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1 Marxism and literature: an interpretation of Osofisan’s Morountodun, Rotimi’s Hopes of the Living Dead and Soyinka’s The Beatification of Area Boy Ojebode, Ayokunmi Oladele MATRIC NO: RUN/ENG/14/5820 A DISSERTATION IN THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH SUBMITTED TO THE COLLEGE OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTERS IN LITERATURE-IN-ENGLISH REDEEMER’S UNIVERSITY, EDE
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Marxism and literature: an interpretation of Osofisan’s Morountodun,

Rotimi’s Hopes of the Living Dead and Soyinka’s The Beatification of Area Boy

Ojebode, Ayokunmi Oladele

MATRIC NO: RUN/ENG/14/5820

A DISSERTATION IN THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH SUBMITTED

TO THE COLLEGE OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL

FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF

MASTERS IN LITERATURE-IN-ENGLISH

REDEEMER’S UNIVERSITY, EDE

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MAY, 2016

CERTIFICATION

I hereby certify that this dissertation titled, Marxism and Literature: an interpretation of

Osofisan’s Morountodun, Rotimi’s Hopes of the Living Dead and Soyinka’s The

Beatification of Area Boy was written by Ojebode Ayokunmi Oladele with matriculation

number RUN/ENG/14/5820 of the Department of English, College of Postgraduate Studies,

Redeemer‟s University, Ede, under my supervision for the award of M.A Literature in English.

_______________________________ ________________________

PROF. BENEDICT M. IBITOKUN DATE

SUPERVISOR

_____________________________ ________________________

DR. IDOWU ODEBODE DATE

HEAD OF DEPARTMENT

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___________________________________ ________________________

PROF. CHRISTIAN HAPPI DATE

DEAN OF POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL

_____________________________ ________________________

EXTERNAL EXAMINER DATE

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DEDICATION

This work is dedicated to God Almighty, the Source of wisdom and knowledge, and also to my

dear parents, Dr. Paul Ademola Ojebode and Felicia Iyabode Ojebode.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I doff my feathered cap to my supervisor, Professor Benedict M. Ibitokun, from whose streams

of knowledge I have drunk and drawn these words. He brought me from my little corner of

scholarlism into Soyinka and Achebe‟s colossal world. I embrace the world of Marxism because

of his little thrust. I also doff my cap to the provost of the College of Humanities, Professor

Bamiro, your encouragements worked wonders at the outset of my study when it looked rough. I

salute the Head, Department of English, Dr. Idowu Odebode, thank you sir for supporting in my

surf; by your help I completed this degree without a cough. You are more than a father, a rare

gem, and a pillar of course. I salute my lecturer, Dr. Ofure Aito, I thought I could get through my

studies by auto; you have stretched my motto, to believe in myself, to be courageous, and also to

be a deep thinker and good speaker.

Truly, my pen has been made bigger; my brain has been made larger, my library has been made

fatter. Furthermore, I sincerely appreciate Professor Olusegun Adekoya, and Dr. Ayodeji Shittu

for sparing the time to thoroughly proofread this research. I also appreciate Dr. Ferdinand Mbah

for his tutelage. I celebrate the effort of Professor Ahmed Yerima for his recondite contribution

to this project. As I take my leave from Mother RUN, there is no better place to RUN to for

rigorous studies than RUN. I will like to applaud the best parent on earth, who believed in me

and gave me the push to further my academic pursuit. I also celebrate my spiritual parents: Rev

and Prof. (Mrs) Louis Femi Ogundare for their constant support and prayers. My appreciation

also goes to my dearest siblings: Ayodeji and Ikeoluwa who saw to wearing this Masters suit. I

appreciate my dear friends: Gideon, Sunday, Gbenga, Elijah, Yemi, Tosin, Busayo, Iyanu and

Tito. I deeply appreciate the Prayer Unit of RUN for their heart-warming support these two

years. And also my fellow scholars at RUN: Israel, Kemi, Daniel, Kenny, Lekan, Ibukun, Ronke,

Chidinma, Jibola. Lastly, to my best friend, who stood by me in sunshine and rain, Mayowa, you

are the best.

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ABSTRACT

The choice of Marxism alongside literature in this research is based on its pragmatic approach in

depicting human struggles in a class-oppressed society, since literature itself is a mirror of

society, using a specialised language. Hence, the research explores the relationship between

Literature and Marxism, and goes further to analyse Femi Osofisan‟s Morountodun, Ola

Rotimi‟s Hopes of the Living Dead, and Wole Soyinka‟s The Beatification of Area Boy, to

complement the resources of critical theory in yielding their far-reaching meanings as they apply

to social and political realities. Apart from this, it also interrogates the relevance and limitations

of the theory in the African society, in order to justify the disillusionment of African playwrights

with its tenets.

In addition, the methodology adopted as the framework for this research is the Marxist theory. It

is based on class struggle between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat, or better explained as the

„oppressors and the oppressed‟, „the haves and have-nots‟. This theory is wholly or partially

adopted by African playwrights like Osofisan, Rotimi, Soyinka and others, with the aim of

defending the cause of the oppressed in the society, and to situate contexts of oppression. These

playwrights identify and critique elements of exploitation, alienation and other indices of

oppression. This is realised as settings, themes, characters and plots in their works, creating the

avenue for critics to engage in critical analysis.

Lastly, the project is divided into five chapters. The first chapter is the general introduction,

while second chapter deals with the review of related literatures on Marxism. The third chapter is

centred on the analysis of Ola Rotimi‟s Hopes of the Living Dead, while Chapter four is on

Soyinka‟s The Beatification of Area Boy, where with threnodic feelings, he draws the attention of

the readers to shattered expectation of democracy and frustrated aspirations of nationhood. His

play delineates on the „stupidity‟ of the military who had no solution to myriad of problems that

it dealt with such issues as parlous economy, decayed infrastructure, poverty, corruption, ethno-

religious conflicts and nepotism among other ills. The fifth chapter details the analysis of

Morountodun in which the playwright adopts the Yoruba legend of the heroic Moremi to alter

the socio-political misnomer of a class-based society, while chapter six end the research with the

summary and conclusion of the research.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title page…………………………………………………………….................................i

Certification………………………………………………………………………………ii

Dedication………………………………………………………………………………..iii

Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………………....iv

Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………...v

Table of Contents…………………………………………………………………………vi

CHAPTER ONE

Background to the Study…………………………………………….……………....1

Aims and Objective of the Study…………………………………………………....5

Statement of the Problem............................................................................................6

Research Questions.....................................................................................................7

Scope and Limitation of the Study.............................................................................7

Significance of the Study............................................................................................7

Research Methodology……………………………………………………………....8

Organization of the Study...........................................................................................8

CHAPTER TWO

Literature Review……………………………………………………………………9

Marxism as a Literary Thought……………………………………………………...9

Review of Class System through the Marxist Perspective………………………….11

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Marxism, Drama and African Playwrights…………………………………………14

CHAPTER THREE

The Biography of Ola Rotimi………………………………………………………20

Early Life and Theatrical Career……………………………………………………20

The Reality of the Living, but Dead………………………………………………...21

Ola Rotimi‟s Characters as a Replica of Social Reality………………………….....23

Marxist Alternative Society………………………………………………………....26

History in the Context of Drama………………………………………………….....27

Significance of the Medically Challenged in HLD...………….…………………….29

Satirical Depiction of Nigeria‟s Political Disability in HLD………………………..31

Motif of the Medically Challenged in Hopes of the Living Dead……………….......34

Theme of Social Alienation……………………………………………………….....34

Theme of Hope……………………………………………………………………....35

CHAPTER FOUR

Critical analysis of Soyinka‟s of The Beatification of Area Boy.…………………..36

Biography of Wole Soyinka......................................................................................36

The Treatment of the Military in Soyinka‟s The Beatification of Area Boy…...…..37

Themes in The Beatification of Area Boy…..……………….……………………...41

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Theme of failed Military Leadership.......…..……………….……………………...41

Class Stratification………………….………………………………………………46

Oppression, Exploitation ………...............................…………………………....…47

Moral Decadence, Proletariat Revolution…………......……………………………48

Religious Concerns, Economic Mortality.....................................……………….....49

CHAPTER FIVE

Critical Analysis of Osofisan‟s Morountodun……………………………………...50

Biography of Femi Osofisan……………………………………………………….51

Historical Context in Morountodun...........................................................................53

Fusion of Myth and History in Morountodun…………….................................…...57

Osofisan‟s Marxian Revolutionary Philosophy in Morountodun……………...…...58

The Disillusionment of Osofisan with Marxist Ideals in Morountodun……………61

CHAPTER SIX

Summary…………………………………….…………………….……………….68

Conclusion……………………………………………………………….…………68

Work Cited....…………………………………………………………….…....…...71

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CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

Background to the Study

It is essential to start this research by examining the brief historical account of radical theatre in

Nigeria, its patterns and trends, in order to determine the various influences it had on the selected

African playwrights‟ works and ideologies. The ideological awareness that has permeated some

academic disciplines, particularly the social sciences and the humanities in Nigeria since the civil

war (1967-1970) has opened up new vistas in the study and practice of theatre. Since the civil

war, some Nigerian scholars and intellectuals no longer examine the socio-political

developments in the society alone, but goes further to apply the dialectical materialist approach

of Marx and Engels (Gbilekaa I). In view of this discovery, both the Nigerian drama and theatre

were not spared this dialectical searchlight. In fact, theatre has become a medium or a testing

ground for this ideological war. Following the philosophies of Bertolt Brecht, Terry Eagleton

and Augusto Boal, some Nigerian theatre critics and practitioners have not only challenged

Aristotle‟s poetics, but literary ideologues of the radical school. For example, Biodun Jeyifo and

Omafume Onoge have gone ahead to propose new directions for African theatre.

In Africa, two variants of radical theatre were created. One variant is practised in the

conventional western theatre manifested in the plays of Ngugi wa Thiong‟o and Githae Mugo,

Ebrahim Hussein and Rugyendo in East Africa and Femi Osofisan, Bode Sowande and Kole

Omotoso in Nigeria. The audiences for these works are predominantly literate. From East to the

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West coast of Africa, their themes are clear, capitalism myths to bring about a socialist order.

Their plays dwell on the past and contemporary issues in their societies. Plays like Ngugi‟s The

Trial of Dedan Kimathi, co-authored with Githae Mugo, I will marry when I want, co-authored

with Ngugi Wa Mirii, and Sowande‟s Farewell to Babylon creates a graphic picture of the

suffering of the masses caused by the ramshackled capitalist superstructure on which their

societies are based.

The second variant is the community or popular theatre. Like radical literary drama,

popular theatre is a theatre of conscientialisation. It aims at arousing the consciousness of the

rural folks to understand the societal configurations as well as to trust themselves as vectors of

change (Gbilekaa I). In Africa, countries like Botswana, Tanzania, Zambia, Kenya, Cameroun

and Nigeria are involved in popular theatre projects. As a poly-functional theatre, community or

popular theatre is a theatre of pedagogy, liberation and revolution where it is underlined by

Marxist aesthetics.

In the 1930s through the new cultural renaissance, two robust theatrical traditions- “the

folk opera” and the “modern” theatre were created. These were “direct or indirect products of the

intellectual revolt of the early twentieth century heritage and both strikingly different in their

dramaturgy” (Gbilekaa I). Thus Nigerian theatre is divided into three phases; firstly, we have

pre-colonial drama which is essentially traditional drama. It has two main divisions: the sacred

and the profane. The sacred is ritualistic in form and style and it is centred on a communal

worship of a deity. It is a communal rite which hinges on the beliefs of traditional society. The

profane is within the popular tradition and basically for entertainment. This theatre was practised

by the natives even during the colonial days because they found no meaning in the European

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concerts of the 1870s and 1880s. This theatre eventually produced the Ogunde operatic theatre of

the “folk opera”, an amalgamation of African theatrical elements with the European theatrical

tradition of the emigrant communities in Lagos. This theatre had a wider appeal to the people as

it used a medium and style familiar to them. However, the thematic conception of these plays

was narrow.

The second phase is the colonial theatre which took the form of concerts. Its advocates

and practitioners were the Church together with the schools and the emigrant communities. Its

world view was as foreign as its content. Although its content in the 1980s as practised by

Church schools had doses of traditional African elements, it was so minimal that it could not

make any significant impact. In the 1930s the concert shows had developed into a theatre of

revolt, and the protest, yet its audience was still the minority elite. Although its combative and

utilitarian aspects were recognised and identified, it manifested no overt ideological

commitment, as it was also an emotional and spontaneous reaction to European racism. In

determining its content, it kept to its original form. With maturity or growth of these heavily

indoctrinated students, they developed it into literary drama still using the European world view

or theories of the drama as their frame of reference, perhaps again with some appropriate touches

of African elements. The plays of Henshaw in the collection This is Our Chance (1956) fall into

this category (Gbilekaa I).

The concert theatrical tradition thus gave birth to literary drama that was born few years

before Nigeria got her independence. Being a product of cultural hybrids, it indelibly bore this

hybridisation stamp with “its heart right at home in Nigeria and its head deep in the wings of

American and European theatre” (Gbilekaa I). In its early days, its thematic thrust and content

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had echoes of the cultural renaissance of the 1930s. It indulged in the glorification of African

culture as part of their contribution to the growing national cultural identity. The works of

visionary and perceptive playwright like Wole Soyinka, transcended this lonesome concern with

cultural renaissance. His play, A Dance of the Forests, was a subtle metaphor and comment on

the future of Nigeria. In the play, Soyinka sounded a cautionary note for the gathering of

different tribes called Nigeria. He foresaw seeds of disruption in the new nation.

Furthermore, the developments in theatre were in three dimensions: the concern with

culture, particularly, the past, harnessing it to interpret the present. The concern with the present

thus unearthing the double-edged nature of independence and the damage poor leadership could

cause. This gradually developed into disillusionment and protest because of the unfulfilled

promises of soap box oratory. Both Soyinka‟s Kongi’s Harvest and the satirical sketches in

Before the Blackout condemned this demagoguery, corruption and the idiocy of abject political

leadership and hooliganism (Gbilekaa I). The third concern was the search for a genuine African

theatrical style. Meanwhile, it adopted English as its major medium of communication, thus

laying claim to being national, English being Nigeria‟s lingua franca. However, its audience

remained decidedly small as it entailed being literate to understand it.

From the above discussion one point becomes manifest that is; the period of contact with

European aesthetics necessitated some form of borrowing. The intellectual expositions and

travels of first generation playwrights like: Clark, Rotimi, and Soyinka opened them up to novel

ideals from the European and American point of view on theories of creative writing and critical

canons which they were ready to experiment with, before an eager audience of an emerging

privileged class of Nigerians, particularly in the universities.

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These novel ideals by the afore-mentioned Nigerian playwrights gained more relevance

after Nigeria‟s civil war, due to the socio-political and economic developments, which includes

the replacement of cash crops like cocoa, groundnuts, palm oil and beniseed, as the major item of

export. This event further widened the gap between the haves and have-nots, thus creating a

class-conscious society as exemplified in Osofisan‟s Morountodun which entails the Farmer‟s

revolt in 1969 which will later be discussed in the body of the research. Hence, this study

therefore is a continuum of the class and ideological interpretation of drama, particularly the new

radical theatre in Nigeria. The theoretical framework that informs the analysis of the three

selected plays by Osofisan, Rotimi and Soyinka is Marxism, with an underlined artistic vision

which visualises a destruction of capitalism in the Nigerian society.

Aims and Objective of the Study

The objectives of the study are to achieve the following:

1. Examining the relevance of Marxism in contemporary times.

2. Investigating some selected African plays and interpreting them based on the praxis of

Marxism.

3. Interrogating if the thematic preoccupations in the selected plays can inspire a classless

society and collective struggle in Nigeria.

In order to accomplish the aims and objective of the study, the researcher adopted the

pragmatic approach of Marxism to depict the human struggles in a class-oppressed society. Since

literature itself is a mirror of society, using a specialised language. Hence, the research centres on

the relationship between Literature and Marxism, and goes further to analyse Femi Osofisan‟s

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Morountodun, Ola Rotimi‟s Hopes of the Living Dead, and Wole Soyinka‟s The Beatification of

Area Boy, to complement the resources of critical theory in yielding their far-reaching meanings

as they apply to social and political realities. Apart from this, it also interrogates the relevance

and limitations of the theory in the African society to justify the disillusionment of some African

playwrights with its tenets.

In addition, the research explores the Marxist theory, which is based on class struggle

between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat, or better explained as the „oppressors and the

oppressed‟, „the haves and have-nots‟. This theory is wholly or partially adopted by African

playwrights like Osofisan, Rotimi, Soyinka and others, with the aim of defending the cause of

the oppressed in the society, and to situate contexts of oppression. These playwrights identify

and critique elements of exploitation, alienation and other indices of oppression. This is realised

as settings, themes, characters and plots in their works, creating the avenue for the researcher to

engage in critical analysis.

Statement of the Problem

This research examined the relationship between Marxism and Literature, to interpret the

ideological position of Femi Osofisan‟s Morountodun, Ola Rotimi‟s Hopes of the Living Dead,

and Wole Soyinka‟s Beatification of Area Boy. It also goes further to examine literature as a

social institution with a specific ideological function based on the background of the selected

playwrights. Though, Marxists propose that a work of literature is not a result of divine

inspiration or pure artistic endeavour, but that it arises out of the economic and ideological

circumstances surrounding its creation. It is the relationship of the Marxist theory with the

society that prompted the researcher to examine some selected African plays, in order to mirror

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the limitations of the Marxist ideals in the African society, highlighting the issues of class

struggle depicted in the plays.

In addition, the research also explored how the Marxist theory has provided a framework

for most African playwrights as they address issues of racial inequality, social injustice, class

oppression, political and economic instability. It is so obvious that the Marxist theory fits to

interpret socio-political issues within the African society. Many radical African writers have

decided to embrace the Marxist philosophy because of the approach it prescribes in its

philosophy to tackle manifestations of oppression. A fitting example is Chidi Amuta‟s The

Theory of African Literature (1989), a major contribution to the Marxist theory in Africa. Other

writers who embrace the theory include the likes of Biodun Jeyifo, Omafume Onoge, Sembene

Ousmane, Ngugi Wa Thiong‟O, Nurudeen Farah, Festus Iyayi, Olu Obafemi, Bode Sowande,

Mokotani Rogyendo .

Research Questions

Critical answers will be produced to these theoretical questions as they interrogate the nature,

dynamics and the organic relationships that sustain the connections of Marxism, literature and

human society.

I) Is Marxism still relevant in the contemporary times?

II) How evident is the Marxist theory and philosophy in Osofisan‟s Morountodun, Rotimi‟s

Hopes of the Living Dead, and Soyinka‟s The Beatification of Area Boy?

III) How possible can the thematic preoccupation in the selected plays elicit social balance

and inspire collective struggle in the Nigerian society?

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Scope and Limitation of the Study

This study does not examine the whole genre of literature. Rather, it focuses on the drama genre

of literature, selected works of Femi Osofisan, Ola Rotimi, Wole Soyinka, in Morountodun,

Hopes of the Living Dead, The Beatification of Area Boy respectively are used to represent the

totality of the drama genre of literature. Hence, the result of this research is centred on drama

only.

Significance of the Study

A major significance of the research is that, it is an addition to the scholarly researches already

written on African literature and Marxism, and secondly, it will spur other literary critics to dig

into the limitations of the Marxist ideals in African plays. Also, through the exposition on

Morountodun, a classical play written by Osofisan, the research will be able to reconcile

upcoming literary scholars who might not be acquainted with the play, or the historical event of

the Agbekoya Uprising back to history.

Methodology

The method applied in this project is textual analysis of the selected plays, namely: Osofisan‟s

Morountodun, Rotimi‟s Hopes of the Living Dead, and Soyinka‟s The Beatification of Area Boy.

Firstly, the research is close analysis of the texts and it focuses more on Marxist themes vis-à-vis

its tenets. Attention is given to the deployment of satire, metaphors and symbolisms encapsulated

by the texts.

Organisation of the Study

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This research is divided into five chapters. Chapter one is the general introduction, while Chapter

two deals with the review of related literatures. Chapter three centres on the analysis of Rotimi‟s

Hopes of the Living Dead, while Chapter four is the analysis of Soyinka‟s The Beatification of

Area Boy, Chapter five is the analysis of Osofisan‟s Morountodun, where he adopts the Yoruba

legend of the heroic Moremi to alter the socio-political misnomer of a class-based society. And

lastly, Chapter six contain the summary and conclusion of the research.

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CHAPTER TWO

REVIEW OF RELEVANT LITERATURE

Marxism as a Literary Thought

It is expedient in academic scholarship to refer to existing arguments of other researches, in the

process of investigating a given study. The previous or existing contributions provide guide in

the course of the current research. Based on this, this chapter examines the views and

contributions to the study of Marxism and literature, and the adoption of the theory in the studies

of works by Osofisan, Rotimi and Soyinka. Marxism as a literary concept dates as far back as the

19th century. As the name implies, Marxism is derived from the writings of Karl Marx and his

„soul-mate‟, Friedrich Engels.

The Marxist view is based on societal structure which is determined by the economic

forces of production. Ola Balogun adds that Marxism is fundamentally anchored on Karl Marx

and Friedrich Engels‟ works. Marxism is a dominant critical theory which started in the middle

of the 19th century and flourished tremendously throughout the twentieth century. It is concerned

about historical and cultural issues. Marxism explores social and economic factors as crucial

denominators of relationship in the society. Karl Marx envisions a capitalist society as basically

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a class society where a class oppresses the other. He was an avowed adversary of oppression in

whatever form. Thus, he joined the proletariat (working class) to advocate for the abolition of

class oppression (10-12).

Wumi Raji also supports the historical feature of Marxism as previously indicated in

Balogun‟s statement, for him, historical development is determined by the ever changing mode

of social economic production, and the change in the mode of material productions which

influences the relationship between the two principal classes (236). Hence, Marxism is situated

around the mode of economic production, as two principal classes (bourgeoisie and proletariat)

oppose each other. The focus on class divisions in the society by both Raji and Balogun, is not

far-fetched from John Howthorn‟s assertion that “Marxism ideologies are all related to CLASS

position, and thus, it turns to material production, which leads to material conditions and the

struggle for their control” (198).

Hawthorn however sees Marxism as a materialist philosophy, one which insists upon the

primacy of material living conditions. The revolutionary focus of the Marxist theory is brought

into focus in his assertion above, as well as Akande Fatima and Ibrahim Fatima‟s postulation

below, where they view Marxism as a weapon for social change as individuals struggle for

economic and political power. (21)

Chidi Amuta‟s view is different from Akande and Ibrahim‟s position. Marxism to Amuta is born

out of the capitalist conditioning of the society; hence, it is a product of some circumstances

within the society. He explains that:

Marxism developed as a philosophical response to capitalism and the liberal idealism of

the bourgeoisie. Marxism arose, when and where it did, as a result of determinate

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conditions, primary among which was the ascendancy of capitalism, the alienation of

labour, and the galvanisation of working class. (59)

With the knowledge that Marxism is targeted against capitalist society, Bayo Lawal and

Kolade Olugbade posits that in the capitalist system, work of labour is deceitful because, in

Marx‟s view “Man, likes to be proud of what he creates in the capitalist society” (126). Man,

therefore, becomes estranged from what he produces; he is also alienated from the person who

would sell what he creates. Hence, in this type of society, the legal rights which belong to

proletariat (the working class or masses) are denied, despite being the class that have the capacity

to work, and sell for the capitalists (bourgeoisie).

Thus, the concern of a Marxist writer is to reflect these oppressive and subjugate

tendencies within the society. Both Balogun and Joseph agreed that the aim of Marxist critics

and Marxist writers is to expose the oppressive class and its medium of oppression. In

conclusion, Marxism as a theory is historical and political, a prescription for revolutionary action

to bring the industrial working class to power and create a classless society.

Review of Class System through the Marxist Perspective

Class is one of the elements of Marxism, which centres on the division or groupings of

individuals in any given society. There are however different views on the concept of class.

Wright and Luca define class as: “a social aggregate delineated by their positions within social

reactions of production”. (32-55). Thompson opines that class is defined by humans as they live

their own history (11).

While Vladimir Lenin defines class as:

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Large groups of people differing from each by the place they occupy in a historically

determined system of social production by their relation (in most cases) formulated in

laws to the means of production, by their role in social organization of labour and

consequently by the dimensions of the share of social wealth of which they dispose the

mode of acquiring it. (72)

It is obvious that the two classes struggle to control the wealth in the society, which is as

a result of being frontally opposed to each other. Marx, on the other hand, sees the class system

generally as: One class which owned the means of production, while the other class owns

nothing except their labour power, which they are obliged to sell in order to survive. This view

by Marx summarises the Marxist‟s view on both classes and the society, based on the economic

mode of production.

The philosophy of Marxism is rooted in what is known as dialectical materialism, which

stresses economic determinism (economic survival) as an index for social struggles. The Marxist

ideologues believe that all social struggles are economically-based with the resolution that stirs

conflicts among the different classes inhabiting a social milieu. The society is divided into two

broad classes; the oppressor and the oppressed, who in Marx parlance are the bourgeoisie and the

proletariat respectively. Because the former holds the means of production, it becomes dominant

and hence oppresses the other. Bayo Lawal and Kola Olugbade summarise the focus of Marxism

in the context of human activity “based on the infrastructure which can be broadly divided into

(a) forces of production and (b) productive relations” (126). They further examined work as

being crucial to human existence and relevance. In the capitalist world, work is grossly misused

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and abused by the oppressors. This concept of work as a determinant of production is evident in

the following statement made by Lawal and Olugbade:

In the capitalist system, work or labour, is deceitful because, in Marx‟s view, man likes to

be proud of what he creates and in the capitalist society, the fruits of Man‟s creative

ability are for capitalists. Man therefore, becomes estranged from what he produces. He is

also alienated from the person who gets what he creates from him to sell at a price very

higher than the cost of production… to strengthen and ensure the exploitative connection

(126).

From this assertion, it becomes pertinent that the two classes: the rich and poor are in

struggle with each other, which is as a result of the control for wealth. Both Amuta and Balogun

agreed to the two classes in the society. Although, Maurice Zetlin‟s view on class is quite

different in that four types of classes are identified, they are: the capitalist class, the ones with the

control over capital, secondly, the petit bourgeois, those in position over money and physical

capital, but lack the control of not more than their handful time and family, the middle class,

those having some but not all dimension of control (218). Oloruntoba-Oju postulates:

Society is stratified (divided into classes) on the basis of material acquisition. The classes

of society e.g. (capitalism and labour classes) are diametrically opposed, and their

struggles (including political struggles) are basically the struggles for the control of the

means of production of life material (214).

The bourgeoisie identified above represent the members of the upper classes, the haves.

They are the class in charge of the means of production and the labour of the proletarians.

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Ogbeide‟s explanation further expatiates on the bourgeoisie class, they are few, but extremely

powerful, while members of the proletariat constitute the majority, they are poor, powerless and

always at the mercy of the bourgeoisie (2). The capitalist class are exploiters who lack restraint,

and are so obsessed with acquisition of wealth and power that they also exploit one another in

the process.

Eagleton also centres on class, as he builds on Ogbeide‟s statement that every member of

the society is determined by the economic situation. He further explains, that Marx believes that

the identity of a social class is derived from its relationship to means of production as opposed to

the motion that class is determined by wealth alone i.e. high class, the middle and the upper

class. (112).

Therefore, there is a class struggle between the lower and the upper class. In the words of

Ibrahim and Akande, there is conflict due to the selfishness of the upper class. Marx however

locates the source of this conflict; in fact, one class owns nothing except their labour power,

which they are compelled to sell in order to survive, while another owns all the means of

production (81).

Buah explains that capitalist countries are concerned with protecting individual rights,

particularly the right of individuals who owns private property of various kinds (122). This

statement supports the struggle in a capitalist society which Marx identified as the “continual

conflict” between the two main classes of the society. These two classes include, “the people

who own the means of production and the people who provide the labour” (125). He provides the

explanation for the continual conflict as he explicates in the statement below:

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Although in the minority, the people who owned everything needed men for their

livelihood, though they always play the role of masters. The other class of people, who

formed the bulk of the world‟s population, had nothing which they could call their own.

Their lot had always been to work for their masters, and to remain poor, earning just

enough to keep bone and flesh together. Basically therefore, the continual conflict

between the two classes lies in the interest of the bourgeois to perpetually emasculate the

proletariat and reduce them to mere slaves who do not have any say in the social

decisions (125).

The result or the division of class is perpetual antagonistic relationships because of the

efforts of the proletariat are not in any way equal to the wage they earn in return. Jacques

believes that any society which has a syndrome of inequality does not exist naturally, but rather

as a result of the different sects and groups with the same characteristics is what make them a

group. In conclusion from the different scholars‟ views, class is an aspect of the society and

cannot be separated from it. It is the basis on which the society is grouped. Hence the two main

classes in the society are the bourgeoisie and the proletariat.

Marxism, Drama and the African playwrights Among

many duties of Nigerian playwrights, one of it is to expose the oppressors‟ class and its

mechanism of oppression. This is realised as settings, themes, characters and events, which are

conflated, thereby creating the avenue for the Marxist critics to demonstrate their

„craftsmanship‟. Although, there are other playwrights like Rotimi and Soyinka who reject being

bracketed as „Marxist‟, their plays are socially relevant, when it comes to challenging the

encumbrance and sadistic subjugation of the ruling class over the masses, which typifies the

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Nigerian society. This is the reason why Marxists see the history of the society as a history of

class struggle, and the antagonism predominant in a capitalist society.

The interest of Marxist literature is to defend the cause of the oppressed. Marxist critics

believe that the achievement of this goal is by evolving an egalitarian society where the ideal is

stressed. To achieve this, they explore society and situate sources of oppression. They identify

and critique elements of exploitation, alienation and other indices of oppression. They go beyond

critiquing to also proffer panacea to the crises engendered by social parity. For instance, a

Marxist critique of Sembene Ousmane‟s God’s Bits of Wood (1962) sees the White colonial

owners of the Railway system as the oppressors and the Black indigenous Railway workers as

the oppressed. While the members of the ruling class (the colonial masters) employ various

draconian methods to oppress the colonised, the oppressed class in the novel employs strike and

other revolutionary approaches to assert its protest against the oppressive syndrome.

According to Afanasyev, “literature itself is a social institution and has a specific

ideological function based on the background and ideology of the author” (201). In essence,

Marxists believe that a work of literature is not as a result of divine inspiration or pure artistic

endeavour, but it arises out of the economic and ideological circumstances surrounding its

creation”. For Marxist critics, works of literature often mirror the creators‟ own place in the

society, and they interpret most texts in relation to their relevance regarding issues of class

struggle as depicted in a work of fiction. Marxist theory provides a framework for most writers

as they addressed issues of racial inequality, social injustice, class oppression, political and

economic instability. It is so obvious that the Marxist theory fits African literature as it addresses

salient issues within the African society. Many African writers have decided to embrace the

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Marxist philosophy because of the radicalism associated with the philosophy. Chidi Amuta‟s The

Theory of African Literature is a major contribution to the Marxist theory in Africa. Other

writers who embraced the theory include the likes of: Biodun Jeyifo, Omafume Onoge, Sembene

Ousmane, Ngugi Wa Thiong‟O, Nurudeen Farah, Festus Iyayi, Olu Obafemi, Bode Sowande,

Mokotani Rogyendo .

Ngara claims that Marxism is more than a concept meant for literary analysis; he feels it

is part of life. He states that it “is not just an alternative technique for interpreting Paradise Lost,

it is part of our liberation from oppression, and that is why it is worth discussing at book length”

(7). Oppression as a phenomenon is measured via social statuses and an evaluation of literature

from the angle will impose the common Marxist premise that “literature can only be properly

understood within a larger framework of social reality” on a drama critic (Forgas 135). The

understanding of the social reality itself is based on the societal stratification which has made it

unavoidable for “…all culture, all literature and art [to] belong to definite classes and…geared to

definite political live” (Ngara 31). Fortunately, poverty and exploitation which are the themes of

this research have established links in the Marxist‟s idea of the alienation that exists between the

“haves” and the “have nots”. Invariably, Marxism provides the critique and explanations of the

structure of power and privileged relationship in a capitalist state.

According to Afolayan, most Nigerian playwrights situate their thematic contexts with

the heavy burden of reflecting the dichotomy between the “haves” and the “have nots” (111). As

a result of this, the palpable gulf between the rich and the poor, upper and lower classes, is

noticeable in plays like Rotimi‟s The Gods Are Not to Blame, and If… A Tragedy of the Ruled.

Though, Soyinka‟s commitment to scapegoatism is discernable in The Strong Breed, evident in

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the play is the confirmation of what the Marxists call the manipulation of the proletariat by the

bourgeois. At least, we know this in the village council‟s choice of Ifada as a scape-goat. In

Rotimi‟s Hopes of the Living Dead, the downtrodden lepers who constitute the “have nots” give

credibility to the author‟s commitment to social alienation as the lepers are simply regarded as

socio-economic aliens to the society.

It is thus apt to agree with Asein that the theme of alienation and exile is a recurrent

theme in the literature of the blacks. It features prominently in the works of many black writers

who at one time or the other have had to yield to socio-political circumstances prevailing in their

countries, or choose to undertake an epic journey in search of their ancestral roots (125). At first,

Asein‟s option seems to explain the commitment of African dramatists as they exhibit the

penchant for the humanistic mission endeared to “the development of human personality, human

values, emotions, communication and relations, equity, justice, fair play and other humanistic

ethics and ethos” (Uji 6).

This will no doubt lead us to the socio-political consciousness of the intra-text which

seems to evince what Gbileeka tagged “the coercive machinery which the colonial powers set up

[which] propelled a protest tradition in the theatrical idiom which ultimately paved the way for

the development of a radical theatrical tradition…” (11). It is not surprising that Nigerian

theatrical experiences are more aligned to politics and the alienating effect of bad leadership.

From its inception, the Nigerian drama has always been an avenue through which people weigh

the performance of the ruling class. It has since remained a tool for appraising or condemning the

class. It is also a means of mobilising the people to support or reject a particular government.

Theatre practitioners have refused to budge in their antagonistic reactions to unsavoury political

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realities. They continue to respond to their immediate socio-political environments which have

experienced instabilities that have often truncated the people‟s dream. Ngugi makes this clear in

Homecoming when he pin-pointedly posits that:

A writer responds, with his total personality to a social environment which changes all

the time. Using a kind of a sensible needle, he registers with varying degrees of accuracy

and success, the conflicts and tensions in his changing society (1).

Ngugi‟s choice of trope is a reinstatement of the Marxist “continual conflict” already

mentioned as the inevitable conduit for the clash of classes. The Marxist‟s idea of utopianism is

the “welfare state” which, according to Buah, must maintain “a wide range of social services” for

all its citizens. This model provides a dichotomy between two categories of people: the people

who own the means of production and those who provide labour. The members of the former are

the masters while those of the latter are the servants. These servants, who are in most cases the

protagonists of the Nigerian drama are the poor people who are only to “work for their master,

and to remain [perpetually] poor, earning just enough to keep bone and flesh together” (Buah

125). It is understandable why the theatrical activities of the likes of Hubert Ogunde, Wole

Soyinka, Ola Rotimi, John Pepper Clark, Femi Osofisan, Zulu Sofola, Kola Ogunmola and

others like Olu Obafemi developed their plays along the Marxist temper.

Hence, the contact with these Nigerian playwrights has influenced their readers to view

the society as a complex and hybridised system, which characterises the neo-colonial African

setting. Obafemi‟s plays fulfil De Graft‟s maxim of the utilization of socio-political facts as

theatrical raw materials by being presentational instances of the separatist temper of a Marxist.

As we shall later discover, through the selected plays, Obafemi‟s interpretation of the theatre

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seems to align with Adepitan‟s summary that “the purpose of the theatre is to impact experience,

not to provide meaning or moral to set a riddle, not to tell a story” (105). In the light of the

foregoing, it may be rewarding to outline, albeit in passing, Olu Obafemi‟s personality to provide

further insights into his aesthetics and the dialectical relationship between it and his ideology.

Furthermore, it is worthy to note that Nigerian dramaturgical art is a product of socio-

economic development in an independent Nigeria. Though radical drama started as a reaction

against colonial domination in the works of the likes of Ngugi and Soyinka, a pugnacious mental

condition evolved out of the neo-colonial schism that characterises independent Africa. This

mental condition became even more volatile as evident in the works of the playwrights of

Obafemi‟s generation. This is because of the vision-lacking manner in which the ruling elites

conducted the affairs of the new African nation. Evidently the conduct of such leaders comes

under perpetual ridicule of the African playwrights who either produce plays that manifest as

socio-political satires that challenge corruption and oppression in the society.

One similar style that is adopted by most Marxist writers is the use of history, legend,

myths and traditional mores of the people in their works. For example, Osofisan uses the legend

of Moremi in his play Morountodun, Sowande also uses the legend of Moremi in Farewell to

Babylon, while Ngugi‟s The Trial of Dedan Kimathi deals with the Kenyans‟ heroic resistance to

colonial domination of their economic and social life using Dedan Kimathi as the protagonist of

the play. The play which was written in collaboration with Micere Githae-Mugo which is

Ngugi‟s response to colonialist writings about the Mau-Mau movement, which traditionally

depicted the movement of its leader, Dedan Kimathi, as mentally imbalanced and vicious. Ngugi

and his collaborator choose to counter the image with a portrait of Kimathi as a man of great

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courage and commitment. The play‟s focal lens is more on the courtroom scene of the hero‟s

trial, and the other interspersed scenes are flashbacks of the protagonist, one of such was when

some Kenyan people were attempting to help Kimathi escape, Kimathi‟s interactions with

guerrillas, scenes of Kimathi in prison and his torture. Even though, the play focused on the

colonial experience of Kenyans, it is not far-fetched from the Marxist idea of using a major

protagonist to represent a saviour for the masses.

CHAPTER THREE

THE BIOGRAPHY OF OLA ROTIMI

Early Life and Theatrical Career

Emmanuel Gladstone Olawale Rotimi was born on 3rd April, 1938 at Sapele. At the age of four,

he was introduced into acting by his father. Later in secondary school, Rotimi acquired interest

in writing plays, short stories and poetry. Between 1959 and 1966, Rotimi trained in play writing

and directing at the Universities of Boston and Yale in the United States of America. From

theatre, Rotimi has learnt a lot from foreign and indigenous playwrights. These include:

Shakespeare, Gorky, O‟Neil, Miller, Pinter and Brecht. From the indigenous playwrights and

theatre practitioners, he has learnt from the indomitable versatile man of theatre, Wole Soyinka,

his compatriots J.P Clark Bekederemo, Ogunde, Ogunmola and Ladipo (Gbilekaa 150). The

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influence of the last three on Rotimi has been “in direction of utilising traditional materials and

integrating such elements as proverbs, music and dance motifs, and traditional linguistic idioms.”

To date, Rotimi‟s published plays include: The Gods are not to Blame (1971), Our Husbands

Has Gone Mad Again (1977), Kurunmi (1971), Ovonramwen Nogbaisi (1974), Holding Talks

(1983), If...(1983), and Hopes of the Living Dead. His unpublished plays include: Cast first

Stone, Akassa Youmi and To Stir the God of Iron.

Rotimi is undoubtedly one of Nigeria‟s leading playwrights. An accomplished theatre

director and consummate aesthete, Rotimi gained prominence on the Nigerian theatrical stage

after the civil war. Rotimi‟s contribution to the development of literary theatrical form in Nigeria

is immeasurable. Firstly, at the University of Ife (Now Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife) as

a Research Fellow and now at the University of Port Harcourt as a Professor of theatre and

drama, he has contributed immensely in training several actors and theatre directors. Again, his

contribution in the integration of traditional artistic components like dance and music in theatre

as manifest in his plays, his enormous directorial skill which is attested by the high quality of his

productions and his experiment with the English language in search for an effective and less

evocative idiom of communication with the audience are incontestable.

Like Wale Ogunyemi, Ola Rotimi bestrode the two generations of Nigerian playwrights.

A later partner of Soyinka and Clark Bekederemo, Rotimi defies classification in terms of

generation and ideological particularisms. His early plays place him in the same ideological class

with Soyinka, Clark Bekederemo and Ogunyemi. On the other hand If... and Hopes of the Living

elevate him to the same ideological class with Osofisan, Sowande, Omotosho and Tunde

Fatunde. Ola Rotimi‟s growth and maturity in his artistic career underscores the fact that literary

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commitment is not generational after all.

Ola Rotimi demonstrated an unfaltering interest in historical drama. Factors that sustain

his interest in writing historical plays include: the need to complement historical writings, the

need to show thematic parallels and the desire to show models in heroism (Gbilekaa 150).

The Reality of the Living, but Dead

Rotimi‟s Hopes of the Living Dead is a drama of revolution, which re-defines violent protest and

pre-determined confrontation as instructive and relevant social conditions that push a society

towards the path of re-construction, consciously and deliberately without recourse to the

intervention of the supernatural. The plan is to dismantle the paraphernalia of degradation;

dehumanisation and domination that encumber the lives of people, which must be determined by

themselves. Leprosy, as used in the play, is metaphoric. It is a symbol of rejection, mortification,

psychological trauma of the masses in the „pangs‟ of their „oppressors‟. The instrument of force

that makes people see themselves as prey is adopted by the lepers to retaliate against their

oppressors. Leprosy as depicted by Rotimi is a physical and psychological disease which affects

not only the mind, but social status of the people as evident through the lives of Whyte and

Nweke. The Editor represents haughty, opinionated, disdainful and selfish elite who are locked

up in a time of challenge to defend the cause of the helpless, voiceless and faceless masses who

are unfortunately treated like lepers by the spiritual and intellectual figures.

The rich inner resources, fortitude, and strength of character demonstrated by the patients

is an indication of the quality of minds of these inmates. For example, Mallam proposes a likable

and plausible hierarchy of leaders for the inmates in case of any positive or negative occurrences.

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This testifies to his insight and thoughtfulness (Pg. 38 & 39). When the dignity of human life and

the sanctity of soul are disrespected, it gives way to disorientation which often results into

intractable anarchy as found in Aminata‟s Beggars’ Strike (1986).

The stance of the management to evict the patients without considering their plight with

imperial fiat is a failure of leadership, the argument between Harcourt Whyte and Hannah

exposes the lack of creativity, initiative and strategic humanitarian programs to promote dignity

of humanity except brute force to silence voices of dissension, the ever analytical Editor, though

he relapses to feat of dementia, summarises the social and spiritual dislocation of Africa into

three stages of triple R- Run, Rifle and Ruin. Run symbolises confusion in similitude to the state

of drunkenness which comes upon the mind. This means ovulscation, when people cannot

discern between the truth and lie. Rifle stands for anarchy and destruction, while Ruin represents

dilapidation and disintegration. The Corporal assumes the position of a war commander, in a

simulated war situation expresses the inmate abilities and skills of each of these lepers. The

sustaining force that keeps them together and from which they derive strength is their will and

resolution to resist and confront every manifestation of oppression that robs them of their honour

and sense of self-worth.

The protest of the patients against their oppressors is a desperate effort to reject being

turned into „robots‟ and „zombies‟. If their oppressors succeed, it become easy to toss the lepers

around and determine what happens to them and in them. This violent act takes both physical

and psychological dimensions, the official instrument of force, subterfuge; deception and

division wielded to cause disaffection among the patients are not effective to break their ranks

because of Whyte is principled and unyielding policy as a leader and an activist. He renounces

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every attempt to seduce him to trade off his principles and beliefs. At the same time, the soothing

wisdom and circumspection, the calm disposition, and patience of Hannah who constantly

bolsters the willing confidence of Whyte contributes immensely to complement the leadership of

Ikoli Whyte. The resolve of the people to discipline Catechist and Editor with one voice depicts

the readiness of the people to keep their ranks from falling apart.

Ola Rotimi’s Characters as Replica of Social Reality

Harcourt Whyte is used to frame the image of a visionary and revolutionary leader. His

emergence at a very critical stage in the history of his people gives the impression that hard

situations throw up visionary leaders that chart the course of change for their people. His ability

to overcome his physical challenges and stand up to the totalitarian tendencies of the authorities

infers that individuals and groups must rise above the constraints of their social conditions to

challenge oppressive forces and ideologies that dominate them. The admonition to his people:

„The future, brothers. We won‟t continue like this forever. A time when we too shall prove that

we are people deserving of respect (Rotimi 19) and “We fool ourselves if we believe that the big

men of this place will care for us” (Rotimi 21) marks the beginning of the social revolution in the

society.

The utterances indicate that Whyte has a clear picture of the social situation of his

society; the asymmetry in the social contract between the groups; the culture and ideology of

domination by the „big men of this place‟ (Rotimi 21); and the need for his group to fight for

their right as human beings. He challenges his oppressors to: „give us a chance to live like human

beings, or we shall remain bones in your selfish throats forever‟ (Rotimi 49). This statement

infers that societal problems are as a result of the refusal by a group‟s denial of the humanity in

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others. Whyte‟s physical deformities correspond to the social and political impediments that

visionary and selfless leaders must contend with. His arrest and curtailment of his personal

liberties also correspond to the price and strains of leadership.

Ola Rotimi uses the image of the Senior Medical Officer (SMO) and the Superintendent

of Police to frame the ideology that is responsible for the dehumanisation of the dominated

group. They rely on the use of naked power to define the social relationship between them and

the others. Besides intimidating the lepers psychologically, they also send the police to forcefully

evict them from their G and H Wards. They employ the language of power and coercion in

carrying out the orders they were given. For instance, in a meeting with Whyte and Nweke (the

lepers) the police officer declares: „The position of the government in this matter is clear.

Needless to say also, that, that position is irrevocable‟ (Rotimi 45). When he and the SMO talk of

evicting the lepers „in the interest of public health…in the exigencies of service to the people‟

(Rotimi 45), they obviously do not include the lepers among the species that go under the generic

label of „people‟. As far as the authorities were concerned the lepers are not human beings but

„social aberration' that must be done away with hence no provision is made for their welfare.

This ideology is interrogated by Whyte when he asks them: „When you say the “people”,

the “people”, my lords, who really do you have in mind?‟ (Rotimi 46). Whyte also reminds his

oppressors that there are different configurations of „The people of Nigeria‟ (Rotimi 46) whom

they (the authorities) claim to be fighting for. According to Whyte „the Nigerian people have

many faces. Some faces are smooth, well-fed; some are wrinkled, hungry; others well-fleshed,

no troubles …‟ (Rotimi 46). He therefore asserts that while the authorities are anti-people, „we

are not fighting the people. We are fighting for the people.‟ This clearly portrays the ideological

differences between the two groups involved in the struggle.

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The text reveals the polarisation of the society into „they‟ versus „us‟; „we versus them‟

(Rotimi 54); „the ruler versus. the ruled‟ (Rotimi 48); „colonial oppressors versus downtrodden

Blackman‟ (Rotimi 51); and „kites versus chicks‟ (Rotimi 64) structure in which one group (the

kites) tries to devour the other (the chicks). The predator image schema frames the dominant

group as beasts without human feelings. This explains why Court Clerk opines that the oppressed

and dominated group must „demand‟ (Rotimi 37) for their human rights. He disagrees with

Editor that they should „beseech‟ (24) the authorities, reason being that: „in the first letter, we

begged. In the second letter we appealed‟ (Rotimi 24) and got no positive response from the

authorities. Similar to the predator image schema is the covert presentation of the authorities as

the Biblical Pharaoh. The lepers addressing Harcourt Whyte as their „Moses‟ (88, 91) evokes the

Biblical knowledge frame which equates their suffering and desire for freedom with that of the

Biblical Jews under the Pharaohs. Thus, Harcourt Whyte is expected to lead the lepers to

Uzuakoli, the Promised Land.

The Biblical knowledge frame is very strong in understanding the text. Harcourt Whyte,

as the Moses-figure, tactfully re-enacts the military and leadership qualities of the Biblical

Moses/Joshua in their struggle with the authorities. He sends out two of his men, Nweke and

Nwodo, to proceed to Uzuakoli to find out the facts about the land just as the Biblical Joshua

(Joshua 2) sent out two men from Shittim as spies to find out the facts about the Promised Land.

The two spies Harcourt Whyte sent out returned with good news. According to Nweke: „We

arrived at Uzuakoli, and children of our fathers, our eyes saw paradise…I have seen the

Promised Land, now let thy servant depart in peace!‟ (Rotimi 109-110). The Moses/Joshua

frames indicate that the oppressed people of Nigeria are in bondage and urgently need the arrival

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of their own Moses/Joshua to lead them to the Promised Land just as Harcourt Whyte leads his

people, the lepers, to their promised land at Uzuakoli.

The production note of Ola Rotimi‟s Hopes of the Living Dead is a short profile of Ikoli

Harcourt Whyte, the major character in the play. The reader quickly learns that Whyte is a hero

of the people in a bitter struggle- a real struggle that occurred at some point in the history of

Nigeria. It then means that the play is a historical drama portraying the quest of Whyte and his

people to assert their inalienable right to life. It depicts a socio-political struggle at a time when

the society itself is yet to attain nationhood. Thus, the play symbolically illustrates this yearning

for fulfilment and self-assertion, not just of Whyte and his people, but of all the people in search

of a place to call their own, and life that is worth living.

Marxist Alternative Society

Another main issue that is common to writers like Ola Rotimi and others is their depiction of an

alternative society. Critically studying the leper‟s society in Hopes of the Living Dead and the

beggar‟s society in Beggar’s Strike, one can conclude that both societies are purposeful, unified,

humane, truthful and stable, as against the other class in the plays whose members are only

united by their abuse of power to oppress and loot. This portrayal which is intentional by the two

playwrights is to give the readers a chance to pick between the two classes. It is like saying there

is a better society inside our damaged society, even though they are not the ruling class, and they

look powerless, yet, they are united in hearts and minds by their struggle and oppression, their

society is void of competition for posts of leadership.

Taking Hopes of the Living Dead as case study, the choice of Harcourt Whyte as the

spokesman and leader for the lepers was a unified decision, the class of the have-nots is painted

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to be better in term of oneness; this is where the irony comes in, that the lepers‟ society which is

meant to be disorganised and disorderly are now the class to be envied in place of the society of

fully-abled men, which is characterised by competition, hatred and selfishness. This is

puritanical as both playwrights paint one class bad, and the other good.

History in the Context of Drama

As earlier pointed out, Hopes of the Living Dead is a historical play alluding to a factual

occurrence. This also betrays Rotimi's inclination for writing historical plays. But why situate the

context of this play within history- a history lived, to some extent, by Rotimi himself? Ola

Rotimi points out the answer in a response to Green:

Historical resources offer possibilities for matching human concerns of the past with

issues that preoccupy us today. In drawing these parallels, the crucial question with

which one is concerned is this: If, despite obvious debilitating handicaps, our forebears

were able to grapple with certain socio-political problems that threatened their survival,

why can't we, their offspring , do better, advantaged as we are by access to those

implements of progress: learning and technology? (3 - 4)

It is then possible to see a reflection of the play in the above explanation by Rotimi. After

all, the work attempts to point, as accurately as possible, to a heroic past with respect to both

leadership and followership in the face of daunting challenges. In this case the Lepers' Rebellion

between 1928 and 1932 in colonial Nigeria. Like any attempt at capturing the past, it remains

simply a representation. It is also a drama where, according to Emasealu, the playwright attempts

to portray the past, "using poetic license to adjust characterisation, chronology and some of the

actions without altering the direction of history" (30).

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Indeed, the direction of history is illustrated several times in the play. This illustration

takes the reader through the process of how the British conquered some parts of Nigeria. Corp'l's

pride at fighting in the interest of the white betrays the reality of how Africa was subjugated:

Africans maimed and killed fellow Africans for the white man to overcome the continent. The

answer of Editor to Corp‟l can be situated within the context of Nigeria's multi-ethnic nature and

the resultant lack of unity. The play aptly captures this multi-ethnicity: the characters are of

diverse languages from all over Nigeria. Harcourt White is Kalabari, Mama Musi and Jimoh are

Yoruba, Mallam is Hausa and Nweke is Ibo. The playwright clearly portrays a society of

different ethnic tribes symbolised by the lepers who come from several Nigerian tribes. He,

however, brilliantly illustrates the fact that they all face similar problems which can only be

surmounted if they are to work together. This is to some extent one of the key metaphors

illustrated by the play.

There is a recurrence of unity and purposeful leadership throughout the work. These

concepts are consistent with resistance movement and struggle in the face of daunting challenges

like that of tribalism. The latter is captured in the words of Hannah: "Some people have started

gathering in groups with people of their own kind. That too must stop” (22). This, perhaps,

captures the structuring of the plot into two parts: the first part is aptly titled "Crisis" while the

second is titled "Strain of Leadership". It is a crisis of a landless people struggling for self-

determination and a land to call their own which they eventually get with "Uzuakoli". It was a

success which could only come after overcoming such crisis as illustrated above in the words of

Hannah.

It was, however, a long and arduous road to success for all the characters especially their

chosen leader, Harcourt Whyte. He withstands the authorities who hold him captive despite their

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offer to him. It is an offer intended to have him betray the struggle, an offer too juicy to resist,

except for a selfless leader like Harcourt Whyte. He responds by asking about what will happen

to the other lepers should he accept the offer. To which the Supt responds: "My dear fellow, our

talk is about you. Your well-being...”(77). He eventually chooses to honourably stand by his

people with the simple but emphatic response, "Thank you, but I can't eat...” (77).

Significance of the Medically Challenged in Hopes of the Living Dead

According to Eloghosa, Femi Osofisan, Toyin Akinosho and Umukoro have made cursory

remarks on Ola Rotimi‟s use of medically challenged characters and these are worth reviewing

here. Osofisan examines the political imperative in African dramaturgy and theatre practice,

makes some passing comments on the medically challenged in Hopes of the Living Dead, a play

he considers as belonging to “the tradition of socialist theatre” and posits that the aim of the

medically challenged in that play is to teach “our masses the virtue of collective struggle, the

irrelevance of tribal differences in the face of common economic exploitation and the possibility

of heroism among the poor and the downtrodden” (5).

On his part, Akinosho, while reviewing the performance of Rasheed Gbadamosi‟s Behold

My Redeemer, a play directed by Ola Rotimi, which has a psychiatric setting, makes brief

comments on Rotimi‟s portrayal of medically challenged characters. He says: “As director and

playwright, Ola Rotimi is known for using the medically challenged to portray the Nigerian

Society” (11). He adds that in Our Husband, the playwright uses the medically challenged to

paint “the Nigerian politician as a mad power seeker”. Umukoro examining the major events in

The Gods Are Not to Blame, briefly interpret the use of medically challenged characters in the

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play thus, the only real significance of the plague, is that it triggers off the crisis of the play and

sets the stage for the eventual downfall of King Odewale (35).

Also in HLD, the reaction of the medically challenged characters to dramatic situations

heightens the dramatic tension. The case in point is the reaction of the lepers in HLD to the

eviction order from the Department of Health through the Superintendent of Police. The order

states that “all patients in Wards G and H vacate the hospital premises by 5pm tomorrow” (45).

This sudden order is conveyed to the lepers through Harcourt Whyte and Nweke after an

emergency meeting with the authorities. Tense expectancy pervades the hospital (wards G and

H) as the inmates await Harcourt Whyte and Nweke. The duo is later greeted with rapturous

reception on their return.

Soon, the lepers engage in a combat drill to learn some skills of self-defence. Corp‟l, the

ex-soldier leads them. They demonstrate the skills and he detects one flaw (i.e. of gathering in

one spot) and Corp‟l cautions them never to gather in one spot as they have done during the

training. The aim of this is to give the policemen the impression that the lepers are in great

number. Moments later, Hannah gives the lepers the signal and all the inmates are struck with

terror. In their fear, they run disorderly but Corp‟l exercises much confidence. He orders the

other lepers to maintain their positions. To boost the lepers‟ morale, Nweke raises a song. The

atmosphere is thus charged as the moment of decision has come. Outside the hospital, the

policemen in their large number position themselves outside the hospital premises. The leader of

the squad speaking through a megaphone addresses the lepers from outside.

Later, he orders the police officers to go into the wards to evacuate the lepers. This leads

to a strong resistance. The police enter the ward with rifles and batons overturning the beds one

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by one. This sudden attack keeps the lepers at bay. Many of the inmates are captured,

particularly the leaders, Court Clerk and Harcourt Whyte. The lepers protest and Corp‟l, who has

been hiding, “bounds out with demonic energy, descending on Sergeant (63)” and Corp‟l knocks

off the rifle from Sergeant‟s grip. Corp‟l tries to pick up the gun but it “keeps slipping from the

stumps of his fingerless hands”. Both the sound of the gun and the reaction of the lepers to the

eviction heighten dramatic tension.

Satirical depiction of Nigeria’s Political Disability in Hopes of the Living Dead

Ola Rotimi‟s Hopes of the Living Dead undoubtedly remains a socio-political force in Nigeria.

Apart from playing the role of an entertainer, the artist uses his artistic creation to instil truth into

people‟s consciousness. It is also true that when anomalies and contradictions become too

glaring in any society the literary artist feels called upon to rectify them using art as a weapon.

The playwright‟s mode of assessing an existing socio-political system, the people‟s attitude and

so on, in a society, is satire – a form of writing which makes fun of the evil or foolish behaviour

of people, institutions or society in general. The literary artist is known to have used satire from

the beginning of literary history.

The Greeks and the Romans extensively employed it as a weapon in an attempt to correct

the ills in their societies as far back as the 7th century B.C. The poet Archilochus for example is

said to be the first Greek literary artist during this period. Among the ancient Romans, there were

names such as Horace, Juvenal, etc., whose satiric works and ideas have continued to shape and

influence the minds of contemporary satirists. Apart from the Greeks and Romans, we also had

great writers in the middle ages who were using their writings in criticising the actions of men

and the shortcomings in the society as a whole, a good example is Chaucer. From the 18th

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century to the present, such names as Pope, Spencer, and Swift. Soyinka and Armah readily

come to mind when we consider artists who have used their creative works to expose the ills in

the African societies. Satiric usages are not confined to contemporary writers alone. In traditional

African societies, the people used satire to criticise people who show negative tendencies in their

characters. Society as a whole ridicules people through songs, proverbs, folktales and other

verbal arts.

Osofisan, Rotimi, Soyinka and other African playwrights use satire as an artistic mode of

expressing the social reality in contemporary Nigeria. The Nigerian society for them is obviously

a chaotic one where dreams and aspirations of people remain unrealised. They have all seen with

shock and unbelief the endemic corruption, moral decay and political morass that have become

part and parcel of the society. Their main aim in writing these satiric plays, therefore, is to attack

the aforementioned ills in the society. They have committed themselves as writers who are to

restore order in the society which is so much engulfed in socio-political, cultural and economic

problems.

The heroes of the text are the lepers who refuse to accept the social conditions allotted to

them by the dominant ideology. Their resistance becomes a metaphor for resistance against

oppression and domination. Rotimi uses the historical knowledge frame of the 1928 to 1932

„Lepers‟ Rebellion‟ in Nigeria as a background to reveal the struggle by one group to resist the

ideological domination of the other. He uses metaphorical resources to clearly delineate social

boundaries between groups. The CONTAINER image schema is evoked to reveal that the action

of the play takes place within a certain geographical space that has interior boundary, and

exterior structural elements. The physical setting of the play, the General Hospital, the

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participants in the actions and the actions themselves represent the Nigerian nation in

microcosm. The struggle between the lepers and the hospital authorities frame the struggle

between groups in Rotimi‟s society. The play shows the asymmetry in the social relationship

between groups.

At the macro level, the underlying metaphor reveals that Ola Rotimi conceptualises the

Nigerian society as being diseased like the lepers. He wants the reader to perceive Nigeria as an

infectious disease and victims are quarantined so as to contain its spread. Similarly, the Nigerian

state is suffering from a contagious disease and hence other nations of the world isolate it as a

pariah nation. In traditional Africa, leprosy is perceived as a well-deserved nemesis from the

gods for certain wrongdoings; hence, victims of leprosy are isolated and in most cases banished

to the fringe of the community. The image of Nigeria as a disabled nation therefore presupposes

that Nigeria must have offended certain powers; hence, it has to suffer the physical pain of

leprosy and the psychological pain of isolation from the comity of nations. The playwright

further reveals that while the Nigerian nation and its citizens could be conceptualised as

„patients‟, the society also discriminates between „regular patients‟ (13) and leprosy patients,

depending on their social status. While the rich belong to the first, the poor belong to the latter.

The playwright also shows that within the latter group is a further discrimination between

the patients with „skin type…just the surface, the merciful kind‟ (30) of leprosy and those

without fingers and toes (the malignant variant of leprosy). The first group count themselves

luckier than the latter. This is evident in the fight between Jimoh and Alibo over who should

possess the bed of another inmate, Catechist. Having separated the combatants, Harcourt Whyte,

the hero of the play, tells Alibo who is close to Catechist to occupy the bed while Jimoh occupies

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Alibo‟s mat. Jimoh refuses, claiming that Alibo‟s own kind of leprosy is worse: „the gods forbid

it! Why? Mine is the skin type of leprosy, but this man‟s fingers and toes are gone‟ (Rotimi 26).

Harcourt Whyte repudiates that impression by reminding them that „It‟s all a lie my brother – we

are all the same…The baboon laughs at the vulture for the baldness on the vulture‟s head. But

what‟s on the buttock of the baboon? Baldness, brother, baldness. Same thing‟ (30). This

portrays the level of polarisation between groups and within the groups in Rotimi‟s society.

Rotimi uses metonymic configurations to frame the groups in the Nigerian society. The

poor and the despondent of the Nigerian society are conceptualised as the lepers of the text. The

isolation theory shows that the poor and the despairing are perceived by the rich as being as

dangerous and infectious as the disease of leprosy and therefore must be quarantined. The

attempt to silence and brutalise the lepers depicts efforts by the elite and dominant ideologies to

emasculate the poor. The lepers, in their protest letter to the authorities, notes that they have been

victims of utter neglect which befits only a nation where the dignity of man, and the sanctity of

his soul has no value. (Rotimi 37)

Motif of the Medically Challenged in Hopes of the Living Dead

The motif of the medically challenged as used in the play is metaphoric; it circumvents the

„abnormalities‟ in government and society, which lacks the control and organisation found

among the pictured lepers. This is evident in the attempt by the Superintendent of Police to bribe

Harcourt Whyte into signing against the freedom of his „kinsmen‟ for his own personal gain. The

playwright portrays disability not only for some selected few, but extends to everyone in the

society including leaders who indulge in corruption, hence spoiling the image of the country,

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owing to the fact that this type of „disease‟ is more contagious than the supposed leprosy feared

by the abled.

Theme of Social Alienation

Rotimi uses the leper‟s rebellion to frame group resistance against oppression by the elite and the

powerful. In Hopes of the Living Dead, the downtrodden lepers who constitute the “have nots”

explains social alienation as the lepers are simply regarded as socio-economic misfits in the

society. This is not a new theme which characterises many Marxist writers, like Femi Osofisan,

Niyi Osundare, Aminata Sow Fall and the likes, who write to fight against the extremism of class

stratification exhibited by African leaders. The lepers in the play are seen as a threat to the peace

and well-being of the society. Therefore, they are to be taken far away from the General Hospital

in Port Harcourt to the former Infectious Diseases Hospital. This unfair treatment given to them

in the play symbolises every injustice meted out to the masses in Nigeria by their „oppressors‟.

The question asked by Harcourt Whyte during his interrogation by the Police Officer in the play

buttresses this point,

“Throughout this meeting, first the Senior Medical Officer, now you too, the

Superintendent of Police, you have all repeated one word: the “people”. The Senior

Medical Officer spoke of the welfare of the “people”. You have talked about the interest

of the “public”, in service to the “people” to the “people”. When you say the “people”,

the “people‟ my lords, who really do you have in mind?” (46)

Theme of Hope

Despite the fact that the play starts on a note of despair, oppression and depression, there is a

realisation of self-worth and value by the lepers as they seek and fight for the freedom they

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desire, to acquire their own „promised land‟, the land they can call their own. This represents the

voice of hope to the dying Nigeria, which houses both the “abled” and the “disabled”. Everyone

is affected by the leprous state of the country. History records that a lot of bloodshed, pains and

struggles has been done, but there is hope for the future, when the nation will be free from

bondage of European colonialists as explicated in the play. Apart from this, there is also hope for

the political sector of the nation, which lacks order and integrity. The playwright in the last scene

of the play foresee the time when the leprous disease of corruption will be cured and eradicated

from Nigeria.

CHAPTER FOUR

CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF SOYINKA’S THE BEATIFICATION OF AREA BOY

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Biography of Wole Soyinka

Oluwole Akinwande Soyinka better known as Wole Soyinka was born on the 14th of July 1934

in his hometown Isara, Abeokuta of Ogun State Nigeria. He often describes himself as „Ijegba‟ a

combination of Egba and Ijebu. He attended Saint Peter‟s Primary School in his home town and

spent a year at Abeokuta Grammar School before he proceeded to Government College Ibadan.

In 1952, he was admitted into the then University College Ibadan now University of Ibadan

where he studied English, History and Greek. He left Ibadan for Leeds University, United

Kingdom in 1954 where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts English. Today, Soyinka is an icon

of African literature. His literary accomplishment is legendary being unusually versatile in all the

three genres of literature namely drama, prose and poetry. His scholarship in literature was well

rewarded in 1986 with the prestigious award of Noble Prize for Literature, making him the first

African to win that prize. (The Catholic Beacon Vol 3).

There is no doubt that Soyinka has impacted and imparted the Nigerian socio-political

and literary cosmos, both as a political critic, and literary artist, hence, becoming an authority in

the two fields. He has made a name for himself in the Nigerian political history through his use

of literature as a tool for social, economic, religious and political transformation. Soyinka is an

erudite scholar, a literary giant, a fearless crusader for peace and justice, a formidable critic of

bad governance and an uncompromising foe of military regimes in Nigeria. Soyinka has a long

list of publications to his credit. His works to mention a few include the following: The

Interpreters, Season of Anomy, Idanre and Other Poems, A Shuttle in the Crypt, Ogun Abibiman,

Mandela’s Earth, and other poems. Ake, Ibadan, Isara, The Jero Plays, The Road, A Dance of

the Forests, The Swamp Dwellers, A Play of Giants, The Strong Breed and Death and the King’s

Horseman.

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The Treatment of the Military in Soyinka’s The Beatification of Area Boy

In The Beatification of Area Boy, Soyinka, through diverse ideological persuasions and aesthetic

mode, captures the Nigerian experience under the military rule (from January 15, 1966 to May

29, 1999). The military is not only a dominant political force in the country‟s postcolonial

governance, but also a recurrent subject in the Nigerian drama. In the works of Wole Soyinka,

John Pepper Clark, Ola Rotimi, Femi Osofisan, Odia Ofeimun, Niyi Osundare and so on, one is

confronted with tropes of power abuse, economic mismanagement and poverty, among other

legacies of military regimes. Their art also captures the twist in public perception of soldiers.

They were first celebrated initially as „messiahs‟ who rescued the polity from corrupt politicians

in 1966 following the collapse of the first democratic experiment.

Quite understandably, military leaders were initially associated with supererogation

charisma and magical potentials. This is the same frame in which the so-called „native Africans‟

cast past colonial rulers, who in the words of Ekeh were “perceived by most Africans in magico-

religious terms, to dispense good life and to introduce what Africans could not produce” (327).

Thus, the military was seen as succour to the failings of politicians who took over power from

the imperialists. However, the military intervention that Ademoyega describes as a “painless

surgical operation designed to heal a disabled Nigeria” (126) turns out to be a lethal injection.

Shortly after the arrival of the military in the national politics, they became vampires in the

1980s and 1990s, after plunging the nation into political turmoil and economic tribulation. It

became increasingly clear that the military had no solution to the myriad of problems that it

intervened to tackle such as parlous economy, decayed infrastructure, poverty, corruption, ethno-

religious conflicts and nepotism among other ills.

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Furthermore, in Soyinka‟s The Beatification of Area Boy, he draws the attention of the

readers with threnodic feelings, to shattered expectation of democracy and frustrated aspirations

of nationhood. As such, one is confronted with the phenomenal cascading of the erstwhile

„Saviours‟ into the realm of „Vampires‟, and whose total exit from power became mandatory if

the country was to make progress. Our political independence did not wash off the splodge of

patriarchy. Through this play, Soyinka takes cognizance of the age-long trajectory of the

people‟s socio-political development which finds enduring records not only in history and

political treaties, but quite importantly, in the gamut of literary and performing arts. (Adeoti 12)

Soyinka‟s deep involvement in the criticism of military intrusion in government is

common knowledge. His unique approach and unwavering position against the development

attracts comments from both literary critics and political analysts. He fulfils a role Oyin Ogunba

says is meant for a writer. He explains that in a neo-colonial situation where the black bourgeois

and the military simply step into the shoes of receding colonizers, the writer should always stand

by the down-trodden (203). He further says satire is one of Soyinka‟s chief artistic weapons, and

he uses it consistently to expose the cruelties and sufferings of a society in a state of transition.

The features of Soyinka‟s style are his means (204). Therefore, there is no doubt that Soyinka‟s

hallmark is his need to expose and subsequently correct all the social and moral decadence that

stagnate the growth of the people either within the military or the civil populace.

The effect of Soyinka‟s resolution on the military‟s way of thinking and their manner of

perceiving issues is that they fall in line with the societal values. Politically, according to the

playwright, they were not in the position to dictate to the people, as they lack both political

training and democratic instinct. He states that the military messianic role in government is

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nothing but a sham. Soyinka‟s art has exposed different levels of lawlessness and hardship

inflicted on the nation and its citizens by the military. The psyche of the nation has been bruised,

while a lot of people have suffered as groups and individuals. Soyinka comments on yet another

military junta‟s ascendance to power on an occasion and puts his perception of military in

politics in clear words;

Under yet another military regime, society had degenerated into a corrupt, violent and

alienating space that demanded its own space of excoriation and exorcism in the

performance arena. Armed robbery was now accompanied by numbing sadism. The

economy was crumbling but the regime remained indifferent (5).

The effect of Soyinka‟s work is one thing that draws the military attention to him. His

freedom as a citizen suffered enormously. His international passport was seized and he even

went to prison for preaching against the military in politics. The military dose of tyranny was not

limited to individuals, as in the case of Soyinka. The people of Maroko were evicted in 1990.

The eviction attracted the attention of Wole Soyinka, who condemned it as “a naked crime

against humanity”. The incidence later became a sub-theme in his play, The Beatification of Area

Boy, one of the plays used in this study.

According to Soyinka:

The themes in The Beatification of Area Boy are built around the sadistic susceptibility of

Nigeria‟s contemporary society, a collective hysteria that has resulted in an epidemic of

public lynching for imaginary crimes and the erasure of Maroko from the face of the

earth (1).

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The injustice suffered by the citizens of the nation under military leadership is obvious

and most critics therefore are of the opinion that the military should be stopped. The taming of

the military should not be left in the hands of a single individual; otherwise it will not be

successful. It calls for the presentation of a common front against a common enemy. Its removal

from the political scene should not be a one-man suicidal attempt, but a collective and safe one.

History is replete with situations where the arms bowed to the will of the people, and until men

in uniform are recognised as ordinary mortals with limitations like the civilians, the gun will

continue to hold sway.

In addition, the play looks at the country in general, it is beyond the advocacy against the

lawlessness of the military alone, but also the civilian government. We have successfully raised

another set of „military‟, not in „khaki‟ but in flowing „agbada‟, the civilian government which

has not brought any better advancement. There is more poverty, physical and moral degradation

that leads to the creation of „Area Boys‟. There is a bit of area boy in every person who lacks, the

„haves-not‟ or better expressed the poor, and the society is responsible for creating them, hence,

it must find ways of curing and beautifying them into a desired group. The play indicts the

government, whether military or civilian, as agents that have brought collapse and decay in the

Nigerian society with the focal lens on deficient leadership which we „enjoy‟ in our Nation.

Moreover, according to Ahmed Yerima‟s comment on the play in an interview, he reveals:

Soyinka always has an alternative society presented in his works…Beatification of the

Area Boy is almost a contrast to that, the characters are not rich people, which does not

make him Marxist though, but the characters are common people. I always see the play in

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the light of leadership, and that leaders are not only in high places, but they exist within.

And if good leaders are not chosen, the society will be destroyed. (3)

The problem of poor leadership in the Soyinka‟s play is contemporary, realistic, but also

a satirical representation of the Nigerian society, one that has not got any better since

independence. Our society today has been stripped of all positives and the play opens on a

symbolical note of much-needed purification. Images of deplorable sanitation, poverty, drug

trafficking and rampant corruption are clear statements that there is something rotten in our

society. The theme of failed military leadership is quite obvious in the play. To establish this

theme, Soyinka likens the activities of the soldiers to those of the „Area Boys‟. In fact, the image

of the military represented before the end of the play is worse than that of the Area Boys.

THEMES IN THE BEATIFICATION OF AREA BOY: A LAGOSIAN KALEIDOSCOPE

Theme of failed Military Leadership

In Nigerian context, an „Area Boy‟ is synonymous with a social miscreant and associated with

lawlessness and gangsterism. Soyinka captures who the real „Area Boys‟ are, in Miseyi‟s

statement:

Those bullies? Enforcers and extortionists? Thugs, yes, sheer thugs. Ready to serve the

highest bidder. They make potholes on the middle of the road, then extract money from

union officers for their spirited service in filling them up. They break your windscreen if

you don‟t pay up or slash your tyre. They rip necklace off your neck in a traffic holdup or

snatch your watch. They are robbers. Daylight robbers. No better than armed robbers.

That‟s the kind of people you consort with? Or is it worse…(102)

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It is the acquisition of the „Area Boy‟ traits by the military in the play that first makes the

title relevant to the play. In other words, the „Area Boy‟ concept has been „elevated‟ through the

military who themselves are „Area Boys‟ in uniform controlling the affairs of a state. The

military men become a kind of honoured and glorified „Area Boys‟. They are „Area Boys‟ in

practice; the only difference is their uniforms. This notion is completed in the lawlessness and

immorality presented through the words of the military officer to his ADC;

I ought to have you court-martialed. I ordered you to stay and handle it personally! And

you want to take him to a police station where he will intimidate them and regain his

freedom? The fool interfered with my uniforms. He touched it_do you understand that?

He pulled my sleeve; he placed his bloody civilian hands on my uniform. And all you

want to do is take him to the police station? Didn‟t you hear me say he was to be given

the special treatment? (77)

In the play, Soyinka uses this concept to further satirise the military who failed woefully in

governance. To achieve his aim, Soyinka creates two parallel societies which are „Area Boys‟ led

by „Sanda‟ and the larger society led by the military. Sanda‟s leadership in the „Area Boy‟

community is people-oriented. His concern for and commitment to his people is not doubtable.

Sanda though an „area boy‟ has a positive approach to leadership. He is selfless; he is concerned

about the condition of his people and their standard of living. All these attributes bring honour

and respect to him. Thus, he has beatified the „Area Boys‟ ideology; hence Soyinka makes The

Beatification of Area Boy appropriate as the title of the play.

From Soyinka‟s perspective, Sanda offers better governance than the military, the self

acclaimed messiahs. Soyinka contrasts Sanda‟s “government” with that of the military and the

comparison enables him to highlight the extent to which the socio-political and economic

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systems have suffered under military leadership. He achieves this through the historical allusion

evident in Sanda‟s comment; “So they did it after all. They wiped Maroko settlement off the

surface of the earth…there is no more Maroko. It‟s in this evening paper”. (56)

The playwright employs a sharp allusion to Maroko to paint the tragic experience of

Nigerians during the military regime. This episode in reality once attracted Soyinka‟s anger. He

explains that the centrepiece of the military regime is criminality, a government that got so

obsessed to the point of evicting nearly a million inhabitants of “shanty town”, a seaside location

at Lagos, which is replaced in Beatification of Area Boy as Maroko. In the play, the military

comes up with a humanitarian intention. It claims that Maroko is a disaster zone, and for the

people to remain safe they had to be evicted from their homes. The plan by the military to avert

disaster and make the Maroko inhabitants secure appears laudable at first, and sounds

humanitarian, but the manner in which the project is executed leaves much suspicion. The

hypocritical act by the military in the play addresses an unperceived posture of man‟s animalistic

nature in treating another fellow human.

Thus, Maroko inhabitants are forcefully evicted but not relocated by the government. To

the military men, the Maroko inhabitants stood as obstacles to their selfish interest, this of

course, was an unpardonable crime to the Military men who prided themselves as rightful lords

over the land, which they must claim by brutal force. The true intention of the military‟s interest

in Maroko is exposed, as it becomes evident that the supposed government „policy‟ on Maroko is

to benefit the rich, rather than the masses. This is their underlying motivation in getting rid of the

people at all and any cost. The plan to acquire Maroko at all cost is gluttonous. Their approach is

systematic; their sadistic act starts with the eviction, but did not stop there, they destroyed what

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is left of the properties belonging to the inhabitants, and includes the threat to exterminate them.

This is evident in this comment;

Those miserable items that they managed to salvage_smash them up. Pile them up and

make a bonfire of them. If there‟s any resistance, don‟t be stingy with the bullets. I want a

bonfire sunset here to rival the sunrise we donated to Maroko this morning let them know

the army‟s fully in charge. (85)

The threat of bullets is incomparable to the aching effect of false military‟s avowed goal

to change the destiny of the inhabitants for better. This use of cunning propaganda brought the

military into the political scene of Nigeria in the first place. Bullets meant to threaten criminals

or enemies during wartime are the instruments used on the Maroko people in a time of peace.

Soyinka through this motif is indirectly questioning the use of arms on harmless and defenceless

citizens. He considers it a threat to human rights in an ideal society. Also, it is noteworthy that

the vampire-like attitude of the military men in the play is motivated by a mere wedding event

involving one of the military stooges which might spread to disaster area. The picture of this

sadistic man-hunt is captured by one of the officers;

I come here to supervise the arrangement and what do I meet? A bunch of Maroko

refugees and filthy loads clogging the place. So I ordered them to move on. They are

stretched out all the way to the marina they must have come up the marina through

Victoria island-it would take at least an hour at the slow pace they „re moving and some

already thinking of camping under the flyaway (78).

In The Beatification of Area Boy, Soyinka dwells extensively on the Maroko experience

to create a caricature of the barbaric and bestial nature of a government which suffocates her

citizenry through various forms of oppression in Nigeria. Maroko inhabitants become symbolic

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of the oppressed and deprived under the military leadership and elsewhere. In Sanda‟s statement,

the meaning of Maroko is explained, “the real work will be with Maroko, not just that Maroko,

but the Maroko all around, the eternal nightmare of a Maroko to which one wakes everyday”

(103). Sanda is an inspirational leader, a motivator and a selfless servant of the people. As

Soyinka‟s rallying point for social struggle in the play, he carries his leadership role beyond the

„Area Boys‟ enclave. He intends to identify with Maroko evictees to enable him to fight for their

cause and seek redress in the injustice meted out to them. His proposition to Miseyi reveals this

position.

Sanda‟s idea of working towards a compensation for the Maroko people is a positive one.

To further lampoon the military, Soyinka therefore uses the Maroko experience to present the

military as a bunch of uncivilized and lawless men who treat the laws of the land with levity. The

Maroko inhabitants branded as dregs of the society are civilized enough to seek redress in the

court of law. They won their case, and the court ordered the military government to stay clear of

Maroko. But out of arrogance and lack of respect for the law, the military did not. Lawlessness is

the hallmark of Nigerian militarism. It is not limited to rejecting judicial rulings but it extends to

the military‟s trampling on social, spiritual and economic institutions. The road is sealed because

of a wedding ceremony, yet it receives a state support under the auspices of the military.

Through this play Wole Soyinka also points out to the irremovable scars caused by the

civil wars in Nigeria. The violence and deaths which accompanied these wars left indelible

marks on the soul of individuals who were affected by the wars. The conversation between

Sanda and Mama Put clarifies this point. Wars are the most unjust ways of propagating power

because a lot of innocent lives, livelihood and homes are wasted for n reason.

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Soyinka portrays the ravages of the war. Wars are always destructive. The war referenced

in this play is the civil war in Nigeria. After two military coups in 1966, conflicts over political

power in the North led to massacres of the Igbo and others in the East who were working in the

commerce and administration of the region. The killings in the north led to the mass exodus of

Igbos to their homeland. This action results into a revolt by the Eastern tribe to stand as

independent State off the country which culminated into a clash with the Federal Government

troop and brought a devastating war which claimed the lives of thousands of Nigerians,

especially civilians. The war ended with the unconditional subjugation of Biafra in January 1990.

The wounds of the war may have healed, but the scars remain. The memory of cruelties,

insecurity and psychological traumas will probably last a lifetime for the people who went

through this war. Mama Put is Soyinka‟s icon of the effect of these wars.

Mama Put: Medal! And what would I do with that? Keep your medals and give me back-

yes even the mangrove swamps (Sudden harshness. She waves the bayonet violently

around). And don‟t remind me of medals! They plundered the livestock, uprooted yams

and cassavas and what did they plant in their place? The warm bodies of our loved ones.

My husband among them. My brothers. (21)

The grief of losing a loved one leaves Mama Put defensive. She arms herself throughout the play

with the bayonet used in murdering her brother. There is a limit to which people can be pushed;

it is not strange that the play ends with a revolutionary attack on the military men, because the

annoyance of the aggrieved characters is an accumulated one. Mama Put points out that the

bombshells that killed people from the pilot‟s hands have no one‟s name written on them. During

the Civil War, the youths in the nation were brutally massacred and later came the plague on the

oil rigs, which caused a mass destruction of farmlands and water pollution. This was the reality

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of Lagos and a number of other African nations during the military upsurge. This is part of the

reason behind the inconsequential treatment on human lives in the Nigeria, which is

accompanied with insecurity. The protest of the Ogoni against the environmental destruction by

oil companies in their land, attracted international attention. Ken Saro Wiwa (writer, civil rights

activist, and Ogoni ethnic supporter) brought international focus to this destruction, but was

rewarded by execution with eight other compatriots by the military junta. Apart from this

activist, notable individuals like Dele Giwa, Moshood Kasimawo Abiola and others were not

spared to narrate their horrors during this regime. This misdeed of the Nigerian military damaged

their reputation considerably in foreign politics and this is one among many reasons why

Soyinka wanted the „monsters‟ divested of all power.

Class Stratification

The archetypal concept of class stratification in African Drama finds ample expression in Wole

Soyinka‟s The Beatification of Area Boy: A Lagosian Kaleidoscope. The physical setting of this

play, opulent shopping complex alongside made shift stalls, informs the readers on class

stratification. The characters of Barber, Trader, Mama Put, Boyko and Judge constitute the lower

class who are constrained to such degraded location, while Big Man Shopper and the Military

Agents, the upper class enjoys the pleasure of the shopping complex. The physical disparity in

the settings introduces the human concept of class and class struggle. The military agents and the

likes of Big Man Shopper belong to the class known for affluence and illegal acquisition of

wealth while the lower class is relegated to the background because they are “no forces to reckon

with” both politically and socially. The distance between the make shift stalls and the shopping

complex implies that oppressive gap can be bridged to allow a fair cohabitation of these groups

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but the upper class will not support such. The unnamed baby that is trampled to death in the

stampede of the Maroko market pilgrims could not be identified in terms of its gender, hence the

baby is regarded to as “it”, this is symbolic of the faceless and classless individuals who are

silenced and relegated into the background in a class-driven society. The struggle to keep up the

class stratification by the upper class is also identified in the intended marriage between the two

wealthy families. Miseyi‟s betrothal to the Bridegroom is not based on love but a sacrifice to

maintain the family ties among the upper class.

Oppression

This has remained one of the most paramount issues of post colonial Africa because of the

intimidating stance of the ruling class. It is a norm and culture among African leaders to

administer oppression on their subjects in diverse forms. This theme is presented in the play,

though there is a revolt against this obnoxious act. In The Beatification of Area Boy: A Lagosian

Kaleidoscope, the forceful ejection of the masses from Maroko market clearly exemplifies the

oppressive intents of the military. More so, the brutality experienced by Judge from the military

agents is another form of oppression. The closure of the highway by the military Governor for

the intended marriage between the Bridegroom and Miseyi is in line with the self gratifying

intent of the military and African leaders in general even at the expense of the masses.

Exploitation

The issue of exploitation is an integral part of such social vices as class stratification, oppression

and intimidation, which is a common phenomenon among the ruling elites in the African society.

In The Beatification of Area Boy: A Lagosian Kaleidoscope, the exploitative posture of the

military powers remains the reason for the under-employment and unemployment that dominates

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Sanda‟s society. The massive exploitation of the ruling class glorifies the season of anomy in

Sanda‟s society. The climax of this exploitative dogma results in the planned wedding between

Miseyi and the Bridegroom as the military agents comes to the event to exhibit the looted

treasury of the nation. This socio-political issue continues to linger in the contemporary Nigerian

political sector.

Moral Decadence

The setting of the play is a typology of a morally decadent society in which all forms of social

vices thrive and the recycling of the vicious activities of military mediocre, the degenerated

leadership of the supposed leaders of the nation is visible. The conditions under which Sanda

incites revolutions against the military oppressors cannot be better described than a sick and

contoured society. The atmospheres in the two plays are characterised by military dictatorship,

anarchy, hardship, exploitation, struggle and other woes; hence the common man is left to

struggle for survival either by fair or foul means. In The Beatification of Area Boy: A Lagosian

Kaleidoscope, the concept of moral decadence is presented in the ritual/money-making episode

where a victim claims that his genitals have been collected by the accused for rituals, in the quest

for wealth. Though this episode equally x-rays the level of superstition in the society, it is a

common phenomenon in the present day society. Sanda also identifies these foul means of

money making in the following words: “cocaine, 419 swindle, Godfatherism or motherism,

armed robbery. He explains, “Or after a career with the police or the army, if you are lucky to

grab a political post” (14).

Proletarian Revolution

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The primary concern of the revolutionary characters in this play is to exert their will against the

oppressions of the military leaders and create an abode for themselves in the face of the societal

mortality. This revolutionary concern takes the form of a fierce agitation against the agents of the

governments in the play to abhor all forms of social inequality and injustice and allow a fair co-

habitation of the inhabitants. In The Beatification of Area Boy: A Lagosian Kaleidoscope, Sanda

carves a beatified society within the larger one which is corrupt as a form of protest against the

dictatorship of the leaders of the larger society.

Religious Concerns

It is an established fact that African Drama uses religion as one of its primary subjects for satire.

This is informed by the corrupt practices in the religious setting in the African continent. In The

Beatification of Area Boy: A Lagosian Kaleidoscope, Soyinka equally attacks religious leaders

who use their position to exploit their congregation as Sanda suggests that one can get rich

quickly by opening a private church or mosque. These exploitative potentials of the ruling class

in the political settings are equally evident in religious institutions.

Economic Mortality

The play evaluates the fragmentation in the nation‟s economy, characterised by unmitigated

poverty, inflation, money laundering and a general annihilation of the currency. In The

Beatification of Area Boy: A Lagosian Kaleidoscope, Trader makes the following statement:

“…we currency done fall again, petrol dey scarcity, which mean to say, transport fare done

double. As for foodstuff and other commodity, even garri wey be poor man diet… I need small

time to put new prize for all dese goods” (p.35). The expression of Trader paints a clear picture

that the economy of the nation is in shambles.

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CHAPTER FIVE

CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF OSOFISAN’S MOROUNTODUN

Introduction

Femi Osofisan ranks among the foremost contemporary Nigerian dramatists. He is a prolific and

radical writer who addresses the socio-political problems in contemporary Nigerian society. The

interest to undertake a Marxist perspective on Osofisan‟s work is predicated by the Marxist

influence which informs most of his works. This is an influence which places Marxism as the

ideology of the proletariat, a formidable weapon in the struggle for social progress and the

world‟s reconstruction along new and just lines. The Marxist philosophy, therefore, is a

revolutionary philosophy which places the destiny of the proletariat in their own hands.

Osofisan‟s dramas underscore the utility of art as agency for conscientisation and social

mobilisation. Through his works which are mainly influenced by European writers like Bertolt

Brecht, he evinces his belief in the power of literature or theatre to enlighten and spur the masses

to take decisive actions in combating and changing a plaguing and oppressive system which does

not favour them (Gbilekaa 102). Morountodun therefore, encapsulates this belief.

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The Marxist conflict postulation “emphasises a materialist interpretation of history, a

dialectical method of analysis, a critical stance towards existing social arrangements, and a

political program of revolution”. Terry Eagleton sums up the essence of the Marxist theory by

saying, “is a scientific theory of human societies and of the practice of transforming them” (7). It

is a revolutionary philosophy which places the destiny of the proletariats in their own hands.

Thus, unless they put up a concerted and formidable fight to effect a necessary change in their

condition, they will continue to languish under the bondage of the capitalist oppression and

tyranny.

On the background of this Marxist philosophy, therefore, and in recognition of the

pressure of the class structure of society and the exigent need for decisive action, artists with the

instrumentality of their works have come to align in „arms‟ in the fight against capitalist

oppression. Emeka Nwabueze in affirmation has drawn attention to Osofisan‟s enlistment in the

struggle when he observes that with his works, he “has consistently attempted to arouse

revolutionary consciousness in his readers and audience” (77) alike; as one who is

“spontaneously drawn to social injustice and its victims” (6). The picture which Osofisan paints

of his society with his works, therefore, portrays him as a dramatist with a sensitive eye for the

problems of his society. So “art” says Buhkarin “is as much a product of the social life” (205).

Drama as the most social of art forms, therefore, serves as a true reflection of the human

society. The artist, therefore, cannot afford to be indifferent to the nature of the social realities on

whose framework he creates. In other words, he cannot write without a consciousness of the

prevailing chaos that besieges his environment. Thus he draws his themes from issues inherent in

the society, in what Lukin calls artistic figurative representation of reality. These problems are

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socio-political and economic in nature. Hence it is these problems to which he has committed

himself to really probe, that actually and “consistently places the aspirations of the

underprivileged at his drama‟s central reference point” (67).

Biography of Femi Osofisan

Femi Osofisan was born on the 16th

of June, 1946. He attended his primary and secondary

schools in Ilesha, Ile-Ife, and Eruwon. Then he proceeded to Government College, Ibadan. He

attended the University of Senegal and obtained a bachelor degree in French in 1969 and a

doctorate in 1974. He also attended the University of Paris III between 1971 and 1973. In 1973

he became a member of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Ibadan, in the Theatre Arts

Department. He has also been a visiting professor at a number of universities in Africa, Europe

and the United States. His many academic and writing honours include visiting fellowships at

Cambridge in 1986 and Cornell in 1992. He was a participant in the IOWA international writer‟s

program in 1986, artist in residence at Napoule, France, in 1990 and a guest writer at the Japan

Foundation in 1991. (Gbilekaa 102)

He is an author of several stage plays as well as many television plays, poetry, short

plays, and two longer pieces of prose fiction. Osofisan is among the most prolific and influential

of the new generation of Yoruba writers writing in English. This new generation of writers

include the likes of Kole Omotosho and Bode Sowande who began to write in the 1970s and

whose work challenged the work of the first generation of post-independence Nigerian writers

such as Wole Soyinka and J.P. Clark by taking a more overtly political stand. He was

instrumental in developing the style and form of the English-language drama initiated in Nigeria

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by Soyinka in the early 1960s, and in making contemporary Nigerian drama engage directly with

the problems of bringing about social and radical political changes.

As a social and literary critic, Osofisan is usually categorised with the other exponents of

the so-called bolekaja (combat) criticism, such as Omotosho, Osundare, Jeyifo, and Ofeimum.

These „young‟ writers and critics opposed what they saw as the lack of commitment to social

change in the first generation of Nigerian critics and writers. (Gbilekaa 102). Nevertheless, some,

like Osofisan, continued to draw on the techniques and themes of the earlier writers, especially

Soyinka, whose influence Osofisan acknowledged even as he disputed the social and political

effects of what he perceived to be Soyinka‟s reification of mythic readings of culture and his

tendency to idealize the role of the sacrificial hero in effecting the social change. For Osofisan,

Soyinka failed to engage with the forces of myth and history in a critical and interrogative way.

Although Osofisan incorporates Yoruba history and mythology into his plot structure, he seeks to

radicalize these sources, often inverting their effect by turning them on their heads.

Playwrights like Osofisan in the 1960s and 1970s wanted to see everyday problems of

corruption and political incompetence become part of the subject of drama. They were also

determined to take the theatre away from the campuses and larger towns and bring it more

directly to the people. Despite these progressive concerns, they often drew upon historical and

legendary materials to effect their claims (Gbilekaa 102). Osofisan‟s Marxist stand in relation to

Yoruba history and mythology is identified in his 1979 play, Morountodun (published in 1983)

in which he reorders the traditional story of the legendary Moremi so that at the end of the

version of his play, the position of the rebellious peasants is endorsed. In Osofisan‟s retelling, the

hero Titubi parallels the heroine of the original story, Moremi. But unlike Moremi, Titubi recants

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this role when she sees the poverty and misery of the people, and she uses her position to aid the

rebels. Also, in the revised 1974 edition of Red is the Freedom Road, he acknowledges the

complexities of the recent history of rebellions for “freedom” in Nigeria. The play uses two

soldiers as commentators. Standing aside from the revolt, they cynically change sides according

to the flow of events and comment sardonically on the disillusionment of many Nigerians with

the promises of coups and revolutions to bring about freedom and change.

Historical context in Morountodun

Femi Osofisan‟s play, Morountodun is a historical play that re-enacts the Agbekoya Parapo

Revolt of 1968–1969, popularly known as Agbekoya or the Egbe Agbekoya Revolt, a peasant

revolt in the former Western region of Nigeria, home to majority of the Yoruba population. This

unforgettable peasant-driven revolt continues to be referenced by grassroots organisations as a

successful example of collective action against unpopular government policies. The revolt was

predominantly aimed at agitating for a reduction in taxes, though some believed it had political

undertones to it. (Adeniran, 30)

During the 1950s, the colonial government of Nigeria established local commodity

depots in many parts of the country. The depots served as stores of exchange for goods bought

by the government from farmers. The Western region flourished as one of the world's most

prolific producers of cocoa, and the regional government hoped to increase its tax revenues on

farmers by regulating the sale of the crop through state-regulated agricultural cooperatives, also

known as Marketing boards. Most of the products sold were to undergo a process of grading,

examination, and sometimes bargaining before purchase. Against this backdrop, a farmers'

organization was created to represent the interest of the farmers within the new marketing

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system. Translated from Yoruba, Agbekoya Parapo means "the union of farmers who reject

suffering” (Adeniran, 30). The association was an umbrella to indigenous system of work

cooperatives akin to trade unionism and drew on a tradition of occupational guilds that had

regulated working standards and policies for centuries in the region. Yoruba workers in various

professions traditionally organised themselves into “egbes”, peer groups and guilds that

protected the interests of their members in situations that required collective action (Panter-

Brick, 35).

During the early part of Nigeria's independence, a systematic approach to solving the

general problems of the region was taken by the Action Group, the leading political party in the

Western Region. Many roads leading to villages were tarred, credits were extended to

cooperative societies, and schools were equipped for better education. However, as the Nigerian

political scene became more volatile with the jailing of foremost political leader Chief Obafemi

Awolowo, the 1966 coup, and the beginning of the Biafran War, politicians came to view the

farmers as pawns to be used for electoral advantage. The local depot officials also began to

present themselves as minor vassal lords, demanding bribes and other concessions from farmers

before accepting their harvest for sale. The provided amenities began to slide towards deplorable

conditions, even though the government continued to demand taxes for their upkeep (Adeniran,

30).

Members of the loose farming guilds that eventually coalesced into Agbekoya first

developed more militant tactics during an epidemic of swollen-shoot disease on cocoa

plantations during the 1950s. Calling themselves the Maiyegun or ('Life Enrichment' League),

they resisted attempts by government representatives to destroy affected trees on the premise that

farmers could not afford to lose their crops without compensation. Several violent clashes

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occurred before the matter was settled in favour of the league. As the local depots became

institutions in the economic life of average farmers, the organisation and many other peasants

continued to complain about other oppressive measures by the government.

The primary problem encountered by farmers was the arbitrary standards used for

examination, which meant that significant amounts of harvested cocoa were discarded as unfit

for sale; hence they were rewarded with low prices for the accepted produce that reached the

marketplace. The farmers complained about the neglected roads that led to the depots. In

addition to this injustice, they were also compelled to pay outrageous taxes, a hefty imposition

during times of economic uncertainty.

On assumption of political office, the military government sought to correct the perceived

failures of the previous administration by many, including the peasants. Some political elites

were soon ejected from political participation. Also, a few university-educated citizens began to

emerge as a result of the education policies of the region in the 1950s (Adeniran, 30). The

combination of these elites, mixed with a much more sophisticated leadership among Agbękoya

Parapo, created a juxtaposition of sort and a stronger political movement was born. The

Agbękoya leaders of the time were: Mustapha Okikirungbo, Tafa Popoola, Adeniyi Eda,

Adeagbo Kobiowo, Rafiu Isola and Mudasiru Adeniran. The leaders decided to set an

organisational target as follows:

The removal of local government officials pillaging their villages

The removal of some compromised Baales

A reduction of the flat Tax rate from $8

An end to the use of force in tax collection

An increase in the prices of cocoa

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An improvement of the roads leading to many villages

The peasants shouted Oke mefa laosan! Oke mefa laosan! (“We are only paying 30

shillings!”) as they marched through the village after village to persuade the local farmers not to

pay any taxes to the military governor of the Western state. These peasants were led by their

ringleaders: Adegoke Akekuejo, Tafa Adeoye, Folarin Idowu, Mudasiru Adeniran and Tafa

Popoola. Soon, some farmers and their leaders gradually left the villages and marched towards

Mapo hall, the seat of the regional government. There, they ransacked the offices of officials,

declaring that they would only pay $1.10. Mayhem then descended on the capital city and many

villages.

To curtail further violence, the government employed the use of force and violence to

quell the uprising and arrested some of the Agbękoya leaders. However, farmers took to violent

reprisals on government structures, and as a result, many officials were killed. The Agbękoya era

consumed the Western Nigerian political landscape at the time when the nation was on the verge

of collapse, as the government battled the Biafran soldiers. To show their grievances against the

military government, the Agbękoya attacked major state buildings like: court houses and

government building, setting free thousands of prisoners alongside their jailed members.

However, the release of Chief Obafemi Awolowo helped to quell the riots, as he negotiated

directly with the movement's leaders (Panter-Brick 35).

The aftermath of the riots resulted in the removal of local government official

administering the villages, removal of Baales, reduction in flat tax rate, end of the use of force

for tax removal, increase in price of cocoa and the improving of roads leading to the villages.

The government at the time agreed to these concessions. The uprising on the long run was seen

as unique and dynamic revolution which yielded positive outcome and benefited the farmers

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eventually. A manifestation viewed as an overtly class-based clash between the government and

the oppressed.

Fusion of Myth and History in Morountodun

Osofisan‟s Morountodun being a commissioned play to commemorate the „International Year of

Women‟ (Gbilekaa 105), is a marriage of myth and history on Moremi, a mythical figure, a

remarkable woman of pristine qualities, sensual, valiant and selfless character who imprints her

epic and remarkable achievement on a contemporary historical precedent in which an equally

valiant and selfless policewoman whose humble origin was achieved, in service of the state by

aiding the capture of the leader of the Agbekoya revolt of 1969- Tafa Adeoye. However,

Osofisan artistically merged the two historical precedents to make a fundamental political

comment on social realities and intra-class relations in his society. By bringing the past to bear

on contemporary developments, Osofisan is able to demonstrate how the complex nature of neo-

colonial Nigerian society is built on a structure of mass exploitation which is nourished in

contemporary life by neo-capitalist industrial development perpetuated by the state in

collaboration with the comprador bourgeois to the chagrin of the masses (Gbilekaa 102).

Osofisan therefore, pursues myth and history to examine the various kinds of

revolutionary motivations and to highlight which revolutionary optimism represents a true

socialist spirit. This is relayed through a parallel between the legendary Moremi and Titubi.

Moremi, the legend of Ile-Ife, wife to Oranmiyan the Ooni of Ife who saved her people from the

Igbo hegemony, she willingly allowed herself to be captured in order to unravel their mystery of

invincibility. She succeeded in her espionage mission and through it the people of Ife were able

to break free from the coercive and domineering rule of the marauders. Osofisan is of the opinion

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that Moremi undertook the mission to protect her own class interest. At the beginning of the

play, Titubi too is cast in this same role. But through the process of class suicide, she undergoes

a radical change to denounce what Moremi stood for. This is summed up in the statement below:

And that was it. I knew at last I had won. I knew I had to kill the ghost of Moremi in my

belly. I am not Moremi! Moremi served the state, was the state, was the spirit of the

ruling class. But it is not true that the state is always right...(Osofisan 70).

Thus, Osofisan has radicalised the concept of heroism by dispensing with the class

ambience of the legend. What he has retained is the selfless leadership and courage of Moremi

jettisoning her class ambience, and also elevating the peasants to a heroic status. Furthermore,

the play projects and encourages cooperation between the male and female gender in achieving

their set goals. Although socialist preaches equality of sexes and their unity in achieving a

socialist state, the application of it in the play should be viewed in a dual context. The play

project the role of women in a male chauvinistic society such as Nigeria. By digging into the

archival history of Moremi, the playwright shows that women has a major contribution to

societal developments and that, Nigerian women are capable of repeating noble feats. He

debunks the African notion that restricts women to domestic duties and for carnal satisfactions

alone.

Osofisan’s Marxist Revolutionary Philosophy in Morountodun

Morountodun is a revolutionary play, but the major concern in the play is the social role or

struggle played by women (as symbolised by Titubi) in the course of the revolution. The play

opens with a theatre group trying to put up a play about the farmers‟ uprising in Nigeria. The

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director is on stage, giving last minute instructions to the cast and crew members, and telling the

audience what the play is going to be about. In the course of doing this, Titubi (the spoilt

daughter of a business tycoon) saunters in with her entourage of women and challenges the

director about the play. She, in fact, attempts to disrupt the play, insisting that the play insults her

class and so must be stopped. The police eventually arrives and Titubi is challenged by the police

superintendent to use her wealth and courage (if she has any) to save her class rather than harass

innocent and harmless people who merely come to put up a play. The superintendent says to her:

…if you are really serious if you really want to save your fat-arsed class, why haven‟t

you offered your service to crush this peasant revolt? You know there is a battle going on

now, don‟t you?... But you don‟t volunteer to help in fighting them. This mere wooden

platform is your battlefield. Shit… (Osofisan 13-14).

Titubi out of sheer exuberance accepts the challenge and agrees to infiltrate the ranks of

the fighting farmers so as to discover who their real leader is and the source of their ammunition

and report back to the police. That is, the plan that Titubi should pretend to be a nurse who has

been arrested for killing her own children so that when the peasants break into the city prison as

planned to release the prisoners, she will be mistakenly released and taken to the village with

them. Titubi will then live with the farmers for some time and leak out information to the police

to defeat the uprising that was costing the bourgeoisie so much pain to end. This plan is

successfully carried out and Titubi actually lives with the farmers for a while. In the process

however, Titubi goes through a conversion as she begins to ask questions:

…I saw myself growing up, knowing no such sufferings as these. With always so much

to eat, even servants feed their dogs… yet here, farmers cannot eat their own products,

for they need the money from the market (Osofisan 66).

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Having lived with the farmers, she has come to love them for their simplicity and hard

work. Hence, she “commits class suicide” just like Miseyi in Soyinka‟s The Beatification of Area

Boy, which implies that she must now be on the side of the rebels in spite of the Government‟s

superior arms, because she believes that anybody fighting a just cause can never lose in the end.

For her then, this means renouncing her own family and friends, her social and political class,

and joining forces with the very people she used to fight against, that is, the farmers and the

downtrodden. She becomes a rebel against her own people, and against the State.

Morountodun encapsulates the theme of social change, a case of social revolution. The

government is forced to negotiate with the farmers at the end of the play. By presenting the

suffering of the peasants in the camp, Osofisan raises Titubi‟s new consciousness in the play and

enlists her in the revolution. Through this consciousness also, he invokes our sympathy towards

the farmers‟ cause, the cause of the oppressed in the society. Osofisan‟s mediation between the

characters of legendary Moremi and „fictional‟ Titubi is in effect a recreation of myth. Here he

subverts myth for a revolutionary purpose, turning the old legend upside-down and giving it a

radical treatment in order to achieve a new social vision by raising the revolutionary

consciousness of his characters and audience alike.

Thus through his artistic technique and social vision, Osofisan makes Titubi instrumental

to this social change in order to raise the consciousness of his audience towards change. He

employs myth ironically, treating it in the context of social perspective as to promote the spirit of

collectivism or mass mobilisation, and ideologically re-orientate them in order to foster social

revolution. Herein lies the relevance of the revolution which Osofisan advocates. Morountodun

re-enacts the socio-political and economic realities of our time. It presents “reality from … class

position” (Udenta 35), and emphasizes an inequitable society where the masses that produce the

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wealth starve and are deprived only to maintain an oppressive government. Osofisan‟s advocacy

of collectivism in this social revolution is symbolized in Titubi‟s handing over the gun to

Marshal in the hope of establishing a new alliance for the betterment of the masses for which

cause they are fighting. This may have been borne out of her conviction that the government

cannot, “win a war against a people whose cause is just” (70).

At the end, Osofisan favours a compromised agreement, a round table negotiation

between the revolting farmers and the government. This is an advocacy for social revolution or

perhaps resolution than total revolution, the effecting of certain changes in an inequitable system

that does not favour the masses that produce the wealth of the society. In Morountodun therefore,

the theme of revolution as sine qua non in an inequitable society runs through the play. It is

equally important to also note, that by looking closely at the character, Titubi, we see an enviable

model of all that is positive and revolutionary. Even, the name, „Titubi‟ is symbolic. On a literal

level, this name suggests „a rebirth‟ and a re-awakening. After getting radically transformed

through her interaction with the farmers, she is renamed „Morountodun‟ another symbolic name.

Morountodun means “I have found a sweet thing” and this „sweet‟ thing is the revolutionary

alternative that the struggle of the farmers proposes. The character Morountodun, therefore,

stands for all that is positive and good. She is a symbol of the rejection of anything that is

repugnant, repressive, reactionary or stereotypic.

The disillusionment of Osofisan with Marxist Ideals in Morountodun

The play Morountodun, debunks the much touted assumptions of Osofisan by his readers and

critics that his plays are pure Marxist dramaturgy. This research argues that though Osofisan is a

Marxist writer who demands social change in favour of the oppressed and the downtrodden

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masses in the society as the themes of his plays express, the selected play lacks Marxist spirit to

a significant degree. Moreover, as a dramatist, Osofisan‟s theory of aesthetics is sometimes

compromised by practice.

Like other theatre scholars, past and present, who have the singular task of making their

societies conducive for human habitation, Osofisan focuses his energies on themes such as

injustice and oppression, self reliance, corruption, treachery, determination, collaboration,

revolution, compassion, among others in their works. The time has gone when writers or poets

were seen as mere entertainers or people not fit to live in an ideal republic but are banished for

simple reason that their works were seen as corrupting the minds of the people (The Republic

10). Others also feel that literature is nothing but a mere witnessing of a kind. Okoli comments,

“have never accorded it the force and vision capable of stirring up a revolution” (71). They

thought of the writer as not more important in society as an ordinary dart player.

However, history has changed all these, for the writer has metamorphosed into a

visionary, a soldier, an agent of social change, using his writing as a weapon. Great writers work

for progress by transforming their societies and its conditions, arousing men from their apathy

and servile sentence, delivering them from the shackles of enslaving traditions, religions,

dogmatism and political dictatorship. They often times launch into militant literature, raising

their ideals like a banner, like a light for the people, and pull off a revolutionary change that

leaves the society, wiser and more progressive. Literature on the other hand, which is the product

of the writer‟s thought processes is an excellent tool of propagating ideas and sensitising men to

dream and aspire in their society. It serves both social and political causes that could be used to

hatch and realise revolutions. It has the power to destroy in order to reconstruct. Literature thus

could be said to be a catalyst for social reform as well as a missile against all forms of abuse.

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These tendencies of the writer and of literature are what Marxist ideology strongly seeks to

espouse.

For as Ken Smith submits, “any person seeking to change the world in a socialist

direction, the ideas of Marxism are a vital, even indispensable tool and weapon to assist the

working class in its struggle to change the society” (1). Perhaps there is no doubt that Femi

Osofisan could be classified as a Marxist writer who demands social change in favour of the

oppressed masses in the society as the theme of his plays expresses. But this Marxist ideology is

limited to some degree, contrary to the views of his numerous readers and critics who see him as

a consummate Marxist.

There is no doubt that Osofisan devotes his plays to championing the proletariat revolt

against oppressive state structures. His drama charges the poor and the downtrodden to shake off

the shackles of docile acceptance of the tyranny and authority, and rebuff the oppressor and all

his agents. The plays seek to evoke instant change by inciting the audience to action, using

technique and language as vehicles. The main objective for such usage, according to Awodiya,

“is to dislodge and alter the status quo, by sensitizing the oppressed, to revolt against the

oppressor” (25).

As a Marxist or revolutionary writer, Osofisan strongly believes that for a harmonious

coexistence, the system of deprivation that pauperises the people through economic exploitation

must be changed through forceful means. He also believes as well as recommends, in the opinion

of Oshioke, “the overthrow of any draconian government that dehumanizes and exploits the

masses which could be a viable solution to the exploitation in the social system” (5).

His works highlight the necessity for the masses to struggle both from the cultural and

political perspectives and to express consciousness towards the fight against oppression. The

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continuous struggles of the oppressed against their oppressor will certainly lead to justice one

day, no matter the Adamant nature of their oppressors. In Osofisan‟s Morountodun, for instance,

the audience is faced with the peasant‟s revolt against what they described as exploitation of the

government against the people. As Awodiya submits, “Osofisan‟s themes centre mostly on

revolution, collaboration, blackism, compassion, women, treachery, corruption, injustice,

oppression, love, determination, self reliance and perseverance (80). Pontificating on Osofisan‟s

Marxist inclination, Garuba points to the fact that, he has emerged clearly as a revolutionary

ideologue and the most consciously intertextual Nigerian playwright, basing his work on the idea

of cultural renaissance and nationalism.

Sharing a similar view, Amuta posits that, “Osofisan‟s works are characteristic not just

by their accent on political commitment but also on a certain ideological predilection that is

class-partisan and sees socio-political salvation mainly in terms of the revolutionary

transformation of the society (167). Osofisan navigates into the realm of myths, history, as well

as the contemporary environment to engage in ideological stance about his society in a way that

is both revolutionary and subversive. The recourse to myths and history, according to Olaniyan is

to question the political tyranny which serves to distance and shelter the writer from the menace

of present terrors, from the tyranny in the corridors of power on the African continent (74). He

also believes that, “though plays do not have the power to topple governments, but they can in

the words of the Latin American writer, Llosa, “become a meaningful and positive activity which

depicts the scars of reality and prescribes remedies, frustrating official lies so that the truth shines

through” (29).

Having shared the ideologies behind Osofisan‟s writings, it is fundamental to now share

the limitation of the Marxist ideal in Morountodun when compared with the African society. The

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first point in Morountodun, for instance, is Osofisan‟s use of a female character (Titubi) whose

action is said to be unhelpful and damaging to her revolutionary attribute. Titubi was neither

consistent nor persistent in her struggle to defend her people against the revolting peasant

farmers. Her emotional state and subsequent renouncement of her bourgeois heritage robs her of

the heroic character the playwright may have tended to achieve. A tragic hero is meant to be

consistent, and unwavering, as he launches into a sharp conflict with the opposing forces. He

suffers greatly and faces disaster in the midst of the struggle. To this end, Duruaku posits that,

Osofisan has not contrived a denouement to save the hero or heroine from catastrophe or to save

her from suffering (77).

Furthermore, apart from Titubi‟s inconsistency in sticking to her class, which leads to a

class suicide, it is essential to also note that the play symbolises Osofisan‟s theoretical

interruption from Marxism, because, the theory stand a slim chance to succeed when tested

against Nigerian‟s trado-cultural beliefs and systems. For instance, there cannot be another

Moremi in reality, a wife that can succumb to sacrificing for the cause of her people by trashing

her marital vows for another man, in order to steal the secrets to deliver her people. In the

Nigerian society, the act though heroic, will be considered unpardonable and unforgivable. In the

past, the theory succeeded to an extent, but presently, the country has re-defined the definition

that Marxism postulate, because it was based on a borrowed concept of an idealistic Utopian

world, not African.

Titubi falls in love with Marshal, whereas Moremi according to myth could discipline

herself with the Igbo king. The fact is that the situations of the two women are different,

although Moremi represents the legitimate power, but the legitimate power in this instance is

wrong, it is corrupt, oppressive and exploitative of the masses. Therefore Titubi stops

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daydreaming at this point and becomes herself. She becomes someone who a „logical‟

revolutionist who had to choose the right side to fight for. Another flaw in the theory exemplified

in the play is the subject of equality, which Osofisan stands for, he seeks to promote a balance

between the lower and the upper class, the bourgeoisie and the proletariat, but in reality this idea

is contradictory to African‟s class structure. We have the process of inequality within our culture,

“Omo’ba yato s’omo eru” (there is inequality between the child slave and a prince). The society

itself has already created those differences. It is nice to have the feeling that everybody should be

equal, but in reality it is ironical.

Class division is an inevitable reality; the social discriminatory ladder should be there as

a sine qua non for the definition of existence, and just as one cannot separate a shape

from its colour, so shall we find it impossible to destroy this ladder (Ibitokun 23).

Life does not allow a vacuum, some people should be at the bottom just as others should be at

the top, between getting pulled down from the top and getting pushed from the bottom to the top

lies the eternal relentless struggle. Hence, the eradication of the social ladder is humanly

impossible.

Lastly, radical revolution by the masses in the society summarises the concept of

Marxism and Osofisan‟s plays. However, the effect of revolution has always been accompanied

with dislocations, devastations and destructions. The heroine of Morountodun, Titubi, comes to a

point where she checks her intentions and the motivation behind the revolution she led, which

prompts her to make her choice of a better side to fight for, just as the play metaphorically

captures the playwright‟s thought, that radical revolution is good to a fault, only when it is

guided by wise and conscious decisions. Radical revolutions most times are bloody, and very

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often end without achieving the reasons why it was initiated at first, lacking construction and

direction, except destructions, and the lives of those always lost are the poor.

For instance, the revolutionary faceless sect, Boko Haram captured over two hundred

girls during the ongoing insurgency in the North eastern part of Nigeria; they picked children of

poor people instead of the corrupt ones, those who cannot even send their children to a school

with electricity. Assuming the children of the rich were the ones kidnapped, they would have

been recovered. For example the former president of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan‟s aunty and

Madam Patience‟s uncle were immediately found after being abducted.

Many times, radical and violent revolutions can be bloody and devastating, that is why

constructive change is better, revolution is good, but it brings radical changes that have no

formula. Titubi‟s stance to join the peasant farmers is positive, borne out of a psychological

conversion, in place of her initial misconception of what true revolution is. Hence, there are

limitations of Marxism as a philosophy in the African consciousness and even in the works of

African playwrights. Marxism is good, at a time it was embraced, but there came a point where

these playwrights became disillusioned with the theory. Therein lies the weakness of the theory

which the research unravelled.

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CHAPTER SIX

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

Summary

The selected plays of Osofisan, Rotimi, and Soyinka address the issue of dialectical struggles

between two opposing forces in Nigeria. The overall purpose of this theatrical eclecticism is to

produce a theatre that causes the audience to think through social and political choices and to

accept surprise and change. The research further explores the Marxist themes in their plays and

also gauges the impact of this praxis and to ascertain if this thematic occupation will elicit social

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balance and inspire collective struggle in the Nigerian society. The research starts off in Chapter

one with the trends and development of radical theatre in Nigeria, and how it has influenced the

writings of the selected African playwrights.

Chapter two focuses on a review of related literature. It discusses the relationship

between the chosen literary theory and the literary adaptations of Marxism. It also exposes some

of the African playwrights who adopt the Marxist philosophy. Chapter three discusses Hopes of

the Living Dead, while Chapter four contain the analysis of The Beatification of Area Boy

bringing out the themes and use of satire in the play. Chapter five focuses on Morountodun, with

the disillusionment of Osofisan with the Marxist philosophy. While Chapter six centres on the

summary and conclusion of the research.

Conclusion

In Rotimi‟s Hopes of the Living Dead, the playwright uses his play to attack the socio-political

challenges within the Nigerian society. He discusses the issue of corruption in the society, which

he exemplifies through the character of the lepers who were ousted from the hospital by the

authorities. The play also discusses the issue of victimisation of political minority and condemns

the oppressive and savagery „acts‟ of the government on the masses, especially, in the Nigerian

political system. Furthermore, he employs satire in his play to ridicule the charlatans that

constitute a nuisance by oppressing the less privileged.

While in The Beatification of Area Boy, the plight of Nigerians is dramatised as it looks

directly at how the military regime caused a breakdown in the economic, political and social

structure of the Nigerian society, and how the disorganised leadership of the Government falls

short when compared with the alternative structured leadership of the „Area Boys‟. The fact

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expressed by the playwright goes beyond the actions of the discussed „renegade radicals‟ in the

play, but rather describes the absurdity that exemplifies the worrisome master-servant

exploitative tendency of failed leadership in Africa, a pattern of social relationship that reinforces

and perpetuates the structure of corruption, bribery and nepotism.

In the light of this, it is remarkable to see how prophetic the Communist Manifesto has

turned out to be. Marx and Engels envisaged a world in which globalised market forces reigned

supreme with less consideration of the human damage it inflicts, in which the gap between the

rich and poor becomes an irreconcilable gulf. Amidst widespread political instability, the

impoverished masses would confront small international elite of the wealthy and powerful. It

hardly needs to be pointed out that this is not just the world of the mid-Victorian era, but an

alarmingly accurate portrayal of the current global condition.

But as relevant as the Marxism philosophy is, it also have some limitations. One of which

is, the masses. Marx anticipated proletarians or working class spearheading a resistance, but

today, the situation is different, instead of proletarians, „the wretched of the earth‟ borrowing

Franz Fanon‟s words turns out to be Islamic fundamentalists (ISIS, Boko Haram), with all the

dangers which they bring. It is conceivable that the World Trade Centre might still be in one

piece if not for the Marxist philosophy. Secondly, many elites who are standing tall for Marxism

as its advocates in reality are literate, and not poor; many of them incidentally find themselves in

the bourgeoisie category.

Thirdly, it is apparent that African playwrights through their plays can incite the masses

to revolt, and trigger off a revolution. However, they cannot change the society; it is choice of

the people to do that. Hence, it seems on this basis, that Marxism has indeed suffered the greatest

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defeat in contemporary Nigeria because the system it opposes has eased up, and it has changed

beyond recognition.

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