Homeland & Other PoemsIfowodo was a frontline student leader in the early eighties and is a lawyer and civil rights activist. In 1996 he was a writer-in-residence at the Heinrich Boell Foundation. He was imprisoned between 1997 and 1998 and was subsequently adopted by PEN. This is his first collection of poetry which won the 1993 Association of Nigerian Authors Poetry Prize. Many of the poems are responses to politics; or spring from the tensions between writing political poetry, or art for art's sake, and other competing subjects of poetry, such as romantic love. The poet, quoting Neruda, first asks the reader expecting a poetic celebration of his natural world to 'come see the blood in the streets'. In the section section he writes tributes to Tracey Chapman, Winnie and Nelson Mandela and Margeret Thatcher ('the butcher'). The subject of the third section is the rediscovery of romantic love, amidst and beyond turmoil and oppression. |
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Page 18
... laughter we wail twice as long fail in strength to renounce a world whose comforting palms are talons of pain leaving us to mourn our weakness , and funereal courage . 1 June , 1990 She lay dying at Oshodi You can trust the headless 18.
... laughter we wail twice as long fail in strength to renounce a world whose comforting palms are talons of pain leaving us to mourn our weakness , and funereal courage . 1 June , 1990 She lay dying at Oshodi You can trust the headless 18.
Page 28
Ogaga Ifowodo. He whose days have seen so much blood will he tremble before palm oil ? Limbs that ascended mountains and descended over the dizzier heights of corpse and grave , will they quake at the despot's throne ? A decade of songs ...
Ogaga Ifowodo. He whose days have seen so much blood will he tremble before palm oil ? Limbs that ascended mountains and descended over the dizzier heights of corpse and grave , will they quake at the despot's throne ? A decade of songs ...
Page 68
... here in our country they plough and harvest for thieves ' barns who wear their palms thin to bone . So lately , you lace your songs with sad refrains sung to the memory of those that pad pain with the worm - eaten wastes of harvest . But ...
... here in our country they plough and harvest for thieves ' barns who wear their palms thin to bone . So lately , you lace your songs with sad refrains sung to the memory of those that pad pain with the worm - eaten wastes of harvest . But ...
Contents
For arts sake | 11 |
Poem to the child of my time | 32 |
Mandelas mantle | 41 |
Copyright | |
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anger anguish arms asked August battle bear beast beneath bitter bleeding blood bones break breath broken brows carved cast child close colours count crocodiles cross daily dance death December deep dust dying earth evil eyes face fading faith fear feet fire flesh flowing forest gathered graves grow guns hand harvest head hear heart heat hope horns January kill laughter lay dying leaves light living marched mark memory mouth muscle needing night pain past paths plead pledged POEMS poetry poison prize rain rising rivers roads sadness sand season seek serve shadow soldier song Soon sorrows soul space stars stone streets surer taste tears teeth terror things thirst tongue tree truth turn voice walk walls wear weeping whip wider winds wondered wounds