Paper : African LiteratureTopic: Conflict of Tradition and Modernity in Swamp Dweller

Name; Solanki Pintu

Roll no; 29M. A. Semester: 4

Email ID ; solankipintu1991@gmail.com

Submitted to: Department of English

Maharaja Krishnakumar sinhjiBhavnagar University

About Author• Wole Soyinka, on born July 13,

1934, Abeokuta, Nigeria, Nigerian playwright and political activist who received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1986.

• 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.

About  the Play• Soyinka’s drama presents

the post- colonial Nigerian. • In the drama he contrasts

rural and Urban areas, he contrasts tradition and Modernity.• The playwright discuss

the Urban area through implications.

Tradition• Tradition is a belief or

behaviour passed down within group or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. • Makuri, Alu and Igwezu

are representation of tradition.

Modernity• Modernity typically refers to a

past traditional post medieval, historical period one marked by the money from feudalism toward capitalism, industrialism. Secularization, rationalization, the nation state and its constituent institutions and forms of surveillance.• Awuchike and Desala are

representation of modernity.

Tradition vs Modernity

• Tradition • Cultural, social, conventional • Nonwestern attitude • Joint Family • Village struggles to

connect myth and actuality

• Modernity • Encompasses various

elements of the so-called South African tradition or any tradition

• A change in society • Is it all about accepting

western ideas, culture and forgetting the tradition of one’s own Realism in Two Ways Tradition

Tradition vs Modernity

• Tradition and Modernity both are opposite from each others.• It was very difficult to tell that which path that we

want to followed. • Tradition is good or Modernity is good. Tradition

and Modernity is issues is not new but very old.

Play starts with the description of village which shows traditional side of the play.• “A village in the swamps. Frogs rain and other

noises. The scan is a hut on stilts, built on one of the scattered semi-firm island in the swamp. The walls are marsh stakes plaited with hump ropes. Near the left down stage are the baskets he makes from the rushes which are strewn in front of him.”(1 pg of TSD)

Tradition & Modernity Effect of  characters life• With the development of human being this

problem was comes to in exist. • In the play also we can find the same problem. • Igwezu and Awuchike they both are twins. • One is representing Tradition and another is

representing modernity

• Awuchike and Desala goes to wrong way. • There are in nothing should be in hand.• Only for physical, material desire fulfils. • We can say that city was temptation of younger

people life.• In city while be not to hand as nothing.

• Igwezu as cultured and modern man.• He should not do any thinks for his brother.• Because Awuchike was love to Desala and money

is his life. • That’s why he was dying. Tradition was social,

cultural and conventional them. • Igwezu was individual and complex phenomenon of

modernity.

Conclusion

• There was a complete change in the people of village once they reach the city.• Also, the villages started changing ,• young people don’t allow anyone or anything

blindly as Makuri did because they raise questions as Igwezu did.

• The play shows contrast, parallelism humour, and irony in a suitable manner, • Soyinka focuses the plight of the Swamp dwellers

are at the mercy of furious nature until they compromise tradition with modernity, embrace modern technology.

• http://nimeshdave22.blogspot.in/2016/03/semester-4-presentations.html• http://hetalbagohil122013.blogspot.in/2014/03/dis

cuss-tradition-and-modernity-study.html• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tradition• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modernity