Men’s Imaging of Women in Nigerian Poetry: The Changing Perspective in Emeka Umeanor’s Meanor’s Memoirs
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This article examines a shift in men’s imaging of women in Nigerian poetry, focusing on the poetry collection, Meanor’s Memoir, by Emeka Umeanor. This is predicated on the view that poetry in the Nigerian literary scene, reportedly dominated by men, has been consistent in relegating and misrepresenting women. Consequently, with poems selected from Umeanor’s poetry collection, the paper aims to analyse depictions suggesting men’s reassessment of women in Nigerian poetry. The discussion is anchored on qualitative analysis, with theoretical support from the cultural feminism strand, tending to explain how the imaging is influenced by the idea that women are endowed with inherent but undervalued qualities. The paper reveals a shift in men’s perspective as indicated by positive characterization of feminine traits and attributes, including beauty, love, peaceful disposition, honesty, and trustworthiness, representing not just their inimitable characteristics, but also valuable to be taken for granted. Besides these, women are strong-willed and brave, similar to qualities associated with men. The paper recognizes this as an improvement in the imaging of women in Nigerian poetry in recent times, and concludes that men’s misrepresentation of women is being revisited by men for the purpose of promoting equity and fairness in the literary space.
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