IGWEBUIKE: An African Journal of Arts and Humanities
Vol. 11. No. 2, (2025)

ISSN: 2488- 9210 (Print) 2504-9038 (Online)
Dept. of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Tansian University Umunya

Indexed: Academic Journals Online; Google Scholar; Igwebuike Research Institute

74

POETRY AS A CHANNEL FOR EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AMONG
YOUTH IN THE CONTEMPORARY NIGERIAN SOCIETY

Marie C. Obasi & Oni Moyosoreoluwa Sabinah
Department of Mass Communication, Caleb University, Imota

macwudo@gmail.com
Abstract

This study titled, “Poetry as a Channel for Effective Communication and Creativity among
Youth in the Contemporary Nigerian Society” investigated the extent youth still use poetry
for communication and how effective poetry is as a means of communication and creativity
among youth in the contemporary Nigerian society. Emotional communication theory serves
the theoretical foothold. The study adopts pragmatic research design which informs the use
of mixed research method with focus group discussion (FGD) and social survey as
instruments for data collection. A total of 400 undergraduate students in Caleb University,
Lagos took part in the study. Findings indicated that most Nigerian youth in the
contemporary society failed to engage with poetry regularly in their daily lives because they
feel it does not worth the stress. Rather, the youth prefer to express themselves with emojis
and other already made digital and AI generated signs and symbols. The study also
established that most of the understudied youth think that not all messages can be
communicated through poems. The study concludes that although contemporary Nigerian
youth know that poetry can help young people develop creativity and confidence, some
factors prevented them from either composing their own poems or engaging with that of
others including negative comments from social media, complex nature of poems, poor
language development, mental laziness, creative blockage between them and their audience,
environmental stress and misinterpretations from their audience.

Keywords: Contemporary, Effective Communication, Nigerian Society, Poetry and Youth

Introduction
Poetry is a significant and powerful tool for communication. It was one of the forms of
communication that was used in the traditional African societies. Linguistic resources like
riddles, proverbs, folksongs, idioms, wise saying, folktale, myths, legends, oral history,
chants, incantations, superstitious beliefs and much more are all forms of poetry that was
used in the traditional African societies to preserve the cultural heritage and social cohesion.
Akporherhe and Oghenerioborune (2021) state that folktale, a form of oral poetry was a
unique medium for transmitting African cultures verbally or non-verbally by performers from
one generation to another using the indigenous languages of the society that produced them.
Similarly, Odueme (2019) describes African spoken words as a lively art genre that is
ingrained in the everyday experiences of the African people. Speaking of the central role of
poetry in the African traditional communication, Essien (2014) as cited in Olusola (2015),
disclose that Africans never passed sensitive information in a straight forward manner but
through poems and other forms of arts which were handed down through the ages. Since,
many African societies had no written traditions then, this form of documentation facilitated
easy retrieval of facts for the enlightenment of future generations. Hence, African history,
culture and tradition are closely intertwined with oral poetry and other forms of arts.



IGWEBUIKE: An African Journal of Arts and Humanities
Vol. 11. No. 2, (2025)

ISSN: 2488- 9210 (Print) 2504-9038 (Online)
Dept. of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Tansian University Umunya

Indexed: Academic Journals Online; Google Scholar; Igwebuike Research Institute

75

This implies that in the traditional African communication system, poetry is a clever and
unique medium that was efficiently employed to communicate and preserve knowledge,
information, thoughts and evoke the right emotions or to create the ideal environment in any
given context. As a specialized art form and unique channel of communication, the ability to
compose and perform poetry was a mark of wisdom, a source of pride for the performers in
traditional African societies. Hence, poetry was a cultural heritage and source of
communication that was mostly linked with royalties. Court poetry flourished in the ancient
African kingdoms. Poets were often associated with nobles, the greats and other groups that
had honor and prestige in the society. Hence, praise words performance or ‘drum poems’,
forms of oral poetry was used during great cultural festivals or functions like enthronement of
a new a king or similar functions, or even to signal the presence of a king in a palace by some
African societies including Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa, Zulu, Sotho, Bornu and many others
(Finnegan, 2012). In other words, poetry was used and is still use on special occasions to
honor royalties and to commemorate significant events.

It further indicates that the objective of composing and performing spoken poetry is
functionality. Odueme (2019) captures this fact vividly where he defines African oral art as
exclusive collection of oral or spoken expressions which is created in order to reconstruct the
past and is made up of opinions, images, ideas, views, assumptions and reactions of people.
In essence, African poetry was intended for the entire community. This view reechoes with
those of Obaje and Yakubu, (2012) as citied in Obaje (2022), who disclose that African
poetry was intended for the entire community, not just a few individual entertainers or
persons. Hence, as a mass medium of communication, poetry was used to pass down African
history orally.

Unlike in the pre-colonial and colonial Nigerian society where poetry was usually performed
at the community level, in the post-colonial cum post-independence era, sizeable amounts of
individual notable poets arose including Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe, Christopher Okigbo,
Tanure Ojaide, Clark and many others (Falade, 2013). This shows that communication keeps
evolving according to the experiences and advancement of a generation. With the
advancement in communication and media technologies, today, poetry is used by individuals
in the comfort of their homes to express themselves, to vent their emotions. With the
increasing desire for individuality, to be locked up with one’s cell phone and other mobile
communication devices, some individuals still use words and other symbols to express their
emotions in non-prose manner. But a good poet is one that can stimulate the audience’s
sentiments and curiosity in their identity on a deep personal level and fosters a relationship
(Fisher, 2012 as cited in Paglinawan, 2023).

This means that in the contemporary society, poetry is still an effective means of
communication as it enhances literacy, builds community and emotional resilience. Poetry
will help young people to develop language skills, promote creativity, and express themselves
in new and innovative ways. This is what effective communication, the transfer of
information with understandable codes and symbols effortlessly is all about. This thought
resounds with that of Srisermbhok (2017) who avers that poetry can aid teens and children
express themselves through metaphor, imagery and symbolic language, including devastating
events or portions of themselves that are not yet suitable for the public to be aware of. As
citizens of a world that has become a digitalized global sitting room, young people produce



IGWEBUIKE: An African Journal of Arts and Humanities
Vol. 11. No. 2, (2025)

ISSN: 2488- 9210 (Print) 2504-9038 (Online)
Dept. of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Tansian University Umunya

Indexed: Academic Journals Online; Google Scholar; Igwebuike Research Institute

76

diverse multimodal creative media contents including digital poems which can be share with
wide audience across the globe.
Hence, these advancements in media technologies could increase exposure, appreciation and
relevance of poetry among the youth today (Curwood, 2019). Yet the reverse seems to be the
case as there seems to be lack of appreciation of and exposure to poetry among youth today.
Naklen (2023) attributes the lack of exposure to the versatility of poetry among young people
today to their vulnerability to such publicize display of deep emotions. In other words,
display of emotions via poetry in the cyber space can expose them to both praise and attack
depending on the angle the audience receives the poems. Besides, the advancement in digital
communication technologies, artificial intelligence machines and other sophisticated
technologies also came with its own challenges including lack of creativity, mental laziness,
lack of transparency, bias, unfair and erroneous evaluations and much more (Obasi,
Aondover & Abdullahi, 2024). Against this backdrop, the study set out to examine the extent
youth in the contemporary Nigerian society still use poetry to communicate their ideas,
feelings and to enhance their creativity and personal growths.

Objectives of the study
1. Examine the extent to which youth in the contemporary Nigerian society still use

poetry for communication
2. Examine the extent to which poetry is an effective means of communication among

youth in the contemporary Nigerian society.
3. Identify the challenges of using poetry as a means of communication among youth in

the contemporary Nigerian society.

Empirical study on poetry as an effective means of communication
Poetry like other oral communication is passed down through generations by word of mouth
(Darah, 2021). As an art form, poetry is a creative narrative that is skillful delivered to the
audience. Like a form of expression, poetry is a kind of solution to individuals’ ability to
represent or express their thoughts, ideas, emotions and experiences (Gintsburg 2019). Poetry
as a channel for effective communication sheds light on how poetry serves as a powerful tool
for critical thinking, self-expression and social change across various fields of life. Against
this backdrop, the following studies were reviewed.

As a form of artistic expression, the influence of poetry in many disciplines has also been
recorded. In the field of education, the transformative power of poetry as a communication
aid has been documented. A study by Kilag et al (2023) that explored the effect of poetry
integration on language acquisition, cultural appreciation, cognitive and emotional
engagement, as well as the overall language learning experience revealed that poetry
integration positively influences language acquisition, as learners showed improved
vocabulary acquisition, reading comprehension, and language proficiency. The rhythmic
patterns and emotional appeal of poems also improved learners' phonological awareness,
pronunciation, and language fluency. Moreover, poetry exposed learners to varied cultural
perspectives, fostering cultural appreciation and intercultural communicative competence.
The study also found that the emotional engagement with poetry enhanced positive affective
environment by lessening anxiety and boosting motivation in language learning. Poetry
equally improved cognitive abilities of the learners as indicated in the improved critical
thinking skills and a more comprehensive understanding of language structures and usage.



IGWEBUIKE: An African Journal of Arts and Humanities
Vol. 11. No. 2, (2025)

ISSN: 2488- 9210 (Print) 2504-9038 (Online)
Dept. of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Tansian University Umunya

Indexed: Academic Journals Online; Google Scholar; Igwebuike Research Institute

77

Effective integration of poetry brought about a dynamic and inclusive learning environment
and empowered learners to connect deeply with the language and their own linguistic
identities (Kilag et al, 2023). These findings confirm assertions by Turco (2020) who states
that just as language is the medium for expression, poetry is "the art of language.” In essence,
as a form of artistic expression, poetry is a valuable tool for effective communication.

Speaking of the communicative effect of poetry in the nursing profession, and its use in
education, patient care, and research, Hunter (2002) states that poetry is a rich textual
medium that can assist in illuminating nursing's core belief about the uniqueness of the
nurse–patient relationship, and enhance the ‘art’ of nursing and ‘ways of knowing’. Moreover,
the use of poetry in the nursing profession gives insight, new meaning and understanding
about the profession and the patients served. This idea finds bearing with that of Chavis
(2011) who describes poetry as powerful springboards for growth, self-enhancement and
healing. This indicates that as a unique medium for human expression, poetry enables human
thoughts and feelings as well as daily human experiences to escape from the unconscious
state of the mind to the conscious state.

Weingartner (2023) describes poetry as a form of free expression that can be limited only by
the imagination of the author. Poetry can be used to reflect the authour’s humorous and
serious side because it is quiet, meditative and private. Moreover, it amazes and deepens
people’s understanding of human realities. In other words, poetry enables people to connect
with their inner and exterior experiences of life. This could be the reason why a writer can
express his feeling in five lines, while another can do the same in five stanzas.

Ollila and Jantas (2006) defines poetry as any kind of verbal or written language that is
structured rhythmically and is intended to tell a story or convey any kind of emotion, idea, or
state of being. This indicates that poetry is the most vivid form of expression that can give
life to human perception of ideas emotions or anything (Burchell, 2010). Hence, as a form of
an artistic expression, poetry has the ability to turn every form of human perception into life
because it is that form of life that can turn everything into language. It follows that since
poetry makes language to become a form of life, every good poems can unquiet the readers.

Theoretical framework

In their work, "Towards a Theory of Emotional Communication," Bartsch and Hübner (2005)
proposed a model of emotional communication. Although, they rightly observed that: “There
is no single communication theory that covers the entire bandwidth of emotional
communication” (p.6), they failed to propound a theory because according to them, emotional
communication is complex and cannot be treated within a single theory of communication.
However, in 2022, Rachmad, Yoesoep Edhie propounded emotional communication theory
to address the importance of emotions in communication. The theory underscores the crucial
role of emotions in effective communication especially in this digital era, where interactions
often occur indirectly and through various media (Rachmad, 2022).

The central idea of this theory is that emotions influence how human communicate and how
well or poor messages are received. It follows that if emotions are well managed, they can
either reinforce messages or build deeper connections; but if not, they can lead to
misunderstandings and conflicts (Rachmad, 2022). This fact reechoes with those of Bartsch



IGWEBUIKE: An African Journal of Arts and Humanities
Vol. 11. No. 2, (2025)

ISSN: 2488- 9210 (Print) 2504-9038 (Online)
Dept. of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Tansian University Umunya

Indexed: Academic Journals Online; Google Scholar; Igwebuike Research Institute

78

and Hübner (2005) who disclose that the expression of emotion during the communication
process enhances cognitive assessment and acquisition of detailed information. Similarly,
Kallio (2018) avers that non-verbal communication element including speaker’s emotions
and much more enhance the understanding of a spoken message. This indicates that poetry is
an indirect expression in rhythmic words of several emotions that dominate the author’s
central feeling or feelings that proceeds directly from that (Siregar, 2020). This may explain
why poems are usually short because they condense the expression of emotions into concise
form (Johnson-Laird & Oatley, 2022). The theory is relevant to the study as it indicates that
poetry can be an effective communication tool for youth to express themselves. Since poetry
evokes emotions (Johnson-Laird & Oatley, 2022), it can be a powerful communication tool
for young people to express themselves in more authentic and meaningful ways, which can
lead to increased motivation, confidence in their learning process (Hsiao-Chien, 2014).

Methodology
The research employs the pragmatic approach of research design, which informs the choice
of mixed method research design. Questionnaire, a quantitative research method was used to
get numerical data on how often youth use poetry to communicate effectively and the
challenges they faced in using poetry as a means of communication. While focus group
discussion (FGD), a qualitative research method was used to delve into the experiences and
perceptions of youth that engage with poetry and the challenges they faced in that regard.

Using Taro Yamane’s formula, sample size of 400 was drawn from unknown target
population of youth in Nigeria. Purposive and convenient sampling strategies were used to
select young people between 18 to 26 years in the Faculties of College of Arts, Social and
Management Sciences (CASMAS), College of Pure and Applied Sciences (COPAS) and
College of Environmental Sciences and Management (COLESMA), Caleb University, Lagos.
Out of the 400 questionnaires that were distributed to respondents, 378 (i.e. 95% feedback
rate) was completed and collected in the March 2024. For the FGD, one FGD was held in
each of the three selected faculties in the understudied university. One FGD had 8
participants while two had 7 participants each. Thus, a total of 22 participants took part in
the one-time FGD in the month of March 2024. The same questions were used in all FGD.

Data presentation and analysis

Demographic data of respondents

Fig 1: Gender distribution of respondents



IGWEBUIKE: An African Journal of Arts and Humanities
Vol. 11. No. 2, (2025)

ISSN: 2488- 9210 (Print) 2504-9038 (Online)
Dept. of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Tansian University Umunya

Indexed: Academic Journals Online; Google Scholar; Igwebuike Research Institute

79

Source: (Field Survey 2024)

Data in the Figure 1 above indicates that 41.3% (165) of the respondents were males, while
58.7% (225) were females.

Table 1: Extent youth in the contemporary society use poetry to communicate

S/N Statement Very
well

Well Not
well

Very
poor

1. I understand what poetry is all about 19.3%
(73)

35.5%
(134)

30.7%
(116)

14.5%
(55)

2. I engage with poetry as a form of expression in my
daily life

11.4%
(43)

24.1%
(91)

29%
(110)

35.5%
(134)

3. I enjoy receiving information or messages through
poetry

13.5%
(51)

23.3%
(88)

33%
(125)

30.2%
(114)

Source: (Field Survey 2024)

Data in table 1 above indicate that 19.3% (73) of the respondents understand very well what
poetry is, while 35.5% (134) of them understand it well. 30. 7% (116) do not understand it
well, and 14.5% (55) have very poor understanding. It also shows that 11.4% (43) of the
respondents have very high engagement with poetry, while 24.1% (91) of them have high
engagement. 29% (110) have moderate engagement with poetry, and 35.5% (134) of them
have low engagement. The table equally shows that 13.5% (51) of the respondents enjoy
receiving information and messages through poetry very well, while 23.3% (88) of them do
so well. 33% (125) of them rarely enjoy receiving information and messages through poetry
and 30.2% (114) of them do not.

Table 2: Effectiveness of poetry as a channel of communication among present day youth
S/N Statement Very

well
Well Not

well
Very
poor

1. I use poetry to express personal experiences 22.2%
(84)

22%
(83)

23.3%
(88)

32.5%
(123)

2 Poetry can be used to raise awareness about social
issues

19.6%
(74)

32.3%
(122)

36.2%
(137)

11.9%
(45)

3. I use poetry to raise awareness about social issues 0%(0) 0%(0) 0%(0) 0%(0)
Source: (Field Survey 2024)

Figures in table 2 above show that 22.2% (84) of the respondents use poetry to express
themselves very well; 22% (83) of them do so well; 23.3% (88) of them rarely do so while
32.5% (123) of them do not use poetry for expression. It equally shows that 19.6% (74) of
respondents feel poetry can be used to raise awareness for social issues very well; 32.3% (122)
of them believe it can be used to do so well, while 36.2% (137) respondents feel it cannot be
used to do so well, then 11.9% (45) of them feel it cannot be used to do so at all. It also
indicates that 0%(0) of the respondents use poetry to raise awareness about social issues.

Table 3: Challenges youth face when using poetry



IGWEBUIKE: An African Journal of Arts and Humanities
Vol. 11. No. 2, (2025)

ISSN: 2488- 9210 (Print) 2504-9038 (Online)
Dept. of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Tansian University Umunya

Indexed: Academic Journals Online; Google Scholar; Igwebuike Research Institute

80

S/N Statement Very
high
extent

High
extent

Some
extent

Low
extent

1 I find it challenging to express my
thoughts through poems

29.1%
(110)

28.6%
(108)

25.1%
(95)

17.2%
(65)

2. I encounter difficulties to connect with
the themes and messages in poems

16.9%
(64)

32.5%
(123)

33.1%
(125)

17.5%
(66)

3. I find it challenging to relate with the
messages passed through poetry

17.2%
(65)

29.1%
(110)

33.9%
(128)

19.8%
(75)

Source: (Field Survey 2024)

Data in table 3 above show that 29.1% (110) of the respondents find it challenging to express
their thoughts through poetry to a very high extent, 28.6% (108) of them finds it challenge to
high extent, 25.1% (95) of them finds it challenge to some extent while 17.2% (65) of them
finds it challenge to do so to low extent. It also indicate that 16.9% (64) of the respondents
encounter difficulties in connecting the themes and messages in poems very high extent,
32.5% (123) of them do so high extent, 33.1% (125) of them also find it difficult to do so
some extent and the remaining 17.5% (66) of them connect with the themes and messages in
poems to low extent. The table equally shows that 17.2% (65) of the respondents find it
challenging to relate or resonate with the messages passed through poetry very high extent,
while 29.1% (110) of them find it challenging to high extent 33.9% (128) of them find it
challenging to some extent and 19.8% (75) of them find it challenging to low extent.

Focus group discussion (FGD)
On the question, how often do you engage in composing or reciting poetry to express
thoughts and emotions, 42% of participants said they engage in poetry either by writing,
performing or by reading, while 58% of them did not. For instance, Participant 1 said: “I
engage with poetry when I am happy, sad or moody”. However, Participant 2 said: “I rarely
engage with poetry. It is not just my thing to see a poem and listen to it and understand it”.
Also, Participant 3 said: “I rarely use poetry to express my thoughts. I just feel it doesn’t
worth that stress. Like sometimes, after posting, you may just feel worse than you were
feeling before because of other people’s comments on it”.

On the question, do you think that poetry is an effective tool for expressing social issues?
30% of the respondents it is, 50% of them said it is not while then the remaining 20% was
indecisive. For instance, Participant 4 said: “Yes, poetry is an effective tool for expressing
social issues especially in olden days where there were wars. Poetry was written about the
soldiers and cultural clashes between villages”. However, Participant 5 stated: “I feel poetry
can best convey emotions rather than social issues. I just feel poems have limited effects, not
all messages can be communicated through poems”. Similarly, Participant 6 said: “I don’t
believe it can be an effective tool because all the poems I have seen were about war, vanity of
people, and such messages didn’t result to any progress in the society as far as I am
concerned”. Also, Participant 7 said: “Poets have different ways they convey their messages
and that limit the ways poetry can be an effective communication tool. If a poet decides to
use metaphor or personification throughout his poem, what happens to those that can’t
comprehend what he is talking about? So, I just believe that poetry can’t be effectiveness tool
to communicate social issues”.



IGWEBUIKE: An African Journal of Arts and Humanities
Vol. 11. No. 2, (2025)

ISSN: 2488- 9210 (Print) 2504-9038 (Online)
Dept. of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Tansian University Umunya

Indexed: Academic Journals Online; Google Scholar; Igwebuike Research Institute

81

On the fourth question, do you believe that poetry can help young people to develop
creativity and confidence? 83% of the respondents said yes, while 17% of them said no. For
instance, Participant 8 said: “Speaking from experience, writing poetry has enhanced my
creativity and confidence because I am able to let my emotions out and not box them in. The
more I write, the more I discover my writing abilities. Now I am happily share my
experiences with others on social media platforms”. Also, Participant 9 said: “Yes, because
when you engage with poems of others on social media platforms, you get the inspiration and
confidence to want to write yours. For example, I like Ibquake, a spoken word poet. Listening
to her give me confidence and make me want to try writing mine”. However, Participant 10
said: “I don’t think poetry can help boost one’s creativity or confidence. What if the people
around you don’t appreciate your writings or see it as a sign of weakness? Many negative
comments on social media can stop someone from writing”. Similarly, Participant 11 said: “I
totally disagree, poetry can’t help to boost one’s creativity or confidence; in fact, it weakens
them. Many people out there aren’t ready to understand you, so what’s the point of writing or
sharing it with people that thinks you have lost it”.

Due to the pessimistic attitude of most of them, the researcher asked them if negative
comments has ever discouraged them from engaging with poetry? 50% of the respondents
said yes, 42% of them said they have no idea since they don’t write or recite poetry, while the
remaining 8% of them said negative comments did not discouraged them from engaging with
poetry. For instance, Participant 12 said: ‘Yes, I feel discouraged when people can’t see
things from my own view and then it is always difficult for me to explain to them what I am
trying to say through my write- ups and it is like a mental gap comes between me and them”.
Likewise, Participant 13 said: “Yes, I have received discouraging responses about my poems
from people that don’t understand. It made it hard for me to keeping writing and sharing”.
However, Participant 14 said: “I don’t write poems, so I don’t feel discouraged by anyone”.
Participant 15 said: “No, I don’t allow people’s negative comments to discourage me because
I believe everyone writing is unique. So, I have found a way to navigate through it and just
express my emotions through my writings”. The participants identified other challenges to
using poetry for communication as, creative blockage between them and their audience,
school stress and misinterpretations from their audience.

Discussion of findings
Research objective I: The extent youth still use poetry for communication
Figures in tables 1 revealed that less than 50% of the respondents truly understand what
poetry is. Data in the table also indicate that less than 50% of them engage with poetry
regularly in their daily lives. It equally shows that the same less than 50% of them truly enjoy
receiving information and messages through poetry. This finding corresponds with evidence
in FGD where one participant said: “I rarely engage with poetry. It is not just my thing to see
a poem and listen to it and understand it”. Similarly, another participant also expresses dislike
for poetry by stating: “I rarely use poetry to express my thoughts. I just feel it doesn’t worth it
that stress”. This finding corresponds with that of McKenzie (2023) who discloses that poetry
can be too wordy and complex for youth and that writing is something that young people
dread. In other words, in this era of artificial intelligence and other advanced digital media
technologies, most young people may prefer to express themselves with emojis and other



IGWEBUIKE: An African Journal of Arts and Humanities
Vol. 11. No. 2, (2025)

ISSN: 2488- 9210 (Print) 2504-9038 (Online)
Dept. of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Tansian University Umunya

Indexed: Academic Journals Online; Google Scholar; Igwebuike Research Institute

82

many easy and already made AI generated signs and symbols than compose their own poems
or words.

Research objective 2: The extent poetry is still effective means of communication and
creativity among present day youth
Data in tables 2 show that about 45% of the respondents use poetry to express themselves
well. Figures in the table also reveal that over 51% of the respondents feel poetry can be used
to raise awareness for social issues. Data in the table equally reveal that 0% (0) of the
respondents has ever used poetry to raise awareness about social issues. This finding
corresponds with evidence in FDG where 30% of the respondents think that poetry is an
effective tool for expressing social issues. When asked to explain how poetry can be used to
express social issues, one of the participants said: “Yes, poetry is an effective tool for
expressing social issues especially in olden days where there were wars. Poetry was written
about the soldiers and cultural clashes between villages”. No other social issues were
identified by the participants except use of poetry to communicate wars and clashes in the
olden days and such communication according to them cannot bring progress in a society.
Hence, most of the respondents felt poetry can best be used to convey emotions because not
all messages can be communicated through poems. Although evidence from FGD reveal that
majority of the respondents agreed that poetry can help young people to develop creativity
and confidence, some of them disclosed that negative comments from the audience on social
media actually weakened their creativity and confidence and discouraged them from writing.
Naklen (2023) states that attacks in the cyber space on young people are behind the decrease
in display of emotions via poetry among present-day youth.

Research objective 3: The challenges of using poetry as a means of communication
among youth
Figures in tables 3 reveal that over 50% of the respondents find it very challenging to express
themselves through poetry, difficulty to understand themes and messages in poems and hard
to relate with the messages passed through poetry. In other words, they found it difficult to
either compose or encode their own poems or to decode poems written by others. This
finding corresponds with evidence in FDG where about 42% of the respondents said that they
do not write their own poems or recite those written by others and 50% of them said negative
comments from the audience discouraged them from engaging with poetry. However, only
8% of the respondents said negative comments did not discouraged from engaging with
poetry from people did not discouraged them from engaging with poetry. The participants
identified other challenges to using poetry for communication as, creative blockage between
them and their audience, school stress and misinterpretations from their audience. This
finding reechoes with that of McKenzie (2023) who states that most youth struggle with
language development and that misinterpretation can become barrier for them to voice out
their feeling effectively through poetry. Similarly, Herbet (2022) disclose that because most
young people find it uneasy to express their feelings, sometimes they struggle to express
themselves in ways that they would not. Hence, instead of using words to express themselves,
some may prefer to use signs and symbols like emojis, drawing or paintings to bring out their
inner thoughts. No wonder, the emotional communication theory posits that emotions can
drive young people to communicate in certain ways and that the environment has a big part to
play has it can influence the type of emotions they feel (Hsiao-Chien, 2014).



IGWEBUIKE: An African Journal of Arts and Humanities
Vol. 11. No. 2, (2025)

ISSN: 2488- 9210 (Print) 2504-9038 (Online)
Dept. of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Tansian University Umunya

Indexed: Academic Journals Online; Google Scholar; Igwebuike Research Institute

83

Conclusion
The study discovered that although poetry is a tool for effective communication and boosting
creativity, most Nigerian youth in the contemporary society fail to engage with poetry
regularly in their daily lives because they feel it does not worth the stress. Most young people
would prefer to express themselves with emojis and other easy and already made digital and
AI generated signs and symbols, than compose their own poems or words which they see as
too wordy and complex. The study also established that none of the understudied youth has
ever used poetry to raise awareness about social issues because to them, poetry can best be
used to convey emotions and not all messages can be communicated through poems. The
study identified that the only social issues the youth feel that can be communicated through
poetry was wars and clashes and that such communication cannot bring progress in a society.
The study also found that majority of the respondents agreed that poetry can help young
people to develop creativity and confidence, some of them disclosed that negative comments
from the audience on social media weakened their creativity and confidence and discouraged
them from writing. Besides negative comments, the study identified other factors that prevent
contemporary youth from either composing their own poems or engaging with poems written
by others as complex nature of poems, poor language development, mental laziness, creative
blockage between them and their audience, environmental stress and misinterpretations from
their audience.

References
Akporherhe, F., & Oghenerioborue, U.P. (2021). Verbal folklores and cultural transmission

through African indigenous languages. Journal of Lexicography and Terminology
5(1), 56-75.

Bartsch, A., & Hubner, S. (2005). Towards a theory of emotional communication:
Comparative Literature and Culture, 7 (4). https://doi.org/10.7771/1481-4374.1278

Burchell, H. (2010). Poetic expression and poetic form in practitioner research. Educational
Action Research. 18 (3), 389 - 400

Chavis, G. G. (2011). Poetry and story therapy: The healing power of creative expression.
Jessica Kingsley Publishers. https:www.books.google.com

Darah, G. G. (2021). Creativity and performance in oral poetry. In: Akinyemi, A., Fatola, T.
(eds) The Palgrave Handbook of African Oral Tradition and Folklore. Palagrave
Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55517-7_1

Falade, A. D. (2013). Oral tradition in Africa: Poetry as a means of preserving cultural
heritage and engendering social change among the Yoruba.
https://www.ibadan,academia,edu>...

Finnegan, R. (2012). Poetry and patronage in oral literature in Africa.
http://books.openedition.org/obp/1191

Gintsburg, S. (2019). Oral poetry as an expression of the creativity we all share.
ORFORCREA. University of Navarra in Pamplona, Spain.
https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/749952.

Herbet, E. (2022). The power of youth poetry. The Children’s society.
https://www.childrenssociety.org.uk/what-we-do/blogs/young-minds-expressing-
themselves

Hsiao-Chien L. (2014). Using an arts-integrated multimodal approach to promote English
learning: A case study of two Taiwanese junior college youth, 13(2) 55-75
http://education.waikato.ac.nz/research/files/etpc/files/2014v13n2art4.pdf



IGWEBUIKE: An African Journal of Arts and Humanities
Vol. 11. No. 2, (2025)

ISSN: 2488- 9210 (Print) 2504-9038 (Online)
Dept. of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Tansian University Umunya

Indexed: Academic Journals Online; Google Scholar; Igwebuike Research Institute

84

Hunter, L. P. (2002). Poetry as an aesthetic expression for nursing: a review. Journal of
Advanced Nursing. https://www.wiley online library

Johnson-Laird, P., N., & Oatley, K. (2022). How poetry evokes emotions. Act Psychologica,
224. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2022.103506

Kallio, K. (2018). 16. Multimodal register and performance arena in Ingrian oral poetry.
Registers of Communication, 18.

Kilag, O.K., Dumdum, J. N., Quezon, J. & Malto, L. (2023). The pedagogical potential of
poems: Integrating poetry in English language teaching (ELT). Excellencia:
International Multi-Disciplinary Journal of Education. 1(1), 42 – 55. https://www.
multijournals.org/index.php/excellencia-imje/article/view/4

McKenzie, J. (2023). Poetry is a good youth development. https://teeninprint.com/6-reasons-
on-why-poetry-is-good-for-students-development/

Naklen E. (2023). Poetry as healing: Coping with teenagers challenges through verses.
https://www.theteenmagazine.com/poetry-as-healing-coping-with-teenage-
challenges-through-verses

Obaje, A. (2022). Oral poetry as channel for communication. Cross-cultural Communication,
8(4)

Obasi, M. C., Aondover, E. M. & Abdullahi, A. M. (2024). Artificial Intelligence (AI), a
Deep Learning or Cheating Tool among Nigerian University Students in Film and
Media Studies. International Journal of Communication

Odueme F. & Edoama (2019). Orality, memory and the new African diaspora poetry:
Examining Tanure Ojaire’s poetics. University of Lagos, Nigeria

Ollila, B. & Jantas, J. (2006). The definition of poetry. www.joejantas.wordpress.com
Olusola, E. (2015). “Church as family and use of new media in her task as an agent of

socialization viz-a-vis group media in Nigeria”. In F. Nwaigbo & et al, Theology and
family in the Africa context (117-134). Catholic Institute of West Africa

Paglinawan, A. J. (2023). Semantic analysis on the Corpora on Spoken Learners.
International Journal in Advance studies (1)

Rachmad, Y. E. (2022). Emotional Communication Theory. Roermond Designer Boek
Internationale Uitgeverij, Speciale Editie. https://doi.org/10.17605/osf.io/3cz4h

Siregar, I. (2020). Semiotic touch in interpreting poetry. Britain International of Linguistics
Arts and Education. https://biarjournal.com

Srisermbhok, A. (2017). Using poetry to enhance learners’ communication skills. The new
English Teacher, 11(1), 120-120

Turco, L. (2020). The book of forms: A handbook of poetics. https://books.google.com
Weingartner, J. (2023). Poetry and identity. https://www.facinghistory.org/