Commentaries

Below is a collection of critical commentaries and analysis of articles on African poetry from the News Database and published in the London Times, Sunday Times, Financial Times, the Times Literary Supplement 1865–1985. Authored by graduate students from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Kofi Awoonor: The Unsung Poet From Ghana
Advocacy and Representation in Chinweizu's "The Detention of Jack Mapanje" in The Times Literary Supplement
On impolite literature: The portrayal of Taban Lo Liyong in Times Literary Supplement and The Sunday Times, 1970-1976
The 1985 Execution of Benjamin Moloise in The Times and The Sunday Times
Oswald Joseph Mbuyiseni Mtshali: A South African Poet Whose Collection’s Sales Shocked Critics
Kwesi Brew's Ideology Misinterpreted
Jeni Couzyn: Her Poetry and Motherhood
Interrogating the portrayal of Okot p’Bitek’s song poems by Times Literary Supplement from 1971 to 1975
Dennis Brutus; Race, Sports, and Poetry
A Commentary on the Representation of Ama Ata Aidoo’s Poetic Career within The Sunday Times, The Times Literary Supplement, and Financial Times
Ama Ata Aidoo in The Times between 1967 and 1997
Christopher Okigbo in Three British Newspaper Reports Between 1966 and 1993
A Commentary on M.M Carlin’s 1983 Book Review of Ken Goodwin’s “Understanding African Poetry: A study of Ten Poets”with a Focus on Soyinka.
Commentary on Jeremy Brooks’ Review of “Survive the Peace” by Cyprian Ekwensi and M.M. Carlin’s Review of “Understanding African Poetry” by Ken Goodwin, Referencing Christopher Okigbo
Western Patronization: An Examination of 20th Century Critique of African Writing—a look at 3 TLS Articles. “Voice of the Poets,” by Patrick Dickinson, “The Chosen Tongue: English Writing InThe Tropical World” by Norman Jeffares, and “Scorning the Sonnet” by M.M. Carlin
Wole Soyinka in The Times Advertisements and Announcements between 1965 and 1983
A Critical Reading of Robert Fraser’s Comments on Christopher Okigbo in His TLS Article, “Far Remove”
A Critical Reading of John Willett’s “Literature as Symptom”