Mathias Iroro Orhero
Abstract
Only a few notable studies have been done on the roles played by little magazines in the development of modern Nigerian poetry. These studies often limit themselves to a particular phase or period. It is this lacuna in scholarship that this paper investigates. This paper engages the roles played by little magazines in the development of modern Nigerian poetry from its earliest inceptions till the contemporary period. The influences of these magazines are identified from their roles as propagandist mechanisms, as nursery beds for poets, as forums between poets and readers, as catalysts to poetic criticism and as manifestoes for literary traditions. Some of the little magazines examined in this paper include Black Orpheus, The Horn, and Okike. Findings show that little magazines are the nucleus with which Nigeria poetry gained consciousness and attained maturation. Modern Nigerian poets have developed their craft, expressed their ideologies, and experimented with new forms on the pages of these little magazines. Some of these magazines also serve socio-political and propagandist functions. Recommendations are made for the continuance of the little magazine tradition in the invention of future Nigerian poetic traditions.
Keywords: Nigerian poetry, little magazines, Nigerian
history, poetic development
Introduction
This paper engages the historical evolution of modern Nigerian poetry and the roles played by little magazines. Nigerian literary historians, critics, and scholars pay little attention to the roles of formative little magazines in the development of modern Nigerian poetry. This lacuna in scholarship has relegated the role(s) of little magazines in the creation of a literary canon and the development of poets. This paper aims at examining the historical evolution of modern Nigerian poetry with the view to emphasising the place and importance of little magazines. Questions that this paper attempts to answer include: what roles have little magazines played in the development of modern Nigerian poetry? How have little magazines influenced Nigerian poetic traditions? What are little magazines doing now to promote the development of modern Nigerian poetry? These questions are answered with deep historical readings of modern Nigerian poetic history. This paper focuses on the poets and the magazines rather than the individual poems, and it presents a diachronic overview of Nigerian poetic history and the influences of little magazines from the colonial, through the post-colonial to the contemporary period.
Various definitions of little magazines have been given by scholars over the years. These definitions usually examine one or more forms of the tabloid that falls under the concept of little magazines. Suzanne Churchill defines the little magazine as “non-commercial enterprises founded by individuals or small groups intent upon publishing experimental works or radical opinions of untried, unpopular, or under-represented writers” (8). Churchill’s emphasis is on the fact that little magazines are non-commercial. This foregrounds the idea that little magazines do not charge writers for publication since they are not concerned with making profit. Churchill further asserts that the word “little” refers to the audience size, which is usually small, rather than the magazine’s size, budget, lifespan or significance (9).
Louise Kane conceives of the little magazine as “a small-scale sort of publication whose pre-occupation with presenting good materials puts it in opposition to the commercial presses and publishing houses which will not publish a writer until they have become established. They are places of experiment and high-minded ideals and aims” (2). Kane’s conception of little magazines emphasises experimentation as one of the features of the little magazine. Little magazines are ideal avenues where avant-garde writers test their craft. Little magazines are always “on the edge of something, furthering a cause or a certain set of aims… having some sort of social or political function” (Kane 3). Kane’s view is supported by Adam Augustyn who believes that little magazines usually publishes works that are “unconventional or experimental in form; or […] violates one of several popular notions of moral, social, or aesthetic behaviour” (104).
On the content of little magazines, Rahad Abir (n.pag) asserts that little magazines publish “reviews, essays, fiction or poetry or more usually some combination of them”. Abir’s position holds waters for most little magazines that are solely devoted to the publication of creative works, especially poetry and short stories.
It is important to note that not all little magazines are traditional “magazines”. The concept of little magazines has come to cover a wide variety of publications such as journals, periodicals and newspapers. Any form of the tabloid that publishes creative works, reviews and essays can take the appellation “little magazine” or “literary magazine”. The latter is another phrase that means the same thing as the former. The reason why other non-magazine media take this name can be traced to the historical evolution of little magazines. In this vein, Sue Waterman asserts thus:
Literary journals evolved quite literally from the pages of newspapers in the 17th century, themselves a relatively new genre, where advertisements for new publications were printed. From this initial role of announcers of new books, journals quickly took on that of providing excerpts for a growing reading public. Literary journals, which proliferated in the 18th century and became ubiquitous in the 19th, then began to review new works, giving their growing readership a means to judge and choose from an ever increasing availability printed books (1).
Waterman’s position is that little magazines, also called literary journals, owe their existence to newspapers which served as avenues for new works to be announced and for reviews. This early usage of newspapers must have warranted the inclusion of the newspaper medium in the broad concept of little magazines. Waterman lists some of these early newspapers, and they include Les Journal des Scavans (1665), Spectator (1711-14) and Tatler (1709-11). Other early little magazines include Nouvelles de la Republique des Lettres (1684), North American Review, The Granta (1889), The Sewanee Review (1892), Poetry (1912), The Dial, The Masses, The Little Review (1967-1977) and Blackwoods (1817-1890).
From the preceding, it is obvious that little magazines have been around for quite some time. These early little magazines have influenced the literary traditions in their various nations and continents. Their growths have been phenomenal, and their successes are striking. Little magazines have evolved to cover traditional magazines, newspapers, journals, periodicals and other tabloid forms that publish new and experimental writers.
Modern Nigerian poetry has a very unique history. Joseph Ushie traces the earliest beginnings of the Nigerian poetic tradition to “oral renditions” in various Nigerian cultures (11). This position is confirmed by Mathias Orhero (28) who asserts that “Nigerian poetry owes its origins to the oral literary traditions which are predominant in Nigeria”. From its oral origins, Nigerian poetry has taken roots in the written tradition due to the advent of colonialism and literacy. Harry Garuba attempts a canonisation of Nigerian poetry and he employs “generations of poets” as a marker to delineate the various canons of modern Nigerian poetry (51). Garuba’s study identifies three distinct generations of Nigerian poetry.
The idea of “generations” in Nigerian poetry is well rooted. Scholars such as Ushie (11-23) Sule Egya (53), Friday Okon (94), Romanus Aboh (2-3), and Christopher Ogunyemi (53), among others, have employed the concept in the identification of various canons of modern Nigerian poetry. It has been established that there are three generations of modern Nigerian poets that wrote in the 20th century. The 20th century poets have received ample critical attention and the peculiarities of their themes and techniques have informed many literary exegesis.
Little Magazines and the Development of Colonial Nigerian Poetry
Nigerian poetry before the advent of colonialism in 1884 was essentially an oral art. It was not until the advent of tabloid poetry that Nigerian poetry got its modern manifestation, reception and widespread production. This was mainly due to the influence of little magazines. These magazines were published when the printing press was introduced into Nigeria. In the period before 1920, much poetry had not been written, and little magazines were few. By the 1920s, modern Nigerian poetry had taken a new stand. The newspapers and new little magazines became a fertile ground for the publication of poetry.
It was the proliferation of newspapers in the 1920s that led to a culture of literacy as well as literary awareness. With the construction of secondary/high schools and universities across the continent, a growing class of literates sprung up and the newspapers were used to instil nationalism in the people. Some of the newspapers include The Anglo-African, The Lagos Observer, Lagos Standard and Lagos Weekly Record. The Nigerian Magazine, asserts Gabriel Darah (1), was “among the publishing institutions that nurtured and preserved Nigeria’s creative literature, the greatest, perhaps”. This magazine was established in 1927, and it released “Literary Supplement” which helped in the development of a truly Nigerian literary productivity in which poetry was much more favoured. Nationalist poets such as Dennis Osadebey and Nnamdi Azikiwe used these early newspapers as vehicles for propagandist poetry.
In Nigeria, the period between 1940-1960 marked the rise of the first generation of poets. Many of these poets were college students and some even started writing from high schools. The most veritable means of airing their voice was through the medium of little magazines. Many of them wrote at the time, but only a few did much in creating a unique modern Nigerian poetic tradition. Some of the high school students’ little magazines include The Umuahian, a publication of the Umuahia Government College where Chinua Achebe studied and wrote his early poetry; The Mermaid, a little magazine by Kings College in Lagos; The Interpreter which was published by Aggrey Memorial College in Arochukwu; and The Pathfinder. Many of these high school little magazines doubled as almanacks and yearbooks and short; witty poems were usually published in them.
With the kick-off of the University College, Ibadan, Nigeria, the first students were admitted in 1948. The development of Nigerian poetry can be traced to this university. Many of the known Nigerian poets of the first generation attained literary maturation in the little magazines published at Ibadan. Starting with The University Herald, other little magazines started to rise in what culminated as an Anglophone little magazine renaissance. The titles include The Beacon, The Horn, Aro, Catholic Undergraduate, The Bug, The Eagle, The Criterion, The Rag, The Scorpion, The Wasp, Tear Gas, Leepsteeck, Blow, The University Voice, Oke’Badan, The Abadina Unibadan, Horizon, The Sword and The Weekly. The little magazine renaissance quickly spread to other schools such as the Nigerian College of Technology in Enugu where little magazines such as Fresh Buds produced a notable poet, Okogbule Nwanodi. This trend later spread to the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and a host of others.
The greatest little magazines that influenced this period and its poetic output were Black Orpheus and The Horn. These little magazines published not only Nigerian poets but also the works of young poets from other African countries. Black Orpheus was first published in 1957 in a very professional quality and intended for a general readership. The title itself is based on an essay by Jean-Paul Sartre titled “Orphee Noir”. Ulli Beier, the founding editor, lamented the fact that African students of poetry had no indigenous works to look on to and so Black Orpheus was created to foster and promote creativity from young writers. In the pages of this little magazine, criticisms were also published. Beier, formulating a manifesto for this tradition, asserts that the purpose of this little magazine was “to make people feel they were not alone, even if they were writing in a part of Africa where there were no writers of their own calibre” (4). Beier further comments that the purpose of the magazine “was to sell African literature abroad”. Most of the first generation Nigerian poets had their poems published within the pages of this magazine. Janheinz Jahn and Ulli Beier published criticisms on Negritude poetry and the new emergent poetry. The poems of Wole Soyinka, John Pepper Clark, Christopher Okigbo, Ibrahim Salahi and so many others, were featured in the pages of Black Orpheus. This little magazine can be regarded as the sole catalyst for the development of early Nigerian poetry. Awhefeada argues that “the various conferences on African arts […] and the introduction of African literature into the curriculum of African Universities and schools, all owe much to Black Orpheus” (n.pag). Black Orpheus did not just play the role of propaganda and experimentation but also of consolidation and formulation. It is the single most important phenomenon in early modern African poetry. The experimentation with Euromodernist tendencies as Nigerian poets fashioned their unique identities was facilitated by this little magazine as well.
The Horn was established through the influence of Martin Banham, and it had J.P. Clark as its founding editor. Banham’s idea was born out of the desire to replicate what was obtained at Leeds University where he graduated. In 1957, the first issue appeared when J.P. Clark set up a committee of three, which included Higo Aigboje and John Ekwere. Some of its earliest editors include Abiola Irele, Dapo Adelugba, Omolara Ogundipe and Onyema Ihema. The Horn published poets who would later turn out to be some of Africa’s well-known poets. On the pages of The Horn can be found the experimental tendencies of Africa’s first generation writers; the Hopkinsian syntax of Christopher Okigbo, the grandiloquism of Wole Soyinka, the allusiveness of Gabriel Okara, the imagism of J.P. Clark, the linguistic experimentations of M.J.C. Echeruo, and a host of others. This little magazine proved itself a fertile ground for new and experimental poets as they fashioned a unique literary identity. Some of the poets that were nurtured in The Horn include John Pepper Clark, Wole Soyinka, John Ekwere, Mabel Segun, Abiola Irele, Dapo Adelugba, Omolara Ogundipe-Leslie, Okugbole Nwanodi, Frank Aig-Imoukhuede, Mac Akpoyovwaire, Pius Oleghe, Aig Higo, Christopher Okigbo, Bridget Akwada, Nelson Olawaiye, Glory Nwanodi, Gordon Umukoro, Yetunde Esan, Ralph Opara and Minji Karibo.
Without Black Orpheus and The Horn, Nigerian poetry may not have attained the heights it has today. The founders of these little magazines saw their utility and actively used them. The European expatriates in various Nigerian universities took cues from Modernist and African-American little magazines and invented a modern Nigerian poetic tradition through these little magazines. It is its diverse functions that earned Black Orpheus the title as “the doyen of African literary magazines” (Wollaeger and Eatough 280).
One of the culminating effects of the little magazine phenomenon in Nigeria was the publication of an anthology of poets with the title Nigerian Students Verse (1960). This anthology was published by Martin Banham with cues drawn from Olumbe Bassir’s An Anthology of West African Verse (1957). Some of the poets, attaining maturation with little magazines, went on to publish their anthologies and poetry collections such as Okigbo’s Heavensgate (1962), Limits (1964) and Clark’s Poems (1961).
The preceding has examined the roles of little magazines in developing modern Nigerian poetry in the colonial period. Some of these little magazines and their contributors have been documented, and it has been ascertained that pre-independence Nigerian poetry owes much to such magazines as Black Orpheus and The Horn. The poets that pioneered Nigerian poetry all experimented and attained maturation with these little magazines.
The preceding has examined the roles of little magazines in developing modern Nigerian poetry in the colonial period. Some of these little magazines and their contributors have been documented, and it has been ascertained that pre-independence Nigerian poetry owes much to such magazines as Black Orpheus and The Horn. The poets that pioneered Nigerian poetry all experimented and attained maturation with these little magazines.
Little Magazines and the Development of Post-Colonial Nigerian Poetry
Nigerian gained independence in 1960. Because of this, literary historians delineate the period after 1960 as the post-colonial or post-independence period. Post-colonial Nigerian poetry was informed by the historical consequences of independence and the creation of a national identity. Nigerian poets had to distance themselves from Western tendencies and establish a unique voice. The poetry of this period was intimated by history; from the pessimism of the remaining years of the first decade after independence, to the civil war and then to the rise of Marxism, socialist and critical realism and finally to more ailing concerns such as corruption, environmental degradation, globalisation and other contemporary issues.
By the year 1960, several universities in Nigeria had already attained maturation and indigenous poetry had been added to the curriculum. New universities such as the University of Nigeria at Nsukka, Ahmadu Bello University at Zaria, University of Lagos and Obafemi Awolowo University (then University of Ife) at Ile-Ife, were built and approved. Other universities were built in the 1970s and 1980s. These new universities adopted many of the student literary traditions from University College, Ibadan. The poets of this period took cues from the little magazines that proliferated in the last decade. At the University of Nigeria, Pioneer was first published in 1961 and was quickly followed by The Muse in 1963. The Muse was a publication of the English Students Association, and it acted as a catalyst for poetic production at Nsukka. It was on the pages of this tabloid that poets such as Pol Ndu, Okogbule Nwonodi, Bona Onyejeli, Uche Okeke, Sam Nwajioba and Romanus Egudu were produced. This magazine was a brainchild of Peter Thomas who took his cue from the Ibadan experiment by Banham and Beier. This little magazine was the foundation for a later class of writers who discovered and distanced themselves from Eurocentric tendencies and started to fashion a new and distinctively African poetry.
At the University of Ibadan, The Horn, now defunct, was soon replaced by Idoto and it continued to serve its function as a cultivation plot for the new writers at the University of Ibadan. At the University of Nigeria, Fresh Buds, now defunct, was replaced by Omabe. At the then newly created University of Ife, some little magazines were published to nurture creative talents. Some of them include Ijala, Sokoti and Ife Writing. Some of these magazines tried to replicate what obtained with The Horn and Black Orpheus.
By the 1970s, new universities had already been established in Nigeria and the African poetry curriculum had been developed enough to include poets of the 1950s and 1960s. Most of these poets turned out to be the teachers of this new generation of poets. The Nigerian Civil War ended in 1970, and the end brought with it, a new class of poetry that was different from the older generation. The poets of this period have been described as belonging to the “Alter/Native tradition” (Aiyejina 112). Their poetry was marked by a return to Orature as well as recourse to socialist and critical realism. Many little magazines proliferated at the time and these new poets vented their anger and pain on their pages. At the University of Nigeria, new little magazines such as Nsukkascope, which was the brainchild of Chinua Achebe, were founded in the 1970s. At the same time, Okike (1971) was also launched. On the influence of Okike, Lindfors asserts that it is “Africa’s finest extant literary journal” (87). This little magazine published poetry and its criticism and became a mouthpiece for several poets within and outside Nigeria. The influence of Okike can be seen by the sheer strength of poetic voices from Eastern Nigeria. The likes of J.O.J. Nwachukwu Agbada, Catherine Acholonu, Obiora Udechukwu, Ossie Enekwe, Dubem Okafor and the others which Aiyejina and Okunoye call “the Nsukka poets”. As Okike expanded, its influences gradually spread to cover poetic output from other regions as well. The poetry of Niyi Osundare, Odia Ofeimun, Remi Raji, Femi Fatoba, and a host of other writers of the 1970s and 80s, were all published in Okike.
With the establishment of Federal Universities in Maiduguri, Benin, Port Harcourt, Calabar, Sokoto, Jos, Ilorin and other places across the African continent, new student little magazines were inaugurated in other to cater for the poetic expressions of the new poets. This period also marked the beginning of modern newspaper poetry. At the University of Benin, Oyiya was launched by the creative writers’ workshop alongside Akpata. The influence of Benin little magazines can be seen in the calibre of poets it has produced. Among these poets are the likes of Esiri Dafiewhare, Sonnie Adagboyin, Ogaga Ifowodo, Godwin Uyi Ojo, Ezenwa Ohaeto and Maik Nwosu.
Other journals that facilitated poetic output in Nigeria at the time include Calabar Studies in Modern Languages, Lagos Review of English Studies, Ibadan Journal of Humanistic Studies, Nigerian Journal of the Humanities, Ife Studies in African Literature and the Arts, Ife Monographs on Literature and Criticism, Opon Ifa, Nsukka Studies in African Literature, Working Papers in African Literature, Work in Progress, Saiwa, Afa, Nka, Kiabara, New Horizons, Nigerian Theatre Journal, and many others. The importance of these journals is that they signified the mainstay of critical and metacritical engagements in modern Nigerian poetry. This, in turn, raised the demands for more poetic outputs.
By the year 1980, modern Nigerian poetry had enlarged as a corpus that scholars had already started to engage in the phases of Nigerian poetic evolution. The period between 1980 and 2000 marked the rise of new trends in Nigerian poetry. The poets became even more socially concerned with the conditions of the time, and they did this through Marxist lenses, but as the years went by, Marxist ideals met a decline. Nigeria had successive military regimes during this period. The agitation for democracy was commonplace. In the 1999, Nigeria returned to democracy. The poetic space in Nigeria witnessed the rise of more socially and politically oriented works. The Marxist doctrines of the 1970s were gradually paving the way for a calmer and less revolutionary type of poetry. The poets were much less concerned with proletariat revolution. Their poems advocated against corruption which was commonplace in Africa. New trends such as ecological poetry, feminist poetry, Niger-Delta poetry, among others, came into vogue. The little magazines continued to play their roles as catalysts for poetic outbursts. They played roles that bordered on avant-gardism and it was due to their influence that the heralding of a more vibrant and younger generation of poets arose.
New little magazines were published in the universities during this period. The poets that now occupy the contemporary space of Nigerian poetry were mostly students at the time in some of these universities. The little magazines became a medium to cultivate their skills. At the University of Lagos, the little magazine, Iju Omi, was launched in 1984. Assessing the functions of this little magazine, Awhefeada asserts that on Iju Omi’s pages, “aspiring poets have also tested their powers” (n.pag). This little magazine produced Hope Eghagha, one of the most formidable poets in the contemporary scene who, in 1984, was running his M.A. at the University of Lagos. At the then Bendel State University (now Ambrose Alli University), there was Ivie which was first published in 1991 by the Poetry Club. This little magazine was a starting point for Charles Omoife, a poet who is getting more critical attention. At the University of Port Harcourt, there was Ofirima. At Ahmadu Bello University, there was Kuka, Saiwa and Work in Progress. Delta State University, Abraka, was not left out as the students floated Afflatus and Ebi Yeibo, Alex Omoni, Charles Okorodudu ventilated their fledging poetic talents on its crispy pages in the 1990s. The magazine was succeeded by Abraka Voices which was founded in 2005 and it published young poets such as Peter Omoko, Stephen Kekeghe, Emmanuel Esemedafe, among others. These little magazines were the sole catalysts of Nigeria’s status as the hotspot of African poetry in the 1980s and 90s.
Apart from the proliferation of these magazines, the newspapers also played pivotal roles in developing African poetry of this period. The Guardian, in particular, was quite sympathetic to poetry. The Guardian gave a column to Niyi Osundare, one of Africa’s most prolific poets. This column was titled “Songs of the Season”. Osundare used this column to publish some of his earliest poems. Through the pioneer editorship of Femi Osofisan, “The Guardian Literary Series” was floated, and it catered to the needs of the new poets who needed a means to air their voices. Some of the poets who published within the pages of the newspapers include Niyi Osundare, Femi Osofisan, Odia Ofeimun, George Asinaba, Ogaga Ifowodo, David Nwamadi, Afam Akeh, Tanure Ojaide, Esiaba Irobi, Balami Shaffa and Funso Aiyejina. In this vein, the Daily Times Newspaper also helped with its “Poet’s Corner”.
The preceding presents the development of modern Nigerian poetry in the post-colonial period. The little magazines provided the poets with means to express themselves and aid the new nation in its search for identity and selfhood. The little magazines stayed on course in its duties through one of Nigeria’s most trying times and with their aid, Nigerian poets have been able to create a unique tradition of poetry.
Little Magazines and the Development of Contemporary Nigerian Poetry
The beginning of the 21st century marked a radical shift in Nigerian affairs. The nation was witnessing a steady democracy. The Marxist ideals of the later part of the 20th century had already been given up as a lost cause. More contemporary issues were raised. Issues that bordered on corruption, violence, electoral malpractice, societal neglect, fraud and so many others, became the themes of social discourse. The maturation of technological advancement in Nigeria signified the birth of an internet era. The whole world transformed to a ‘global village’. This period also marked the genesis of the security problems faced in Nigeria where Boko Haram engaged the nation in a religious war. The culminating effect of these developments is that the 21st century ushered in a new order of affairs in Nigeria. The problems that bordered upon a new post-colonial state had paved the way for issues that will determine the fortitude of the state. The poetic space of Nigeria in this period was as unique as the period itself. Most poets wrote in line with the conventions of Nigerian poetry in the 20th century while others became more innovative and addressed new issues. These issues were so diversified that canonisation becomes a tedious task. The little magazines also took new forms along with the wind of change. Publishers started to take advantage of the internet, and the result was that little magazines entered a digital stage where hard copies became rare and internet copies proliferated.
The little magazines, due to their sheer numbers, are not all known because the internet is a vast space where anything can be put by anyone. However, there are some prominent little magazines that have encouraged poetic output in the first decade of the 21st century. Most of these little magazines are a continuation of what was obtained in the 20th century, but changes have been made to the roles that they served.
Some little magazines have been used by poets such as Jumoke Verissimo, Chuma Nwokolo, Tade Ipadeola, Chika Unigwe, Obododinma Oha, Sefi Atta, Peter Omoko, Stephen Kekeghe, Mathias Orhero, Rome Aboh, Goodnews Eruemare, Sade Adeniran, among other contemporary poets. These magazines include Africa-Writing, Saraba, Maple Tree Literary Supplement, Sentinel Poetry, The New Gong, and Farafina. The magazines are usually accessible online, and some are packaged in a portable document format (PDF). These changes are as a result of the rise and acceptability of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT).
The list of little magazines that have emerged in the 21st century is not exhaustive. Each week, new online/digital little magazines are published, and the diversity of themes and lack of adequate editing have reduced the nobility of this form as was obtained in the 20th century. The little magazine has a very bright future in constructing future African poetry, but the proliferation of many of them will greatly affect a uniform canonisation of the poetry of this period.
Conclusion
This paper has shown that little magazines have aided in the development of modern Nigerian poetry by giving voice to new and experimental poets. Since its earliest inceptions, Nigerian poets have used these little magazines to develop their craft and attain maturation. Findings also show that the numbers of little magazines in a region correlate with its poetic output. This statement is made against the background of Northern Nigeria. It is obvious that Northern Nigerian is not covered in this paper. This is because there is a lack of little magazines in the region.
It has also been seen that little magazines serve as “editors” to poets whose poems first appear in magazines and are criticised before they are published in a poet’s personal collection. This is true of Clark, Okigbo and Osundare. The aforementioned poets revised some of the poems that had appeared in little magazines before their final publication in the poets’ collections.
This paper ends on a note of optimism for the future of little magazines in Africa. The tradition, which has always lacked the needed financial support, should be given more attention and monetary donations. New little magazines should be encouraged because they play huge roles in the creation of new poetic traditions. This paper also recommends that further scholarship should be undertaken on the influences of little magazines in modern Nigerian poetry, especially with regard to individual poems and poets. The new internet poems have also attracted only a little attention. This paper, therefore, recommends that studies should be done on internet poetry, especially those contained in e-books, e-magazines, blogs and other social media. If adequate support and scholarship on little magazines are done, the qualitative and quantitative future of these magazines can be guaranteed.
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