| Nnorom Azuonye: My E-conversation with Emman Usman Shehu
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One of my favourite poems in QFBB emerged from that type of experiment. I was playing around with the lyrics of one of Dan Maraya’s songs, wondering how the song would come across in English, and this particular phrase just stuck with me for days and I eventually developed a poem around it in English.
NA: Are you a religious man? Or let me put it another way, what is the source of morality in your life, and how much of this do you allow to seep into your work?
EUS: The Bible is the major source of morality in my life but I try not to make its influence in my work very obvious. At times I find myself wondering what Christ would do in a situation I am confronted with. Indeed the sexual overtones in a section of Open Sesame got me worried initially vis-à-vis my Christian position.
But I realised that the contextual relevance justified that tenor, just as such sexual references in some parts of the Bible are not a glorification of pornography but a platform for passing across an important message. Apart from its moral value, the Bible also has an immense literary value for me considering its scope. The books of Esther and Ruth, for instance, are magnificent short stories and the poetry in the Psalms is eternally refreshing.
There are several examples of magical realism or supernatural realism as in that scene in the book of Isaiah when the dry bones in the valley come to life, or in the New Testament in the book of Matthew when Christ gave up the ghost on the cross and immediately the graves opened “and many bodies of the saints” arose and came out of the graves. Christ’s parables too provide examples of good storytelling. Then the gospels give four interesting and dramatic perspectives on the life of Christ. Little wonder that the Bible has not only deeply influenced Western law, but its impact on literature has not waned. Not even moviemakers have been able to resist its allure.
NA: An Open Sesame Tour sounds fantastic. Since the Nigerian arts councils cannot be bothered to support such literary ventures, what about some corporate bodies in the private sector, surely you must be able to sweet-talk one or two into wearing their sponsorship of a poetry reading tour as some kind of vest of virtue.
EUS: I am hoping to sweet-talk a couple of people into sponsoring the Open Sesame Tour. I think those who understand what I am trying to do will give their support one way or the other. There are a handful of people who feel I have been an underachiever as a writer given the promise that my early writings had shown as an undergraduate. I am also going to seek their assistance because they are willing to be supportive of my projects. A few hours ago I was discussing on the phone with Lola Shoneyin and she sounded somewhat surprised I was embarking on such a project because it does not fit into the Nigerian scenario. But when I explained why it had to be done, she quickly offered her support, which means we already have an Ibadan date being worked out.
It is true that the various arts councils in the country cannot be bothered about supporting such literary ventures, and that is the typical official attitude to the arts in general and literature in particular. Can you imagine what the state of Nigerian literature would be if every arts council in the 36 states funded at least one major literary project annually? But we must not wallow in despair because the challenge is to do something however little that can make a difference. And that’s one reason for the Anthill being a profound reference point in my life. The tragedy is that like most things we do in Nigeria it has been allowed a short life-span.
NA: You got me worried a bit when you said that there was a point at which you made a decision against writing angry poems, because it did seem to make the emotional component of poetry somewhat mathematical as well as mechanical with an on and off switch. Is it realistic to rein in the passion of poetry without raping its soul?
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