MIRROR ON SELECTED AFRICAN WRITERS

SOME AFRICAN WRITERS AND THEIR SOCIETY IN BRIEF

It is strongly believed that literature and other works of art are products of human societies. One is therefore expected to evaluate or appreciate a literary work by looking at those reflections of the societies in a given literary work. Most of the human actions in a given society whether political, social, cultural, economical, religious or geographical are showcased in literary compositions and other forms of art such as music, paintings and drawings as well as photographing. It is not only in autobiographies and biographies that human actions and practices are imitated or enacted, a satire or a face may also x-ray vices to correct such dirty practices, apart from denouncing and ridiculing them. After reading a text a poem or watching a film or even looking at a piece of painting, one should be able to match the content with what is happening in one’s immediate and remote environments. In a practical term, a good literary appreciation does not just come on its own. It has to be worked out. For instance, it is necessary to read a given material at least twice. The first reading will help the reader to get familiar with the story and to have general scope of the writer’s idea in mind. After the first reading, there should be a brief pause for the reader to think about what the story is all about, the people concerned, place(s) mentioned in the story and when the story happened. The second reading is more serious or critical. The reader is expected to identify difficult words and expressions in the text material and use a good dictionary to find out their meanings. A reader is also expected to fish out figures of speech that are used by poet, especially in poetry. Examples of Relationship between Literary Work and the Society: Our emphasis here is on literature not because it is the only literary work but because it can be accessed by all and sundry.

1. Wole Soyinka’s The Lion and the Jewel x-rays cultural conflict between African and European culture. The negative attitude of our so-called educated Africans towards their negative culture and traditions as represented by the character traits of Lakunle.

2. Also in another play titled A play of Giants, Wole Soyinka examines power abuse, corruption and disloyalty which most African leaders represent. The rogues, cruel leaders of Africa who are supposed to be called vandals are described as giants. What an irony of the highest order!

3. Achebe’s Anthills of the Savannah denounces the militarization of the African states, hardship caused by dictatorial governments, bribery and corruption in the black continent.

4. Festus Iyayi’s Violence is concerned with the inequalities between the poor and the rich, especially the exploitative tendencies of the rich over the poor. The poverty that takes over African communities, the corruption among government officials and injustices in the land are some of the issues discussed in Violence.

5. Robert Bolt’s A man for all seasons discusses moral decadence in an established human society and the suffering of honest people. The trial and prosecution of a faithful man called Thomas More by a group of selfish and unscrupulous individuals, acting on the orders of a dictatorial and devilish king, is a common practice not only in European society but also in Africa and elsewhere in the world.

6. J.P. Clarks’s The Wives Revolt centres on the belief that gender equality is attainable and desirable in human societies.

7. David Diop’s “Loser of Everything” examines the happiness of the traditional African society before the arrival of the colonialists and the hostility that follows the coming of the “bekes”, the colonial lords.

8. The subject-matter of Abubakar Gimba’s Witnesses to Tears is the evils of materialism like Oliver Goldsmith’s She stoops to conquer which displays chaotic value system as its general picture

9. George Orwell’s Animal Farm is a typical example of a political satire that exposes epitome of power abuse and the strong fact that there is social stratification in various human societies. The fact remains; there is no society where everyone is equal

10. Kwesi Brew’s “The Executioner’s Dream” is an attack on the abominable causes of ritual murder in traditional African societies

11. Sly Cheney Coker condemns the hatred, discrimination and conflicts in Africa. The Africans who bleach or copy white man’s culture at the expense of African ways of life are in addition condemned in “Freetown” one of his popular poems.

12. Niyi Osundare’s “They too are the earth” captures the pathetic condition of different classes of the underprivileged and the oppressed people of the world. The poet demands whether the rich who squander and destroy the earth and its resources are indeed people of the earth

13. Olu Obafemi’s “Do-gooders”is a whip on many insincere religious leaders who hypocritically enrich themselves at the expense of their weak, poor and ignorant followers.

14. In Fragments, Ayi Kwei Armah points out the corruption in the polity of a given society. As a case study, one cannot get a job in Ghana without offering a bribe! Corruption is in fact, the bane of many African States.

15. Femi Ademiluyi’s “The New Man” proves that over ambition and situation can change a man from his initial holy nature to becoming a rogue, murderer, a crook or hard criminal that terrorizes the entire state. Hello! The list is unlimited.

In addition, soap operas such as “Super Story,” “Checkmate,” “This Life,” and “Behind the Clouds” which picture societal problems are examples of literary art that we are talking about.

However, what we attempt to do is just to underscore the fact that literature and other works of art are products of societies and they are mirrors by which one can see various human societies. In conclusion, the understanding of a writer’s diction, imagery, symbolism, plot, mood/tone and his narrative approach will help anyone to discover the writer’s motives, intentions and themes as well as to identify the rapport between such literary work and the society that produces it.