Drawing from the relationship between poetry and emotion from the perspective of concept and scope, i have used wole soyinkas mandelas earth and other poems 1989 and samarkand and other. A song for the road wole soyinkas imagery and tradition. The themes of power and love separate themselves from other actions of the text through their repetition. The lion and the jewel is a play by nigerian writer wole soyinka that was first performed in 1959. Each of the characters in the play represents a part of human nature. Wole soyinka is an eminent playwright in nigerian literature, whose work reveals the major conflict in the postcolonial concepts like oppression, subjugation, and search for identity. This play is outstanding, in that it leaves the reader full of emotions such as anger, a sense of reflection, confusion, and joy. Lakunle, the naive, modernist schoolteacher, attempts to win sidis love by teaching her about the new womans role, a role based largely on western society. This is perhaps the most conspicuous theme in the play. Pdf a study of wole soyinkas play the lion and the.
Wole soyinka successfully portrays society in this play. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of the lion and the jewel by wole soyinka. Plot summary the lion and the jewel is a powerful play by awardwinning nigerian poet and playwright wole soyinka. Marriage, love, education, loyalty, power, and roles of men and women are many social issues that are portrayed in wole soyinkas play, the lion and the jewel. Featured content includes commentary on major characters, 25 important quotes, essay topics, and key themes like tradition vs. The africa society profile of nobel laureate wole soyinka.
The play begins as sidi, the village belle of ilujinle, enters the square with a pail of water balanced on her head. The lion and the jewel focuses on the competition to win sidi s hand in marriage, which makes the play, in a sense, a battle of the sexes. The play the lion and the jewel is characterized by culture conflict, ribald comedy and love, where the. Celebrating brilliance, originality and spirit in the early works of some of the worlds great playwrights and theatre artists. Modernity the lion and the jewel was written and first performed the year before nigeria was granted its independence from great britain, and the script was published two years after independence. Research scholar, department of english, annamalai university, tamil nadu, india. Language, style and meaning in wole soyinkas poetry. Lakunle is portrayed as the civilized antithesis of baroka and unilaterally attempts to modernize his community and change its social conventions for no reason other than the fact. It chronicles how baroka, the lion, fights with the modern lakunle over the right to marry sidi, the titular jewel.
How the lion hunts the jewel is the theme of this ribald comedy. This study guide consists of approximately 31 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of the lion and the jewel. Wole soyinkas lion and the jewel acted out by students of wcc, chennai, 2012. In november he wrote, produced and acted in an evening without decor, a medley of his works, at the royal court theatre in london. According to oxford advanced learners dictionary tradition means passing of belief or customs form one. The balance of power in a view from the bridge and the lion and the jewel. Written by africas well known dramatist, wole soyinka, the play the lion and the jewel has its setting in the village of ilunjunle in yoruba west africa. He sometimes wrote of modern west africa in a satirical style, but his serious intent and his belief in the evils inherent in the exercise of power usually was evident in his work as well. What are the themes in lion and the jewel by wole soyinka. A member of the yoruba people, soyinka attended government college and university college in ibadan before graduating in 1958 with a degree in english from the university of leeds in england. Akinwande oluwole wole soyinka is a nigerian writer, notable especially as a playwright and poet.
What are the main themes developed in the lion and the. Features an extended summary and 5 sections of expert analysis. The lion and the jewel summary from litcharts the creators of sparknotes. Soyinka is the first african who won the nobel prize in 1986 for his accomplishment in the field of literature for his country nigeria. The following version of this text was used to create this study guide. Wole soyinka the lion and the jewel download ebook pdf. A study of wole soyinkas play the lion and the jewel in the light of cultures in conflict article pdf available november 2016 with 20,624 reads how we measure reads. Find related themes, quotes, symbols, characters, and more. Print word pdf take our free the lion and the jewel quiz below, with 25 multiple choice questions that.
Written by wole soyinka, the play the lion and the jewel has its setting in the village of ilunjunle in yoruba west africa. The main characters are sidi the jewel, a true village belle and baroka the lion, the crafty and powerful bale of the village. The lion and the jewel, numerous themes are woven throughout its entirety. This paper is an attempt to examine of how wole soyinka s play zthe lion and the jewel traces the conflict between cultures in nigeria and western society. Wole soyinka poems, quotations and biography on wole soyinka poet page. Jewel the lion and the jewel 1 963 is a play written by wole soyinka, and it is the main stream of this paper. Cultural conflict in wole soyinkas play the lion and the. This is one of the bestknown plays by africas major dramatist, wole soyinka. While you read the play for its deep themes, you are also entertained with soyinkas humor. The lion and the jewel summary and study guide supersummary. In some cases, a theme is used to illustrate the importance behind a moral, lesson, or point. The lion and the jewel essays are academic essays for citation. The lion and the jewel available for download and read online in other formats.
Linden isles tashandra inniss esther hamer kreative arts keon heywood. Wole soyinkas the lion and the jewel dramatizes the conflict between tradition and modernization in a small nigerian village as two men compete for the love of a. Discussion of themes and motifs in wole soyinkas the lion and the jewel. The lion and the jewel by wole soyinka africa book club. Read all poems of wole soyinka and infos about wole soyinka. The study shows the relationships between the different cultures. Introduction in the play the lion and the jewel we can see the ignorant atmosphere of the people in the village of ilujinle in such village we can saw a cunning woman sidi who wanted to attract many men but wanted a husband of royal status who would pay a brideprice for her let as see about it and getting a cunning response for sidis cunning wish. The way soyinka adds humor through the characters actions makes the play even better. Free pdf download since i had no prior service, i had no choice presented.
In the play, the lion and the jewel, the conflict between tradition and modernization covers a significant portion of wole soyinkas work. In 1986, the playwright and political activist became the first. Wole soyinka was born on july, 1934, in nigeria and educated in england. The lion and the jewel, on one level, is a comedy about love. This paper examines wole soyinkas lyricism along the axis of language, style and meaning and arrives at the significant conclusion that, through his exploitation of various linguistic and rhetorical devices and strategies, he gives voice, range and scope to his poetic art. A study of wole soyinkas play the lion and the jewel in. It is important that you choose one that meets your budget.
A song for the road wole soyinkas imagery and tradition 3 contents chapter 1 modern african literature and wole soyinka chapter 2 songs and mimes in aid of ridicule, satire and change in society lion and the jewel chapter 3 songs of contemplation the road chapter 4 songs as expression of conflict kongis harvest. The lion and the jewel study guide contains a biography of wole soyinka, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. The lion and the jewel by wole soyinka, 1963 online. It initially seems like soyinka is setting a clear dichotomy between these two things, tradition embodied by baroka and modernity embodied by lakunle. Amalgamation of tradition and modernity in wole soyinkas the lion and the jewel rishika sharma research scholar department of english university of jammu, jammu, and kashmir rishika. A bit seems to have automatically decided to efface itself from the video. Abstract wole soyinka is a renowned nigerian dramatist, who was awarded nobel prize in 1986, for his accomplishment in the field of literature. Download pdf the lion and the jewel book full free. Much as soyinkas themes are eclectic and diverse including racial discrimination, mans inhumanity to man. Upon all the contributions of women in the development of the nation n igeria as mentioned before, they are denied socio economic and political opportunities. Lakunle, the westerneducated schoolteacher, sees her, runs from his classroom, and takes sidis pail.
The conflict between the lion baroka and the jewel sidi was a conflict that brought the reader closer to the book. As such, the play asks a number of questions about the nature of each sexs power. Wole soyinkas the lion and the jewel by the national. The lion and the jewel symbols, allegory and motifs. Click download or read online button to get wole soyinka the lion and the jewel book now. Wole soyinka, the author of twenty plays, six novels and six collections of poems, represents yoruba tradition in his comic play. The lion and the jewel by wole soyinka tells the story of sidi, a young woman living in an isolated nigerian village in the 1960s, as she decides who to marry. Pdf the lion and the jewel download full pdf book download.
Litcharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in the lion and the jewel, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. The lion and the jewel by wole soyinka february, 2011 by prima birungi 56 comments. What are some major themes in wole soyinkas plays in conclusion we can see that wole soyinka addresses themes of colonization modernization vs tradition collapse of african culture and freedom and injustice background of death and the kings horseman theme in death and the. However, as the play progresses soyinka defies the audiences assumptions. Amalgamation of tradition and modernity in wole soyinkas. He was the first african writer to be awarded the nobel prize for literature. Wole soyinka born july th, 1934 wole soyinka, in full akinwande olu wole soyinka, was born on july, 1934, in abeokuta, nigeria.
The main characters are sidi the jewel, a true village belle and baroka the lion, the crafty and powerful bale of the village, lakunle, the young teacher, influenced by western ways, and sadiku, the eldest of barokas wives. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. Wole soyinka, in full akinwande oluwole soyinka, born july, 1934, abeokuta, nigeria, nigerian playwright and political activist who received the nobel prize for literature in 1986. He was awarded the 1986 nobel prize in literature, the first african to be honoured in that category.