Aesthetic Portrayal of Food in Contemporary African Poetry

Taiwo Austin Stanley Osanyemi

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12

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Aesthetic Portrayal of Food in Contemporary African Poetry

Taiwo Austin Stanley Osanyemi^*

Published in International Journal of Literature and Arts (Volume 13, Issue 3)

Received: 25 March 2025 Accepted: 2 April 2025 Published: 29 May 2025

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Abstract

Contemporary African poets have artistically projected the import of African food into modern African literature; this representation has popularised and promoted some African meals by giving them global recognition. However, the portrayal of food in African literature, especially within poetry has little or no consideration scholarly. This is the critical lacuna that this study attempts to fill. This study, therefore, examines the literary aestheticism of food in some African poems with a view to establishing that the import of food in African poetry promotes the nourishment value of African dishes, projects the admiration of African food and widens the propagation of these dishes beyond African shores. The study employs purposive sampling of three African poems as its data. They are Oluwaseun Olutunbi’s “Amala Dudu”, John Onyeme’s “Akpu, African Food” and Oyin Oludipe’s “Ikokore (Water Yam Porridge)”. These texts are subjected to critical textual analysis. The analysis will be influenced by Brad Kessler’s model of Gastronomic Theory of literature as its theoretical framework. The essence of Gastronomic Theory is to establish the poetic devices that intrinsically orchestrate the various literary aesthetics through the import of food in the primary texts; it will also undergird the findings. Significantly, the findings reveal that aesthetics of admiration, nourishment and nostalgia emanate from the import of food in the selected African poems. Findings have also shown that the import of food in African poetry is a rich and multifaceted concept that reveals deep insights into the individual, social and communal contexts of African continent. Portrayal of food in African poetry, therefore, is an essential ointment to popularise African cuisine beyond the shores of Africa.

Published in	International Journal of Literature and Arts (Volume 13, Issue 3)
DOI	10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12
Page(s)	56-62
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2025. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

African Dishes, Global Status, Tactile Qualities, Cultural Border

References

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[2]	Aidoo, Ama Ata. 1977. Our Sister Killjoy. London: Longman.
[3]	Beyala, Calixthe. 2013 How to Cook Your Husband the African Way. Chelsea: Virago.
[4]	Churchill, Onwueme Ikenna. 2024. “The Role of Food in African Cultural Identity and Expression - The Will Downtown. Nigeria’s Sunday Lifestyle Magazine, 9 June.
[5]	Edwin, Shirin. 2008.”Subverting Social Customs: The Representation of Food in Three West African Francophone Novels” Research in African Literatures. 39(2): 39-50.
[6]	Emecheta, Buchi. 1979 The Joys of Motherhood. London: Heinemann.
[7]	Fischler, Claude. 1988. “Food, Self and Identity”. Social Science Information. 27(2): 275-292.
[8]	Kessler, Brad. 2005.”One Reader’s Digest: Toward a Gastronomic Theory of Literature”. The Kenyon Review. 2(2): 148-165.
[9]	Kittler, P. G. and Sucher, K. P. 2012. Food and Culture. 6^th ed. Boston: Cengage Learning.
[10]	Laudan, Rachel. 2013. Cuisine and Empire: Cooking in World History. California: University of California Press.
[11]	Lupton, Deborah. 1996. Food, the Body and the Self. London: Sage, 1996.
[12]	McGee, Harold. 2004. On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen. New York: Scribner, 2004.
[13]	Mintz, Sidney W. and Du Bois C. 2002. “The Anthropology of Food and Eating”. Annual Review of Anthropology. 31: 99-119.
[14]	Montanari, Massimo. 2006. Food Is Culture. Translated by Albert Sonnenfeld, New York: Columbia University Press, 2006.
[15]	Msiska, Mpalive-Hangson. 2007. Postcolonial Identity in Malawi. Abingdon: Routledge.
[16]	Olufunwa, Harry. 2000 “Eating with Kings: Food and Ambition in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart”. Research in African Literatures, 17(1): 69-71.
[17]	Osuji, Ucheoma C. 2023. ”Food and Ideology: Towards an African Philosophy of Food”. AMAMIHE: Journal of Applied Philosophy. 2(1): 40-45.
[18]	Parasecoli, Fabio. 2014. “Food, Identity and Cultural Reproduction in Immigrant Communities” Social Research: An International Quarterly. 81(2): 415-439.
[19]	Quayson, Ato. 2014. Oxford Street, Accra: City Life and the Itineraries of Transnationalism. Durham: Duke University Press.
[20]	Senanu, Kojo and Vincent, Theo. 1999. (Eds.). A Selection of African Poetry. London: Longman.
[21]	Sownthariya, K. Raga. 2019 “Textual Analysis on the Representation of Food and Drink in African Literature” Language in India. 19(1): 184-189.

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Osanyemi, T. A. S. (2025). Aesthetic Portrayal of Food in Contemporary African Poetry. International Journal of Literature and Arts, 13(3), 56-62. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12

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ACS Style

Osanyemi, T. A. S. Aesthetic Portrayal of Food in Contemporary African Poetry. Int. J. Lit. Arts 2025, 13(3), 56-62. doi: 10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12

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AMA Style

Osanyemi TAS. Aesthetic Portrayal of Food in Contemporary African Poetry. Int J Lit Arts. 2025;13(3):56-62. doi: 10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12

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@article{10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12,
  author = {Taiwo Austin Stanley Osanyemi},
  title = {Aesthetic Portrayal of Food in Contemporary African Poetry
},
  journal = {International Journal of Literature and Arts},
  volume = {13},
  number = {3},
  pages = {56-62},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijla.20251303.12},
  abstract = {Contemporary African poets have artistically projected the import of African food into modern African literature; this representation has popularised and promoted some African meals by giving them global recognition. However, the portrayal of food in African literature, especially within poetry has little or no consideration scholarly. This is the critical lacuna that this study attempts to fill. This study, therefore, examines the literary aestheticism of food in some African poems with a view to establishing that the import of food in African poetry promotes the nourishment value of African dishes, projects the admiration of African food and widens the propagation of these dishes beyond African shores. The study employs purposive sampling of three African poems as its data. They are Oluwaseun Olutunbi’s “Amala Dudu”, John Onyeme’s “Akpu, African Food” and Oyin Oludipe’s “Ikokore (Water Yam Porridge)”. These texts are subjected to critical textual analysis. The analysis will be influenced by Brad Kessler’s model of Gastronomic Theory of literature as its theoretical framework. The essence of Gastronomic Theory is to establish the poetic devices that intrinsically orchestrate the various literary aesthetics through the import of food in the primary texts; it will also undergird the findings. Significantly, the findings reveal that aesthetics of admiration, nourishment and nostalgia emanate from the import of food in the selected African poems. Findings have also shown that the import of food in African poetry is a rich and multifaceted concept that reveals deep insights into the individual, social and communal contexts of African continent. Portrayal of food in African poetry, therefore, is an essential ointment to popularise African cuisine beyond the shores of Africa.
},
 year = {2025}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Aesthetic Portrayal of Food in Contemporary African Poetry

AU  - Taiwo Austin Stanley Osanyemi
Y1  - 2025/05/29
PY  - 2025
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12
T2  - International Journal of Literature and Arts
JF  - International Journal of Literature and Arts
JO  - International Journal of Literature and Arts
SP  - 56
EP  - 62
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2331-057X
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12
AB  - Contemporary African poets have artistically projected the import of African food into modern African literature; this representation has popularised and promoted some African meals by giving them global recognition. However, the portrayal of food in African literature, especially within poetry has little or no consideration scholarly. This is the critical lacuna that this study attempts to fill. This study, therefore, examines the literary aestheticism of food in some African poems with a view to establishing that the import of food in African poetry promotes the nourishment value of African dishes, projects the admiration of African food and widens the propagation of these dishes beyond African shores. The study employs purposive sampling of three African poems as its data. They are Oluwaseun Olutunbi’s “Amala Dudu”, John Onyeme’s “Akpu, African Food” and Oyin Oludipe’s “Ikokore (Water Yam Porridge)”. These texts are subjected to critical textual analysis. The analysis will be influenced by Brad Kessler’s model of Gastronomic Theory of literature as its theoretical framework. The essence of Gastronomic Theory is to establish the poetic devices that intrinsically orchestrate the various literary aesthetics through the import of food in the primary texts; it will also undergird the findings. Significantly, the findings reveal that aesthetics of admiration, nourishment and nostalgia emanate from the import of food in the selected African poems. Findings have also shown that the import of food in African poetry is a rich and multifaceted concept that reveals deep insights into the individual, social and communal contexts of African continent. Portrayal of food in African poetry, therefore, is an essential ointment to popularise African cuisine beyond the shores of Africa.

VL  - 13
IS  - 3
ER  -

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Author Information

Taiwo Austin Stanley Osanyemi

Department of English Studies, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko, Nigeria

Contact Email

http://orcid.org/0009-0005-6601-1751

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APA Style

Osanyemi, T. A. S. (2025). Aesthetic Portrayal of Food in Contemporary African Poetry. International Journal of Literature and Arts, 13(3), 56-62. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12

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ACS Style

Osanyemi, T. A. S. Aesthetic Portrayal of Food in Contemporary African Poetry. Int. J. Lit. Arts 2025, 13(3), 56-62. doi: 10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12

Copy | Download

AMA Style

Osanyemi TAS. Aesthetic Portrayal of Food in Contemporary African Poetry. Int J Lit Arts. 2025;13(3):56-62. doi: 10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12,
  author = {Taiwo Austin Stanley Osanyemi},
  title = {Aesthetic Portrayal of Food in Contemporary African Poetry
},
  journal = {International Journal of Literature and Arts},
  volume = {13},
  number = {3},
  pages = {56-62},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijla.20251303.12},
  abstract = {Contemporary African poets have artistically projected the import of African food into modern African literature; this representation has popularised and promoted some African meals by giving them global recognition. However, the portrayal of food in African literature, especially within poetry has little or no consideration scholarly. This is the critical lacuna that this study attempts to fill. This study, therefore, examines the literary aestheticism of food in some African poems with a view to establishing that the import of food in African poetry promotes the nourishment value of African dishes, projects the admiration of African food and widens the propagation of these dishes beyond African shores. The study employs purposive sampling of three African poems as its data. They are Oluwaseun Olutunbi’s “Amala Dudu”, John Onyeme’s “Akpu, African Food” and Oyin Oludipe’s “Ikokore (Water Yam Porridge)”. These texts are subjected to critical textual analysis. The analysis will be influenced by Brad Kessler’s model of Gastronomic Theory of literature as its theoretical framework. The essence of Gastronomic Theory is to establish the poetic devices that intrinsically orchestrate the various literary aesthetics through the import of food in the primary texts; it will also undergird the findings. Significantly, the findings reveal that aesthetics of admiration, nourishment and nostalgia emanate from the import of food in the selected African poems. Findings have also shown that the import of food in African poetry is a rich and multifaceted concept that reveals deep insights into the individual, social and communal contexts of African continent. Portrayal of food in African poetry, therefore, is an essential ointment to popularise African cuisine beyond the shores of Africa.
},
 year = {2025}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Aesthetic Portrayal of Food in Contemporary African Poetry

AU  - Taiwo Austin Stanley Osanyemi
Y1  - 2025/05/29
PY  - 2025
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12
T2  - International Journal of Literature and Arts
JF  - International Journal of Literature and Arts
JO  - International Journal of Literature and Arts
SP  - 56
EP  - 62
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2331-057X
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20251303.12
AB  - Contemporary African poets have artistically projected the import of African food into modern African literature; this representation has popularised and promoted some African meals by giving them global recognition. However, the portrayal of food in African literature, especially within poetry has little or no consideration scholarly. This is the critical lacuna that this study attempts to fill. This study, therefore, examines the literary aestheticism of food in some African poems with a view to establishing that the import of food in African poetry promotes the nourishment value of African dishes, projects the admiration of African food and widens the propagation of these dishes beyond African shores. The study employs purposive sampling of three African poems as its data. They are Oluwaseun Olutunbi’s “Amala Dudu”, John Onyeme’s “Akpu, African Food” and Oyin Oludipe’s “Ikokore (Water Yam Porridge)”. These texts are subjected to critical textual analysis. The analysis will be influenced by Brad Kessler’s model of Gastronomic Theory of literature as its theoretical framework. The essence of Gastronomic Theory is to establish the poetic devices that intrinsically orchestrate the various literary aesthetics through the import of food in the primary texts; it will also undergird the findings. Significantly, the findings reveal that aesthetics of admiration, nourishment and nostalgia emanate from the import of food in the selected African poems. Findings have also shown that the import of food in African poetry is a rich and multifaceted concept that reveals deep insights into the individual, social and communal contexts of African continent. Portrayal of food in African poetry, therefore, is an essential ointment to popularise African cuisine beyond the shores of Africa.

VL  - 13
IS  - 3
ER  -

Copy | Download