REVIEW

By Anderson Moses

                           CREDITS: BAY HOUSE 

 A  Review Of John Chinaka's Poem, “Maybe Not Today”

John Chinaka is a student Historian, a creative poet and a faithful researcher. His works overtime have been a portrayal of his literary elegance. As a poet, he has in several occasions lead us to the mirror, reminding us of our place and origin: Africa(n).

“Maybe not Today” is one of his masterpiece which underscores the rudimentary of Africa and the plights of Africans. In a more historical umbrella; the poem captures the untold history of Africa, bringing to remembrance the 400years of historic slavery and slave trade which existed between Africa and Europe. Of which some historians affirm to be the beginning of African backwardness and devastated equilibrium. The language of the poem is creatively unique and simple to understand. He however, enlists some literary jewels in it.

John Chinaka in line one begins in a subtle motion, yet, grappled a question which awakes the reader to a thinking front, autographing a dot in the chord and leave one hijacking his own dialect.

“In a history class, my teacher asked me; What is African history?”

African history here could straddle many definition and perspective, depending on who attempts to answer the question. And for the fact that emphasis is placed on it (African history)—one would somehow denote it to an Eurocentric angle and attribute it to mean “Black people with no history” as can be seen in line 7:

  “To the west laid waste and she named it Africa”

The “west laid waste” as used by the poet persona identifies how other races claimed that Africa was a wasteful group of empires before they came visiting. The poet too, in preceding lines (8-12) is awestruck in a dilemma. Put differently, at the twisted fate of his history away from ball eyes: truth. Which kept him struggling with the vacuum in between “beginning” and “meeting point”. Therefore mushrooming his piousness to explain his true history thus:

“I held her hands and pointed to her from where they met us”

Connecting with the last two words (met us) opens up the truth— that Africans were/are people with a well defined, outlined— though unwritten history, but chronologically confirmed to have existed even before the Europeans came and had perceived change in various periodisation(s). Apart from that, there’s this emblem of faith that Chinaka unapologetically waves in the poem, which obviously displays that he’s not oblivious of the sour meal of destiny shared to Africa: struggles, invasions, racism, slavery, death. 

“Told her, if you have seen a man in between two choices: life and death”

He stretched further to unbolting the reader’s memory pipe to the coastal surface of slavery and choices, which simply coordinates that death was not a distance thing from Africa(n)s as they nostril life from the decision of the European masters. Chinaka through the poem brings history before our fingertip. Therefore, creating maximum connection between Poetry and History.

However, despite the twisted history and gruesome bites on Africa(n)s, the poet ushers us into a fresh threshold— which clearly revealed his Africaness and faith in Africa. I must applaud the poet and also say, that this poem is but a revelation to us as Africans, even as we hope to retell our story under the sun soon.

                                               

Anderson Moses (he/ him/ his) is a poet from a small village in Akwa Ibom State. He’s a student of History and International studies in University of Uyo. His works have been published/forthcoming in Brittle paper, Nantygreens, Eboquills, Arts lounge, synchronized chaos magazine, and elsewhere. Apart from writing, he’s enjoys snapping images.