Transitivity analysis of selected poems of Atukwei Okai

Abstract

Poetry, with its compressed and figurative language, challenges readers to actively engage in interpretation, particularly with regard to how language reflects the worldviews of the poet. This study is rooted in the understanding that language encodes experiential meaning and conveys ideologies, which can be uncovered through a detailed analysis of linguistic elements such as processes, participants, and circumstances. The study analyses the Transitivity system in selected poems by Atukwei Okai through the lens of Halliday and Matthiessen’s Systemic Functional Grammar (SFG). It examines the process types, their participants, and their distribution in the poems. By analyzing the poet’s linguistic choices, the study reveals the intersection of grammar and ideology, demonstrating how these elements shape thematic concerns and characterizations. The findings reveal that material processes are the most frequent processes followed by mental, relational, behavioural and existential processes in that order. In terms of the types of processes present in each poem, “The Pioneer” and “Walewale Chorus” do not have behavioural processes. On the contrary, “The Oath of the Fontomfrom” has all the six process types. There is a correlation between the length of the poems and the number of clauses in them. The ‘Oath of the Fontomfrom’ with the highest number of words (669) and sentences, has the highest number of processes (82). The ‘The Pioneer’ on the other hand, which has the least number of words (487) and sentences, records the least number of the processes (56). Also, the subjects addressed in the poems contributes to the to the differences in the process types. The research contributes to a deeper understanding of how transitivity functions in African poetry and highlights the importance of language structures in uncovering implicit worldviews in literary texts. These linguistic choices not only shape the thematic concerns of the poems but also offer insights into the poet’s representation of reality and his personal worldview.