The Mystical and Esoteric Narratives in Celestine Iyeh’s The Lost Generation and Son of the Soil

Abstract

This research aims at addressing a tripod; the physical manifestation of the umbilical cord of a male child; the place it is subsumed in the soil, and the broader implication of these in the worldwide of the Igbo people of South East, Nigeria as exemplified in the novels of Celestine Iyeh, The Lost Generation and Son of the Soil. In this intellectual journey, the cultural and philosophical interpretations that surround the umbilical cord--(the implications of according it or not according it a traditional privilege of being buried underneath the soil as if it has a supernatural existence) will be unraveled. The novelist in these two novels dwells significantly on the metaphysical, spiritual and mystical roles accorded to this flesh. These novels are the writer’s attempt at reinforcing his belief in the traditional importance of the burial location of the umbilical cord of a new born male child in Igbo land of Nigeria. This piece of flesh so called is the lifeline that connects every unborn child to his or her mother during the period of pregnancy. This tube-line apparatus feeds the unborn child with nutrients and oxygen from the mother during the pre-natal period. It also assists in expelling waste materials from the baby through the mother. At birth, the umbilical cord is cut off, thereby giving the new born a separate life from the mother. This results in the belly button that is present in the lower abdomen of most human beings.