SOME FORMS OF SHONA TRADITIONAL POETRY

Abstract

Shona traditional poetry could be described as the most neglected aspect of Shona literature. It falls into two categories: adult and children's poems. Adult songs embody a variety of genres such as beer party songs, threshing songs, ritual songs; these are usually accompanied by drums and clapping, or mbira, as described by Berliner. Praise poems are eulogies of records of the deeds of the tribe. They are used to encourage men to valour, love, fight, etc., thus serving psychological and emotional functions. Their rhythm is not so easy to define, for they are free sequences of lines and have a regularity pattern of their own.