Myth and Symbol in Kofi Awoonor’s Poetic Art
Abstract
An aspect of Kofi Awoonor‟s verse that has not yet received critical attention, perhaps because it has not been explored, is his extensive employment of myth and symbol to develop his themes of death, religion, and the conflict of cultures. Collectively, all of these constitute the subject matter which this essay seeks to address. Awoonor is a formidable poet who, at each and every turn, develops his themes through the employment of appropriate aesthetic devices. This essay discusses the way he employs myth and symbol to develop his three major themes -- that is, death, religion, and culture conflict -- not only because they shed significant light on his poetic discourse, but because they illuminate and elucidate his work.References
Awoonor, Kofi. Guardians of the Sacred Word: Ewe Poetry. New York: Nok, 1974. Print.
----- “Songs of Sorrow” Modern Poetry from Africa. Eds. Gerald Moore and Ulli Beier. Harmondsworth/New York: Penguin, 1966. Print.
Egudu, R.N. Modern African Poetry and the African Predicament. New York: Macmillan, 1978. Print.
Levi-Strauss, Claude. In A Glossary of Literary Terms, ed. M.H. Abrams. Boston: Wadsworth, 2009. Print.
Moore, Gerald and Ulli Beier. Harmondsworth, Middlesex England and New York: Penguin Books, Ltd., 1966. Print.
Nwoga, D.I. West African Verse. London: Longman, 1967. Print
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2025-02-26
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