Dutsin-Ma Journal of English and Literature
Dutsin-Ma Journal of English and Literature (DUJEL) Website: fudutsinma.ng/index.php/DUJEL/index A Publication of the Department of English, Federal University Dutsin-Ma, Katsina State Call for Papers: DUJEL Volume 10 (2025) Dutsin-Ma Journal of English and Literature (DUJEL) is a publication of the Department of English, Federal University Dutsin-Ma, Katsina State. It is a platform for promoting scholarship and intellectual excellence in English, Linguistics and Literary Studies. Because we desire international visibility for our authors, DUJEL can also be found online at the following address: journal.fudutsinma.edu.ng/index.php/DUJEL. Please, feel free to visit that address for all our previous volumes. Submission Guidelines The Editorial Board accepts original manuscripts of not more than 22 pages (including references) that have neither been published nor are being considered for publication elsewhere. All papers should be written in clear and concise English and double spaced with font size 12 of Times New Roman. Both the MLA and APA referencing styles are accepted so far as the preferred referencing style is a current version and is maintained throughout the work. Submitted papers must bear authors’ names (not more than three authors), affiliated institutions, active phone numbers and e-mail addresses with the corresponding author written first for papers with more than one author. All surnames should be written in capital letters for easy identification. We also expect an abstract not exceeding 250 words, an introduction, the main body and the conclusion; depending on either the subject covered or the disciplinary orientation of the paper. All tables, figures, graphs, diagrams and photographs etc. (if available) should be numbered and integrated appropriately. Assessment / Publication Fee Assessment Fee ₦7,000 (non-refundable) Bank Details Acct. No.: 2028566481 Acct. Name: Nwabudike, Christopher Eziafakaego Bank: First Bank Every submitted paper will be peer reviewed and, if found publishable, the author(s) will be contacted to effect corrections and return a clean e-copy with a publication fee of ₦25,000 only. Submission Deadline & Publication Date Submission Deadline: 31st March 2025 Online Publication Date: 30th June 2025 Hard copy is on request only and must be made not later than May 2025 with a separate payment based on current printing cost. Email: dutsinmajel@gmail.com / DUTSINMAJEL@GMAIL.COM Contact Information Name Affiliation Phone Dr Nwabudike, Christopher E. Editor-in-Chief 08101876061, 08053140982 Dr Solomon O.A. FUDMA 08034500104 Dr Atoyebi F. J. FUDMA 09084586792 Mal. Danazumi A. FUDMA 08037334539 Dr Tsavmbu A.A. UNIABUJA 08034689676 Dr Ajibiye S. O. YABA TECH. 08074436842 Prof Abaya S. A. ABU ZARIA 08038060151
PRELIMINARY PAGES (TABLE OF CONTENTS)
Copyright (c) 2025 Dutsin-Ma Journal of English and Literature
THE PRAGMATICS OF PROCLAMATIVE CONVENTIONS IN FAGUNWA’S IGBO OLODUMARE
The African concept of Alá’bálólàse as derived from the belief in the potency of words is borne out of the science of language that allows for mere proclamation to result in the enactment of things in the real world. The semiotic evidence of the ingenuity of African science as evinced in the literary narrative of Igbo Olodumare shows that Africans have a long-standing innovative ingenuity in technology which includes medicine, physics, neuroscience, lunar science, pathology and artificial science even before the advent of colonialism in Africa. Studies in Linguistics, African Studies, Oral Narratives and Literature have explored the indigenous technology masterminded by Africans, especially on their uniqueness. Few studies have paid particular attention to declaration which is at the core of African technology; paying attention to how Africans move from declaration, to enacting and finally, doing things with words in the real world. The study adopts Austin’s Speech Act and Mey’s Pragmatic Act theories as analytical lenses. In some of the earlier studies, the essential role and efficacy of language usage has been recognised, though passively. The current study intends to reveal that language is at the core of African technology. The findings show that Africans use words in form of declaration as a major condiment for activating their technological innovations. Unlike modern technology, Africans have a dynamicspecific process that is based on three stages of involvement, declaration and enactment. The study compellingly argues and concludes that declaration is a major condiment in the innovation of African technologies.
GRAPHOLOGICAL FOREGROUNDING IN HELON HABILA’S OIL ON WATER
This paper focuses on the stylistic effect of foregrounding in Habila’s Oil on Water. As a stylistic device, foregrounding is used to draw the readers’ attention to certain features as intended by the writer in each text. Such foregrounded features may have to do with phonology, lexis, grammar, semantics, pragmatics, and graphology among others. However, this study chooses to take a closer look at graphological foregrounding in Helon Habila’s Oil on Water. The graphological devices examined in this discourse include capitalization, italicization, hyphenation, bold print, ellipsis, and pidgin. The argument is that there is an inherent relationship between the appearance of words on paper and their function in each text. Using Halliday’s Systemic Functional Grammar as a framework, it is argued that the foregrounded structures are functional. They draw the readers’ attention, create emphasis, guide interpretation, as well as enhance the readers’ engagement, understanding and interpretation of the text. , , , ,
THE ESOTERIC IN OKRI’S THE FAMISHED ROAD AND OKORAFOR-MBACHU’S ZAHRAH THE WINDSEEKER: A LITERATURE REVIEW
This paper is a review of literature on the representation of the esoteric category in Ben Okri’s The Famished Road and Nnedi Okorafor Mbachu’s Zahrah the Windseeker. It reinforces the argument that the esoteric, as the inner core that is not open to all adherents, is one of the archetypes that have featured in literature from time immemorial. It further reveals that although scholars have done enormous critical work on the two novels, there is still much to explore in the texts by critics: The Famished Road and Zahrah the Windseeker have been discussed from the magical realist, mystical realist, and other postcolonial and modern critical perspectives but none, to our knowledge, has approached these texts from the perspective of the esoteric contents. It is a significant finding in the novels that power as esoteric element could be either changed towards positive ends for the good of man or towards negative ends for the destruction of lives. For instance, while the herbalists used their secret powers to heal patients, people like Madame Koto use their own power to bewitch people and exploit her customers. It is also seen that ritual as a component of the esoteric is crucial in invoking power for either positive or negative ends. To this end, the paper concludes by calling on future critics and researchers to further explore the esoteric elements in these and other Nigerian literary works, to popularize this critical perspective, since the esoteric experience, being an existential reality, can always provoke literary creativity
STYLISTIC ANALYSIS OF LINGUISTIC FEATURES IN AN EXCERPT FROM MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.’S “I HAVE A DREAM” SPEECH
This study examines the linguistic choices in Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech excerpt through the lens of Leech and Short’s (2007) stylistic framework. The analysis focuses on sentence structure, cohesion, and punctuation use, investigating how these elements contribute to the speech’s rhetorical impact. The findings reveal the following: the excerpt consists of 529 words, 23 sentences, and 35 lines; punctuation usage includes 27 commas and 21 periods, among other marks; and 364 open-class words contribute to its expressive richness. The speech employs 10 loose sentences and 10 periodic sentences, with repetition and parallelism playing a central role— “I have a dream” appears 9 times, “Let freedom ring” 10 times, and “With this faith” 3 times. Additionally, cohesion is achieved through pronouns, with "I" appearing 13 times, "we" 6 times, and "our" 2 times, while conjunctions such as "and" (7 times), "so" (2 times), and "but" (2 times) enhance fluency. This study enhances our understanding of how language shapes persuasive communication, thus providing insights for public speakers, educators, and speechwriters.
CONCEPTUAL METAPHORS OF NIGERIA'S ECONOMIC RECESSION
This study explores the use of conceptual metaphors in Nigerian media to frame the 2016 economic recession; it focuses on Vanguard, Daily Trust and Sahara Reporters. Grounded in Lakoff and Johnson’s (1980) Conceptual Metaphor Theory, the research employs qualitative content analysis; purposive sampling was used to select news articles containing economy-related metaphors. Key findings reveal six broad types of metaphors: disaster metaphors, journey metaphors, human metaphors, container metaphors, structural metaphors and shrinking metaphors; these metaphors reflect Nigeria’s cultural, cognitive, and contextual realities. The metaphors simplify complex economic phenomena; they shape public understanding of the recession and highlight the interplay between language, culture, and cognition. This research seeks to contributes immensely to the discourse on metaphor universality and specificity as it provides practical insights for scholars, policymakers, and media practitioners. By unveiling how Nigerian media linguistically captures economic realities, this study offers a culturally relevant tool to enhance communication strategies and foster public engagement during crises.
DISCURSIVE CONSTRUCTIONS OF GENDERED SUBJECTIVITY IN CHIMAMANDA ADICHIE’S FEMINIST RHETORIC
The study explores how Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s We Should All Be Feminists employs language to challenge patriarchal ideologies and reframe gendered subjectivity. Drawing on Sara Mills’ Feminist Discourse Analysis (FDA), the paper critically examines selected excerpts that foreground themes such as socialisation, ambition, sexuality, and marriage. Through a close reading of stylistic and discursive features—including agency, nominalisation, and metaphor—the analysis demonstrates how Adichie exposes the ideological workings of gender norms while offering counterdiscourses that empower women. The findings highlight the text’s rhetorical power in questioning normalized gender roles and contribute to broader conversations on language, feminism, and social inclusion.
MOOD, PERSONAL REFERENCE AND POWER IN CRISES NARRATIVES OF SELECTED GOVERNORS OF BENUE STATE
This article analyses how the choices of mood, personal reference and power, as outlined within the SystemicFunctional Linguistic theory, shape the narrative about the crisis between farmers and herders in Benue State, North Central Nigeria. Using the discourse analysis approach, the selected utterances about the crisis by the Governors (immediate past and present) are analysed to determine the speakers’ choice of mood systems, personal references and their effect on the contextual feature of power. It has been determined through analyses that both speakers utilised the declarative moods copiously in their speeches albeit with varying semantic choices. While Governor Ortom, the ExGovernor opted for explicit criticism of then President Buhari, the present Governor Alia has focused on factual accounts about the impact of the crisis on the State. The first person is the major feature of personal reference which centralises the identity of the speakers and their roles in determining how the narrative about the crisis is shaped. The choices of mood and personal reference build up to the realisation, in some instances, of unequal power through the assertion of dominance and criticism of the Federal Government and in other instances equal power through offer of collaboration with the Federal Government and other actors. Furthermore, the findings verify existing postulations that effective language use is vital to successful governance in Nigeria’s multilingual and multicultural context. Conclusions indicate that the narrative about the Farmers-herders conflict in Benue State has been shaped majorly by how State actors project their roles in their respective utterances about the conflict.
GYNOCRITICISM AND SEXUAL REVOLUTION IN MONA ELTAHAWY’S HEADSCARVES AND HYMENS AND KOPANO MALTWA’S PERIOD PAIN
This study examines the representation of female sexuality, bodily autonomy, and resistance in Mona Eltahawy’s Headscarves and Hymens and Kopano Matlwa’s Period Pain. It positions these works within the framework of gynocriticism and the sexual revolution, with resonance to Nigerian feminist concerns about gender, culture, and postcoloniality. The study investigates how both authors challenge patriarchal constraints, religious orthodoxy, and sociocultural norms. It explores how these factors regulate women’s bodies and sexual agency in African and Middle Eastern contexts, mirroring Nigerian struggles against gendered violence and colonial legacies. The study draws on Elaine Showalter’s gynocriticism, Kimberlé Crenshaw’s intersectional feminism, and postcolonial feminist perspectives to analyse how these texts construct femalecentred narratives that subvert dominant gender ideologies. It further aligns these frameworks with Nigerian calls for culturally specific agency. A qualitative textual analysis is employed to explore the language, themes, and characterisation that articulate women’s struggles for self-definition and liberation. Findings reveal that both texts serve as feminist interventions that reclaim the female body as a site of resistance by advocating for sexual autonomy and gender equality. Thus, it addresses Nigerian feminist priorities of bodily integrity and cultural reclamation. This research contributes to feminist literary discourse by demonstrating how literature functions as a platform for challenging and reshaping gendered power structures.
SOCIOLINGUISTIC ANALYSIS OF PROVERBS IN ZULU SOFOLS’S WEDLOCK OF THE GODS
Proverbs have served as didactic and instrumental tool in sharpening the moral and behavioural trajectory. This study carries out a sociolinguistic survey of Zulu Sofola’s Wedlock of the Gods with the aim of exploring and analysing proverbs from a sociolinguistic perspective in the context of English as a second language in Nigeria. Studies have been carried out on the selected text, but the sociolinguistic approach has not been explored to drive home the intricacies of language and the society which uses it. This study adopts Dell Hymes’s Ethnography of Communication as its theoretical framework. This is because of Dell Hymes’ SPEAKING acronym's relevance, which accounts for sociolinguistic variables such as setting, scene, participants, ends, act sequence, instrumentality, and genre. The study finds out that ample proverbs of about thirty exist in the text. Still, but this paper will qualitatively analyse fifteen to explicate the sociolinguistic implication of the selected proverbs. The data also reveal that there are different motives for delving into this study, which varies from castigating, compelling, and admonishing erring characters to teach didactic lessons. Also, proverbs in these texts help clarify conflicts and explain Igbo cultural values/mores
POLITICS OF VICTIMHOOD IN HELON HABILA’S THE CHIBOK GIRLS: THE BOKO HARAM KIDNAPPINGS AND ISLAMIST MILITANCY IN NIGERIA
In this article, the author critically examines the politics of victimhood in Helon Habila's The Chibok Girls: The Boko Haram kidnappings and Islamist militancy in Nigeria. The novel is a non-fictional narrative of the most gruesome terrorists’ abduction of 276 schoolgirls of Government Secondary School, Chibok, in Bornu State, Nigeria, which occurred on the 14 April 2014. The article is framed on Cathy Caruth's trauma theory, which offers a compelling perspective for understanding the psychological and narrative dimensions of traumatic experience that comes in the forms of repeated flashbacks and nightmares of cycles of violence and neglect as suffered by the Chibok girls. Through the literary analysis of Habila's narrative choices, thematic concerns, and detailed description of socio-political context, the article interrogates how the phenomenon of victimhood is constructed, represented, and finds expression to portray socio-political events both in Nigeria and outside the shores of Nigeria. The article finds that Habila's work goes beyond journalism to serve as a powerful socio-political commentary. It exposes the Nigerian state's failure to protect its citizens, especially women and children, from terrorism and systemic neglect. Through first-hand interviews and investigative visits, Habila reveals the girls’ trauma, the Nigerian Federal government's denial and inaction, and the broader atmosphere of insecurity and institutional weakness in Nigeria.
VOICE AS EMANCIPATION IN NORA ZEALE HURSTON’S THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD AND WHITNEY HOUSTON’S TRY IT ON MY OWN)
Studies have been carried out on female emancipation and the attainment of self-realization, but it appears not much has been done with respect to the voice as an instrument against patriarchy. This paper therefore attempts to examine the deployment of the voice to attaining self-realization and validation. Significantly, in the various periods are political activism and engagements by African Americans geared towards emancipating themselves from the control of their enslavers. The period announces selfrealization and the emergence of ‘The New Negro’. Zora Neale Hurston’s writings flourish in this period as well. In this perspective, the literary critical view, Womanism, which has as one of its primary aims is the quest to achieve in black women, selfdefinition, and actualization, becomes apt for this paper’s investigation. Because African American literature has a way of linking the past to the present, Whitney Houston, a 21st Century pop and gospel singer reiterates the concern of self -assertion that Hurston presents in her novel. To this end, Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God and Whiney Houston’s Song “Try it on my Own” become germane to the issues raised and addressed in this paper. The Paper concludes that the voice is a veritable tool for emancipation.
ANALYSIS OF METAPHOR IN ENVIRONMENTAL DISCOURSE OF HELON HABILA`S OIL ON WATER
This paper examines metaphors as an eco-linguistics device in Helon Habila’s Oil on Water.This is with a view to investigating the role of metaphor in constructing environmental discourse in the text under study. The aim is to uncover the underlying narratives and power dynamics that drive ecological debates. It also unravels the hidden meaning and ideology embedded in the use of metaphors which shape environmental narratives particularly in the text that addresses the ecological crisis in the Niger Delta. To do this effectively, the paper adopts eco-linguistic framework and critical metaphor analysis as a theoretical framework. The research adopts both models using qualitative method of data collection, the data used were extracts from the text that addresses the variables under study. From the analysis carried out, the findings reveal traces of ample use of metaphoric features used to describe the state of environmental destruction in the Niger Delta Environment. Habila’s use of metaphors not only narrates environment catastrophe but also critique cooperates and government exploitation in the Niger Delta.
RALLIES OF THE VOICELESS IN IDRIS MUSA OKPANACHI’S EATERS OF THE LIVING AND ENO GRACE NTA’S SELVES AT WAR
This paper, “Rallies of the Voiceless in Musa Idris Okpanachi’s Eaters of the Living and Eno Grace Nta’s Selves at War”, critically examines the predicament of the marginalized in the 21st century. The voiceless in this context has to do with the masses who have been silenced by systemic injustice and prejudice appropriated by the capitalists. By interrogating the predicament of the masses, this paper unravels the strength of the oppressed in the face of the dwindling political misnomer. Through the theoretical strength of Marxism, this paper lays bare the manner with which Okpanachi and Nta strengthen the voices of the marginalized in wrestling capitalism in the society. These poets encoded the plight of the oppressed, the serial carnage and existential threats on humanity as an elixir of the masses uprising. It is in this resilience and manner with which the people speak that Mikhail Bakhtin describes elsewhere as a “centrifugal force”. The assessment of the works of Okpanachi and Nta show that whereas critical scholarship exists in the poetry of most Nigerian poets, there is a noticeable lack of substantial attention on the rallies of the voiceless in their poems. This is why the drive of this paper is built around this critical gap in scholarship. The paper concludes that the writers’ frown at the vileness and depravity of a besmirched society and passionately scream at a country besieged by negative forces; threatening the peaceful coexistence of the masses and calls for a fundamental interventionist approach to nip this evil in the bud.
LANGUAGE AND MUSIC: A PRAGMATIC ANALYSIS OF SELECTED SONGS OF FELA ANIKULAPO-KUTI
Music (or songs) is a fundamental manifestation of language use because it has the quality of portraying and reflecting society, as well as triggering discussions and reactions from listeners. In making up their lyrics, musical artists exhibit their pragmatic intents explicitly and implicitly. This aids listeners in decoding their message vis-à-vis the context of the musical rendition. Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, in his songs, exhibited his understanding of this phenomenon. Thus, he employed the available linguistic repertoire to pass his messages pragmatically, further highlighting how language in songs can influence, resist, and act. However, there is a dearth of research on the pragmatic features of his songs. Hence, the specific objectives of this paper are to highlight the speech acts performed by Fela in the selected songs, how his utterances in the songs convey meanings in relation to context, and the forms of speech acts performed. To achieve this, Searle’s (1969) speech act theory is adopted as the theoretical framework to enable the researchers to analyse Fela’s lyrics, not just as poetic or musical expressions, but as actions entrenched in a social and political struggle. Similarly, the qualitative content analysis is adopted as the research method to interpret the meanings and intentions inherent in the Fela’s lyrics; the selection of songs is based on relevance to key pragmatic functions, and for the literature review, related materials were retrieved from the Internet and the library. The analysis reveals that Fela’s songs challenge authority, conscientize listeners, and call for mass mobilisation for resistance. Through the lens of Searle’s Speech Theory, this emphasises the utilitarian function of language as a communicative tool for social change.
AN EXAMINATION OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN WAR AND IN TIMES OF PEACE: AN ANALYSIS OF CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE’S PURPLE HIBISCUS AND HALF OF A YELLOW SUN
While fiction is not history it is a reflection of the society in which it is written, hence the popular phrase that literature does not exist in a vacuum. Purple Hibiscus and Half of a Yellow Sun are novels set in Nigeria; Purple Hibiscus is set in a time of relative peace where the nation is not at war while Half of a Yellow Sun is set during the Nigerian civil war, a time of war. This research examines the two novels Purple Hibiscus and Half of a Yellow Sun and the violence that women face. Purple Hibiscus looks at the violence against women in the home stead in the time of peace, in an environment that exudes safety while Half of a Yellow Sun looks primarily at the violence directed at women in the time of war. This paper looks at the violence against women, the physical violence, the emotional violence and the violence of the lack of a voice. The feminist theory will be the guiding theory through the angle of womanism. This research concludes that while the violence suffered by the women is often at the hands of the men, the women also enable it by actively participating in being violent towards other women or by welcoming the violence with a docile attitude.
EXAMINING THE DIASPORA EXPERIENCE IN SELECTED STORIES IN CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE’S THE THING AROUND YOUR NECK
This paper examines diaspora and the impact on various characters in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s short story collection The Thing Around Your Neck. The specific short stories for interface are: “Imitation”, “On Monday Last Week”, “The Thing Around Your Neck” and “Arrangers of Marriage”. These stories show the life of Nigerians living in the diaspora, bringing out the trouble and difficulties at home that drive these citizens to hope and believe that salvation and relief from the trouble in the home country lies in a foreign and strange land. This paper will examine these stories through the lens of the postcolonial literary theory to bring out the issues of homelessness that diaspora citizens face in the new country, hybridity, mimicry, and the ambivalence that comes with the interaction of a new culture in position of power. In examining these stories, this research finds that Adichie criticises mimicry, while showing hybridity as inevitable
PSYCHOANALYTIC FEMINIST TRAJECTORIES IN NADIFA MOHAMED’S BLACK MAMBA BOY
This paper examines the pervasive influence of patriarchy and its impact on female voices in Nadifa Mohamed’s Black Mamba Boy through the theoretical framework of psychoanalytic feminism. The problem addressed is the persistent marginalization and silencing of women in patriarchal societies, which is vividly depicted in Mohamed’s narrative. The study seeks to uncover the unconscious psychological mechanisms and societal structures that contribute to gender oppression, as well as to explore the ways in which the novel critiques these dynamics. Specifically, it investigates how the female characters navigate their silenced positions within familial and societal contexts and examines the broader implications of this silencing on their identity and agency. Using the psychoanalytic feminist theories of Julia Kristeva, Luce Irigaray, and Nancy Chodorow, the research identifies the intersections of trauma, gender, and identity in the novel. The findings reveal that the silencing of women in the text reflects entrenched patriarchal norms that marginalize feminine voices, while also exposing the psychological toll of these dynamics on both men and women. Furthermore, the study highlights moments of resistance and subversion, where female characters assert their agency despite systemic oppression. By foregrounding these themes, the paper contributes to an understanding of how literature can serve as a critique of patriarchal systems and a platform for amplifying marginalized voices. This analysis underscores the enduring relevance of feminist discourse in examining the complexities of gender and power in contemporary African literature.
APARTHEID: THE LINE OF DIVISION IN THE WORKS OF KOPANO MATLWA
Although apartheid officially ended in 1994, its lingering psychological and structural consequences remain deeply embedded in the fabric of post-apartheid South African society. This paper examines how the legacies of apartheid persist as a line of division in Kopano Matlwa’s Coconut, Spilt Milk, and Period Pain. Despite the postapartheid setting of these novels, the paper is motivated by the need to interrogate how apartheid-era traumas and racial hierarchies continue to manifest in the lives, identities, and consciousness of black South Africans, particularly youth and women. Employing postcolonial theory and psychoanalytic theory as its dual theoretical lens, the paper critically analyses the internalised racism, fragmented identities, and emotional dissonance experienced by Matlwa’s protagonists. Using a qualitative research methodology, the paper conducts a close textual analysis of the novels to examine the subtle and overt mechanisms through which apartheid’s ghost haunts the present. The paper finds that Matlwa’s characters are often caught in liminal spaces—alienated from their cultural roots while unable to fully assimilate into white society—thereby reflecting the psychosocial disorientation bred by apartheid's enduring legacy. The paper concludes that Matlwa's works do not merely reflect apartheid’s historical facts but rather its psychological residues, demonstrating that apartheid remains a salient force in shaping postcolonial subjectivities and social relations in South Africa. Spotlighting this continuity, the paper contributes to ongoing discourses on race, identity, and healing in African literature
THE ROLE OF TENSE, MODALITY AND POLARITY IN SHAPING DISCOURSE IN THE HOLY EUCHARIST
The Holy Eucharist is a sacrament observed in churches in commemoration of the death of the Lord Jesus Christ. This paper critically evaluates the functions of tense, modality, and polarity in influencing the social dynamics of communication within the context of this ritual. The paper draws from the theoretical framework of Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) to analyse temporal anchoring, degrees of certainty, and affirmation/negation in the Eucharistic ritual. The methodology involves a qualitative discourse analysis approach. The textual analysis presents Tense in the Holy Eucharist as a historical ongoing timeless and enduring communal experience. Modality plays a significant role in constructing the theological, symbolic, and social dimensions of the liturgical ceremony. Polarity is demonstrated as a linguistic device for affirming the communal identity as well as defining the boundaries of inclusion for the participation of the ceremony within the liturgical community. The paper draws intertextually from biblical scriptures and theological writings, to illuminate the ritual's rich theological and symbolic complexity while underscoring how these linguistic elements contribute to both the individual and collective identity of the worshippers. The findings demonstrate how language mediates and constructs the Holy Eucharist as a religious and social event, with the tense, modality, and polarity used in its observance defining the limits of ritual participation, reinforcing doctrinal purity and unity, and uncovering power relations. The paper contributes to ongoing discourse in social cohesion, community development and advancement of knowledge in language studies within the context of religious practices.
IMPOLITENESS STRATEGIES IN SELECTED POSTS AND READERS' COMMENTS OF NIGERIANS OVER THE 2023 REMOVAL OF FUEL SUBSIDY
This study seeks to investigate the impoliteness strategies cited in the readers' comments of selected online posts concerning the recent removal of fuel subsidy in Nigeria by the present government. Previous studies on impoliteness strategies have focused more on social interviews, television shows, political speeches, courtroom interactions, among many others. However, impoliteness strategies in readers' comments, especially on sensitive issues like the removal of fuel subsidy, have not been adequately represented in linguistic scholarship. Impoliteness strategies are communicative strategies employed intentionally to cause or provoke a social conflict with the addressee. The data for the analysis were sourced from readers' comments on selected online posts on Twitter by Daily Post Nigeria. About 50 readers' comments were downloaded and subjected to linguistic analysis using Culpeper's (1996) Model as its theoretical framework. impoliteness strategies such as bald on record impoliteness strategy, positive impoliteness strategy, negative impoliteness strategy, and mock or sarcasm impoliteness strategy, were identified. The findings from this research reveal positive impoliteness strategy has the highest usage in the readers' comments and that all the identified impoliteness strategies were used by the masses in their comments as linguistic tools to channel their anger on those in support of the removal of fuel subsidy and to convey a profound message indirectly to the appropriate authority about the issue. Also, some tones of political and ethnic differences were found in some of the readers' comments, which can ignite political and ethnic conflicts. The study recommends that there should be critical vetting of impolite and negative comments by the social media background check to avoid societal disputes, and confrontations.
MULTIMODAL STANCE-TAKING IN SELECTED NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT POSTERS ON FUEL SUBSIDY REMOVAL POSTED ON X
The 2023 fuel subsidy removal campaign by the Nigerian government on X (formerly Twitter) was not only a national campaign against corruption and problems bedevilling the oil sector, but also a campaign to control the narrative and ideologically position the state as a rational and transparent actor in the complex economic realities. This paper applies multimodal discourse analysis and the stance triangle to examine the discourse features of this campaign and the role of stance in the evaluation of state actors in the campaign discourse. The data for this study consists of ten (10) purposively sampled posts (tweets) retrieved from verified Nigerian government accounts on X. The findings reveal that the government’s communication strategy hinges on rational, technocratic, and institutionally legitimised stance moves aimed at managing public sentiment and realigning perceptions of the policy shift. Also, the findings reveal a deliberate attempt to control the narrative around the subsidy removal through a combination of visual reassurance, logical explanation, and economic realism. The study concludes that multimodal texts function as strategic tools for stance construction in contemporary political discourse as they can be used to challenge and renegotiate official narratives.
LITERATURE AS MEDICINE: SYSTEM INTERNATIONAL (SI) UNIT AS STYLE AND STRATEGY IN NIGERIAN PHYSICIAN PROSE FICTION
From our sustained investigations on the Nigerian novel, there has been no serious attempt to discuss the literary quality of the Nigerian physician prose fiction, especially with respect to the stylistic fictionalisation of the system international (si) unit. Previous efforts in journal articles and limited reviews emphasised theme and style of Achebe, Soyinka, and their contemporaries, for instance, (Onuora 1976, Yerima 2008, Ezeigbo 2008). This constitutes a gap and widens the paucity of research in our study, thus necessitates the current study. While not ignoring the thematic preoccupation and the social relevance of Anthony Marinho’s The Victim (2004) and Nene and Other stories (2005); our main aim in this paper is to examine the system international (si) unit as literary style and creative strategy in the Nigerian physician prose fiction. The major findings of the study include: the Nigerian novel experiments with fiction in diverse forms in the examination of unusual themes like gigolo, nymphomaniac, gender and age assumptions of menopause, sperm movement and pregnancy hypotheses, ultrasound machine and gender determinism. We conclude that there is high positive correlation of medicine with literature. In view of the contributions of physician creative writers to the expansion of Nigeria’s literary landscape, we advise that the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) recommend that our universities as agencies of development create the Departments of physician literature for physician literature to thrive in Nigerian Universities. If indeed our proposal could have a good hearing, it could relate people and engineer development. It could also be a source of fund generation for our universities as foreign scholars and researchers may be interested in the new literary study.
AN ANALYSIS OF PROCESS TYPES IN SELECTED DAILY TRUST NEWSPAPER HEADLINES ON BANDITRY IN NIGERIA.
This paper investigates the application of Halliday’s theory of transitivity in the representation of banditry in the Daily Trust Newspaper headlines. The research aims to identify the types of processes found in the headlines, the most dominant process as well as how the transitivity processes employed have added to the overall meaning of the headlines. Systemic Functional Linguistics was employed as a framework for its analysis. It identifies ideational meanings realised by processes, participants, and circumstance. Data was collected from 15 Daily Trust Newspaper headlines between the periods of 2022 to 2023. Data collected were divided based on the process type they entail. The dominant process was identified based on occurrence and then the processes employed were examined to show how they have added to the overall meaning of the headlines. The findings show that all the process types were identified. It also reveals that material processes dominate the other processes and also indicates that the whole process of banditry is concerned with actions and events. The analysis reveals that the transitivity processes employed have contributed to the construction of negative image of bandits. For example, in the headlines where bandits are the Actor, they are always the doer of violent and chaotic acts and causes insecurity and challenges to their victims.
ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF READING SKILLS ON ADULT BASIC EDUCATION LEARNERS IN LAGOS STATE
This study investigated the impact of reading skills on adult learners participating in the Adult Basic Education (ADBE) programme in Lagos State. Reading is a core language skill and essential to academic success, lifelong learning, and personal development. Many adult learners struggle with reading due to limited educational opportunities, early dropout, or displacement, leading to poor academic outcomes. This research assessed the effectiveness of ADBE programmes in improving reading skills and to discover the challenges adult learners face after the programmes. A descriptive survey research design was adopted, and a total of 546 participants were randomly selected from six educational zones in Lagos State, with 91 learners drawn from each zone. Data were gathered using a validated instrument titled Questionnaire on Impact of Reading Skills on Adult Basic Education Programme (reliability coefficient = 0.75). Descriptive statistics such as frequency counts, percentages, mean scores, and standard deviations, were used to answer the research question, while inferential statistics such as t-test and ANOVA were used to test the hypothesis at the 0.05 level of significance. The findings showed that the programme had a high positive impact on learners’ reading skills, with significant improvements recorded in reading. Moreover, challenges related to reading, such as decoding difficulties and lack of phonemic awareness, were found to be low. The study concludes that reading instruction within Adult Basic Education learners should be strengthened using phonics-based and learner-centered approaches to further enhance literacy development and promote inclusive, lifelong learning in line with Sustainable Development Goal 4.