The African child is born into a society that has him thinking of the origin of the society and the reason for the current nature of the society. With all these, he yearns for a break and fun, after all, he is but a child. Literature well deals with these two sides of the child; a particular not to be ignored genre is poetry.
To a person well versed in the literary field, poetry will be said to have no definition. It is likened to life or as a matter of fact, referred to as life. Watts Dunton puts poetry as “the artistic expression of the human mind.” Edgar Allan Poe says “it’s the rhythmical creation of beauty.” As a general description, poetry can be described as the expression of life in lines and verses of different styles and themes.
Poetry is known to give several kinds of feelings to the poet, the reciter and the listener. Some of which are pleasure, reflection, sadness, joy and thoughts. To a child, regardless of society, the first attractive feature of this genre of Literature is a pleasure. The sound comes from the rhymes at the end of the lines; as most children get to hear nursery rhymes from the first stage of development.
The African child, unlike other children, has the native poems as their first contact with the genre of Literature. This allows him to be well versed in the culture he is born into. There are oral songs featured in folktales that are told to the child by the elders in the house. These tales provide the child with an insight as to the ways of doing things according to tradition. This does not in any way mean that the cultural background of the child is expressly defined by the poems. Rather, it serves as a foundation for the learning of the child in culture.
In Psychology, there’s nature and nurture discourse. While the former is of the view that the child’s development is influenced by biological issues, the latter views that the child is influenced by society and some other external factors. Although the culture has been learnt courtesy of the poems being recited and learnt, the child’s actions tend to align with that which has been read or learnt. This will last at least for the period of being a child due to the role confusion that might set in in his teenage years.
It is no news that the African child is one with an obvious creative mind. This creativity is one stemming from the proper exposure given to the child from the beginning of learning. The African child writer is one of the most admired and laudable ones of this day. With poems now being written by a child, one would want to know the background of that child. On proper research, it will be discovered that such a child was well exposed to the beautiful nature of the pen hence getting the ability to think critically of the state of things around him. Perhaps, due to the background of the African child, he tends to ask questions when confused. This nature of the African child appeals to the feature of poetry.
Poetry is a clear picture of a few phrases with metaphorical meanings with extensive exploration of the element of imagery. This nature of poetry has the African child seeking to understand the thoughts and intentions of the poet. The questions here are in two categories, the words and the meaning itself. In so doing, he is able to think critically and communicate in a way so unlike an average child. Statistics show that a child with a healthy mind is clearly known by his ways of doing things and communication ability.
The mind is a very important concept and the core of psychology. One should on no account miss the self-reflection brought by the mind of the African child. In his development, he is able to pick bits and pieces of the poems learnt and use them in painting a picture of the various phenomena with regard to life issues.
In poetry, a child’s brain works in tandem with his mind. With an exposed and knowledge filled mind, a child is equipped with a gift to engage in impactful relationships. These relationships further shape a child’s creative process. By reading other good poems, a child discovers his writing patterns and forges ahead to create beautiful literary works. With the mindset of an African child, property exposed and guided, good results will be gotten. The potency of poetry on the mind and actions of an African child needs to explore more.
Yusuf Fathia Abolore
