Analysis Of Ofeimun's 'London Letter And Other Poems'

Homeland and Migration, either as a theme or sub-theme, reappears regularly in postcolonial literature. The foremost Nigerian poet, Odia Ofeimun, is notable for his reiterative exploration of these themes in his London Letter and Other Poems (2010). Ofeimun’s concern in London Letter is mainly on how the persona views his homeland from the diaspora, more so, the relationships that exist between Lagos and other cities he travelled to during his sojourn in Europe. This study, therefore, examines the themes of homeland and migration from the angle of a migrant who lives in London but constantly praises as well as criticize his homeland in such a way that his nostalgia is felt by the readers. It starts with an introduction which provides a general
Ofeimun belongs to a generation of writers that believe in nationhood. As one of Ofeimun’s contemporaries, Ojaide writes, “Ofeimun belongs to the generation of Nigerian/African poets/writers who believe in transformative role of the literary art and deploying it as a weapon towards regaining the lost ideas of nationhood” (13). Oyeniyi Okunoye goes on to make the following assertion about Ofeimun and his work: “Ofeimun’s elaborate exposition of his preference for the metropolitan identity that the urban space creates in his theoretical reflection is a metaphor for appropriating the hybrid constitution of postcolonial identity” (93).
Ofeimun deals with the issue of globalization in relation to Lagos and London in his poem. Globalization and identity are some of the features pointed out in his collection. He also treats the issue of migration in line with some pre-colonial history. Accordingly, Olaoluwa remarks: “In the taxonomic categorization of cities into global and non-global, the relationship between Lagos and London becomes that of contradiction” (255). Olaoluwa further