- Uche Nnyagu PhD , Ozoh Ngozi Jacinta PhD
- Department of English Language and Literature Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka
- SSAR Journal of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences (SSARJAHSS)
One major indispensable role of Literature is its ability to mirror the author’s society. By mirroring the society, Literature helps the unwary to understand and appreciate the society. Obviously, each society is distinct from another and while some societies are of the view that death is an end point of every individual, the Igbo people and some other tribes in the Eastern Nigeria believe that after death, the soul of the deceased hovers as a result of conditions. The deceased persons still appear to people and some migrate to far away places to continue their life. This belief is well demonstrated in some works of art by authors from the south eastern Nigeria. Many creative writers in the society write ghost stories to consolidate the belief of the people in the existence of ghosts. Some writers encountered ghosts personally and their experiences with the ghosts inspired the writings of their works. In this paper, the researchers appraise Rems Umeasiegbu’s Abandoned Ghost Babies and Ghost Stories with the aim to x-ray some of the reasons why ghosts exist. The stories in the books are realistic. The researchers therefore, highlight the different types of ghosts as well as their peculiar features as seen in the texts.
Keywords: Ghost-lore, Igbo society, Folklore, Literature, Verbal lore