OKARA, Gabriel (Imomotimi Gbaingbain)

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Nationality: Nigerian. Born: Bumodi, Ijaw District, Rivers State, Western Nigeria, 21 April 1921. Education: Government College, Umuahia; trained as a bookbinder; studied journalism at Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, 1956. Career: Principal information officer, Eastern Regional Government, Enugu, until 1967; Biafran information officer, Nigerian Civil War, 1967–69. Since 1972 director of the Rivers State Publishing House, Port Harcourt. Awards: Nigerian Festival of the Arts award, 1953; Commonwealth Poetry prize, 1979. Address: 24 Nembe Road, Port Harcourt, Rivers, Nigeria.

Publications

Poetry

Poetry from Africa, with others edited by Howard Sergeant. Oxford, Pergamon Press, 1968.

The Fisherman's Invocation. London, Heinemann, 1978.

Novels

The Voice. London, Deutsch, 1964; New York, Africana, 1970.

An Adventure to Juju Island (for children). Ibadan, Heinemann, 1992.

Little Snake and Little Frog (for children). Ibadan, Heinemann, 1992.

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Critical Studies: Mother Is Gold: A Study of West African Literature by Adrian A. Roscoe, London, Cambridge University Press, 1971; "Heterogeneous Worlds Yoked Violently Together: The Commonwealth Poetry Prize, 1979" by Kirsten Holst Petersen, in Kunapipi, 1(2), 1979; "The Poetry of Gabriel Okara" by Bruce King, in Chandrabhaga (Orissa, India), 2, 1979; by Susan Beckmann, in World Literature Written in English (Singapore), 20(2), autumn 1981; "The Significance of Gabriel Okara As Poet" by Samuel O. Asein, in New Literature Review (Wollongong, New South Wales), 11, November 1982; "His River's Complex Course: Reflections on Past, Present and Future in the Poetry of Gabriel Okara" by S.A. Gingell, in World Literature Written in English (Singapore), 23(2), spring 1984; "The 'Sharp and Sided Hail': Hopkins and His Nigerian Imitators and Detractors" by Emeka Okeke-Ezigbo, in Hopkins among the Poets: Studies in Modern Responses to Gerard Manley Hopkins, edited by Richard F. Giles, Hamilton, Ontario, International Hopkins Association, 1985; "Gabriel Okara: Poet of the Mystic Inside" by Obi Maduakor, in World Literature Today (Norman, Oklahoma), 61(1), winter 1987; "Okara's Poetic Landscape" by Ayo Mamudu, in Commonwealth Essays and Studies (Dijon, France), 10(1), autumn 1987; "Gabriel Okara: A Poet and His Seasons" by M.J.C. Echeruo, in World Literature Today (Norman, Oklahoma), 66(3), summer 1992; "Language and Meaning in Gabriel Okara's Poetry" by Isaac I. Elimimian, in College Language Association Journal (Atlanta, Georgia), 38(3), March 1995.

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One of the most gifted, and certainly the least literary, of African poets is Gabriel Okara. He has proved to be what can only be described as a "natural" in that he is highly original in both outlook and expression and appears to have learned his craft without being influenced unduly by the stylistic mannerisms of any other poet. This, however, has not been without considerable effort on his part. "In order to capture the vivid images of African speech," he observed in an article in Transition, "I had to eschew the habit of expressing my thoughts first in English. It was difficult at first, but I had to learn." That he has been successful in capturing the African scene, the African color and excitement, and the changing African moods is evidenced by such poems as "The Mystic Drum," "Were I to Choose," "Adhiambo," and "Piano and Drums."

There is, in fact, an almost mystical quality about Okara's work. It seems to spring from his racial inheritance, his instincts and sensitivity rather than his intellect, and he exhibits a curious power when he draws upon the great oral traditions to release this nervous energy, as in "The Mystic Drum." In "Adhiambo" he tries to define his feelings on the subject—"Maybe I'm a medicine man / hearing talking saps / seeing behind trees"—and in "Piano and Drums" he writes of the jungle drums "telegraphing the mystic rhythm, urgent, raw like bleeding flesh." In other poems, which probably have more impact upon non-African readers, he is practical and down to earth, extremely perceptive in his judgments, and almost analytical in his approach. These qualities can be seen, for example, in "Once upon a Time"—"There was a time indeed / they used to shake hands with their hearts"—and "You Laughed and Laughed and Laughed," in which the ancient world of Africa merges with the modern world.

—Howard Sergeant