Benjamin Zephaniah’s dub poetry and its appeal to children: an ecocritical reading

Abstract

Dub poetry is a form of performance poetry that originated with Black poets in Jamaica, Britain, and Canada. It is accompanied by rhythmical accentuation and gesticulation while performing in front of the audience. This study analyses the children’s dub poetry of the contemporary Black British poet Benjamin Zephaniah to highlight the unique characteristics that make his poetry more appealing to children. This is accomplished through an ecocritical reading of his early children’s poems, which highlight his biocentric attitude and revolutionary stance against any form of anthropocentrism. The study demonstrates that Zephaniah is an eco-writer who has an effective method of engaging children with his poetry in both its forms, oral and printed, through his performative techniques, rhetorical strategies, humorous style, and serious cosmopolitan topics in the belief that poetry is political and poets should be activists.