SATIRE IN CONTEMPORARY NIGERIAN
POETRY:
A STUDY OF TAYO OLAFIOYE’S A CARNIVAL OF
LOOTERS AND MUSA I. OKPANACHI’S THE
EATERS OF THE LIVING.
BY
ONIBONOKUTA OLARONKE TEMILOLUWA
07/15CD155
MAY, 2011
1
SATIRE IN CONTEMPORARY NIGERIAN POETRY:
A STUDY OF TAYO OLAFIOYE’S A CARNIVAL OF
LOOTERS
AND MUSA I. OKPANACHI’S THE EATERS OF THE
LIVING.
ONIBONOKUTA OLARONKE TEMILOLUWA
07/15CD155
AN ESSAY SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF THE DEGREE
OF BACHELOR OF ARTS (HONS) IN ENGLISH
TO
THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH, FACULTY OF ARTS,
UNIVERSITY OF ILORIN, ILORIN.
MAY, 2011.
2
CERTIFICATION
This essay has been read and approved as meeting part of the requirements for the award
of Bachelor of Arts Degree (Hons) in the Department of English of the Faculty of Arts,
University of Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria.
___________________________________
____________________
MRS. F. ALIYU-IBRAHIM
DATE
Supervisor
___________________________________
____________________
DR. S.T. BABATUNDE
DATE
Head of Department
___________________________________
____________________
EXTERNAL EXAMINER
DATE
3
DEDICATION
I dedicate this work to the Almighty God for His support.
4
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I give God all the glory for His support, guidance and protection over my life.
My sincere gratitude goes to my Supervisor, Mrs. Foluke Aliyu-Ibrahim for her
guidance and counseling on my long Essay. She took her time to guide and correct my
Project work. She has been so helpful and worthy to guide an undergraduate like me. I
appreciate you Ma for the success of this work.
I wish to express my sincere appreciation to my sweet mother, Mrs. F. A.
Onibonkuta for her financial and moral support throughout my stay in the University of
ilorin. Thanks to you mother.
My special thanks goes to my siblings; Ayomide Onibonokuta, Ikeola, Bisola,
Dideoluwa, Sinuola Onibonkuta and Oladejo Abolade.
Also, I appreciate my dear brothers; Seyi Fagbemi, Aliyu Funsho and Olatunji
Seyi, thanks for the support.
A friend is a soul in two bodies, I appreciate you all I regard and consider as
friends for your encouragement on my project work, Ogunsanya Funmi, Lawal Teju,
Adetoun Adebayo, Beyioku Mariam, Fagbayi Grace, Babalakin Abiola, Ogunsanya Anu,
Wumi Bello, Oyeyipo Bukunmi, Adedoyin Simon, Adisa Temitayo, Wumi Akinbobola
Olajide Paul, Ogunbiyi Tomiwa, Lawore Jide, and Olayiwola Adeola.
To all individuals, who have made impact on my work and in my life, a big thank
you to everyone.
5
ABSTRACT
This study is based on Satire in contemporary Nigeria Poetry, using The Eaters of
the Living by Okpanachi and A Carnival of Looters by Tayo Olafioye. The poets adopt
satire as their style so as to improve the society by criticizing and ridiculing anyone
engaged in bad or evil acts. This study explored the works of the poets; Okpanachi and
Olafioye, their satirical techniques and the themes there in present. The poets depicted
the vices in their societies in a satirical style that ridicules, scorns and criticizes the
follies of their leaders, the people and the societal structure as a whole. More so, the
study focuses on how satirical poetry can serve as a weapon or an attempt for social
change by adopting the sociological theory for analysis. The satirical techniques and
themes that were examined in this study would be of benefit to literary and non-literary
students as a whole.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE
i
CERTIFICATION
ii
DEDICATION
iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
iv
TABLE OF CONTENTS
v
1.0
2.0
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.1
PURPOSE OF STUDY
1-3
1.2
JUSTIFICATION
3-4
1.3
SCOPE OF THE STUDY
4
1.4
METHODOLOGY
4
CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW ON SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY
2.1
3.0
ORIGIN AND CRAFT IN CONTEMPORARY
NIGERIAN POETRY
5-10
2.2
CONCEPT OF SATIRE
10-12
2.3
TYPES OF SATIRE
12-14
2.4
TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES OF SATIRE
14-16
2.5
PURPOSE OF SATIRE
16-17
CHAPTER THREE: DATA ANALYSIS
3.1
THEMES IN OKPANACHI’S POETRY
18-26
3.2
POETIC TECHNIQUES IN OKPANACHI’S POETRY
26-30
7
4.0
CHAPTER FOUR: AN EXPLORATION INTO OLAFIOYE’S
POETRY
5.0
4.1
THEMES IN OLAFIOYE’S POETRY
4.2
SATIRICAL TECHNIQUES IN OLAFIOYE’S POETRY 39-41
31-39
CHAPTER FIVE
5.1
FINDINGS
42
5.2
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
42-43
BIBLIOGRAPHY
44-46
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CHAPTER ONE
1.0
INTRODUCTION
Nigerian writers have long come to realize that transformation is needed in their
societies and their artistic creation instills truth into people’s consciousness in any given
age. They committed themselves as writers who are to restore order in the situation of
the society; politically, economically, socially and morally. They have always found the
informing vision of their creativity bound by the socio-politically experiences of the
nation which their work reflects.
Nigerian writers also enunciate on political affairs in their nation and explain her
disappointing post-independence trajectory. It is argued that Nigeria’s failure to assert its
political autonomy manifest itself mostly in literature (Ayo 2008 : 334). When anomalies
are found in the society or become too glaring in any society, the literary artists attempt
to rectify such anomalies. Satire is one of the weapons employed by these literary artists
and it can be based on poetry, drama or prosaic forms, which are the genres of literature.
This study concerns itself with satirical poetry.
The term satire is derived from the Greek word Satira or Satura lanx, which
means a dish full of colourful fruit. It was reference to satire being “biting” in contrast to
other works. Over the centuries, satire has been used in play, journalism, fiction and
poetry as a strategy of aiming at a particular group or individual through humour.
Through literary criticism, satire has been seen as an art form, which deconstructs the
world in order to create meaning (Prescott 2007 : 4).
9
The Greek and the Romans extensively employed it as a weapon of attack on
their respective societies as far back as the 7th century B.C. Among the Romans, there are
such names as Horace, Juvenal, whose works and ideas have continued to shape and
influence the mind of contemporary satirist.
Wole Soyinka, Femi Osofisan, Ola Rotimi, Niyi Osundare, Funso Aiyejina, Toyin
Adewale, Remi Raji, Musa I. Okpanachi, Tayo Olafioye and other writers are using
satire as an artistic mode of expressing the social reality in contemporary Nigeria. The
Nigerian society and aspirations of the masses remain realized.
Poetry, a form of literary genre, is a reflection of what its enabling society is. It
could be a reflection of the past and present experiences of the society from which the
poetry is produced (Akpboroboro 1994 : 26).
Poets write to criticize or ridicule in satire and mainly aim at transforming their
societies. Contemporary Nigerian poets like Tayo Olafioye and Musa I. Okpanachi adopt
satire as a style in their collection of poems, A Carnival of Looters and The Eaters of the
Living respectively.
According to Molara Wood (2010 : 1)
Musa Idris Okpanachi’s Eaters of the Living carries this practice
of dark, satirical writing even further towards a tortured and
cynical social vision. The cynicism is reflected in its distance from
everyday picture of its environment to a more alienating literary
imagery. Its bleak vision blunts the incisiveness and poignancy of
the verse and darkening mood moves the vision beyond satire into
cynicism and close to despair.
10
Tayo Olafioye’s Carnival of Looters is the second major publication of poetry
that he has published. Onokome Okome (2000:5-9) says:
Like patriots all over the world, what Olafioye strives for is to create,
at least in his poetry, this balance by insisting upon making obvious
the imbalance of contemporary Nigeria’s social existence, he suffers
the fate that all poets must carry in similar social and political contexts.
His poetry is political, cultural, moral, economic and beyond this, it is
an inner quest to conquer the turbulence of the world.
1.1
PURPOSE OF STUDY
This study explores different type of satirical techniques in poetry and why the
poets have used them. It focuses on how poetry or satirical poem can be used as an
attempt on social change. Literature is to educate, instruct and entertain. This study
examines how the poets have been able to use their poems to achieve these.
1.2
JUSTIFICATION
This study would show the relevance of Musa I. Okpnanchi’s The Eaters of the
Living and Tayo Olafioye’s A Carnival of Looters as satirical poetry. Satire is one of the
weapons used by poets to convey their message in both pre-colonial and present age.
Work has been done on Okpanachi’s poetry in Images of Bestial leadership in
Musa I. Okpanachi’s The Eaters of the Living by Foluke Aliyu-Ibrahim (2008: 45) but
this study is justified by its focus on the two poets - Okpanachi and Olafioye – bringing
out the themes and satirical techniques in their poems. Also, sociological theory will be
adopted as an approach to the knowledge of this study.
11
This research work is going to be of benefit to the entire members of the society
because it deals with happenings in contemporary Nigerian societies.
1.3
SCOPE OF THE STUDY
This study is restricted to only two collections of poem, The Eaters of the Living
by Musa I. Okpanachi and A Carnival of Looter by Tayo Olafioye.
The focus is on the satirical poems of the poets. Analysis will be done on the
selected poems by examining the poetic or satirical techniques, themes and the type of
satire adopted by the poets, for the scope of the research work.
1.4
METHODOLOGY
The study concerns itself with Satire In Contemporary Nigerian Poetry : A Study
of Musa I. Okpanachi’s The Eaters of the Living and Tayo Olafioye’s A Carnival of
Looters.
The sociological theory to literature discourse is used. This theory studies the
work of art as determined by social forces and it has dialectical impact on the society.
For the purpose of the analysis of the data collected for the research work, the
research entails the use of textual analysis as parameters for drawing conclusion on the
research findings. It also includes tools for analysis which are textbooks, handbooks,
internet and other document relating to the two collections of poem.
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CHAPTER TWO
2.0
REVIEW ON SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY
Sociological theory is a set of assumptions, assertions and propositions,
organized in the form of an explanation or interpretation of the nature, form or content of
social action and it takes others into account (Webber, 2000:7). Sociology is both
topically and methodologically a very broad discipline. Its traditional focuses have
included social stratification, social class, social mobility, religion, law and deviance.
According to Dana Gioia (1995:1880)
Sociological theory examines literature in the cultural,
economic and political context in which it is written or
received, exploring the relationship between the artist
and the society.
From the above assertion, the researcher believe that sociological critics studies the
society and all that is happening there and art is not written in vacuum but are written to
improve the society.
One influential type of sociological theory is Marxist criticism which focuses on
the economic and political elements of art, often emphasizing the ideological contents of
literature; because it argues that all art is political principle of class struggle is illustrated.
Kendall Diana (1998 : 7) opines that:
Sociological imagination refers to the ability to see the relationship
between individual and the larger society.
13
From this imagination, sociological theory analyzes both how the social functions in
literature works in the life of individual or the society as a whole. Sociological theory
considers art as a manifestation of society. Works of art, including literature, are strategic
naming of situations that allow the reader to better understand and gain a sort of control
over societal happenings though the work of art within its socio-economic context
(Adams 1971 : 942).
ORIGINS OF SOCIOLOGY

Enlightenment : Individualism and rationality

Rise of Science : Empiricism, prediction – power and control

Industrial Revolution : Rise of the Bureaucracy

Political change

Religious change

Urbanizations and the question of community, emergence of social problems

Evolutionary theories and idea of progress
From the above origin of sociological theory, sociological theory can be defined as a set
of interrelated ideas that allow for the systemization of knowledge of the social world.
This knowledge is then used to explain the social world and make predictions about the
future of the social world (Robert Keel, 2011 : 2).
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IMPORTANCE OF SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY
Austin Harington (2004 : 15) outlines six ways in which art can be approached
from a sociological stand point thus:
1. Humanistic Historic approach
2. Marxist Social Theory
3. Cultural Studies
4. Theory of art in analytical philosophy
5. anthropological study of art
6. Empirical studies of contemporary art institutions
As Harington observes, the sociological element is essential because art is
inevitably full of references and commentaries on the present day society. Sociological
critics are then to look at exactly how such function within the work of art, so that
codification of their method is possible.
2.1
ORIGIN AND CRAFT IN CONTEMPORARY NIGERIAN POETRY
Political instability has become an integral part of poetry especially in the African
Continent. In Nigeria, the themes of poetry have more or less shifted base from European
exploitation of the Continent to social and political rape of the economy by the leaders to
achieve their selfish ends. It is more of self infliction of righteousness fostered by its
leaders on the masses, their schemes on enriching their pockets and the acts of violence
with which they rule a nation or their motherland.
15
Nigerian poets are thence caught expressing despair, gloom, hopelessness,
melancholy, despondency, fear, discouragement, bitterness, desperation and shock.
These feelings area also expressed through a language of ire, anger, passion, fury,
exasperation, bitterness, sarcasm, ridicule, derision, irony, grief, distress, misery, woe
and anguish.
The message permeating the poetry of Nigerian writers preach perfection or
something close to it in steering the affairs of the nation. Equally important is the
relevance of a poet’s art within a given time and age. It is the poet’s business to express
emotional intensity of his ‘time’ based on whatever his time happen to think (Hayward
1963 : 23).
Many of contemporary poets reflect the quality of an age that is being swept in a
wooly reverie of failures. New African poets become lamenters or dirge singers, they
lament the atrophy of national aspirations as envisioned by her founding fathers only a
few decades ago. To this group belong such poets as Chinweizu, Niyi Osundare, Funso
Aiyejina, Ezenwa Ohaeto, Odia Ofeimien, Wole Soyinka and more recently are Peter
Oniodidunjo, Joe Ushie, Ismail B. Garba, Toyin Adewale, Remi Raji and many more, all
of Nigeria. With upheavals of 1963 -1966 which generated into a mindless civil war,
Nigerian poets continue to be inspires by these experiences.
Funso Aiyejina is one of the foremost younger Nigerian poets, the political theme
of his poem emerge through the art of invoking the conditions of desultory living among
the masses of his country and the predatory instincts of their rulers. He identifies those
16
responsible for Nigeria’s political and economic problems, up to date, this state of
anomie persists in Nigeria and as far as politics is concerned, the poets may crow
themselves hoarse. Masses herded towards mined futures because those presumably
‘voted’ into power derisively ‘tell them to go and feed on their votes’, bragging
shamelessly that they were victors long before the people voted. The masses are hopeless
and the poet sees a bleak future ahead of the nation.
Osundare’s lamentation is typical of the revolutionary temper that dominates
African dirge. The poet’s lament, inspired by sensitivity to the anomaly of prevailing
leadership, precisely shares the feeling of loss and frustration. His poetry creates a
feeling of despondency in the reader.
Admitting the necessity of economic hardships, ceaseless power struggles,
election rigging and mindless exploitation of resources that lend enormous impact to the
sensitivity of modern laments especially in African society where art is both functional
and entertaining.
Contemporary Nigerian poetry is in the service of society, not necessary, but
from the importance of its existence. Poetry is not merely the art for art’s sake because
no writer writes in vacuum; it is rather a creative response of talent to environment.
This expressionist deployment of images, employed for the effect of scorn or
ribaldry is reminiscent of the age of reason in English Poetry, that era in verse which
witnessed works of satire against social and political anomalies more than any other
period in English literary history (Thwaite 1976 : iv)
17
The poetry of Aiyejina and Osundare explores the rage of emotion to portray the
tragic complexities of their society. It creates a creative liberty in literary writing now
and probably in later years that Nigeria has produced leaders who rank among medieval
lords of Europe in mendacity and bestiality is almost a blessing to Nigerian creativity
which has inspired global literature with contemporary art whose imagery and dictions
have allowed for the truer representation of those transient realities that can only indicate
a quality of art in touch with its times.
2.2
CONCCEPT OF SATIRE
There are different opinions on satire. According to Moody (1968 : 208);
Satire is any form or piece of writing which is
deliberately and humorously critical in intention.
Moody in his definition believes that the satirist writes to criticize in a comic manner
with a deliberate intention to ridicule whatever vices. This work concedes partially with
definition because it aims at criticizing folly in a society or individual. The reason this
study does not wholly agree with the definition is because Moody did not state whether
the satirist aims at transforming the society but he believes in criticizing abnormalities.
Abraham (1981 : 167) however defines satire as:
…the literary art of diminishing a subject by making it
ridiculous and evoking towards it an attitude of amusement,
contempt, indignation or scorn.
18
It differs from the comic since comedy evokes laughter mainly. Abraham believes satire
uses laughter as a weapon but this study does not agree a hundred per cent with this
definition as this study explores satire as an art of ridiculing through scorn, humour and
wit and at the same time aims to correct them and serve the purpose of improving the
society but not ridiculing only as Abraham opined.
Baret et al (1976 : 269) contend that:
Satire is a work ridiculing aspects of behaviour and
seeking to arouse in the audience contempt for its object.
This study agrees with the definition by Baret & Co. because they mock the vices in
human behaviour and also this definition considers the audience in its context, whenever
an audience sees its own mockery, he gets discouraged by acting in such manner that has
been mocked and this can serve as a purpose of developing oneself against bad
behaviours.
Thrall et al (1960) as quoted in Harris (2004 : 1) see satire as:
A literary manner which blends a critical attitude with
humour and wit to the end that human institutions or
humanity may be improved.
This study agrees with this definition because a particular institution or individual act is
criticized because it may not be in accordance with the norms in the society and the
critics desires that human behaviour should blend with the society, criticism is achieved
19
by ridiculing the target and poking fun at such targets with the intention of improving
ridiculed behaviour or institutions.
However, Jack Vaughn (1935 :174) opines that:
Satire in general, is a mode of writing that utilizes wit
and humour to criticize or ridicule human institution
and behaviour with a view of correction or improvement
Like Thrall et al (1960) as quoted by Harris (2004:1) and Jack Vaughn (1935:174), have
their definitions not only agree with this study, they explained the objective that
recognizes satire as a social weapon for the ills of the society through ridiculing and
mockery of such ills. They also appreciate the artistic gift of satirists in the use of wit and
humour in presenting even delicate issues to readers in an amusing way to draw them in
and yet pass the necessary message across to them for improvement.
In summary, satire is a kind literary composition in drama, poetry or prose in
which weaknesses, vices or follies are censored and ridiculed for improvement. The
realization of satire is largely dependent on elements like sarcasm, exaggeration,
distortion, typical metaphors, irony, burlesque and oxymoron.
2.3
TYPES OF SATIRE

FORMAL OR DIRECT SATIRE:
The satiric persona – the speaker in the literary work - speaks out in the first
person. This “I” may address the character within the work itself.
20

INDIRECT SATIRE:
Cast in some other literary form than that of direct address to the reader. The
objects of the satire are characters that make themselves and their opinion
ridiculous or obnoxious by what they think, say and do. It is sometimes made
even more ridiculous by the author’s comments and narrative style. The examples
of indirect satire are Horatian, Juvenalian and Menippean satire.
o HORATIAN SATIRE: This is named after an Augustan reputable critic, Horace,
he believes mild mockery is the most effective way of writing and conveying a
message. He contends that, “Satire should reflect the attitude of the writer, be
easy and unpretentious, sharp when necessary but flexible enough to vary from
grace to gay” (Encyclopedia Britannia : 269).
Horatian satire is often gentle, urbane, smiling to correct by gentle and broadly
sympathetic laughter. The speaker manifests the character of urbane, witty and
tolerant man of the world. So far, this type of satire is smiling to correct, this
study agrees with it.
o JUVENALIAN SATIRE: This is named after a Roman poet, Juevenal. The
character of the speaker is that of a serious moralist who uses a dignified and
public style of utterances to decry modes of vice and error which are no less
dangerous because they are ridiculous and who undertakes to evoke contempt and
moral indignation at the aberration of men. Juvenal conceives that, “the satirist is
an upright man of the world who looks with horror on the corruption of his time,
21
his heart consumed with anger and frustration” (Webster Encyclopedia of
Literature: 678).
Having studied the satirical tradition of Horace and Juvenal, Dryden was
convinced to sub-divide the genre in what he identified as “comic satire” and
“tragic satire” (Webster Encyclopedia of Literature: 679). This study concedes
with the Juvenal type of satire because it is angered by corruption and criticizes
vices to improve the society.
o MENIPPEAN SATIRE: This is named after a Greek philosopher, Cynic
Mennipus. Menippean satire uses stylized character as mouthpiece for abstract
idea presented in loosely long narrative whose pattern resulted from the free play
of the intellectual fancy. Works written in this manner could be a pure fantasy.
Heron in looking at the concept of Menippean satire says:
The Menippean satire does not concentrate on the social behaviour of its
character but on the idea that lies behind that social behaviour (1976: 21).
It deals less with people as with mental attitude which is not in agreement with
this study.
2.4
TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES OF SATIRE IN LITERATURE
Contemporary satirical works contains all the traditional elements of satire like
irony, sarcasm, hyperbole, burlesque, understatement, and oxymoron and so on.
22
I.
IRONY:
In literary criticism, the effect of language in which the intended
meaning is the opposite of what is stated; systematic use of double meaning is
irony. The meaning of word is opposite of literal or expected meaning.
II.
SARCASM: A form of verbal irony, expressing sneering, personal disapproval in
the guise of praise. It is an extreme technique of satire; bitter and spiteful
comments are made to deliberately hurt the subject.
III.
HYPERBOLE: In literary criticism, deliberate exaggeration is used to achieve an
effect though not like irony. Exaggeration is one of the most commonly used
techniques in satire since the depiction of an extreme or blatantly vicious case is
one of the best ways to get the target to recognize or admit that a vice exists at
all; recognition must precede correction. Exaggeration is also to enlarge, increase
or represent something beyond normal bounds so that it becomes ridiculous and
its faults can be seen.
IV.
UNDERSTATEMENT: Expressing with less emphasis or in a lesser degree than
is the actual case. The opposite of hyperbole – understatement – conveys a reality
different from the usual opposite appearance or expectation. It may be verbal or
situational. It is the making of shocking statements to seem casual to emphasize
how common the practice has become.
V.
BURLESQUE: Ridiculous exaggeration in language which makes the
discrepancy between the words and the situation or the character silly for
example to have a king speak like an idiot or a workman speak like a king. It is
23
also a literary term to describe a work that twist a serious issue or subject to a
humorous one or take a humorous subject and treat it as tough or serious.
OXYMORON: A paradox reduced to two words, usually an adjective – noun
VI.
(eloquent silence) or adverb – adjective (inertly strong) relationship and is used
for effect, to emphasize contrasts, incongruities, hypocrisy or simply the complex
nature of reality. Examples are; wise fool, ignorantly learned, laughing sadness.
Oxymoron can be useful when things have gone contrary to expectation, belief,
desire or assertion or when your position is opposite to the subject’s you are discussing.
The figure then produces an ironic contrast which shows in one’s view how something
has been misunderstood or mislabeled. It is also a creative juxtaposition and like irony
and understatement, creates its effect by confounding expectation.
Satire in Nigerian literature especially in poetry is now the most effective genre
of literature because of the present situation of the country, Nigeria, using all the above
tools as weapon for social change.
2.5
PURPOSE OF SATIRE
The best satire does not seek to do harm or damage by its ridicule but, it rather
seeks to create a shock of recognition and to make vice repulsive so that the vice will be
expunged from the person or society under attack from the person or society (regardless
of who is the immediate object of attack). Whenever possible, this shock of recognition
is to be conveyed through laughter or wit; the familiar satire is the one of honey and
medicine.
24
The reason the satirist does not merely write moral tracts encouraging people to
virtue and the reason he feels justified in displaying anger and indignation at the
common follies and vices of man is that the satirist world has accidentally gone astray. It
is a world of hypocrisy which social standing, church membership, title and degrees,
peer praise, lip service, morals and wealth are all used to hide evils of the first order. In
such a world of hypocrisy and pretence, simple moral encouragement would be totally
inefficacious.
The satirist therefore, will display his critical attitude and implicit morality
through irony and criticism. Satire is to ridicule the fault or failings of individuals and
also target those faults that are correctable but not those for which the individuals are not
responsible.
25
CHAPTER THREE
DATA ANALYSIS
In this chapter, the focus is on the themes, poetic techniques and type of satire
adopted by Musa I. Okpanachi in The Eaters of the Living.
According to Omolara Wood (2010 : 1):
The title of the poem is actually adopted from the Quran.
The Quran asked: would you like to eat the flesh of your
dead brother; admonishing gossipers. When somebody
gossips against you, he has cheated you and it is as good
as he has eaten you. That is where the title
“The Eaters of the Living” came from
The collection of poems is organized into eight sections, however it is only the satirical
poems that will be examined.
Okpanachi is indeed a witty writer who has used his mastery of words to weave
satiric statements which do not attack but attempt to correct the vices in the society.
The type of satire adopted by Okpanachi in his poems is that of indirect satire
under which Horace is classified. It was written in a funny and witty manner by not
personalizing or directing it to anyone in particular but showed to the people or the
readers that anyone engaging in these acts could be regarded as eaters.
26
THEMES IN OKPANACHI’S POETRY
3.1
The theme of the satirical poems were mostly centered on corruption, collapse of
social structures, power wielding or violence, suppression of truth and oppression or
exploitation of the masses.
The “Eaters” in Okpanachi’s poetry are the rulers who actually feast off on the
“living” that is, the masses. The rulers have actually created a gap between them as the
rich and the masses as the poor which brings about class stratification, discrimination
and exploitation of socio-economic values and all these can be examined by sociological
critics because they are happening in the society.
As stated earlier, the collection of poems is structured into eight sections, all of
which relate with each other in the central theme, this study opines that the central theme
is the ‘act of corruption’. All the vices of the society as portrayed by the author stems
from corruption.
The themes of Okpanachi’s poems are herewith outlined:

THE THEME OF CORRUPTION
The vices of the society stems from corruption, which can be seen in Okpanachi’s
poems. For example, in “We give you this country” (p. 11) Okpanachi says:
We give you this country
The size of the fake ballot
The excess of the fake result (lines 16 – 18)
27
The above assertion subtly reveals the corrupt practices of the people put in
charge of the affairs. The poem shows that it is the people that have been given the
power to anchor the affairs of the nation that are perpetrating these corrupt practices.
It can also be deduced that from “The Eaters of the Living” (p. 28) which borders
on corruption, the image of the leaders are that of ‘selfish cannibals’. Okpanachi
satirically presented the images of the leaders thus:
They eat the skin of the poor
And drink the beverages
of their sweat
They eat patriotic service
They eat document (lines 12 – 16).
The leaders have been depicted as a corrupt lot clearly from the above lines. They
eat the produce of the land without recourse to bettering the lot of the masses. Corruption
is described in different forms by Okpanachi in the book. Sometimes he satirically
presents the corrupt activities the leaders engage in, other times he just says it as it were.
In “The Hunger” (p. 23) he said:
As the typhoon
Of greed sweeps on
While in the “Of Deities and Worshippers” (p. 41) he said:
I stand looking into their eyes
Before the sanctuary of corruption
28
More so, he even described in the “Making of Hero” how they try to cover up
their evil deeds with deceit by presenting a dead man (whom they killed) as hero in order
to please the people. It is evident in the poems what corruption represents, how it is
perpetrated violently or sometimes stealthily but evident in the characteristics of the
Nigerian leadership is the unending act of corruption

THE THEME OF COLLAPSE OF SOCIAL STRUCTURES
Structures in this context do not necessarily represent physical facilities but
sometimes, the conventional way of doing things and the rule of law. The things that
represent the unity of the people, basic amenities and infrastructures are being
bastardized, dilapidating or even non-existent.
Okpanachi gave great examples of the collapse of social structure in the “Eaters
of the Living” (p. 28), “Manifesto” (p. 14), “We give you this country” (p. 11), “Riddle
of my word” (p. 49), “Machine dies” (p. 51) e.t.c
It is the calligraphic
Shroud of murdered
Histories written
On the waves of mirage
And on the tablets
Of the wind (p. 49, lines 18-23)
29
This study found Okpanachi to be a perpetual thinker of the predicament of the
nation. From the above excerpt, the ‘murdered histories’ represent a heritage being
destroyed, leaving the imprints of the negativity in the minds of the people.
In “Machine dies” (p. 51), he said:
Machine dies in my country
Of strokes and punches
And pot-holes (lines 1 – 3)
This depicts a dilapidating infrastructure and basic amenities wherein nothing
seems to be working. The leaders are doing nothing to improve the society and even
referred to them as ‘eaters of our patriotic service and document’ in “The Eaters of the
Living” (p. 28)
Furthermore, the rights of the people are no longer existent as the rulers ruled
lawlessly. In “The free prisoner” (p. 22), he satirically painted a picture of the people as
free but bound with cuffs. Okpanachi presented a clear picture of the collapse of social
structure in the “Manifesto” (p. 14) where the leaders turned deaf ears and closed eyes to
the people’s rights and privileges. He said:
I bring you a gift of a coffin
In which your rights
Are written (lines 13 – 15)
The excerpts above presents collapse of social structure in clear imagery and in a
satirical manner.
30

THE THEME OF POWER WILEDING AND VIOLENCE
Okpanachi exposes the vices of the leader, their violent acts to either create fear
in the heart of the people or perfect their own corrupt agenda and the evidences may
implicate them in the future. In the “Making of Hero” (p. 30), he says:
Let’s kill him first
And fast
We must act or
Be acted on
Let’s conceal his wounds
With plaster (lines 1 – 6)
The intentions of the evil perpetrators are quite seen in the above lines. They
must kill or be exposed and this is only possible for them to achieve because of their
positions.
More so, in “The Spectators” (p. 38) and “The Dialogue” (p. ), the violent acts
and power wielding were carried out obsessively by the leaders thus;
We were witness
To the stakes, slabs
Rope, mils, shooting ranges
31
And the fatal bullets (lines 1 – 4)
And in “The Dialogue” (p. 39), Okpanachi corroborated the above verses saying:
A dialogue spoken
between the blind
and the deaf
in the silence of bombs
muzzles and spikes of bayonets (lines 1 – 7)
However, he relates how leadership is constructed in “The Mice King” (p. 60),
where the unfit are rulers of the masses wielding the power they do not deserve.
The king mouse sit
On a clay throne
Wielding a tail of gun
He holds a council
Of rats barking like a dog (lines 1 – 5)

THE THEME OF SUPPRESSION OF TRUTH
The poem, “Lying with the calendar” (p. 76) carries the wholly, from its
beginning to the end. The poet revealed how fake promises are made to the people in
exchange for their votes and confidence. He referred to the promises as ‘sacrificed
promises sketched in the dust’. The leaders are filled with deceit in politics.
They said in 1990
Everyone will fetch water
32
from under his bed ( Lying with the Calendar : 14 – 16)
In the last stanza of the poem, the poet revealed a clear picture of
disappointments, hopelessness and despair. He showed how dreamy they could get the
people to be with unrealistic promises with timeline attached
till the dream year 2010
when we wake from computerized sleep
and press the button
of vision in our workplace
while lying supine in bed (lines 35 – 39)
In the “Making of hero” (p. 30), it is also evident how deceit comes to play when
a man is murdered and made hero posthumously to avoid suspicion on the part of the
people.

THE THEME OF EXPLOITATION AND OPPRESSION
The rulers or ruling class exploit the working class by making them to work for
them with little or no gain in return. Their position is used to enhance their oppressive
nature and actions. “We give you this country” (p. 11) is an embodiment of what the
leaders represent to the people, how they live and treat the masses. The leaders have
taken away laughter from the people, scared them from talking and inflict wickedness on
the people.
Okpanachi even referred to them as the ‘executioner’ in “The god we made”,
‘locust and cancer cells’ in “The Eaters of the Living” and benefactor and minions in
33
“Your Excellency”. Furthermore, he described them as ‘blind gods’ who unleashes pain
in “where to stand’ (p. 19). The image of the rulers as painted by Okpanachi is one that
shows the leadership as corrupt, selfish and as oppressor of the weak.
The eaters of the living as a satirical poetry explains the class struggle or
stratification between the working class and their rulers. It also explains further how the
economic and social values are being destroyed.
POETIC TECHNIQUES IN MUSA I. OKPANACHI’S ‘THE EATERS OF
3.2
THE LIVING
Satirical technique in writing usually employs devices of comparison to
foreground the similarities or differences between subject and object (Harris 2004 : 1).
However, the use of satire in itself comprises of engaging certain figures of speech for
comparative analysis wittingly or humorously.
Highlighted below are some of the techniques Okpanachi employed in his poetry:

IRONY
Okpanachi employed the use of irony to satirize the leadership of his country, this
was made evident in the poem “Manifesto” where a leader gives a speech of his intention
for the people thus:
I shall give you
The precious ornaments of
Chains, handcuffs
And narrow cells (Lines 20 – 23)
34
Considering the above lines, the irony of the ruler’s intention was brought to the
fore. Such speeches were to comfort and assure the people of better days but ‘precious
ornaments of chains, handcuff’ does not sound appealing or comforting, even to a
criminal.
More so, Irony was employed to picturize the socio-political situation of the
nation. Examples can be found in the ‘Silence of time” (p. 10) and “The free prisoner”
(p. 22)
We divide the ocean
And found it shallow (Silence of time : 1- 2)
The above lines used irony to depict the author’s explanation of the rulers and its
society. We all know how deep an ocean is but finding it shallow here shows the lack of
commitment on the part of the leaders even though so much confidence is reposed in
them.
We are only prisoners
Walking freely on
The streets in shackles
and bangles of handcuffs (The free prisoner : 8 -11)
the above lines refer to the masses who have their freedom but are limited by the
action and activities of their leaders. The statement even has paradoxical element in that
it is contradictory, yet seemingly true.

ALLUSION
35
This is the reduction of real world situation, person or idea to its absurd logical
extreme or magnifying its flaws by making obviously absurd statements (Stolyarov II:
2007). This satirical technique allows one to easily pick out flaws in a character or
situation since the comparison is a relatively generally known character.
Okpanachi employed this technique in “the god we made”, “the eye”, “Flee” and
“Your Excellency”. He alluded to the leaders as gods, a supreme being who should have
answers to all economical problems yet the economy is on the downward slope while
they yet lead. “And slavery / lord of sapped / economy and / emaciated babies” (p. 34).
The lines present an allusion to the rulers as god who perpetrates evil due to the powers
available at their disposal; the power provided by the people is used to oppress them
unlawfully.
Furthermore, Aliyu-Ibrahim reveals that:
An allusion to the omniscent and omnipresent is made in “The Eye” and “Flee”
to describe the embracing and authoritarian power of the leaders…the poet sarcastically
calls them “blind gods / wielding whips and shrouds / unleashing pain” on the people.

EXAGGERATION / HYPERBOLE
This technique was employed by Okpanachi to show the extent of brain washing
the people are going through in the hands of their rulers, act of violence and corrupt
practices that have pervaded the corridors of power. This technique worked well to
depict the wickedness and desperation of the leaders.
Everyone will fetch water
36
From under his bed
Pick electricity from ashes
And smoke the firewood (lying with Calendar : 15 – 18)
These lines are extremely exaggerated in that the promises cannot be fulfilled and
the dreams cannot be realized.
Furthermore, in the “The Eaters of the Living” (p. 28), Okpanachi says:
They crunch the stones
They grind the iron and gulp the rust (lines 25 – 26)
This shows the extent the leaders can go. Though it is hyperbolic, but reveals the
desperation of the leaders

BURLESQUE
This is the higher form of hyperbole, and it is a satirical technique of using
ridiculous exaggeration to compare situation even though they are very less likely to
occur. A good example is in the “Eaters of the Living” (p. 28). The leaders are likened to
cannibals eating the flesh of the masses. This is highly ridiculous and mortally
impossible but the depicted picture serves as a potent explanatory of the intention of the
leaders

REPETITION
There is the use of repetition in Okpanachi’s poetry and this made the poems
more appealing while driving home his points. “I am tire” (p. 25), “The Spectator” (p.
38), “After the dawn” (p. 61) and also the repetition of ‘they eat like’ in “the Eaters of
37
the Living” are all good examples of repetition in the book. The use of repetition helps in
concretizing the meaning in his poems but also makes the poetry easier to relate with.

METAPHOR & SIMILE
The use of metaphor and simile for clear imagery of the situation being described
in the poems are significant.
They eat like cancer cells
They eat like acid (Eaters of the Living : 5 – 6)
Almost everyone can relate with how cancer cells spread and how acid destroys.
It is a perfect picture for the reader to relate with and draw inferences from. The rulers
were likened to ‘cancer cells’ and ‘acid’.
The use of metaphor is very excellent in “Your Excellency” (p. 55), Okpanachi
referred to the leaders metahorically as ‘the angel of power’ and satirically praises him as
‘excellent and good but lives and feeds on power’! He also referred to the leaders later in
the verses as ‘the hovering vulture’ and ‘benefactor of minions’.
More so, the rulers were referred to as chameleon metaphorically in “I am not
tired” (p. 25) due to their ever changing policies and promise.
Okpanachi’s poetic technique is satiric and he portrays a clear image and thought
in his poetry to reveal what obtains in the society around him. Sometimes wittingly,
humorously but he never lost his seriousness in the poetry.
38
CHAPTER FOUR
AN EXPLORATION INTO OLAFIOYE’S SATIRICAL POETRY
This chapter focuses on Tayo Olafioye’s collection of poems, A Carnival of
Looters. The themes, satirical techniques and type of satire will be examined.
Olafioye’s book of poems, A Carnival of Looters is made up of two parts namely;
“Another spring of Meaning” and “The vision of crazy Looters”. It is the form and
contents of the second part that re most relevant to the socio-political, economical and
moral intent of this study. It is centered on the corrupt acts of the leaders and their
shortcoming, the ills scheme and bad behaviours. Olafioye also denounced the cowardice
of the people to effect change by safeguarding the masses lives while suffering in
silence.
Olafioye adopts the Juvenal type of satire, one who is angered by corruption and
satirizes or ridicule through the use of satirical element.
4.1
THEMES IN OLAFIOYE’S POETRY
Olafioye explores various themes in his collection, A Carnival of Looters. The
themes center on the activities of the leadership and explore the effects on the people.
The theme of Oppression and exploitation of the masses, fate inevitable, cultural beliefs
of African society, politics as an evil and deceitful act, theme of hopelessness and theme
of corruption.
This study explores the aforementioned themes thus:
39

THE THEME OF HOPELESSNESS
The situation which the people find themselves makes them to be hopeless,
because the rulers are insensitive to their needs. They are portrayed as leaders who
pursue selfish interests due to their greed. The first poem in the second section, “My
patriotic quest” (p. 20), interrogates the abysmal state of Olafioye’s country even when it
is blessed with every natural and human resources needed for development.
Olafioye asks:
Why born a nation
That rows backward
In the boat of progress (lines 8 – 10)
How do you sing a people
Demoralized and broken (lines 15-16)
The above lines show the agony of the poet over the troubles of his nation. The lines
however, also identify the culprit as the poet pillories the ruling class as demons.
“Pathology of Hope” (p. 21) bemoans blind resignation to fate which is
characteristic of Nigerians. It anatomizes the impotent hope of Nigerians in the
supernatural when the demon plaguing them is man-made. In the poem, the people are
portrayed as hopeless and demoralized.

THE THEME OF CORRUPTION
Corruption is seen in the following poems in the collection: “Ogoni people :
Oilwell of Nigeria (p. 26), “Ken Saro Wiwa (p. 27) and “The U.N Bash at Fifty” (p. 60).
40
The poet identifies the Niger-Delta region as the goose that lays golden egg. This refers
to the oil that is gotten from the land. However, the poet says the people are cheated in
the sharing of the benefits of the oil money that accrues to the country. There is little or
no compensation for the people in terms of social amenities and development of human
resources.
The poet says Ogoni are:
Tiny in number
Mighty in spirit (lines 3 – 4)
The extent of plunder these people have suffered is encoded in “cheated for eons”. For
the ruling class who haul the proceeds of the loot into their personal pockets to the
detriment of the people, the poet asks; “is this price to pay?”
Ken Saro Wiwa’s activism in the early 80’s against the neglect of the Ogoni
people fell on deaf ears and cost him his life. The poet says:
Your life expired Ken
Without completion (lines 3 – 4)
Saro Wiwa’s death is a big relief to the ruling class in “the cheetahs” who made
hefty loots. The poet laments:
The hot iron melted
A relief for the cheetahs
Some made hefty loots, local and,
Foreign minders of our ill-health;
41
The festival of treachery;
This their apogee of evil (line 12 – 16).
In the poem, “the Giant never present the U.N bash at fifty” (p. 60). The poet
says:
A guilty conscience
Needs no reproach
Those who climb
With their teeth
Know bitterness
In the stem
No one tells the child
Stop gazing at the sun (lines 6 – 13)
Olafioye notes that the rulers know what they are doing but do not want to put the
masses or their followers into consideration. He also accentuated his point by saying;
“those who climb with their teath knows bitterness in the sun”. if the rulers should
experience what the masses are witnessing they will know how to traet them and
improve their society, economically, socio-politically and morally by eradicating the act
of corruption.
42

THEME OF OPPRESSION AND EXPLOITATION OF THE MASSES
The repressive, suppressive and devastating style of governance in Nigeria is
captured in “Nigerian Mfecane” (p. 28), “Boa Constrictor” (p. 29), “Parliament of Idiots”
(p. 35) and “Lunatic cuckoos” (p. 36).
On the Government style of exploiting and oppressing the people by killing them,
the poet says in “Nigeria Mfecane”:
Burn the people
Waste them like cattle (lines 12-13).
The poet however foresees a day of reckoning for the cabal, as he also said:
If you cheat wine in secret, the god
Will betray you in the market” (lines 25 – 26)
In the poem “Boa Constrictor”, Olafioye equates Nigeria’s despotic leaders and their
style of governance with the boa constrictor, crushing the infrastructure and the masses
to death. The Cannibalistic quality in the line of poem is akin to what happens in Nigeria
where leaders exploit every element of the superstructure of the society to protect their
“loot of orgies”. The poet calls them ‘stalkers of the night’ and ‘lightings of the day’,
their aim is to ‘strike life and liberty’ through their resigns of terror. The poet says of
them:
The hen that swallow a needle
Will not live to boast:
So also for the boa. (lines 12 -14)
43
“Parliament of Idiots” further satirizes the Nigerian condition and its rulers, who
are the cause of the Nigerian predicament, the rulers are unfaithful and non-committed to
their oath of office and they go ahead to exploit the people after winning their hearts
through deceit.
Moreover, the poem “Lunatic cuckoos” is a radical deference from the poet’s
diagnosis of the Nigerian leaders being the cause of Nigeria’s problem to a bicameral
platform that identifies the people of the nation as culprits as well, who are too quiet and
accept their destiny to be exploited and oppressed. The poet says:
We are all patients
In the Hospital of guilt
Dancing together in sadness 9lines 1 – 3)

THE CULTURAL BELIEF OF AFRICAN SOCIETY
Africans believes in their forefathers, Olafioye emphasizes on the ancestors to
come to their aid. In the poem “My Patriotic Quest” (p. 20), the poet says:
How do you ask ancestors
Why the country we love
Now sour and a firestorm (lines 3 – 5)
This question is repeated frequently in the poem to illustrate the belief of the African in
ancestral spirits which they believe serves as guidance for the people. He however asks
this to show that what they believe here does not suffice to retract the atrocities that had
44
been committed by the leaders as the country we used to love now bellows heat and
uneasiness for the masses.

THEME OF POLITICS AS EVIL OR DECEITFUL ACTS
Politics in Nigeria is handled and controlled by the upper class in the poem “My
patriotic quest” (p. 20). Olafioye described the country as ‘a nation ruled by demon with
hairs between their teeth’. The rulers are being referred to as demons because of the
deceitful and abnormal acts and their failing promises to the masses. In the poem
“Lunatic cuckoos” (p. 36), Olafioye talks of the rulers thus:
Double tongues
Agbada of emptiness
Radiance without verve (lines 8 – 10)
Also through the politics of deceit and evil, the rulers have succeeded in bringing
Nigeria down. The poem “Forget Abuja” (p. 50) is a historical rendition of nations
history right from its beginning when it occupied the glorious height of the ‘giant of
Africa’
It was a time when, according to the poet;
With conviction and principles
The world truly regard us…
Giant of Africa (lines 8 – 10)
45
And then the post-colonial era brought the indigenous predators whose primitive
acquisition of wealth marked the beginning of descent of Nigeria from its Olympian
height to the very nadir of depravity and devastation. Olafioye laments thus:
Then came the marauders
Holy demons of wretchedness (lines 16 – 17)
The poem ends on a comparative note as the poet is desirous of South Africa’s radical
transformation;
Ask South Africa
You will then forget Abuja
The city of doom
Where lions and leopard
Share the loots

THE THEME OF DISCRIMINATION
Olafioye laments the plight of the Nigeria people in the “Blessed Nigerians” (p.
49). The masses are clearly marginalized and discriminated against. There is class
stratification between the lower class and the upper class. The poem goes thus:
The lower enclave
A conquered people
Hard to be one
The meeting point of two circles (lines 21 – 24)
46
There is an evidence of division of class, ‘meeting point of two circles’, is a great
analogy of the difference in class. The ‘lower enclave’ shows superiority of the class.
According to Bamidele (2003 : 197), Olafioye captures the class reality and
predatory tendencies of the ruling class in Africa in a most epigraphic manner:
The ruling class have no agenda for material enrichment,
but for national dispossession. They are vampires sucking
to death the blood of the sacred cow….
SATIRICAL TECHNIQUES IN OLAFIOYE’S POETRY
4.2
Olafioye is a satirical poet who uses his choice of words to convey his message in
his satirical poems to elaborate and emphasize the situation of his nation. He employs
metaphorical phrases to reveal truths. An example of his quest for truth was evident in
his use of the proverbial Aiyekooto, the parrot – known for truth as the only way for
Nigeria’s socio-economic resurrection.
This aiyekooto – the parrot says
Nigeria’s only road to resurrection (p. 20)
Highlighted below are some satirical techniques employed in the collection of
poems:

HYPERBOLE / EXAGGERATION
Olafioye exposes the leaders wicked and lawless activities through the use of
hyperbole to show the extent they have gone and would go in their selfishness and
47
corruption.
In “My patriotic quest” (p. 20), the poet exaggerates the state of the people
thus;
Breathing fiery droughts
In their nostrils (p. 20)
Also, in the pathology of hope (p. 21), “we stagger / disaster to disaster”. All
these examples shows how wicked the rulers are and the nothingness of the masses and
the consequences of this act on the people is untold hardship which leads to socioeconomic and psychological alienation.

THE USE OF PARADOX
Olafioye adopts the use of paradox in his poem, “managing the misery / no matter
the evil/ we must manage” (p. 21). The word manage and evil contradict using the words
to show how the people are helpless.
Another paradoxical element is “that rows backwards in / the boat of progress”
(p. 20). Backwards and progress are also two contradictory word but the poet use the
word to give information on how the nation is not developing.

SARCASM
This used deliberately to hurt the ‘cheetahs” or the rulers. “Betrayals embrace
your beings / as you wear garment of thorns” (p. 26). He also uses sarcasm to show the
abnormalities in the way of life of the rulers. “ruled by demon / with hairs between teeth”
(p. 20); the lines are used to satirize and demoralize the rulers, referring to them as
48
demon. Also “only the parasites cheer / in the festival of loot” (p. 21). They feed on
others at the same time they are happy for cheating the masses in their festival of loot.

BURLESQUE
His use of burlesque as technique is to amuse and ridicule the rulers and call them
bad names. In “the Ogoni People : oilwel of Nigeria” (p. 26), Olafioye, refers to them as
betrayers, he says:
Betrayals embrace your beings.

ALLITERATION AND ASSONANCE
Olafioye creates music in his poetry. “Sand dunes Suffocating the Sea” (p. 20),
he uses this to create musicality in his poem and emphasize on how the leaders have bad
influence on the society.
“We stagger / disaster to disaster”, he uses assonance – the repetition of vowel
sound – to create rhythm and depict the imbalance of the people.
He also uses personification to show the power of death; “The world claims you”
(p. 26). Here world is being referred to as human who claims something.
Olafioye’s quest is to facilitate change for a better society therby putting his art to
the service of the society that nurtures it.
49
CHAPTER FIVE
This research work has attempted to examine satire in contemporary Nigerian
Poetry, using the poetry of Musa I. Okpanachi’s The Eaters of the Living and Tayo
Olafioye’s A Carnival of Looters as case study.
This chapter consists of the findings, summary and conclusion of the research
work.
5.1
FINDINGS
Musa I. Okpanachi and Tayo olafioye were able to visualize the abnormalies of
the society and they adopted satire as a style to ridicule, scorn and criticize the follies of
individuals or their societies as a means of improving them. The study reveals that poets
adopted different types of satirical technique which has been discussed in earlier
chapters.
Through the use of the poets’ witty words and images, they have been able to
write on societal ills as an attempt for social change.
Lastly, the study discovered that not only the rulers were being mocked and
ridiculed but also the people or the masses have been criticized for failing to fight for
their rights and manage corruption, hopelessness, helplessness and politics of deceit.
5.2
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
This study takes into account the satire of contemporary Nigerian poetry
exemplified by Olafioye and Okpanachi’ s poetry in their different collections, A
Carnival of Looters and The Eaters of the Living respectively. The study focused on the
50
satirical techniques and themes in the poets’ works. It is believed that their poetry serves
as weapons for social change.
The poets used satire to expose the ills of the society and their type of satire is
such that it tries to expose social vices and fables with upright and urbane ridicule.
Since the society, Olafioye and Okpanachi belong to still has a lot to achieve,
satire will for a long time continue to be a pre-occupation in poetry.
Okpanachi ridicules mainly the ruling class in the society while Olafioye
ridicules and criticizes both the leaders and the led. The poets can be seen as historians.
The obligation of an artist is to write to educate his people.
In conclusion, contemporary writers are critical about issues in their society.
Some have adopted satire as their style to criticize the evil act of the ruling class which is
evidenced in their acts of corruption, oppression, discrimination, violence, power games
and politics.
51
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