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What role did Onitsha market literature play in Nigerian popular fiction?

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Athol Fugard sits in the center with John Kani on the left and Winston Ntshona on the right; all three are seated closely together outdoors. — African literature South African dramatist Athol Fugard sitting between actors John Kani (left) and Winston Ntshona, 1973.

Onitsha market literature refers to a 20th-century genre of sentimental, moralistic novellas and pamphlets produced by a semiliterate school of writers in eastern Nigeria.1

This genre played a significant role in Nigerian popular fiction by serving as a crucial bridge between oral traditions and the written word. Its contributions include:2

Educational Function: The pamphlets helped improve the English language skills of a broad, semiliterate audience.1
Social Guidance: They addressed the immediate challenges of urban life, helping readers reconcile traditional rural values with the temptations and complexities of modern, westernized cities.1
Cultural Reflection: Unlike the mainstream literature of Nigeria’s top authors, which often focused on nostalgia for a lost African past, these chapbooks reflected a fascination with contemporary urban life and styles.1
Direct Engagement: The genre is noted for the close, immediate relationship between the writer and the audience, functioning similarly to the chapbooks of 17th- and 18th-century England.1

While often considered of little literary value, this subliterary genre remains a persistent and important component of the Nigerian literary landscape.1