Emergent Genres and their Features


By


Obododimma Oha



***

We had hinted earlier that ICT has changed the face of literature. One aspect of this is the emergence of new genres like video poetry  cellular poetry  etc.

In this lecture, we discuss some of these and their features and hope that students can also create and use them.

***

The Electronic Orientation :

Before discussing these genres, let us briefly look into their general electronic orientation. This would help us to understand them better.

The emergent genres are not designed to appear on paper or slate but on screen with electrical powering. Obviously, this creates some problems, such as :

(1) The creations can be lost. That is, they could be gone forever if not protected.

(2) Some people who don't have electricity and access cannot receive them. They are excluded.

(3) The creations could change. They could be edited.

(4) There could be a great difference in the scholarship, some contexts being unfortunately backward or marginalized.

Cellular Poetry:

This genre is already known and discussed in the US, Europe, and Asia. It requires 

(1) Having a smartphone (or access to the Web) and an access to telephone network. 

(2) Knowing the appropriate command or how to get what is wanted.

(3) The reply comes through sms. 

(3) Knowing that this is purely promotional for the network, not that  this network is now a literary forum. 

To see some cellular poems, consult :

http://cellpoems.org/

Cellular poems now have websites. 

Some features of cellular poetry :

(1) The cell phone is its main medium.  

(2) Since the cell phone is its medium, it is understandably short and simple. 

(3) It needs to be copied and saved because it may be difficult to reach again. 

***

The idea is that we can enjoy or simplify poetry on our mobile phones, not just share and comment on updates on WhatsApp and Facebook. That means that literature is really life and can be performed with any technology. 

***

Video Poetry :

Another emerging genre we need to discuss is video poetry. That means, poetry as video! 

We had noted that poetry is not quite liked in literature classes and in society. So making video its medium seems to be a design to increase its liking. 

Is this genre also unpopular in Africa? Yes, unfortunately. But one African writer who has experimented with it is Chuma Nwokolo. 

See : "Sudan, Sudan" on YouTube and nwokolo. com

Some features of video poetry :

(1) Video poetry uses video. This means combining moving images with words. 

(2) Video poetry is designed to be watched and read, combining two skills in reception. 

(3) If language must be brought in, then it has to be properly placed to work together with images. 

(4) Various images can be combined and animated or one image is used throughout. 

(5) The clip is short and does not take a long time. 

(6) Video poetry requires careful editing to incorporate all the multimodal elements. 

***

These emergent genres indicate that things are changing. We must change, too, and try to be part of this world.

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