Vernacular idioms in post-independence African literature: The example of verse writers

Abstract

The immediate and all-important concern of African authors like Soyinka, Clark- Bekederemo, Okot p’Bitek and others is to revitalize poetic language and imagery by introducing some "vernacular” idioms into their literary works. However, it is clear that a direct translation of those idioms from the indigenous sources into English often creates stylistic and semantic problems even though this innovative method itself can give the verse writers a new identity. Of particular interest here are the proverbs as metaphors in Yoruba and Igbo which are quite difficult to render into English. The African poets seem very close to their audience in towns and villages, hence the readers and critics overseas have to be made conscious of any ambiguity or imprecision resulting from each bilingual writer’s use of metaphor in, for example, Song of Lawino and Abiku. Besides, there is a spontaneous intermingling of foreign and African ideas, values and sentiments which the context of English as a Second Language (ESL) may allow each category of readers to appreciate or accept in the modem songs. So cleverly are the lyrical words and phrases presented by Nigerian poets that we forget about the imprecise and complex, nature of some translated idiomatic expressions in their verse writings.