Discussion Topic
Lakunle's Character and Role in The Lion and the Jewel
Summary:
Lakunle, in Wole Soyinka's The Lion and the Jewel, represents modernity and Western influence in postcolonial Nigeria. As a schoolteacher, he criticizes traditional Yoruba customs, aiming to modernize the village of Ilujinle. Despite his education and Western attire, Lakunle is depicted as arrogant and out of touch with his community's values. His refusal to pay Sidi's bride price highlights his misunderstanding of local customs, ultimately leading to his failure in winning her over, as she chooses the traditional Baroka instead.
What is Lakunle's role and function in The Lion and the Jewel?
Lakunle is Ilujinle's schoolteacher. Because he was educated at a British school, he seems to enjoy emphasizing how well he knows English. Lakunle wants to modernize Ilunjinle and marry Sidi, the most beautiful woman in the village. Sidi knows that she is beautiful and understands that she can use her beauty to gain power of men like Lakunle. Lakunle seems to resent her flaunting her beauty, as he tells Sidi in the first scene of the play:
You could wear something.
Most modest women do. But you, no.
You must run around naked in the streets.
Does it not worry you... the bad names,
The lewd jokes, the tongue-licking noises
Which girls, uncovered like you,
Draw after them?
Sidi then rebukes him:
Is it Sidi who makes the men choke
In their cups, or you, with your big loud words
And no meaning?
Lakunle seems frustrated by Sidi, and though...
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he wants to marry her and make her a "modern wife," he does not want to pay her bride price, as is tradition and instead seeks to woo her with beautiful words:
Wasted! Wasted! Sidi, my heart
Bursts into flowers with my love.
Lakunle also turns his nose up at his village's traditional customs and culture.
A savage custom, barbaric, out-dated,
Rejected, denounced, accursed,
Excommunicated, archaic, degrading,
Humiliating, unspeakable, redundant.
Retrogressive, remarkable, unpalatable.
Lakunle, young and arrogant, flaunts his overblown knowledge of English and treats his village's traditions and customs with snobbery. He represents modernity and postcolonialism, and his character also conflicts with Baroka, the village chief. Baroka also wants to marry Sidi, and he ultimately does because Lakunle, though he is younger and more handsome, seemed cold and condescending to Sidi and would also not pay her bride price.
Lakunle's role is to highlight the growing influence of Western culture on Africa, even in the remotest villages. An educated man who thinks that the tribal customs are outmoded and barbaric, Lakunle is determined to wean Sidi away from the old ways. Yet he fails, as Sidi chooses for her husband Baroka, the village chief, the epitome of everything Lakunle detests.
Lakunle's failure to woo Sidi stands as a reminder of just how far Nigeria must go if it is to be a thoroughly modern, Westernized country. But the suggestion here is that for Western ways to gain a foothold in Africa, they must at least be properly understood, and even then must only be introduced gradually before being incorporated into traditional practices. Lakunle doesn't understand any of this, which is ultimately why he is unsuccessful in gaining Sidi's hand in marriage.
How would you describe Lakunle in Wole Soyinka's The Lion and the Jewel?
Lakunle is the village school teacher who opposes traditional Yoruba culture in favor of modern Western civilization. He continually criticizes Sidi, Baroka, and Sadiku for their way of life. At the beginning of the play, he tells Sidi, "Only spiders carry loads the way you do" when he sees her walking with a pail of water on her head, which is the traditional African way villagers transported water (Soyinka 2). Lakunle knows that he is ostracized and ridiculed by the villagers for his modern views but is unapologetic and arrogant. He says to Sidi,
"For that, what is a jewel to pigs? If now I am misunderstood by you and your race of savages, I rise above the taunts and remain unruffled" (Soyinka 3).
In his support of modernity, Lakunle refuses the pay Sidi's bride-price, claiming that it is a savage custom. Regarding the bride-price, he says, "An ignoble custom, infamous, ignominious shaming our neighbors our heritage before the world" (Soyinka 7). Lakunle is also clumsy and sounds like a fool by trying to impress people with his "big words."He is also a hopeless romantic. When he talks to Sadiku about the future of Ilujinle, he says,
"Within a year or two, I swear, this town shall see a transformation, bride-price will be a thing forgotten, and wives shall take their place by men. A motor road will pass this spot and bring the city ways to us. We'll buy saucepans for all the women; clay pots are crude and unhygienic. No man shall take more wives than one. That's why they're impotent too soon. The ruler shall ride cars, not horses. Or a bicycle at the very least. We'll burn the forest, cut the trees, then plant a modern park for lovers" (Soyinka 37).
Despite Lakunle's apparent affinity for Western civilization and modernity, he attempts to manipulate the traditional custom to his benefit. After learning that Sidi is no longer a virgin, he says to her, "But you will agree, it is only fair that we forget the bride-price totally since you no longer can be called a maid" (Soyinka 60). Lakunle's comments reveal his true intentions and portray him as an insincere individual.
What is an analysis of Lakunle in Wole Soyinka's play The Lion and the Jewel?
Wole Soyinka's play The Lion and the Jewelrepresents the
conflict the native Nigerian villagers feel concerning whether or not
to embrace their own past culture or the modernist
future and how to go about combining both. In the play, the school
teacher Lakunle represents the modernist side of
culture. Yet, his characterization also shows that he is not quite
reaching his goal in achieving Western modernization because he doesn't
thoroughly understand the culture.
His modernization is depicted in the fact he wears English
clothing rather than native clothing. Yet, his English suit is also described
as being "old-style." Since the suit is so old, it is also "threadbare," and
most importantly, the suit is "obviously a size or two too small." The
description of his old-fashioned clothing helps to show that he is, in reality,
still stuck in the past though he is trying to embrace
modernization. The fact that the suit is also too small for him shows that the
modernization he is trying to adapt to doesn't fully fit his needs, desires, or
understanding. He lives partially in his past Nigerian village culture and
partially in the present.
His attempt to embrace modernization is further depicted in
the fact that he refuses to pay Sidi's bride-price, which is a
gift in either money or goods a groom pays to a bride's family in order to
express her perceived value and the sincerity of his intention to marry her.
Sidi refuses to marry Lakunle if he declines to pay her bride-price because she
argues his refusal shows the rest of the village that she is not a virgin and
not worthy of payment. Lakunle, on the other hand, argues, along the lines of
Western thought, that such a tradition is akin to placing a woman in bondage
and a form of oppressing her. More specifically, he lists a series of
adjectives he feels expresses the hatefulness of the practice:
A savage custom, barbaric, out-dated,
Rejected, denounced, accursed,
Excommunicated, archaic, degrading,
Humiliating, unspeakable, redundant,
Retrogressive, remarkable, unpalatable.
Yet, interestingly, some of his chosen words have nothing to do with his personal belief he is trying to express, such as excommunicated, redundant, and remarkable, showing just how little he understands the modernized Western culture that he is trying to embrace.
What makes Lakunle an interesting character in The Lion and the Jewel?
Lakunle is an interesting character because he is unique in his village of Ilujinle. Lakunle, unlike the other villagers, values Western civilization and supports modernity. He openly criticizes tradition ways of life and attempts to influence other characters in sharing his vision. He is well read and many of his comments allude to Western values and include Christian morals. Despite being viewed with contempt by his community, Lakunle remains outspoken. Lakunle is also very dramatic which makes his character entertaining to watch. Even though Lakunle is an advocate for modernity and seems sincere, his true intentions are revealed when he tells Sidi that he will marry her under the condition that he will not have to pay the bride price. Overall, Lakunle is a unique character with strong views and adds to the entertainment value of the play.
What makes the character Lakunle interesting in The Lion and the Jewel?
Lakunle is an interesting character in The Lion and the Jewel for several reasons, particularly because of his modern way of thinking. He stands out because he is unlike most people in the village of Ilujinle. He is interested in Western ideas and wants to bring modern customs to the village. For instance, recall the scene early on in which Lakunle takes the pail of water that Sidi is carrying on her head. Sidi views this way of carrying water as practical, and it is what women in the village do. But Lakunle does not like the image of a woman doing this. Right away, we see that Lakunle fervently rejects activities that the villagers do not think twice about. He critiques things like this several times throughout the play, sometimes in such a melodramatic way that it is entertaining.
One of the main customs that Lakunle rejects is the bride price. He really wants to marry Sidi, but he refuses to pay the bride price for her, which is like a dowry. He feels the bride price is a degrading and antiquated custom, but Sidi is insulted by this, because she is committed to the ways of Ilujinle. Sidi is a beautiful woman whom lots of men covet, so it is interesting that Lakunle is so committed to his values that he will not budge on his feelings about the bride price to have her.
Yet even though Lakunle thinks he is extremely intellectual and well-versed in modern ideals, he does not seem to know what incorporating Western values into his village would look like. Instead, he tends to just insult the behavior of people like Sidi and Sadiku, rather than explain his point of view in a calm, respectful, and convincing manner.
Some of his behavior also comes across as hypocritical, since he berates Sidi for participating in customs he feels are demeaning but then frequently disparages her himself. He is also not entirely against everything in the village, like the dance performances, which suggests he has a bit of internal conflict about modernity and tradition.