Cohesion and Graphology in “Journey On, Comrade Iyayi” by Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) Nsukka Zone, Nigeria
Samuel, Adebayo Omotunde
Department of English and Literary Studies
Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria.
E-mail: samueladebayo980@yahoo.com
Abstract
This paper investigates cohesion and graphology in a poem of national, historical and contemporary significance in Nigeria titled “Journey On, Comrade Iyayi”. This poem was chosen because its subject matter is one of the consequences of the Academic Staff Union of Universities’ (ASUU) strike (which lasted for almost six months) in Nigeria which drew both national and international attention. Hence, a poem written on one of the martyrs of the struggle is worth investigating especially in the area of what makes the poem to be meaningful (i.e., cohesion). The poem above was written on the late academic icon on Dec. 8, 2013 at his burial. The theoretical framework adopted for the analysis is Systemic Functional Grammar as put forward by M.A.K Halliday especially as it relates to the textual function of language recognized by the theory. It is discovered that both grammatical and lexical cohesion are important in the poem. Specially, it is revealed that the additive conjunctive relation “and” and conjunctive adversative “but” in the poem are meant to serve as semantic signboard for passing across special bits of information regarding the death of the late icon. Relating to the above is the conspicuous ellipsis in stanza II which puts in special focus the various symbolic representations of the “piece of metal” that killed the professor. Apart from the above, lexical repetition is very important in the poem mainly for reinforcing the theme of death. Collocation as another form of cohesive device gives clarification of some phrases in the poem. Lastly, graphological consideration of the poem reveals that the number of stanzas in the poem and the near absence of full stop and commas are signification of the theme of death on which the poem revolves.