Poetry of Pain on the Niger Delta

Poetry of Pain on the
Niger Delta

Written by: Omosun Sylvester

Vivid pictures of pain and aching, suffering and death resulting from conflicts within Nigeria have been created at least as long as the delta conflict has been upon us, if the poet of today create such pictures about pain through their write-up on the delta the message can captures the reader when it is conveyed powerfully to the affected people and it can heal and forces them to listen

In the internet most Nigerians have set up poetry and literary groups, within were the confrontation of African Conflict are presented in ennobled art and is traditionally based according to each authors tribe/ethnic background

All the writings posted are noticeably different from one another, most present endless pictures of hurting and aggression, others goes a step further and deals with the approach connected to pain from the Nigerian conflicts – wound becomes the subject of the art. In this way, it has tried to get readers to look inside themselves and in lieu with the judgment of the poet, thus, become a more sympathetic person with what is happening in and around the creek.

All through points in time there have been people who sacrificed their live on behalf of others in the Conflict prone society of Africa by the vivid pictures of pain and aching depicted in their poetry, When an African writer experiences something on behalf of others through his art, he may expose himself to danger of political/ethnic hatred if he writes of it, the truth that send hatred their way killed them. Their death in our hand because they made us see, Ken Saro Wiwa, Christopher Okigbo are some of these scapegoats, through their own lives they give other members of society the chance to experience real ache of their brothers in the creek without having to feel it. Without having to be there

The Nigerian poets can show others what a feeling of pain or real fear of death looks like in the hand of hoodlums. They can also tell how it feels to live in area like
Sudan in a single stanza from their poetry; they will tell you about the waste of land, the raping of the local wealth in using the delta as an element of art

, the intention in using the delta as an element of poetic art may be to astound the readers and ask him to examines his feelings with the Victor-perpetuator principle (shell/militant)

The use of such poetry as a creative element appeals to the readers understanding and, through their own feeling, to identify themselves with a cause:

If one considers why a poet not born in the delta handles such poetry with a passion, it is easy to think that he has been influenced by the predecessor before him,  because he is a poet and has certainly experienced all kinds of things as that poet’.