Celebration of love: An aspect of Ga women’s discourse on love in Adaawe song- texts

Abstract

Love is a subject that has received a lot of attention in literature, and poetry especially has seen much on love than any other genre, probably because it is traditionally seen as the creative exploration and expression of an individual’s emotion and passion. A genre of Ga oral poetry that has love as its primary subject is the adaawe songs that are sung by Ga maidens. This paper examines an aspect of Ga women’s discourse on love in the songs, particularly, how love is celebrated. This was done based on the theoretical premise that literary texts, which adaawe songs are considered to be part of, are informed by social, cultural and historical discourses at the place and time they are created. The songs were analysed, paying attention to content and style, and the analysis revealed that where love is celebrated, it usually expresses the personae’s happiness and pride in having their partners as lovers. Two media were identified by which the personae in adaawe songs celebrate their love for their lovers as well as their lovers’ love for them – open declarations and actions