Emerging Themes in African Oral Narratives: A Case Study of Abagusii Community of Western Kenya

Abstract

The transience and preservation of the oral heritage in Africa has not been accorded due attention. Many critics are on record arguing that the oral heritage in Africa is faced with extinction. For a long time therefore, the focus has been on mere collection and documentation of oral forms for posterity. To the contrary, however, research by such contemporary scholars as Peter Wasamba, Isidore Okpewho, Ruth Finnegan, Abiola Irele, Wanjiku Kabira, Wole Soyinka, among others has proved that the oral tradition is as vibrant as ever, and a lot more complex than presupposed. These scholars have variously argued that the role of orality need not be seen in the past but rather as an art form that serves people across generations and societies. One area that has not been addressed exhaustively, therefore, and which is the loci of this study is the resilience and transience of not just oral narratives but other oral forms as well. It is no longer tenable to argue that oral literature is passed from generation to generation without much of a change. Nor is it plausible to argue that the greatest asset for oral artists is rote memory. As a matter of fact, modern orators have risen above the limitations of memory and performed oral items that are well within the oral tradition and, at the same time, responsive to contemporary realities. In this particular paper, therefore, we seek to address ourselves to both the resilience and transience of oral narratives in the face of shifting social dispensations. Much as we recognize the significance of collecting and preserving oral forms for posterity, there is need to show how various social forces have impacted on the nature and character of the oral forms. The following questions guide our study:

i)                     What is the relevance of the oral narrative in a modernizing society?

ii)                   What role does the performer or oral artist play in the resilience and transience of oral narratives?

iii)                  What salient elements of the oral narrative enable it to be resilient and transient?

Key words: traditional narratives, modern narratives, theme, motif, story line, plot, performance, philosophy, transience, variants, oral tradition.