Forty Acres and a Mule

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FORTY ACRES AND A MULE Fonkeng E.f FORTY ACRES AND A MULE Fonkeng E.f These traveler’s impressions across cultural and psychological spaces portray the two sides of this coin called life, oftentimes belligerent toward each other. In casting light on that dream of total freedom and the daunting contradictions inherent in its being and attainment, they represent a dialectic in our seemingly unending journey toward the shadow of the good life as we ceaselessly jettison virtue against vice. At a level, they confront a certain tyranny of thought, in more ways than one, challenging us to go beyond the comfort of our ideas and our upbringing and to dare to look at the world in ways hitherto only dreamed of. Another way this challenge is portrayed is in regard to language and the cannons of poetry. Because literary writing in this socalled global society may rightfully be considered as war by other means, the reader will quickly observe the, literally, takeno -prisoner approach embedded in many of the pieces – the generalized despondency on the ground and the unprecedented cacophony of voices in the ‘global village’ calling for nothing less. The general conclusion of these poems would be the deferment – promise of living even as they constitute a heightened harkening for us to live beyond existence. FONKENG E.F is the pen name for Epah Fonkeng who was born in Njungu, Cameroon. He has lived and studied in Cameroon, Canada, France and Nigeria and has advanced degrees in Political Science, International Relations and Journalism. His works include The Captive, a satirical play on the love-hate relationship between two colonial language-cultures; two books of children’s stories in the Under the Baobab series, which he created; Thru’ the Eye of a Needle (staged at the Ottawa International Tulip Festival), and a novel titled The Sunbird. His poems have been published in Canada where he lives and works for the Government of Canada. Forty Acres and a Mule is his second independent poetry collection. Langaa Research & Publishing Common Initiative Group P.O. Box 902 Mankon Bamenda North West Region Cameroon ...