Drama is developed from the improvisation of the leaders of dithyramb in the Greek
mythology. The term is used interchangeably with “tragedy” which is a Greek
word for “goat song”. Aristotle in his Poetics
relates drama to mimesis. He defines drama (tragedy) as: “An imitation of an
action that is admirable, complete and possesses magnitude; in language made
pleasurable, each of its species separated in different parts; performed by
actors, not through narration, affecting through pity and fear the purification
of such emotions” (10).
This
imitation of action (mimesis) seems to be necessary in drama performance. M. H.
Abrams, in his A Glossary of Literary
Terms adds more to the above definition. He has defined drama as “the form
of composition designed for performance in the theatre, in which actors take
the roles of the characters, perform the indicated actions and utter the
written dialogue” (18). Also, the common alternative name for drama is a play.
Abrams has succeeded in adding other features like dialogue and the idea of the
place for performance, which is the theatre. Limitation in drama involves the
roles of the actors on stage. It is about how these actors try to act out the
actions of other people or other beings.
African
drama as a genre of African literature involves actors who do not only imitate
ordinary human characters but also extra-ordinary characters of human who are
influenced by the supernatural elements. because of the involvement of the characters of
the supernatural operative in human nature, in African drama, there is
bound to be more of tragedy than comedy. The reason is that actors try to
dramatise the human limitations as against the infallibility of the
supernatural. When humans are disobedient and are unable to understand and keep
the instructions of the supernatural powers, they tend to suffer great
consequences. African playwrights therefore select characters that are fully
developed to imitate suffering at the mercy of the supernatural.
Ovonramwen Nogbaisi, a historical play
written by Ola Rotimi, dramatises the warnings of the gods through the Ifa Priest
to Oba Ovonramwen and his cabinet against the tragic loss they are bound to
face if they allow white men stay longer in the Benin Empire.
He says in Act One:
IFA PRIEST: …Lord
of Benin...the shadows I see over your empire are heavy. Too heavy. Heavy
and…and dark.
He goes on:
IFA PRIEST: …it is death.
Your highness…..the death I see here is not the death of one man. Bodies
of men…fire…and blood – Bodies floating – (15)
The above is a divined prediction
which has shown the concerns of the gods in the affairs of the humans within
their protective powers. But the Oba neglects this warning and he and his
cabinet are later consumed by the imperial powers of the Europeans.
Zulu Sofola’s Wedlock Of The Gods dramatises the tragic end of two lovers Ogwoma
and Uloko who defied the traditions of their land by engaging in love affair
while Ogwoma still mourns her dead husband. Ogwoma, who eventually gets
pregnant for Uloko in the process of the relationship, is accused by her
mother-in-law of causing her son’s death. Since the gods are not in support of
Ogwoma’s love affair with Uloko, they leave her at the mercies of the wicked
mother-in-law (Adibei). Adibei uses magical powers to hypnotize Ogwoma and
leads her into the bush where she makes her take a poisonous portion and dies
eventually. Uloko finds out, after killing Adibei, drinks of the same portion
and dies too. Their death is now the reward from the gods for their
disobedience to laid down traditions.
Apart from the above plays, there
are other plays in which human characters have suffered great loss even loss of
life as a result of their shortcomings against the wills of the gods. Those
other works includes Odumegege by
Miesoinuma Minima, The Gods Are Not To
Blame by Ola Rotimi, Song of a Goat
by J.P. Clark-Bekederemo and so on.
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