African American life within the United States. To drive the point home, Postcolonial theory is employed as a theoretical tool. This framework facilitates the examination of the colonial experience of African Americans in terms of the oppressive form of slavery and its effects on their social and cultural spheres. It also examines the way the two musical styles under study serve as African Americans‟ creative, artistic responses and subtle forms of resistance to the oppressions and race-based discrimination in the mainland of America. This approach in the study stretches backwards from the colonial past of American slavery to the dynamics of neo-colonialism in the early decades of the twentieth century.
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    THE AESTHETICS OF ARABIC CALLIGRAPHIC EMBELLISHMENT OF MOSQUES IN KANO, NIGERIA
    (2015) MUHAMMAD, Aliyu
    Attempt is made in this study to investigate the aesthetic embellishment inherent in the Arabic calligraphy of mosques in Kano, Nigeria. Attention on the research was stimulated by the way scholars overlooked this expressive art form particularly amongst the non-Arab speaking Muslim Ummah. In the course of doing that, the study traced the historical evolution of Arabic calligraphy, the arrival of Islam into Kano, and what informed its usage on the mosque‟s inner and outer walls. The study also appreciated its usage within the context of aesthetic. Literature was therefore available on the subject in such regions within the stated periods and was thus reviewed. This is coupled with oral interview conducted, visits paid to certain mosques, questionnaire administered on the artists and Mallams/Imams. Basically, the study adopted and utilized the qualitative and historical method of research. Data collected for the study were analysed based on Feldman‟s recommendation to be taken in analyzing artworks. The steps are descriptive, formal analysis, interpretation and judgment. From the findings it was discovered that out of the six renown Arabic calligraphic styles, (Kufic, Thuluth, Nasakh, Riq‟a, Farsi and Deewani) only three of the Arabic calligraphic styles were frequently used by the Arabic calligraphers within the studied areas. The Arabic styles include Kufic, Farsi and Nasakh. Based on the findings of the study, recommendations were given as to how Arabic calligraphic embellishment will be better understood and appreciated, especially among the non-Arabic speaking Muslim Ummah.
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    AESTHETICS OF CHILDREN’S LITERATURE IN NIGERIA: A STUDY OF SELECTED BOOKS
    (2015-10) SHAFII, Zainab Zendana
    This study examines the aesthetic components in Children‟s literature in Nigeria using the works of Fatima Akilu, Yusuf Adamu, Ayodele Olofintuade, Lola Shoneyin, and A. O Oyekanmi‟. The research aims at showing that Children‟s literature in Nigeria can be viewed from an angle beyond that of morality and psychology. Thus using the qualitative research method of gathering information, this study portends that the generic marker for Children‟s literature is not necessarily its social and cultural appeal, but its peculiar features which include the use of language, illustrations and also the styles inherent. While many scholars, have been more preoccupied with the content and information gained from Children‟s literature, this study by using the formalist literary theory, focuses majorly on the text, that is, the beauty of the text, especially how writers have been able to combine words to make meaning. To this end, this study observes the relationship between illustration and text with a view to showcasing how these combined components enhance the story. The study further investigates the use of language and animal images in Children‟s literature in the works of to enumerate the various styles that form the aesthetic components of Children‟s literature. Its findings reveal that Children‟s literature becomes more interesting and appealing if its aesthetic elements are appreciated and appropriated.
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    AFRICA IN THE CARIBBEAN IMAGINATION: A STUDY OF THE POETRY OF EDWARD KAMAU BRATHWAITE, NICOLAS BATISTE GUILLEN AND DEREK ALTON WALCOTT
    (2005-05) AKUSO, EZEKIEL SOLOMON
    This dissertation examines the depiction of Africa, as a reality and as an idea, in the creative works of the Caribbean writer, using multiple theoretical approaches such as Post colonialism, Formalism, New Criticism and the Representation theory. The dissertation argues that the image of Africa in the European and Western discourse was prejudicial and preposterous due to its presentation of Africa as primal and savage, without history, as permanent and fixed and thus imperious to modification and change. Over the years, Caribbean writers have with varying degrees of success, challenged this dominant regime of encoding or representing Africa by re-inscribing a range of positive images of Africans and Black people, Black life and culture. This dissertation further postulates that the works of Edward Kamau Brathwaite, Nicolas Batiste Guillen and Derek Alton Walcott reveal a shift of emphasis from mere documentation of African survivors in Caribbean writing to an identification and foregrounding of an authentic Afro- Caribbean tradition and aesthetics. The contributions, of these West Indian poets therefore lie in the repositioning of Africa, not as a contained identity or exclusive entity but as a conglomeration of several things all of which have been significantly influenced by such negative experiences as slave trade, colonialism and imperialism. These have reshaped the African experience, identity and character as evident in the poetry of the three selected major Caribbean poets. The discourse in the dissertation spans five chapters. Chapter one is the introduction which explores the concepts and the context of the study. Chapter two analyses Brathwaite’s poetry. It focuses on how Brathwaite’s textuality is anchored on personality formation or the reinscription of the self. Chapter three explores Guillen’s Man Making Words with special emphasis on the African image and Black identity. Multiculturalism and cultural schizophrenia is examined in chapter four. Here it is argued that Walcott in his poetry, gives due recognition to how the combination of European and African heritages have influenced identity formation in the Caribbean. His art generally reveals the hybrid nature of the West Indian’s culture and the schizophrenic situation that pervades the Caribbean society. Chapter five, the concluding chapter, brings together the central arguments and findings of the study. On the whole it is established that both Africa and the Caribbean are signified as habitats or home in Caribbean Poetry: the former, ancestral, which gives spiritual and x psychological strength; the latter, real, providing the physical environment for realizing dreams, aspirations and forging new identities.
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    AFRICAN IMAGE IN AFRICAN AMERICAN LITERATURE: A CASE STUDY OF LANGSTON HUGHES’ THE PANTHER AND THE LASH: POEMS OF OUR TIME AND YUSEF KOMUNYAKAA’S PLEASURE DOME: NEW AND COLLECTED POEMS
    (2015-05) UBATU, BENJAMIN OLISAELOKA
    This thesis is concerned with the how image of Africa is presented in African American literature using Langston Hughes‟ The Panther and the Lash: Poems of our Time (1964) and Yusef Komunyakaa‟s Pleasure Dome: New and Collected Poems (2001). The study employs New Historicism as an analytical tool to explore how the African American writers use poetry as a mouthpiece to assert their African origin at a period when it was widely believed by the Eurocentric critics that African Americans have totally lost Africanness. It also shows how the fusion of two distinct cultures has led to the emergence of a hybrid culture that has produced a great art, and concludes that societies should focus more on what unites them than what divides them in order to foist a more united and prosperous society. African image in the context of this research centres on the issues of slavery, racism, identity formation, disenchantment, struggle for freedom and integration. The presence of African image in the African American literary creation is anindication of their consciousness of Africa as their ancestry and their acceptance of dual heritage in U.S.A. The study is not concerned with a comparative analysis despite using two poets from two different literary eras; it rather focuses on the connection between the two poetic eras which lies in their expression of African elements and displeasure with the status quo in the American society and their desire for integration. However, Langston Hughes is more conservative (and sometimes uses caustic language) and uses blues tradition in addressing the subject matter,while Yusef Komunyakaa, who is more versatile and universal in addressing the subject matter sees Africa as a source of inspiration. These writers accept Africa as their root which they cannot return physically. They also argue that America is equally their origin although they are not fully accepted, and express their desire for integration. They therefore illustrate how the Blacks, having found themselves in the web of dual identity crisis with its numerous challenges, plays significant roles towards resolving the issues of identity formation/crisis and cultural hybridisation that characterised the changing face of the history of U.S.A.
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    THE AFRICAN WRITER AND THE AFRICAN ELITE; AN EXAMINATION OF THE IMAGE OF THE ELITE IN SEMBENE OUSMANE'S NOVELS
    (1990-10) Yadikko Yamusa, Halima
    This thesis explores the image of the African elite in the novels of the Senegalese writer Sembene Ousmane. In Ousmane's handling of the various phases of the growth of the elite, he traces the history of the Senegalese society from pre-colonial to "Independent and neo-colonial Africa. The thesis also considers how Sembene Ousmane, in his novels, demonstrates the role and the place of the masses and the centrality of "struggle" in the political process. The thesis studies Ousmane's novels from a broad sociological framework for a profound understanding of the complex stages within which the elite and the Africans interact. The image of the African elite that emerges in Ousmane's novels as cheats, greedy people and rapacious, class of exploiters who support their luxurious life style at the expense of the masses. The four novels studied are; God's Bits of Wood, (1970); White Genesis with Money-Order. (1972); Xala, (1976) and The Last of The Empire (1983). References are also made to some of his films such as 'Ceddo', 'Boron', 'Serret' and 'Saitone'. Chapter one comprises the introduction, which provides a historical, theoretical and social background to Ousmane's novels. In the Literature review, it is examined why it is necessary to study the image of the elite in Ousmane's novels from all aspects of the elite. In Chapter Two, the embroyonic stage of the elite from pre-colonial to early cclonial period is examined with illustrations from God's Bits of Wood and "The White Genesis". Chapter Three explores the ascendance of the elite, their coming into prominence, the display of their loct and glory and of course the genesis of their fall with illustrations from "The Money-Order" and Xala. Chapter Four examines the gradual decay of the edifice of the elite, the increasing repression and their survival tactics. The revolutionary of Sembene Ousmane is examined with illustrations from The Last of The Empire. Finally, Chapter Five draws a conclusion, provides concise summary of our findings on Ousmane's profound insight into the nature of the elite in Senegal and the complex processes they are involved in