Developing the mental and worldview of the Igbo child through Igbo epic poetry

Abstract

The study focuses on these and aimed at unraveling how the mental and worldview of the Igbo child can be developed via epic poetry. The study is a documentary research and uses the descriptive approach in the analysis of data collected from Eke Une an Igbo epic poem. The findings of the study indicate that Igbo epic poems Eke Une is capable of developing the mental and worldview of the Igbo child as it is capable of inculcating the belief in the supernatural being, making him be on the know of the Igbo man’s quest to achieve greatness despite the risk involved, communalism among the Igbo nation and more importantly the belief by the Igbo people that lust usually go with negative consequences. The study concludes that Igbo epic poems which are some of the Igbo rich oral heritage are essential in children’s overall development.

Keywords: Mental development, Worldview, Epic poem, Communalism, Igbo