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Context, form and poetic expression in Igede funeral dirges

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 December 2011

Ode S. Ogede
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Extract

This article discusses the context, form and structure of the Igede dirge. Although a minority tribe in Nigeria's Benue State who are little known in anthropological and literary studies, the Igede have a tradition of oral expression that is as vibrant as that of any of Africa's larger language groups. The article thus aims to enlarge our understanding of the corpus of Africa's traditional literature through one of its neglected aspects—the dirges of one of the minority tribes. As a storehouse of Igede beliefs, practices and wisdom the dirge leads us into a world of spirits, a dreadful world of ancestors fearfully conjured up as a universe of monstrous, malignant forces before whom man is a vulnerable being, constantly constrained to plead for protection. But there is genuine creativity in Igede dirges which compares favourably with those found among other peoples of the world.

Résumé

La présente communication étudie le fond, la forme et la structure du chant funèbre igede. Quoique ethnie minoritaire de l'état de Bénoué au Nigéria, ethnie qui est peu connue dans les études anthropologiques et littéraires, les Igede ont une tradition d'expression orale qui est aussi vibrante que celle de n'importe lequel des blocs linguistiques de l'Afrique qui soient plus grands. Ainsi la communication a-t-elle pour but d'enrichir notre compréhension du corpus de la littérature traditionnelle de l'Afrique à travers un aspect jusqu'ici négligé de la littérature africaine, à savoir le chant funèbre de lune des ethnies minoritaires de l'Afrique. En tant que depôt des croyances, des pratiques et de la sagesse des Igede, le chant funèbre nous mène dans un monde spirituel, monde épouvantable des ancêtres qui est évoqué avec effroi comme un univers de forces monstrueuses et méchantes, devant lesquelles l'homme est un être vulnérable qui a constamment besoin de solliciter sa protection à lui. Cependant, il existe une créativité authentique dans les chants funèbres igede que l'on peut comparer favorablement à ceux qui sont connus parmi d' autres populations à travers le monde.

Type
Working with deities and the dead
Information
Africa , Volume 65 , Issue 1 , January 1995 , pp. 79 - 96
Copyright
Copyright © International African Institute 1995

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