Uchanganuzi Wa Uwasilishaji Wa Kifo Katika Mashairi Teule Ya Kiswahili

ABSTRACT

Death is a very heavy and an emotional subject. Depiction of death in various genre of literature is vast and varied. In poetry, death is depicted in a unique language which draws attention and touches the feelings of the audience. Poetry uses short form of language and rhythimic pattern which attracts and holds the attention of the audience during performance through singing, reading and recitation. Several studies on the aspect of death in Swahili poetry have been on dirges while in written poetry this aspect is being mentioned briefly in several analyses. This study analysed depiction of death in the selected Swahili poetry. The specific objectives of this research were: to explain the image of death; to explain the causes of death; and to investigate the ambiguities which occur in the explanation of death as depicted by artists in the selected Swahili poetry. These objectives were achieved by analyzing three selected poems; Inkishafi, Mwana Kupona and ‘Usiniuwe’ from Sauti ya Dhiki.This research was guided by the theory of realism as expounded by Georg Lukacs (1938). The tenets of this theory that were used include author’s experience, societal history, models, language and form. This research was library based. The researcher selected three poems which were analysed in line with the objective of the research. Purposive sampling was employed in selecting the poems of research by looking at depiction of death. This research adopted an analytical approach. Through the tenets of theory of realism, this research conclude that the image of death in line with the selected poems includes death’s blow, death brings hopelessness, death is painful, death as the end of every soul, death as the equalizer, death as loneliness, death is not the end of life and death is brutal. Depiction of image of death was also realized based on the environment which encompases time, religion or tradition and language. Death, however, has its causes like God, devil and human being. There is no clear gap between death and life thus making man to live in fear anticipating what lurks in the hereafter. This ambiguity is depicted in the understanding of the beginning and the end of life, life after death and the ability to talk to God in death. This research concluded death is an end to every soul and is better for human being to accept it because it is brought by extra forces beyond human ability. Human being lives waiting for death hoping for heaven based on how he lived here on earth. This research recommends that death is apart of life which makes it meaningful and valuable. The presence of death gives meaning to life and vice versa. Due to this ambiguity of death, there should be critical examination on the aspect of life in order to realize a clear boundary between life and death and origin of death; and comparative research should be conducted on image of death in other genre of literature.