Nigerian Literature Essay

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1939 respectively, were a connect between the old tradition of Northern Nigerian literature and the modern tradition. Seeing that the time was changing swiftly, he had radical vision to write neither in Arabic nor in the popular ‘ajami’ (Hausa language in Arabic script). He chose Hausa, written in the Roman script. This is because he felt that the Hausa language, which has a remarkable adaptability as a Sudanese pidgin, would be the lingua franca of Nigeria. Ali believes that “this assumption was... frustrated by western education, [the] ethnic leaning position of Chief Awolowo rooted in personal ambition and a political fear of the mega-sized Northern region” (internet).
Imam’s contribution to Nigerian literature was thus overshadowed by …show more content…

They frequently entertained their audience dramatically, providing relaxation and teaching moral lessons by rendering tales. These tales are used as a means of instructing the young ones and as a result, teaching them to respect the dictates of their custom as a result of which a large body of moral instruction of societal values and norms are preserved for posterity. The influence of Hausa popular literature popularly known as Kano market literature (as most of them were written and sold in Kano), and in Hausa as “littatttafan soyayya” (books of love) cannot be simply written off from the background of Northern Nigerian literature (Ajuwon). These novels which are mainly romantic pulp fiction written in Hausa, began in the 1980s. While they have faced some criticism for not being serious literature and for morally corrupting young girls, they are petty feminist in nature. “Soyayya” novels were mainly written by women. They explore themes of love, marriage, as well as other issues which are relevant to women and girls in the contemporary Northern Nigeria society such as polygamy, forced marriages, purdah (seclusion), female education and a host of other issues that feminists concern themselves

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