Of Kristevan Intertextuality and Obu Udeozo’s Cyclone: Modern African Poetry as a “Mosaic of Quotations”

Abstract

Using Obu Udeozo’s poetry collected in Cyclone as source of reference, this study critically explores modern African poetry in the light of Kristevan intertextuality which sees the text essentially as a “mosaic of quotations”. The study briefly examines Kristeva’s view of intertextuality as a concept which defines the intricate nexus among texts ennobled by several means among which is quotation or citation. A reading of Cyclone is then executed with a special focus on the plethora of quotations embedded in it. The study demonstrates that the text of our focus is deeply influenced by other texts from which citations are extensively made. The poet employs this intertextual tool to highlight his views and drive home his points on contemporary events in Nigeria. The conclusion reached is that the Kristevan intertextuality which sees the text as a “mosaic of quotations,” as a distinctive hallmark of Udeozo’s poetic oeuvre, enables him to historicise the dilemma of the postcolonial society.