A Study of Contemporary Ghanaian Spoken

A Study of Contemporary Ghanaian Spoken

University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh A RETURN TO THE PAST: A STUDY OF CONTEMPORARY GHANAIAN SPOKEN WORD POETRY BY KWAMI DANIEL YAO (10638273) THIS THESIS IS SUBMITTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD OF M.PHIL. ENGLISH OCTOBER, 2020 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh DECLARATION ii University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh DEDICATION To my family. iii University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am grateful to my supervisors, Prof. Kofi Anyidoho and Dr. Kwame Adika for mentoring and guiding me throughout my study. I also wish to acknowledge the help of all lecturers in the Department of English. Finally, I would like to thank my parents, Mr. and Mrs. Agbogla, my family and friends for their help. iv University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Table of Contents DECLARATION ............................................................................................................................ ii DEDICATION ............................................................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................... iv ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................. viii CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................................. 1 INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 1 OVERVIEW ................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1. Background .......................................................................................................................... 1 1.1.1. Spoken Word Poetry: What is it? .................................................................................. 1 1.1.2 Oral Poetry in Africa ...................................................................................................... 4 1.1.3. A Brief History of Spoken Word Poetry in Ghana ........................................................ 8 1.1.4. The Contemporary Spoken Word Poets as Artists ...................................................... 12 1.2. Problem and Objective ....................................................................................................... 15 1.2.1. Objectives .................................................................................................................... 15 1.2.3. Research Questions...................................................................................................... 16 1.2.4. Significance of the study ............................................................................................. 16 1.3. Organization and Methodology .......................................................................................... 16 1.3.1. Organization of Thesis ................................................................................................. 17 1.3.2. Methodology and Scope .............................................................................................. 18 1.3.3. Expectations................................................................................................................. 21 CHAPTER TWO .......................................................................................................................... 22 LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................................................. 22 OVERVIEW ................................................................................................................................. 22 LITERATURE ON TRADITIONAL AFRICAN ORAL POETRY ........................................ 22 v University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh DISCUSSIONS ON CONTEMPORARY SPOKEN WORD POETRY .................................. 29 CHAPTER THREE ...................................................................................................................... 37 GESTURES AND, DRUMS AND MUSIC IN CONTEMPORARY SPOKEN WORD POETRY ....................................................................................................................................................... 37 OVERVIEW ................................................................................................................................. 37 3.1. Some Spoken Word Stages and Performance in Ghana .................................................... 38 3.1.1. Introduction ................................................................................................................. 38 3.1.2. Some Spoken Word Stages in Ghana .......................................................................... 38 3.1.3. Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 41 3.2. Gestures and other Paralinguistic Devices ......................................................................... 41 3.2.1. Introduction ................................................................................................................. 41 3.2.2. Performance at Pensa Meeting – Nana Asaase ............................................................... 42 3.2.3. Performance at Music of Ghanaian Origin (MOGO) – Nana Asaase ......................... 48 3.2.4. Performance at Goethe Institut – Nana Asaase ........................................................... 52 3.2.5. Performance at Dr. Hilla Limann’s Memorial Day – Chief Moomen ......................... 55 3.2.6. Performance on TGIF on Metro TV ............................................................................ 61 3.2.7. Solo Performance - Chief Moomen ............................................................................. 69 3.2.8. Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 75 3.3 Drums, Music and Voice ..................................................................................................... 76 3.3.1. Introduction ................................................................................................................. 76 3.3.2. Drums in Contemporary Ghanaian Spoken Word Poetry ........................................... 78 3.3.3. Music and Voice in Contemporary Ghanaian Spoken Word Poetry ........................... 86 3.3.4. Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 98 CHAPTER FOUR ......................................................................................................................... 99 ARTIST – AUDIENCE RELATIONSHIP AND STYLISTIC QUALITIES IN CONTEMPORARY SPOKEN WORD POETRY ....................................................................... 99 vi University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh OVERVIEW ................................................................................................................................. 99 4.1. More on Spoken Word Stages and Performance in Ghana .............................................. 100 4.1.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 100 4.1.2 Other Spoken Word Stages in Ghana ......................................................................... 100 4.1.3. Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 103 4.2. Artist and Audience .......................................................................................................... 103 4.2.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 103 4.2.2. Artist – Audience Relationship.................................................................................. 103 4.2.3 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 118 4.3. Stylistic Qualities ............................................................................................................. 119 4.3.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 119 4.3.2. Stylistic Qualities in Contemporary Ghanaian Spoken Word poetry ........................ 119 4.3.3. Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 145 OVERVIEW ............................................................................................................................... 146 5.1. Conclusion ........................................................................................................................ 146 5.2. Recommendations ............................................................................................................ 148 5.2.1. Contemporary Spoken Word Poetry as a Tool for Projecting African Values ......... 148 5.2.2. Studying Spoken Word Poetry in Classrooms .......................................................... 149 5.2.3. Spoken Word Poetry as a means to whip up Interest of Children in Poetry ............. 150 Works Cited ...............................................................................................................................

View Full Text

Details

  • File Type
    pdf
  • Upload Time
    -
  • Content Languages
    English
  • Upload User
    Anonymous/Not logged-in
  • File Pages
    190 Page
  • File Size
    -

Download

Channel Download Status
Express Download Enable

Copyright

We respect the copyrights and intellectual property rights of all users. All uploaded documents are either original works of the uploader or authorized works of the rightful owners.

  • Not to be reproduced or distributed without explicit permission.
  • Not used for commercial purposes outside of approved use cases.
  • Not used to infringe on the rights of the original creators.
  • If you believe any content infringes your copyright, please contact us immediately.

Support

For help with questions, suggestions, or problems, please contact us