University of Nigeria Research Publications

ANIAGO, Peter Emeka

Aut

hor

PG/M.A/00/27720

Title

Images and Impressions from Play Titles; AN

Analytical Study of Major Trends in Play Titling and the Relationship Between the Play Title and the Play

Content

Facu

lty

Arts

Dep

artm

ent

Dramatic Arts

Dat

e

August, 2003

Sign

atur

e

TITLE PAGE I

IMAGES AND IMP SSIONS FROM PLAY TITLES: FUY llNALWICCU, STUDY OF MAJOR TRENDS IN TITLING AND BXEILATXONSPIIP BET

PLAY

A project submitted to the Department of Dramatic Arts, University of Ni eria, N s u

fulfillment of the Requirements for the aster of Arts ( Am) Degree in Dra

msm

'This is to certify that Aniago, Peter Emeka, a post-graduate student of

Dramatic Arts with registration number PG/MA/00/27720, has satishctorily

completed the requirements for die course-work and project for the degree of

Master of Arts (M.A.) in Dramatic Arts.

This project is original, and has not been submitted in part or in full for any

other degree of this or any othcr University.

Supervisor.

Prof. P.E. Nwabueze.

I Iead of'lleparirlment.

, Doin Asomba

This research project is dedicated to my professors for

they have remained a constant source oSencoumgement.

-

1

i i i

~ I ~ ~ O W L E ~ ~ > ~ E ~ E W T

First and foremost, 1 shall start by expressing niy profound, si~icclt. and

complete faith in my heavenly Fauler, and my mediator and Lord, Jesus Christ, for

it is not by my might but through thy grace.

I owe my parents, Pa. Emrnanuel Chiarluinba and Mrs. Mercy Iloegbuna~n

~ n i a g o ~ ~ i r n m e n s e debt of gratitude for setting me towards acadcmics. My A

profound gratitude and immense thmrlks go to my supervisor, ProSessor Erneka

Nwabueze, wlm,really, despite his tight pirninistrative cominitinents as the Dean

of the Arts Faclrlty, still sufricieiirly squeezed out enough time to direct and

instruct mc at crucial stages. Once more, I thank you sincerely for your approach

is highly rewarding.

My thanks also go to my professor, Professor Onuora Ossie Enekwe, who

triggered off my "writing potential9' latent for quite some time, during one of his

brainstorming lectures with our "P.G. Class." Moments like such will remain

evergreen i n my mind. One day it shall be my testimony, for 1 am today a

p~.rblished novelist.

Also, n!y sincere thanks arc extended to F.U. Egwuda Ugbada, Uche

Nwaozuzu, Oyibo Eze and Johny Igbonekwu, who, at various times, willingly

allowed me access to their libraries.

I .et me use this opportunity to express my high regards for my able I lead of

Department, Dom Asor-nba. Then big thanks 1 say to my family and relatives who,

in one way or the other, have contributed towards the success of this project.

Among them are Dr. Chukwudi J . Aniago, Mr. Okey N. Aniago, Barrister

lkechukwu J. Aniago, Mr. Nonso S. h i a g o , and Mr. F!;ene E. Aniago, my

brothers. Adaninxi Aniago and h ~ n a r a Aniago, my sisters. Mrs. Craw I J b m and

Dr (Mrs.) Ijeolna 13-uchalu, my aunts. Chief Vincent Nibo, Dr. Dan Nibo, 13arr.

Obi Nibo, Apostle Gibson Nibo, Mr. Rqy Nibo, my uncles. Ebele Ufom, Chinenyc

Ufom, Mc' D o l d d Eruchalu and Adaeze Erucl~alu, my cousins. Elder Ernest Nibo

a l~d Mother Beatrice Nibo, my grand parents. Chief Obi Eruchalu and Chief Peter

Ufom,my in-laws; 1 salute you all for your st~pport and encouragement throughout

the period of' my study as a post-graduate s t~~den t in UNN.

Finally, my profound thank-you to you, my friends, for your words of

encouragement, Chidin-kina Amaubosi, Chinasa Uine, Oge Otagi, Amaka Olioli,

l'onia Ebelie, Nkiru Otagi and you; for you all remain dear to me. May God

almighty reward you. Amen.

En~eka. '

PACE

C1 IAPTEII TWO: MAJOR TRENDS IN PLAY TITLING-------

2.1 The Use of the Chief Character's h-me or Names

of the Major Characters of the Play as the 'Title ------

Impressions ....................................................

CIIAPrTEU ONE: INTRODUCrrlON: A GENERAL

OVERVIEW AND DEFINI'rlON OF ~ONCEPTS -----------------

Objective of the Study .....................................

Signifioaule 4 the Study ...................................

Scope ofthe Study ........................................

Theoretical Framework -----------------------me-----------

Researcll Met]lodolom ....................................

A Ge~~eral Overview and Definition

OF ~ o I ~ c e 1 ~ f S : A Play Title Essence ......................

Si@i IicaIlce of a 'Title ....................................

The Place of Ambipity in Play 'Titles -----------------

Meaning of Ambiguity ..................................

'lhe Aesllletics of the Play Title .........................

Play Titles That Give Clear Insight into the

Central Incident 'l'llat Concerns the Chief Character ----

Col~c~usions -------- ---------- -- ................................

The Synlbolic Titles (Figurative 'Titles) ....................

Metaphorical 'Titles (Fig~irative Titles) .....................

Zoyinka's A DUYKP oJ'flze I;'ore.sf.s-and Emelia

Nwabueze's A 1limc.c. oj'the D e d ...........................

'The Place of Ambiguity in Titles ..........................

Understanding the Word Ar~lbibwity ......................

J.P. Clark's Aq(jng ($(I (,'oar ...............................

'The Essence of Song (fa Goat as a Title

And its Extent of Portrayal of [he flay Content---------

J.P.CIark's The Musyuerude: A Study of a Fairly . . Anlbiguous Play 7 ]tie ........................................

Comparative Study of the Degree of Ambiguity

13etween thc Titles Song ofo Gotrl and The n/lt~.squerade--

Emeka Nwabueze's Echoes oJ'hiudness: A Study of'the

Different Perceptions of Madiless in the Play --------------- 5 8

3.9. Emeka Nwabueze's 11 f'urliurnctzf o j Vulfrrres: The

Figurative Representation of Vultures in the Play---------- 64

3.9.1 Instances of the 1:igurative Representation of'

Vultllres i l l the Play ---------------..--------------------------- 6 5

CI-IM'TEII FOUR: AES?'HETICS 01' I'IAY 'TITLES------------------ 69 # h/leaning of Aesthetics ....................................... 70

The Reason Hehind the Different Levels of Play Title

Appreciation and Judgment by Diflerent Individuals--- 7 1

The Levels of Education and Knowledge of the

- INTRODIJCTION: A GENERAL OVRIIVIEW AND DEFINI7'ION OF

OBJECTIVES OF 'l'I1E SIIJ DY. -

The cardinal objective of this study is to explore and attempt n

comparative study of the trends, functions and aesthetics of' play titles, with major

focus on the plays of' Wok Soyinka, J.P. Clark and Gmeka Nwabueze, as the case . . study. In essence, through the study of the major ~rends, the filnctions and

aesthetics of play titles, we shall b L b able to I$ bare the peculiarities and coininon

katures evident in the playwrig1:llts' titles.

I11 the area of pliy title aesthetics, we shall through this study examine the

various kinds of images (imagery) and impressions, we generate or fonn when we

glnnc: through or read play titles. I-lence, it is the purpose of this study to lead the

reader into the exciting and intriguing world of play tit],: aesthetics by helping him

or hcr towards a better appreciation of play tille essence and message.

We shall also look at the relationship between the play title and the play

content. This will help us to see how far a play title is significant, as regards the

play content.

1.2 ~GNIFICANCK OF TIIE STUDY.

The acknowledgcn~e~it of the importance, essence and meaning of the play

title is like a special necessity, an essential and an invaluable hctor in the quest for

better appreciation of the beauty and pleasure in plays, likewise other genres of

literature.

This study is geared towards discussing the importance, the essence and

meaning of a play title, which certainly qill help the reader to appreciate that a

play title is not inerely a narne for a play script but a vital part of the play script,

which mean a lot more. The fimction and essence of play titles, which shall be

discussed in detail in the subsequent parts of this study, shall form the basis

through which the reader will be introduced to other significations, which a play

title could represent or portray.

In support of what has been said above, this study is no doubt of immense

significru~ee because, since it is mainly the play title and the playwright's name,

and sometimes the cover desibm that attract the irlterest of the potential reader, it is

~nderstandable why a study of this nature is dedicated towards the study of the

significance of play titles.

It is the intenlion of this study to help the reader to be able to appreciate

better and link the significance of a play title to the substance ofthe content, fixus,

theme and setting of the play. This study will also help the reader to better

appreciate the I;baxl and the subject matter of the play. What this nlcans is that

when a reader has a better appreciation of the sibmificance of a play title, i t will

greatly enhance the reader's interest and understanding of thc play's story.

1.3 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

In this study, the researcher shall examine some specified range of issues.

They are, the major trends appreciable in play titling, with special focus on the

kinds of images and impressions play titles ,create in the minds and psyche of the

potential reader. These will be buttressed through random citing of worlts horn the

ancient Greek, Roman, English and African playwrights, with the play titles of

Wole Soyinka, J.P. Clark ~d Emeka Nwdbueze as the nucleus ofthe study. 0 .

We shall also look into the area of the aesthetics of the play title and the

beauty of play titles' styles and trends. Also, we sllall look at the functions of play

titles, basically horn tile angle of a potential reader. Finally, this study shall

attempt a kind of classifkation and categorization of the appreciable play title

trends.

1.4. TI-lEOREr~ICAL FRAME WORK.

In this study which involvcs mainly critical investigation and analytical

study, the researcher has adopted as a guiding principle, a study based onqcritical r.

al\d analytical study of play scrip&. This is to help the researcher to buttress and

4. validate results and submissions put forward, through comparative sti~dy of other

A

relevant play scripts to further support the following realities; trends in play titling

and function of play titles to the reader, as universal phenomena and [lot the

exclusive characteristics of a panicular playwright.

1.5. RESEARCI I ME'I"NODOL0GY.

Naturally, the nature of a research proolem or topic will determine the

methodology the researcher will employ. Hence, for this study, the researcher shall +

adopt as the rescxch rnetl~odology, the library based nletllods of data iinding,

collection, interpretation, analysis and ordering. The library would be j~idiciously

explored to obtain the necessary material for this study.

A h the process of assemblage of necessasy and available data, the

researcher shall embark on an exclusive study s f the collected data, with a view to

achieving reliable and dependable deductions and conclusions about the research.

1.6. A CENERAI, OVICKVIEW AND DEFINITION OF CONCEY'I'S: A PLAY TLTLE ESSENCE.

r 7 . I itle, accordi~lg to 1 lugh tlolmitn and William Harman (1 986: l32), is "the

chief distinguishing name attached to any written production." 111 the sane light, a

title, according to Weh.s/er'.v Sevcnlh New Collqiule Diclionury,is "a descriptive

or general heading (as of a chapter in a book) or the distinguishing name of a

written, printed or filmed production."

7hc Nvw Twenfie//l C'c.n/ury Edi/ion of Wchst~~r 's defincs the word tide as

"an English word derived from the Latin vocabulary /i/1411~.s, which is a n

i~iscription or superscription set over or on anything." Also it is "the name of a

poem, essay, chapter, book, picture, state and piece of n~usic."

According to Longrzlun English Larouse (1 968: 12 1 1 ), :i title is "a w d ,

phrase or xntence used to designate a book, chapter, pocm, thus distinguishing it

fi-om others and often indicating the nature of its contents."

In the definition according to L:,ngrnun English Lurouse, we can say that

the title of a book is a kind of statement or insight on the expectation from such a

book. This view is in harmony with the view of Charles flazennan (1970:449),

expressed in his book, I1he InJilrnled Wriler. In this book he states that "the tide

and introduction of a piece of writing are usually filled with implicit promises."

He ye on to say that:

If you title a paper 'A comparison of Mass Transit in New York, San Francisco, and Dallas', you are promising to give a coinpreherlsive overview of all forms of Mass Transit-bus, subway, and train, in the three cities, to make specific comparisons among the systems, and finally to draw conclusions about the advantages and disadvantages of each city's system. If you intend to do less, to tell only about the buses in each city, you need to choose a less ambitious title. (1 %'O:449)

To engage the reader's interest, James A. Reinking, Andrew W. ){art and

Robert Von Der Osten in Stru/egic?s for L!i'ucce.s.sj41 Wri/ing (1988:44-45) state

that; "the writer, mi&t try his hand at a clever or catchy title, but, an advice, don't

get so carried away with creativity that you forget to relate the title to the paper's

con tent."

Leo~~ard J. Rose11 and 1-aurence Behrens,in the Allyn [ind Bucon fluntlhook

( 1 997:97-98), opine tha~:

A title creates a context for your readers; a iitle alerts readers to your topic and your intentions for treating it.

'I'he authors go on to siiy that titles could be grouped into the descriptive titles or

+ the evocative titles. A descriptive title, according to them, "directly announces the

content of a paper and is appropriate for reports and write-ups of experiment:

occasions wheil you are expected to be direct." This is to say that there is a

particular occasion when a writer is expected to use an unambiguous title and not

an an~biguous title. The second category, the evocative title, according to them, "is

ri playful, intriguing, or otlmwise indirect atlempt to pique a reader's interest."

The evocative title, similarly, is what we referred to as the metaphorical or the

fig~~rative title, otherwise known as the ambiguous title.

7 ' 1 ~ l , i / / l ~ ~ 111'own I l ~ ~ ~ t d / ~ o o k (1995:60-61), in its classification of titlcs,

refers to evocative titles as suggestive titles, which the editors suggest is more

appropriate "for mold informal writing." The other category of titles, according to

the authors, is the descriptive titles, which is in line wih the subn~ission in Allyn

und I3ucon Hand hook ( 1 997 :97-98)

111 this study, in which our interest is basically on play titles, we :;11;111 ask

ourselves these pertinent questions, that will surely stir us towards doing justice to

the specifics of our sh.dy: Are all play titles the same i n titling trend? Do play

4. titles have relationship to the plays' content? A critical discussion of tliese

n

questions would definitely lead us to other iinportant insights.

1.7 - SIGNIFICANCE - .--- OF A 'Tl'I'1,E:.

When we try to critically appraise the signilicailce of a title, our minds

definitely go to the question, what function $r Sfunctions does the title of a play b

stand to perform?

Ilaving said earlier that the title of a play could be a descriptive name,

which simply means that ;a play title tells us to a very luge extent what a book is

all about, t h e functiol~s of the play title shall be discussed extensively in chapter

three of this study. The study, definitely, will lay bare the significance of'a play

title to the play. We shall also discuss the appreciable trends in play titling. Effort

will be made to clearly classifl the various types of titles according to their kinds.

We shall classifL them according to the following arrangement: the literal titles

and the figurative titles. We shall also sub-classifl them under the following

arrangement: the non-ambiguous titles, the fiirly ambiguous and the ambiguous

titles.

1.8.0 - '1'1 IE PLACE OF AM131C;IIJIrK'Y - l N PLAY 'Tl'I'1,ES.

Ambiguity in lditerature is a technique, which is universally appreciated and

employed by wr i t e r s . .~ gneral overview of works of playwridits, through the

agcs, from the classical Gceks, the Rornans, the English, the French to the Modem

times, shows clearly that playwrights,like other creative writer$, hrzd been and ;ire

still using the techniques of title ambiguity to achieve inteiided literary effects on

the sensibility and perception of the readers.

l 'he degree of anlbiguity varies fiom individual to individual. l'he more * exposed to and aware of world literature an individ~ral is, the less ambiguous

literary work titles will appear to him or her. This we shall discuss in chapter two

of this study.

1.8.1 MEANlNC OF AMUICUI'I'Y

Ambiguity is the expression of an idea i r l a language that gives more than

m e meaning and leaves uncer~iinty as to the intended signification of the

expression.

According to Eticyclopedi~~ Brilunnicu Vol. 23, ".. . writers have sought to

use language for its most subtle and complex effects and haire deliberately

cultivated the ambiguity inherent in the multiple or shaded meanings of words."

(P. 99).

Ambiguity could be employed in a play title through the use of word(s) or

expressions with more than one meaning.

According to Tho Ncrv ~/f/~.h,s/i.r's Di~*/ionury, ambiguity is a situation

whereby "an idea, statement or expression" is "capable of being unclerstood in

rnore than one sense", hence, "the quality of having more than one ~neanillg."

'1'0 t-lugh tloln~an and William 11;:lmon (1 986:lQ 1 ),

In literature of the highest order n u y be found another aspect of ambiguity, which results from the capacity of language to function onzlevcl other than that of the denotation. In lilernturc word demonstrate an astounding caphcity for suggesting two or 1m-c equally suitable senses in a given context for conveying a core meaning and accompanying it w i h overtones of great richness and colnplexily .

In creative lileraturtt, an attribute of the qualitative writers is their ability to tap

whal we may simply refer to as the resourcefulnc~s of language, and then enhance

the general aesthetics with varied possibilities of meanings.

The kind of title ambiguity that results from the capacity of the words ofthe

title to stimulate variously, several impressions, imagery and streams of thoughts,

a11 of which make sense, is a characteristic of the richness, power and beauty

evident in the metaphorical titles.

Sigmund Freud, early in the twentieth century, inspired by what we may

refer to as the now-discredited speculations of the linguist Karl Abel, suggested

that the "language of dreams", which simply refers to the figurative expression,

made use of what he a ~ ~ d Abel called "the antithetical sense of primal words."

What he is saying, in essence, is that in figurative expression, the intended

meaning of an expression usually surpasses the meaning of the word or words that

hrnl such an expression. 'l'his is applicable to play titles. For instance, W ~ l e

Soyinka's The Lion und ihe Jewel refers to the brave a d the beauti Sul, represented

in the charactelrBaroka and Sidi respectively.

William Empson in his work, Seven 7jpe.s of Athigui /y (1 930), extended

the meaning of the tenn to include the follpwing aspects of language. 'This he did

by classifying and putting forward his seven types of ambiguity.

We sliall enuinclate these seven types of ambiguity according to Empson

(1930)' for the purpose of allowing the reader to appreciate them. They are the

following:

* Details of language that are effective in several ways at once; Alternative meri~~ings that are ultimately resolved into the one rneani~~g intended by the, autlior; 'I'wo seemingly uncomected niemings that are in one word; Alternative n~eani~tgs that are together to clarijjr a complicated state of mind in the author;

a A simile that refers imperfectly to two incompatible things and by this L'Sort~niite conf~~sion" shows the author discovering idea as he or she writes;

a A statement tlwt is so contradictory or irrelevant that readers are made to inve~it their own interpretations; and A statement so Sundar~~e~ltally contradictory that it reveals a basic division in the author's mind.

In this study we shall be basing our own classification of ambiguiry in the title of'

literary works particularly plays, on the following classification: the ambiguous

titles, the fairly ambiguous and the non-ambiguous titles, and not on the

classification of William Empson.

Ambiguity is thus a literary tool of great usefulness in suggesting various

orders and ranges of meanings and enriching literary works generally by holding

out multiple possibilities. Its wes range from simple to double meaning for words,

through such devices as the alternative choices. M/chsIer 's New T\vcnticth C'unt~lry #

Dic/ionctry defines aihiguous as 'Iht: Latin word unnhiguo~i,~, from ~ut~hig '>r~~,

incaning to wonder, tkrus having two or more possible meanings; being of

uncertain significance; susceptible to different interpretation; hence, obscure; not

clear; not definite; uncertain or vague."

Our treatment of the various degrees and levels of ambiguity in play titles

will lead us to another important aspect of'this study; that is,the aesthetics of play

titles. I n order to help the reader to appreciate what the aesthetics of the play title

is all about, we need to delve a little into what aesthetics in literature is about.

1.9. 'Il IE AESTHETICS 01; THE IDLAY TITLE.

Professor Curt J . Ducasse in his book, The Philosopl~y oJ'Ar2 (1929), in

chapters 14 and 15, holds that the aim of the artist is simply to satis@ an

instinctive passion for self-expression: it is this feeling he expresses that John

klospers ( 1 969: 132) says is called "beautiful" i f readers look at it and firid the

reeling pleasant to contemplate.

'I'he author known as L,ongin~.ls in his treatise in Grecll Books (if' fhc

Westem World, perhaps written in the lirst cent~!y A.D., states that: "greatness in

nature and art pleases us because it echoes greatness i n our own souls." Ailother

classical writer Plotinus, who is a neo-Platonist in Grecll Hooks, says 111;11: "a Inan

who admires beauty is like one who, not recognizing his own face in a mirror,

shall fall in love with it." +

The play title creates impressions and images in our mind aid psyche.

'The kind of feeling created in our minds, when we read a play title, depends

largely on our ability to decode the meaning or the significance of the expression,

which is the play title.

'l'his study will toucll on the imzges and impressions play titles create in

the mind of the reader. Our interest sl~all be on the kinds or images that could be

built when the reader articulates the message of the play title.

When we talk of image, we mean the n~ental picture or conception we

fonn as a result of our brain trying to decode and relate the information of tllc title

to what we already know. While an jnipression is about the erfects produced on

the feelings or senses, in another perspective 'in~pression' stands for a vague

notion or belief derivable from the piece of message we wait to decode.

-.-

Finally, our a d y s i s of play titling trends shall be based on the following

sub-headings: the use of a play's chief charactcz's name as the title; the tide t h a ~

give<clear insight into the central incidents that concern the play's chiel'chal~acter;

the symbolic title and the metaplwrical title.

For the arrangement of the chapters' headinpand sub-headings, we have

chapter one as an introductory chap~er, containing a general overview and

definition of concepts. This cliapter will introduce the major segn~ents to be

treated in this study. b

In chapter two, we shall treat the major trends in play titling. 'rhe use of

the chief character's name or the names of major characters as the play tide; a play

title that gives a clear insight into the central incidents that concern the chief

character; the symbolic title under the figurative titles; and the metaphorical titles

under figurative titles.

111 chapter three we shall focus on the relationship between the play title

and the play content. tience, ~hrough a comparativc study of play titles we shall

analyze die degree ol'ainbig~~ity in figurative titles. Also we sllall look at the place

of ambiguity in play title, through the study of the essence of J.1'. Clark's Song of

cr G ~ L I I as a title and its extent of portrayal of the play content. .--

'I'he study of J.P. Clark's Tlie Ahsq~rcrwtle as a fairly ambiguous play

title: then a comparative study of the clc.grec of ambiguity between the titles Song

o f ' u GON/ and Tlrc Mrrsq~~cruu't..

l:inally, we shall look at the different perceptions o r n~adness in Emeka

Nwabueze's Echoes of' Mc~u' tms and the figurative representation of vultures in

In chapter four, we shall treat the aestlwtics of play titles and t l ~ e reason

for different perceptions of play title aeyhetics by different individuals.

Filially in chapter five, we shall have the conclusiorl to the study.

2.1 MAJOR TRENDS IN PLAY TI'T'LING.

Major trends are what we may refer to as general tendencies in the ways

something is developing or following. Also trend refers to the dominant

pec~~licuitic*~ in something. In this chapter, we are interested i l l the appreciable

don~inant models in play titling, as an aspect of nlay writing. 'l'hc fact that there

arc no compulsory rules or expectcd modalities', written or unwritten i n play

titling, unlike play-writing itself; where, there exist certain guiding principles

which a playwright attempts to imbibe: whereas play titling is basically all

exercise that rests on the playwright's unlimited freedom to choose fronl any

model of play titling that interests llim or her.

In addition lo what has been said, we can add that,despite the fact that there

are no laid down ior~nats or stringent principles in play titling, evidently there are

some clearly appreciable major trends and inodets of play titles prevalent. In tile

light of that, we shall examine the major trends and niodels we have been able to

observe and categorize in play titles. Hence, we shall delve into the area of

evoldon of these major trends from the ancient to modern; we shall also look into

the merits and demerits of the individual models. This shall be linked with the

probable reasons that could have informed the choice of o w model instead of the

other.

Our discussion of 'the various trends and models of play titling shall be

categorized into f o ~ ~ r parls and treated objectively one aiier the other. 'I'his wi I1

definitely give us the reqiiirecl in-sight into the peculiarities and charactrristics ul'

each of the models. We shall begin by discussing the model: the use of the play's

chief character or characters as the play's title.

2.1. 'l'I1E USE OF 'ITPIE UkIIEI~ GHAlWCTER'S NAME; 011 NAMES 01; MAJOR CllAlUCTICltS AS 'I'lIK PLAY'S 'TITLE.

'I'he use or adoption of' the play's central character's or two major

characters' rlenes as the play title is a'visible play titling style which has

continued to be fahionable among playwrights, right fiom the classical Greek era

to the present timc. What one ~wiy ask. is: How popiil:~ is this model of play titling

at present? Was i t ever very popular? If yes, how very popular and when? In

answer to these questions, we can say that, from our study, this trend is fairly

popular among the classical Greek tragedians, like Aeschylus (525-456 R.C.) OF

w e h\;l if?> +-x *."* whom ou o 11s seven surviv;nj plays, only one, Agunzemrwrr, is of this model. For

Sophocles (495-466.RC),out of his seven existing plays, four plays, Ajux, Eleciru,

Aniipne and f'hilocterc.~, are of this model. In the case of Euripides (380-

406H.C.), eleven plays out of his nineteen existing plays are of this model. They

are Riresus, The Medeu, Ion, Hippolytus, Alccstis, Helen, Andromache, Electru,

As part of the evolution or development of this model of play titling, alnong

t11e two most promirlei~t French dramatists, Moliere and Jean Racine, one imbibed

this uend while the other did not. Anyway it was Moliere that did not use this

model in his plays but Kacine followed this trend i n his two major plays, L3crrric.e

and J ' J I L ~ ~ L I ~ c L .

'This trend could be said to Ilavt: reached its higliest point with Willianl

c,

Shakespeare whose plays are testimony to this. Out of his thirty-five nlajor plays,

eigliteen plays are of this trend. Among&rn are Jiilius C~rescrr, Henry V, H~urrlct,

Muchelh, Otlrc~llo, King Lwr , fioi1u.s und Cressidu, Periclcs, AnlJzolry L ~ U '

( ' I e o p ~ ~ r u , Romeo and .lzdiet, and Til14.s An~/ronicus.

in contemporary Afiica, this model of play titling is not vely popular

among Afiican playwrights. 'l'l~at is not to say that we do not have good evidences

of notable playwrights who reflect this model of play titling in their plays.

Some examples are Ola Rotimi in his play, Ovonrul~lwen Nogh~risi (1974),

a liistorical tragedy written i n English, which portrays the bitter confiontation

between the Binj monarch, Oba Ovonramwen Nogbaisi, and the invading British

colonialist troops, the consequent conquest and trials of the defeated Bini-monarch

and his chiefs. The play ended with the Oba forcefully sent on exile to a distant

Island, far away from the war-torn Bini kingdom.

Another exan~ple is Ama Ata Aidoo's A n o w (1969), a play based upon a

Ghanaian legend, which is mainly about a girl Anowa, who defies her fi~t11c.r and

mother to ~ n a n y the inan of her choice but does not live happily afier.

We have also the title fiY~IJir, writtell by F,f~ia T. Sutherland, which is about

the n u n Edufa and his inordinate obsession to maintain his position of privilege at

all cost, which leads hinl to barter his wifP's life against loss ol'prestigt..

Another is K i r ~ j ~ ~ k / i l e , by Ebrahim Iiussein, a Tanzanian, whirh is about :I

prophet n a n d Kinjeketile, who lived gt Ngarnmbe near the liuligi River.

1 listorically, thc prophet Ki~~jcketile is mentioned in the records of the Nlaji-Maji

uprising, which h e Germans called 'a revolt of the people', as the man who

sought to unite the peasant to prosecute a revolt against the German coloniali~ts in

Tanzania, then known as Tmgayinka.

In I'ygnrulior~, l'ewfiq al-Hakiln, we can rightly say, dcriveshis ideas within

the original framework of the legend. The sculptor Pygmalion, tired of his own

creation, implores the goddess Venus to breathe life into his statue, but no sooner

the goddess granted his prayer than he longs for tne ivory Galatea again.

Few other plays with such titles are Sonny Oti's Evar~gcli.s/ ,Jercnliuh;

Woyengi by Obotunde Ijirnere; Ozidi by 1.P. ('lark; King I h e n e by '%ulu S o f ~ k

K~muzmi by Ola Rotirni, ikiujunpu by Robert Serumaga, Aminrrtu by Francis

Significantly, the use of the name of the play's central character or the

names of the play's niajor characters can evoke strong interest in a reader when

these titles are the nan~cs of heroic, historical, mythical and remarkable

personalities.

It makes more meaning and c r e p s inore impact on the reader when tile

playwright adopts historical, heroic, mythical and reniarlable names than when

ordinary and non-remarkable names are used.

1;or instance, Ozidi, Muhutnmrid, Pygnzdion, Ovollrumwen Noghcrisi,

Woyengi arid Kiu~jekelile are all historical and heroic names, hence their ability to

@t-&n'ir3 evoke a stronger feeling in the reader than names used as play titles, like AIIOWN,

2.

It is iinport(mt to point out that those play titles that adopts historical 9 % ~

heroic names as their titles usually draw their content from actual history, myths or

legends. Also the settings of such plays are mostly historical, real and factual. For

example, in Ola Rolimi's 0vc)nrumwen Noghaisi the setting is Bini Kingdom,

which is actual and real. The Bini kirigdorn today is in Edo State of Nigeria and

the story of the play is mainly drawn from a historical event, but in a play like

70

. Anow, the story is basically fiction. 'The setting, thoug11,cnn be traced to Ghana

Another irnportmt information we gathered from this study is that this

model of play titling is not so popular per sc amongst African playwrights. Our

random samplinp based on sixteen prominent cbnte~nporary Africa11 playwrights

namely Qla Rotinii, Wple $oyinka, F i p i Osolisan, - . . J.1'. Clark, E~neka Nwaiueze,

'l'ess Onwuerne, kulu . Sofola, w Athol Fupard, Frwcis Imbuga, Ngugi wa 'Thiong'o,

ISbrahim J-tussein, John Ruganda, Am,) Ata Aidoo, 1;L~fik al-Ilakim, Yusuf ldris

and Efim Sutherland, with a total pool of ninety plays, o ~ l y thirteen play titles

reflects this titling trend. They are Ovonrumrven Ngob~~isi and Kurunmi by Ola

Rotimi, Ozidi by J.1' Clark, Atzowu-by Ama Ata Aidoo, Edufi~ by Efua Sutht~rland,

Boesniut~ atzd Lena by Athol Fugard, Amitzuiu by Francis Imbuga, MU~UIZ~\YLI by

Robert Serumciga, King Etnene by 'Zulu Sofola, Kinjekriile by Ebrahiin IIussein

and 'Tewfi k al-I-Iakim's I'ygmalion, Shulzruzud and Muhumniucl.

Finally, play titles that are just the name of the character or characters, as

the case may be, suggest or explain nothing in particular to the reader, only that

one conversant with play titling trend will appreciate that such a play with such a

title will supposedly centre mainly on that cllarncter (or those characters) whose

name appears as title.

2.3 PLAY TI'I'IXS TlIAT GIVE A CLEAR IHSlCHT INTO Tklli: CENTRAL lNCIDEF!7'S 'I'IIAT CONCERNS I l l CIIIEF C-1 lAIUC'I'ElL

Usually the title in this category gives us what we may refer to as illsights

in clear language, which helps us to build our anticipation and interest around

them.

-tk Exan~plcs of play titles that follow t l~is trend inAcontemporary Ali-ican

drama scene abound. To use about I~a l fo f such examp1t.s in this study will prove

an ilphill tiask, hence we shall from the pool of the ninety plays, from the sixteen

selected major dramatists in contemporary Africa, cite some examples.

We shall start with the play title, Thc Trids of' Brorhcr Jero by W o k

Soyinka. In this play, 13rother Jero, a self-proclaimed beach divine, is seen

encountering one worldly temptation or another, which represents the 'trials', +a

alluded in the title. We see Brother Jero f'acing the trial of freeing his apprentice A

Llrother Chume by asking him to beat his wife, Amope, who is also a source of

trial to him. Eventually when Amope decided to lay siege right in fiont of Brother

Jero's house in order to collect her debt: he decided to allow hirn to do that. This

resulted ultimately in Rrother Chume's discovery that Rrotl~er Jero has been using

hi~n. Brother Jero also sw the young girl who passes by each morning on her way

to the stream to take her bath as temptation because the girl in question has an

attractive and seductive body.

Kotl:, 'v l l ~ w v e s f by W o k Soyinka, d&r= s its name fiom the

nanle of the central character, who in the play is the President of Isma, and the

rnajor incident in the play, which is the festival, referred to as Kongi's harvest.

Kongi's harvest is a festival, at the time of the announcement of a five-year plan,

which will be a periodic afiair. In this play, Srorn the title, the interest of the reader

will be mainly or1 what the harvest is all about.

I n the case of T ~ L ' Did ~ [ L ) ~ L / U I I Kirnmfhi, by N g ~ ~ g i w;i 'I'hiong'o and

Micere G. Mugo, the title is based 011 the Sour trials, the Kenyan lwroic and

historic warlord, Dedan Kimathi went through afier his capture by the British

Sorces during the Mau-Mau struggle in the colonial Kenya which he was leading.

Among tlle trials, Kinuthi was given the ofSer of regaining his freedom if he

accepts to concede defeat and then call oSY the war. When this failed, he was

approached with bribe by the capitalist representatives, which he also rcjected.

The various means the colonial masters and their collaborators used to make

Dedan Kirnathi abandon the lmsant struggle are what the playwrigl~ts refer to

as 'the Trial'.

Others within this category are The Tricrls of Ovonrumwen by Ahmed

Yerima which reflects h e predicaments, otherwise trials which the Rini Monarch,

Oba Ovonramwen Nogbaisi went through at the hands of his British adversaries,

the then cvlonial master. The trials, which one can say started within the 13ini

Kingdom itself, in Sonn of rebellion by some chiefdonx under his kingdotn. 'I lie

noticeable disloyalty among cabinet chiefs prompted him to get Ologbosere closer

to him by giving him his dal~gl~tcr in marriage. Then the motl~er of all trials, the

threat fionl the adventurous British coloniul agents and nlissioiwrs, who hnve

managed to side-line the Bini Kingdom in their trade with colonies unclcr Bini

kingdom authority. The threat to his throne and tho threat to his very existence are

part of the ~rials. Other plays in this category are, Atllol Fugard's Siz~ve bmsi is

D e d , Efua T . Sutherland's The M~/rr iq;e oJ' A I I C I I I S ~ I . ~ , Tess Onw~~cme's 7Xe b

Reign ~VLIZO hill, OIL\ Olagoke's Tiic l ~ ~ ~ ' o r ~ ' u , r ) ~ j h l ~ JII&:', Fred Agbey egbe's TI7e

King Must D L I Y I C ~ Nuked, md Tewfik al-If akim's Al-Sl/!tin c11-[16 'ir ('l'he Sultan's

Dilcrnrna).

2.3.1 T I 1E IMAGICS AND lMPRESSIONS

'The images and ilnpressions derivable from this category of play titles are

usually clear and unanhiguous. In a language :vhich we can rightly refix to as

literal, the playwright through this title model goes beyond just telling us who the

central character may be, but what the central character will be doing i n the play.

The involvenlent and preocc~lpation of the central character is usually the message

of this specie of play titles.

Starting with the title T/w Kitzg Must Dance Nukcd, the image or mental

picture we will develop will be of a regal monarch, dancing nude with all his

King's regalia remuveci. 'She reader's 'intereuk will focus mainly m ?-%\n 3

into the reason why the king must dance naked, which is something

uncommon.

For The 7rirrls of'llrotllcr Jero, the reader naturally will form the mental

picture of a Clllristian brother, but the kind of trial might not be clear to the render

just immediately, altho~rgh one can rightly say that the trials simply c o ~ ~ l d be the

temptation to sin and go contray to his convictions and prol'ession as a Christian

brother. +

As regards the title, Kiq$'.s Hurvest, the mental picture one develops will I

be that of a person who haci gathered the year's Finn produce, which otherwise are

referred to as 'harvest' in the literal sense of it. The metaphorical representation

normally will be known tllrough the reading of the play.

2.4 CONCLUSIONS.

This rr~otlel of play titling from the pool of plays (ninety) iiom the sixteen

playwrights shows that only a handful reflect this trend. Among then^ are The

Murriugc of' Anun.sewu by 13fira Sutherland, The Reign oJ' Wrizohicr by Tess

Onwueme, 7Ae Triul of'Dedun Kinzutlzi by Ngugi wa Tl~iong'o and Micere Mugo,

Muster fhrold and the Boys by A~hol Fugard, Sizwc! Nunsi is Deud by Athol

Pugard et al.and Tewfik al-I-lakirn's Al-Su!tfin ul-l_2u"ir (The Sulm's Dilemma).

!:inally, we may add that plny titles in this category are less fascinating, but

soniehow more infornlative about the content of'the play than other models of play

titles.

2.5. THE SYMROLJC TITLE 1 FIGUlWJWIC 'SJ'I'LKS. I

A symbol to Lo t~~rnun Diciionciry o/'C'or.r/cnjporurv Etiglisl~ is "a picture or

shape tliat 1x1s a particular meaning or represents an idea."

A symbol is somethirig associated with something else that i t signifies or

represents. The words we normally employ in ordinaly everyday speech or

conversation, objectively do have wider associations and connotations than

stereotype scientific a~ld universal symbols. It is these stereotype scientific

symbols and some widely accepted symbols (the universal symbols) we refer to as

conventional sy~nbols. For example l J 2 0 sy~nbolizes water and a cross synibolizes

Christianity. l'hose sy~nbols that are widely accepted to represent or stand for

something other than themselves are referred to as non-conventional symbol:;.

In language there are various forms of synlbolism that not onlj accept

;,ilibiguity but also tl~rive on it. The use of words to suggcst or to intimate, rather

than to convey specific meaning, is an essential c tk t~ i 'bRi tc~E literature. The

development of symbolism in any language is a continuing process and the use of

symbols to denote or otherwise represent an idea can only nialte the desired and

acceptable meaning only if the 'symbol' that will niean, represent or denote

another meaning is widely accepted to represent such. For exanqle, the wild

animal 'L,ioi~' of the cat Sirnily, universally symbolizes 'brevity and strength',

hence in a play title like 5oyinka's The Lion und /Ire .Jcruel, the L,ion symbolically

represents or denotesthe nature of ~11e man, Briale llaroka, who is the king of

Ilujinlt. in tlv play, lcnown as a very brave man. According to the E ~ ~ ~ y c / ( ~ t ' d j o

Anlericuna Vol. 26. (p.lGS), 'M~ereas signs are olien arbitrary in cllarncter,

symbols frequently are based on a likeness." I t goes on to say that, "the Lion

represents courage beca~lse Lions are said to be brave; the lily sy~nbolizes purily $

Irccause it is white." Such syn~bols, it says, "often have the force of lnctaphor or

comparison. Wheu they embody or imply a moral st:iteinent, proverbs or motto,

they are called einblcms." The Arnericma goes on to point out that, "symbolic

idcntilications, if apt, have a certain persistence, but symbols rue detachable and in

time may find other affinities," for instance, "the eagle of Jupiter, a heavenly

messenger, became identified in Christian times with St. John, but in alchemy, the

eagle became the symbol o i volatilization."

The colour red could symbolize more than one thing fi.o~n place to place,

from people to people. For instance, the colour red could be associated with

conflict and danger. A good example is Femi Osofism's a a * play title, Red is tlrt'

Ftwu"r)rn Roud 111 this play title 'Red' symbolizes conflict, struggle and blood as

the price for freedom in the hce of oppression.

111 mother instance, the colour red can be used to associate or tlcnote love.

The red rose is a good example, which symbolizes burning desire or love.

Playwrights, one can say, fancy the use of syinbolism in play titles as a -

means of denoting presumed ideas. A number of examples of play titles that

reflect this trend are evident in the play titlcs of some contemporary African

playwrights.

A good example among others is the play title, A I'lry oJ'G'icu~/s by Wok

Soyinka. This title actually is not refelring to physical giants but symbolic giants. +

This play, according to the playwright on page iii, is a savage portrait o fa group of

dictatorial African leaders at bay in an embassy in New Yorlc. The synlbolic giants

are the four dictators, who are relen-ed to as giants because of the virtue of their

exalted positions as Heads of States of their countries.

Another example of a play title with symbolic denotation is The Lion crnd

the Jewel by W le Soyinka. Thc two major. characters are synholically

represented in the title. 'The Lion7 represcnts the village chief, h a l e I3ar.olia, who

is described as the craf'ty and powerful Bade of the village of Ilujinle, while 'The

Jewel' represents the young woman, Sidi, who is referred to as the inost beautiful

girl in the entire village. In the play, we see the king (Lion) enlploying all the

cr3finess within his grip at hunting the Jewel (Sidi).

Yet another title of h is kind is The Swcrmp Dwellers by Wole . Soyinka. O Tllis

play is a tale ol' perilous dependence on the 1Bvour of the gods by the creek

inhabitants. The symbolic significance and esscnce in the title could be found in

die word 'Swai~lp' which represents the coastal areas of tlie Niger-Delta.

Naturally, nobody is a swamp dweller, but what the title is denoting is the nature

of the topography of this region, which is marshy and lnaildy patches of dry land

within the extensive lagoons (creeks). It is these swanq3 dwellcrs J.P. Clark

referred to as "Water people" in Ozidi (1966:p.4) #

2 . ME'TAPI IOKICAL 'TITIXS (FIGURATIVE.)

A titlc is nletapllorical, when words or a phrase, which may literally be

dcnoting one kind of object or idea, is used in place of another to suggest a

likeness or 'an analogy (implied) in order to advance an intended meaning.

According to 1,ongtntrn Dic/ionur.y, metaphorical nleans, "using words to mean

something diffkrent fi-om their ordinary meaning when describing solncthing in

order to achieve an efl'ect." Figilrative titles are expressed through the mcans of

nletaplior or other figures of speech. It is this essence or phenomena we refkr to as

figurative language. Figurative titles generally have the tendency to develop

images or mental pictures in our n~inds, which will, in turn, relate to us the

intended message in the play title. A figurative image involves a substitution or

change in the basic meaning of words. Although this kintl of images remains

imbedded in the concrete, it also translates the particular, othenvise the original, to

a different level of meaning.

An image may be 'tied' or 'free', depending on if it has developed a

definite and widely accepted meaning for almost everyone. For instance, 'ocean'

suggests eternity; hence i t said to be 'tied'. If its use is such that its meaning or

value can vary widely for differc~it people, it is referred to as a 'lice' image.

In~;lgery, othenvise expressioll(s), rich in inlagcs may also be literal or

figurative. A literal imagery is one that involves no necessary change in the t

meaniilg of words; that is to say, they give a direct sensory representation.

The figurative use of language is when word(s) or a phrasr or an expression

is used about something different from what it literally means, in a bid to give you

a picture in your mind to create the appropriate impression.

The use of figurative language in play titling is clearly the most popular

play-titling trend among contemporary African playwrigl~ts. The popularity of this

titlily trend could be traced to its high degree of aesthetic quality and essence.

It is important 10 say that the use of this trend more than the other trends is

deliberate because figurative language generally tends to captivate and intrigue the

sensibility of nlan more than mere literal lumguage or expression. Also man tends

to get more attracted to sophistication than simplicity. Figurative language sin~ply

nleans sophistication in expression.

Man's love for discovery is also at play when he is reading through a play

title, which is figurative. If such a tiile refuses to yield its ~ueming i~nmcdiately, un

the desire to discover, instinct inherent in man,usuzllly propels him or her to probe a

fiirther, hence the spontaneous development of interesl to know that which is

seelningly not well known. Also the more thought-provoking an expression is to

man, the more he or she will be thrilled. l'hc playwrigllts the~nselves are aware of

all these sensitivity and sensibility of' man: hence their geater interest in figura~ive

language as the most popular Imguage oftheir play titles. #

Soy inka's A Dance o / ' / / l e Forc.s/.s is a very good example of a play title that

falls within the category of figurative titles. 111 A Dame qf' /lie Fore.s/,s, the

character Aroili, the Lame One, makes the following testimony:

I know who the Dead ones rue They are the guests of the hiirna~k Community who are neighhours to Us of the Forests (p.5)

The forests figuratively represent or denote the dwclling place oi'the spirits.

'I'his position could be supported by the fact that Wok Soyinka has those

characters he referred to as forest d\vellers, miong whom are Aroni, h e Lxne

One, Murete, the tree-imp, Eshuoro, a wayward cult-spirit, Ogun, patron god of

carvers, and others.

, 3 1

The 'Dance' is refwed to as their feast, "the gathering of the tribes." (p.5.)

In the cornrnents of Aroni about the dance, he says that:

'rhey drove them out. So I took 'I'hem under my wing. They became My guests and the forests Consented to dance for them. Forest t lead, the o w who we call Oballeji, invited Demoke, Adencbi, AIM Itola to be present at the dance. (p.5)

According to Obi Maduahor (1987: l78), the word dancc operates at various levels of meaning in the play, and it is not always associatccl with agitated body ~novenwnt. In almost all of the Yoruba ritual dances, a'step or two might be sul'iiciel~t. We have dance as drama, dance as ritual, dance as the movement 01' transition, and dance as lkstival. The entire dramatic enactment itself, as thc tide of the play implies is conceived as ciance.

I'his is the message co~nmunicated in context in Aroni's testimony in the play 'The apprentice (Oremole) began to work Above his master's head: Demoke reached A hand and plucked him down.. . t h final Link was complete. The Dance could proceed (p.6).

'I'he rites of the dead, otherwise the spirits, in the play, in most of Part Two are

spoken of as 'a dance', arid these rites terminate with a particular dance, the

'Dance of the I-ialf-Child', which is a mimed contest of Ogun and Demoke against

Eshuoro and his followers over the fate of the 'I-4alf-Child'

'The Dance', as the movement of transition, leads to a state of possession,

when coinmunion with the dead (forest spirits) is achieved.

Gerald Moore, writing on this form of dance, states that;

The dance is the movement of trance when the dancer can bridge the gap between the human and the divine, that is to say that he transcends his human state during the dance and altains a higher state i n which he can cornmune wit11 the divine. ( 1 976:8)

Dmce, to Madudtor (1086:178), "is also a vital ingredient of the ritual of

invocation or the summoning of the gods." I-le went on to say that ''?oyinka has

used thesedwcs to give a local habitation and a name to his play, while at the

same time using lliem as dramatic 1001s.'' (p. 170)

'l'he dances, which Maduakor is referring to, which appear in the play, A Dcrr~cc. oj'tlrc h ~ c s t s , are: *

'The dance of exorcism. 'fhe dance of welcon~e. The d;111ce of the I-ialS-Child. Thc dance of the Unwilling sacrifice. The dance of town-dwellers around the totem.

2.8 T11E IMAGES AND IMPRESSlONS.

In the words of Maduakor (1 986: 179), 'Dance' is "a syn~bol of possession,"

while 'the Forest' is "an exte~~sion o f the grove metaphor," which, he maintains,

"is not only a ritual symbol of expiation or purgation but also a non-ritual symbol

with multiple connotations."

The mental picture an average reader will build as regards the word

'dance', in the play title A Dunce ofthe hbrcsls, basing on the literal point-of-view

is the rhythmic movement of the body of a performer in accordance with the

musical rhythms and sounds.

I'he Forests, to m averagely informed person about Aii-ican cosmology,

traditions, culture, belie<$ and superdtions, symbolize the abode of the unseen

powers: the home of the spirits. This superstition and belief is corroborated in

Fagunwa's novel, Thc Forcst of'u Thousund Dac~tnons (1968), in which the forest

is taken as the home of daemons and ghommids. Also in ;oyinka's autobiography

Ake, Chinua Achcbe's novel, Arrow of God and J .1' Clark's play, Son'q of'ir Gout,

'Forest' is supposed or assu~ried to be inhabited by all kinds of spirits. 1 1 1 ,(;017,q of'u

Goat, 4 h ~ ~ W C * Zifa m&es the following statement:

. . .To do but suggest I adjust Myself to my curse. Curse! My father Who they dared not spit at When he lived is dead and Lying in the evil grove. Cp4)

'I'he evil grove simply means evil forest, where the spirits of the dead will

continue to roan1 fiee, based on Ati-ican superstition.

For the play, A Llunce of the l G m . s ~ ~ , the expression in the title "the

forests," r e fe~ to the following,according to the chwacter, CRIER:

To all such as dwell in these forests, Rock devils, Earth imps, Tree demons, Ghommids, dewilds, genie, incubi, succubi, Windhorls, bits and halves and such Sons m d subjects of Forest Father, And all that dwell in his domain, take Note: this night is the welcorne of the dead. (p.45)

Fro111 this, one C ~ L L I rightly suggest that the play title revolves around the

following statement of Forest I-lead:

The beings of the forest have L3ec:n called to dance the welconle . . .(p.6 I .)

Then the actual dances in which those of the forests partake are "thc Dance

of the HalMMd" and "the Dance of the Unwilling Sacrifice."

'I'he strong iinpression one gets fiom this title is that this play portends or

has to do will1 spirituality and the metaphysical. This impression, as we have said

ciil earlier, will be mainly propelled by appreci&le knowledge of Afiican cosmology,

A

beliefs, traditions and superstition. I lence, from the African world-view and

perspective, those of "the forests" are "non-mortals or "spirit beings", that is to

say that this 'dance' is that of the 'non-mortals'.

2.8.1 'H iE AES'I'HETLCS

This play title sets us thinking right from the very moment we cast our eyes

on it. The critical appreciation of it then points to its metaphysical essence; in

other words, the impression possibly is that this play story will be about the dance

of the non-mortals or forest spirits: hence, the metaphorical essence is also another * ~

angle to its aesthetics.

Metaphorically, "the forests" simply mean "spirits that dwell in the

forests." Part of the aesthetic quality ofthe play title is that it cannot be defined or

rationalized just literally, for that will mean that some particular forests are

dancing, but figuratively, it will mean that those of the brests (spirits) ace dancing.

'The question, then, is, do spirits dance? Wcll, nobody has seen them dance; l u x c ,

the title projects an abslract impression, which will make the potential reader want

to find out facts in ihe play script.

?'he title of the play is supposedly derived fro111 what the character l~shuoro

referred to as the welcon~e of the dead:

13e careful . . .I asked you whether or not today was the day for Aroni's hannless little ceremony. llis welcome of $Ire dead. Another lesson for tho~c fleas he calls hu~nan.. .(p.4 1 )

This 'Ceremony' in the play is seen taking place side by side with 11ie town

dwellers' ceremony, the gathering of tribes, but the latter is oblivious of the

former.

. . .Foresi head takes a final look at the gathering, goes off. Esluloro give n Loud yell of triumph, rusl~es ot'istage, accompanied by his jester. ' l k Triplets $)llowed gleefully. A silhouerte of 1)emoke's totem is secn. The village people dancing round it, also in silhouette, i n silence. There is no contact between them and the Forest ones. The fonner in fact are not %ware of' h e other beings. (p.72)

lfmeka Nwabueze's play title, A D u t m of l/ie Dead, is another good

exanlple of a figurative title. A literal appreciation of this title is almost

impossible, because the dcnd do not dance, hence the need to focus towards thc

figurative nleaning.

As we have earlier pointed out, the knowledge of African tradition and

superstition supports that 'the Dead' figuratively denotes the spirits. In Igbo

cosmology, beliefs and tradition in which the play is set, the title is a proverbial

expression, which means "very dangerous adventure." I11 Act one, 4~

playwright states that proverb in full in the lbllowing words:

The child that dances the 'U,sug&' should be Told that ' U.su,qd~~ ' is a dance or the dead. ( L +)

'The play title,figuratively, is a proverb expressing the pre-occupation of the

character, Ngozi, which is a very dangerous adventure. Through the character

Diokpa, the playwright attempts setting the rhythm of -h Stcr3.

Diokpa: . . .the antelope has danced himself lame, The actual dance is yet to start. I-Iis is a dance of the driid.. . (p.2)

I-te went on to say that: 'I'he cat is agile and sharp But it is a thief: It steals even from its offspring. Dance the dance of your fiitl~ers, Not a dance ofthe dead b .2 )

In another instance, the character 0-jogwu referred also to that same circumstance, a dance of the dead:

Ojogwu.. .one does not dance when evil !:pirits are ciancing. That would be a Dailce of the dead, a dance of evil Consequence (p. 19)

According to the character Ojogwu, 'a dance of the dead is a dance of evil

consequence.' This is to say that the play title is trying to inform us of an

involvement in a very dangerous adventure by a character or characters.

Apart from 9oyinka's A Dunce of the Forests *and Nwabueze's A Dunce c.f

/he Dead, play titles h a t could bc referred to as figurative abound. The Strong

Breed by Wole Soyinka is a play title that is capable of being understood in more . than one sense.

b For instance, Oxfird Dicrionury defines strong as "physically powerful or

-ti% healthy." Among the other meanings: strong implies quality of "not easily broken

h

or damaged", while Breed means "a particular type of animal or plant." Then the

title The ,Clrong Breed will naturally generate varied meanings and impressions to

different people. ~ e a d e r s seeing the play title for the f rst time usually direct their

minds lowards "the physically powerful or healthy animals or plants" and not

humans: for humans are not usually referred to as breeds. The play title will yield

its meaning only when one must have gone through the play script. It is then that

the reader will appreciate that the playwright Wole Soyinka is referring to that * *

generation or lineage of people, who, through destiny, are fated to be sacrificial

human. In the play, the 'strong breed' are called 'the carrier', and the character

Eman is one.

On page 233, the followi~lg dialogue between the characters Old Man and

Eman buttresses the foci15 of the play title.

OLD MAN: . . . Come nearer.. .we will never Mect agiiin, son; Not on this side Of the flesh. What 1 do not know Is whether y o ~ i will rCturri to takc My place.

EMAN: Do you know what you are saying? Ours is a strong breed, my son. It is Only a strong breed that can takc This boat to the river year after Year and wax stronGer on it. I have taken down each year's

1:vils for over twenty years 1 hope you would folIow me.

'I'his dialogue is from the reflections of Eman :ibout his father while he was

about embarking on a last journey as a carrier, while he,Eman, flees his town,

disagreeing to do the carrier work, which he eventually did in anoth~r town. This

par~icular situation points to the essence of pre-destination in the life of those

individuals Soyinka refers to as 7'he S/rong Breed. I k simply believes that some

people are born for such rituals.

Another Nigerian playwright 17emi Osofism corroborated this superstition in

his play titled No ~Llorc the Wusted Breed. This title also has the capacity of

evoking varied images, impressions and meanings to different people. While

Soyinka refers to the carriers as "the strong Breed", Osofisal~ refers to tllem as 0 0

"the wasted Breed." This type of title readily creates a certain ambiguity and

obscurity, which tends to lieigllten interest.

Among others, some other play titles that fall within tlris category are titles

like 1 Will Marry When I Wuni by Ngugi Wa 'lliiong'o and Ngugi wa Mirii; From

Ziu Wilh Love by Wgle Soyinka; hh lmen und S/,euicrli.s/.s by Wok . Soyinka; Q

Herors o f Conscience by Emeka Nwabueze; Red is ihci Frcecio~ri Koud by Fcmi

Osotisan; a P o Hopes oj'rhe Living Deud by Ola Rotimi; The Dilcrrimu oj 'u Ghosi by

Arna Ata Aidoo; The Mclsc/~c~.rude hy J.R Clark; Al-Aydi ul-n(i 'irncr. (Smooth +

Hands), Ashcvuir al-,S'u/(ini (l'he Tlionis of Peace)' and Mlsruh 01-nmj/nrr~r'(The

Song of Dcath) by 'Tewfik al-l-lakini and Al-Muk/zcrtutin (The Striped Ones) by

Yus~if Idris,to mention but a few.

2.9.1 CONCLLJSlON.

1:rom our study it is clear that the popularity of each of tlie titling models

varies signilicantly. In clear teniis we can say that the most popular is tlie

figurative titles, which are sub-divided into two, the symbolic and the

metaphorical. Among these two, the metaphorical is more popular than the

., symbolic titles.

From the pool of ninety play titles from the selected sixteen contemporary

Afiican playwrights, figurative play titles account for over seventy percent of the

entire ninety play titles, while play titles that reflect just the name of the play's

chief character or two major characters, m d play titles that reflect the pre-

occ~lpation of the chief character in the play, shared the remaining thirty per cent.

In addition to that we can add that play titles that give a clear insight into the

central incidents that concern the chief character are more popular t l m those titles

that reflect just the names of the ceiltral character or characters as title.

-\w b'inally, we can ~ e n c ~ u d c that so hr we can appreciate the need forzl-roice of

apt and stimulating titles for play scripts, in order to better project rhe Socal point,

message aid thematic essence of a phy. We are also awiue from our study that the

various d e g w of pull each model of title is capable of exerting on the reader are

varied. In the tbllowing chapter we shall be looking at the relationship betwecrl the

title an,{ the content. Also we shall look at the degree of ambiguity in figurative

titles, bclieving that the inforn~ation so far given in tllis chapter will erirllestly aid

LIS towards a better appreciatioll of the aesthetics ofplay titles.

In the previous cliaptcr, we exunined the ma-jor trends in play titling, whicll

we classified into four categories, namely the ntetapliorical titles, the syn-tbolic

titles, the title that give a clear insight illto the central incidents tliat concern the

chief character, and, lastly, the titles that are just the name of the play's c h i d b

character or characters.

Among the Sour categories of play titles discussed, we discovercd tliat the

synlbolic and the metaphorical titles, both figurative titles, are the most popular

among African playwrights. T lence, in this chapter, we shall examine the

relationship between figurative play titles and the plays' content, with our interest

tilting towards how representative the play t i t k can be as regards the plays'

content. We shall also discuss the degree of ambiguity in figurative play titles.

Meanwhile, let us begin by saying that the power of the play title to draw

. the attention of the reader, intrigue and set him on a hscinating mental marathon

journey is the beauty evident in the category of play titles we refer to as figurative.

'This figurative essence is an unusual, essentially metaphorical or symbolic mode

of expression used for effect in writing and also to deepen meaning by suggesting

similarities, which provoke thought. If we accept that figurative expressions are

thought-provoking and captivating more than non-figurative expressions as play - titles, which supposedly infbrm their greater popularity among Afi-ican

playwrights, then we sl~all aim at finding out il ' figurative titles do go beyond

intriguing readers. Hence our discussion will focus on the signiticance and

relationship between a figurative play title and the play content.

The plays that will form our case study are J.P Clark's So!ig of ' (1 Gou/ and

Vd~urcs, The analytical study of these plays will help towards finding out if the F

playwrights just created 111ese play titles only to intrigue, fiiscinate and sti~nisl:~te

the interest of the reader without alluding in any way to what the reader will

confiont in the play content.

Meanwhile let us delve a bit into the nature and meaning of ambiguity in

order to lay good grounds for a better appreciation of its place in play titles, before

corrmlencing our discussion on play tide and play content relationship.

"ambiguous is the Latin word urnhipus, derived from the word mibigere,

meaning to wonder, thus having two or more possible meanings; being of

uncertain significance; susceptible to dilllerent interpretation; hence obscllre; not

clear; not definite; irncertain or vague."

Ainbiguity in language in creative writing is an established literary

techniq~re, which is universally irppreciatcd and employed by writers. A historical

review of the works of' playwrights through the ages fiom the classical Grecl;,

Aristophanes' TIE Birds mcl The Frogs, through the Elizabetl.lan, Shakespeare's

show clearly that playwrights, like o$er creative writers (mainly novelists nnd

poets), had been and arc still using the techniques of title ambiguity to achieve

intended effects on the sensibility and perception of the readers. For exarnplc, the

novelist Chinua Acllebe's Arrow of' God, Things Full A~mrl-~md A ~ t i ~ i l l of the

Smulzl~ah and the poet Niyi Osundare's "Ours To Plolrgh, Not To Plunder" and

John Donne's "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning" are titles built on ambiguity

as a literary technique.

In essence, to unclerstand (thinking and knowing) one must understand

language as the means of tllought and communication. Words, generally , are

con1 mtional signs; however, John Locke in Crcnt Rooks Vol. 33 (1 993:284-285),

states that: "Signs do not directly represent things but rather ideas of things."

'I'hus, Locke carries a theory of ideas into his account of language. He maintains

that fi-equently, the idea signified by the word is not clear and solneti~ncs words

are used even when there are no ideas corresponding to them.

Locke is iidined strongly towards a kind of conceptualism, according to

which the use of general words is possible only because they signify 'nominal

essence.' In this view what we mean is not the real essence b~l t an abstract

concept. For example, the play title, A Dunce (.$/he DC'LII~, by l h e k a Nwnbueze

does not represent the real essence, for the dead do not dance, but an abstract

concept, which gives the representation of the title as "a vely dangerous +

adventure." This idea is based on Igbo culture and language interpretation.

3.3 UNDERSTANDING THE WORD AMBIGUITY.

Ambiguity is the expression of an idea in a language that gives more than

one meaning and leaves uncerlain~y as to the intended significance of the

statement.

According to L o n p u n English Larousse (1973:30), "ambiguity is the

cluality of having more than one meaning, an idea, statement or expression capable

% of being understood in more than one sense." 'To Fontunu Dictionury oJ IZlo~ier~~

Th011j;h/, ambiguity is, simply, "the co-existence in a piece of writing oi'two or

more nxanings."

Citing Hugh C. Holman and William llarman (1986:7 I ) ,

In literature of the highest order may be found another aspect of anlbiguity, which results from the capacity of language to f~mction on levels other tlian that ol'denotation.

The authors go on t,o suggest that:

In literature words demonstrate Gi astounding capacity for suggesting two or more equally suitable senses in a givcn context for conveying a core meaning and accompanying i t with ovt:rtolm of great richness ant1 coinplexity, and for operating with two or more meanings at the sanie time. (pp. 71 -72).

The kind of play title ambiguit$ that emanates from the capacity of tlw

words of the title to stin~ulate variously, several impressions, images and streams

of thought, all of which make sense or deepen meaning, is a characteristic of he

richness, power and beauty of' literature.

William Empson (1930) in his discussion on ambiguity, as cited in

Encjwlopcdiu of Poetry mu' Poefics-(I 965: 19), explains his idea of language

ambiguity thus:

We call it ambiguous .. . when we recognize that there would be a p i d e i iS to what the author meant, in that alterna~ive views might be takcn without sheer misreading ... An ambiguity, in ordinary speech, iueans something veiy pronounced, and as a rule witty or deceitful, 1 propose to use the word iir an extended sense, and shall think relevant to my subject any verbal nuance, however slight, which b' w e s room for alternative reactions to the same piece oi'lant;uage.

Anhipi ty in .language is thus a literary tool of great usefulncs:; in

suggesting various orders and ranges of ~ncanings in a given expression, hence

enriching the writers' loiii~iess by holding out multiplc possibilities to the actunl

interpretation of his statement.

Ambiguity, as we did earlier say in the introducto~y chapter of this study,

exists in play titles in different degrees, ranging iiom the totally ambiguous to the

Fnirly ambiguous. These wc shall discuss in detail in our arlalytical study of t l ~

degree of ambiguity in the selected play ~itles, in relation to the content of the

plays.

It is likely that if a reader picks up this play and then begins to read the

title, he or she probably will wonder mildly what this title is all about, and such a

state of mind will surely provoke peculiar questions like,*can a goat sing?" 'I hen

the reply will be something like, "No, impossible, goatsdo not sing." Suclk an

intuitive question and the consequent answer arise because it is an unrealistic

phenomenon, for an animal to talk, not even to think of a singing goat. In a

situation like this, the reader is left with one option in his or hcr quest to decode

the rneaning of the play tide, and that is to appreciate the litle figuratively and riot

from the literal point of view. The idea bzh~r~d the playwright's me of a figurative

title is to make an indirect statement about the play content.

The natural and inherent sensibility in man that usually propels him

towards the 'line of desire' to discover that 'thing' which is new and unknown to

him, spontaneously will deepen his resolve to dqpode the meaning of the play title

in relation to the play content.

3.5 THE ESSENCII OF SONG OF 4 GOAT AS A TITLlI AND PIS 1CXrTI<NT OF POIITRAYAL OF THE PLAY CON'TENT

'I'his play is set in the coastal Niger-Delta region of Nigeria. The names of - t k

places and cluracters support the idea that the play is set within ljaw tribe enclave. 6

The play centres on the man ZiSa, who lost his potency, otherwise his

manhood, after reclaiming the buried body of llis father fiom the evil grove to the

village for re-burial. Zifa's fither died of leprosy, hence the reason behind his

body being buried in the evil grove. According to the period in ljaw cultural

histo~y the play is portraying, i t is an evil omen for one to suffer from leprosy.

Zifk's reclaiming of his father's body from the evil grove brought a curse on him.

While he waited and wished for the recovery of his potency, he sent his wife

1;bier-e for a birtll-cure lo the cripple and itinerant, the Masseur, a family doctor,

who advises that he n~akes his wife over to his younger brother, 7'0llj'e. to

impregnate since he cannot, due to his handicap. This he re-jected but Ebiere

eventually succeeded in seducing Tonye towards sleeping with her. 'l'onye and

Ebiere are caught in the act %ifa,angered, designs to kill Tonyc; but on the fateful

day, while Zifa chases Tonye, l'onye locks Iiimself up inside the room and hanged

liimself. Z i h breaks tlie room's door arid goes in to kill his brother but he cannot,

for Tonye has taken his life. Zfa, disillusioned,goes out, walks of his own accord

into the sea, drowning himself.

A11 abomination and tragedy, Orirliorere, Zifh's half-possessed aunt,

escapes with Zifa's child to another viltdge before the anglJ/ villagers e~iharkcd on

an inevitable rim1 of cleansing, which would require burning a1111 11 total

destruction of Xifa's honiestead.

The probable linkage between the play title, Song o j ' u Gout and the play

content is hard to establish in the play. We have only few instances, which

probably look like the possible link, but they are not certain.

'Ihe first instance a goat is mentioned ill the play is on page five, when the

character Masseur says:

I understand your feelings, Understand them vely well. L3ut you are young still as 1 say, And do not know the ways of Our land. Blood ofgoat, so large A cowrie lilzry pass . . .

In line tive above, 'Hlood of goat', represents or signifies Masseur's

allusion to material of sacrifice for the purification of the family against the

proposal for Zifa to make over his wife to Tonye; hence, it cannot be directly

linked to the title.

Allusion to 'Song' .is made on page twenty when Dode says, "She i s

singing, she is up a d singing." Dodc, Zih's son, says this, referring to Orukorere,

while actudly the playwright did not give any song by her or even any other

character.

The character in several parts of' the play repeat the vision slw i-: seeing

concerning 'a crying goat., We have such gn instance on p a p fourteen:

OruLorere: 1 say come out here, All you people. A goal, a goat, 1 hear the cry of a goat.

When they c m e out in answer to 1113- distress call, none of them ", sable to set: or

hear the crying goat, hence ill^ 1m to rebuke her, comrnLmding her to keep quiet,

"Will you keep quiet?'(p.14), while Tonye, believing she is drunk, says:

Somebody's been giving her Drinks again (p. 1 4)

But Orukorere insists that she u:il not keep quiet: 1 won't, 1 won't, 1 hear a goat Crying out ror help and you Say 1 sliould lieep quiet (p. 14)

ller visions remain strange and largely undefined. It c\s even attributed to her

partial insanity by the neighbours who rushed in to help, when they 11eard her

voice calling for help. However, towards the end of the play, when Tonye hanged

himself on the loft, and Zifn is dead, having walked of his o\vn accord into [lie sea,

Orukorere ~.n~.kts a comment slmwing that the scales art: off her eyes.

Orukoret e: Go on, who am 1 to Question you? 1 heard the Goat ciying all the while And thought it a leopard Stalking (p.33)

From the above statement by Orukorere, one can rightly say that she sees a vision

of a goat crying which, conlextually, om inem that the said goat is in d q y r or

+ distress. The placing of the link between the play title Sot~g ofu Gout and content

still remiins vague, urlccrtain and an~biguous. The cries of the goat cannot stand

for 'Song' in the title, llence the extl-erne difficulty in really placing the

significance and relationship of the title to the play content.

This situation may prompt questions like: what is the basis and nieaning of

this title? 'I'hat is not to say that the play title is the play itself but it is not out of

place to ask such a question because, since the play title, to a large extent, draws

and attracts a reader, it is expected that the play title will be reflecting in one form

or the other the play's content. The way it is, this title could be referred to as

totally ambiguous. This is because, afier an arialytical study of'the play's content,

the actual relationship of the title to the content is still uncertain and disputable.

llowever, we need to appreciate that play titles that are totally ambiguous like

Sorig oJ' u Gou~ are not very common and popular. For instance, among all

Soyinka's, J.P Clark's and N\vabueze's plays used in this study, only J.P Clark's

Sorig oj 'u Gaul falls within the category, the totally (unbiguo\is titles.

3.6 J.P. CLARK'S THE lblASQUf.:KADi?: A S'TCJDY OF A FAIRLY AMBIGUOUS PLAY 'I'Irl'LE.

Clark's second play, 7hc h/fcrsyuc~ruck, deals with the son whom Ubiere, the

wife of Zifi in Clark's first play, Song of'^^ Goat, cowrived \vith Tonye, Zifi's

brother. The product of this 'unholy union', Tufa, a son, is to many and, as the

b

marriage is about to be celebrated, his parenlage is disclosecl. This disclosure

causes disaffection between the son-in-law 'Tub and his in-laws who have voiced

their opposition to the cor~tinuatiorl of the marriage ceremony. Meanwhile, Tufa's

strong-willed bride, Titi, will not give him up and is shot by her fither who

mistakenly thinks she has given herself to Tufa before the conclusion of the

rnarriage rites. Then ill a fight with Titi's father, Tufa is accidentally killed.

In this play, the reader's desire to know the play title's i.elevancr, link and

the relationship to the content could be seen in the following areas in the play.

The first instance is exemplitied in the statement of the character, First Neighbo~~r :

As I am my fither's trw son, I-lave I lived till now to be scorned h r d lashed out of sight To please a stranger nobody Kno\vs his source? (p.63)

52

'L'lle character, First Neigllbour, is angry because of the distastefid way

Diribi treated him: hence he made that coinmelrt and as a follow-up, Diribi, Tufa's

father-in-law, wants an answer from Tufa. Tufa, confused more than evcr, Ilas no

ready answer because he does not Itnow the dark facts about his parentage.

When Tufa could not disprove the story making r t ~ c e raqnX4 + ~ . a ~ r 2

. . .His fhther usurped thc 13ecl of his elder brother,. . . After hanged himself in broad Daylight, while this unfortunate Abused husband wal kcd ,ofhis Own will into the sea (p.68)

h a was first referred to as 'Masquerade' by Umuko, Titi's mother. Tufa: I am ruined.

Umulco: So you should be. Now '

( k t out of my house, You Masquerade @.7 1 )

This play title figuratively implies that the protagonist, Tufd, is a pretender, a

fike and deceiver based on the Afiican world-view, that a corresponding fanlily

background must complement a man's projected personality. According to

Uinuko, Afiic'ans particuls, ly regard the h r d y backgrounds of would-be sons-in-

law or daughters-in-law as very important factor before allowing their own into

marriage institution. Her following statement attests to this.

Umako: Of course it is not! Do You think people just live On good looks and smart display? (p.72)

She added to this by referring to Tufa as a schemer,though indirectly

Where, if you had succeeded in Your scheme, would you have Taken your bridc'! (p.72)

Lamely, Tufa tried co~lvincirig his bridc to believe him and disregard the accusation that llc is a mascprade.

You still will have me, 'Titi, Won't you? Oh, I an1 not a Masquerade as they seek to Paint me! You believc me, don't You Titi? ...' This terrible story Which you must believe me, like You all, I am toqighl privy offor 'I'lle first time (p.72)

3.7 COMPARATlVE STUDY OF TlIE DECREE OF AMBIGUlrrY BETWEEN TIIE TlTLES SONG OF A COAT AN3 T11E MASQ UIiRADE.

Among the two play titles selected lor this study, Song ofu Gout and 7he

Ahsquercrcle one is totally ambiguous while the other is hirly ambiguous. Song oJ'

u Gout, taken as a statement, is totally ambiguous because the relevance and

meaning of it to the play is abstract. Figuratively, in other likely contests, this

statement could be referred to as Pdirly ambiguo~is and not totally ambiguous. For

instance, "A Goat'' i'iguratively could mean 'tin idiot' or 'a foolish person.'

Dasically in the Igbo, Yoruba and f lausa sub-cultures, when sonleone is referred to

as "a goat", it simply means that such a person must have been perceived to act

without common scnse, enough deconirn and self-respect. In this case, if you

substitu~e "a goat" in Song ofcr Gout, it will simply be "song o f a foolish person."

But, then do we have a clear indication that a character in the play is acting

foolishly; well, we do not yet have such an indication; hence, that link will not be

plausible.

In this case one could say that in J.P. Clark's Sorlg ofct C'ocrt, none of the

characters could have been figuratively referred to as "a go;tt" because 11011~ acted

foolishly, hence the analogy that, in the title Song o f0 Gout, "a goat refers to a

Soolish person", will not be plausible. , On thc other hand, ihe bleating and crying of 'a goat' as perceived only by

Orukorere, Zifii's half-possessed aunt, in what could be referred to as a trnncc,

could be the oher alternative to the meaning of the play's title, although this angle

is liugely speculative.

Quoting Orukorere: . . . I htw-d the goat crying All the while and thought It a leopard stalking (p.44)

She went on, in another instance, thus:

. . . Last night I crjcd it had Coiled itself into a pad to Pillow my head but the I-Iouse was full of snoring Sound and as ~isual everybody Snorted (p.29)

From these statements, the possessed woman, one could say, putially

perceived the tragedy coining but could not define it properly. Then the question

This play, sct in Ieho culture, opens in the Avuja Shrine Osufia the diviner * *

is within the shrine while funeral songs announce the demise of the Ezc Avuja, the

chief priest of Avuja. A replace~nerlt to the stool of Avuja priesthood is sought.

Akalnonye, desperate to become the next Eze Avuja, tried inlluencing Osuofia, . ., the

diviner. As it turned out, Os~lofia .. proclaimed Obiora who is studying in U.S.A. as 4

the person chosen by the ancestors.

'l'he tension and anxiety in the village is high because tomorrow is the last

day of pace of the oracle, Avuja to have the priest installed but the proclaimed

Obiora is not yet back fioni the U.S.A. as pronised by Osuofia after cmying out *,

some rituals and sacrifices.

As some people find fault with the divination of Osuofia, . . # the oracles

diviner, for proclaiming wrongly, which surely will bring the wrath of the gods to

bear on the people, Obiora returned from U.S.A with his African-American wife.

I h e whole people marvelled snd rejoiced because Avuja has finally brought hoine

his priest. When the euphoria of his return subsides, the elders promptly informed

hirn that he is the selected one by Avuja to be the next chief priest. This he

rejected. He refused to accept that Avuja is responsible for his return to the village,

is: Is it the crying of a goat that the playwright is referring to as a "song" abstract,

as it is in the title Song of0 Gout. It is abstract, because goats do not sing and the

goat crying is not figuratively perceived by Orukorere in the play. She perceived

the crying oE'a goat' literally, when she says: r 7 I here goes the ciy again! I am sure a leopard has

'lhc poor thing in his grip. We inust save thc poor brute (p. 15)

While with the play title Song of'u Goat, even after a critical study ofthe play,

one still finds uncertain what the actual signification tlle play\vright wants to b

co~ninunicate to the reader is, it is no doubt a continuing ambiguity. I lence, such

conditions will be seen as totally ambiguous. While, on the other hand, the play

title, The Mus~~uerucr'c, projects more than one possible meaning, tile reader might

interpret !he title, The MLISLII~C~CIC~, as a kind of "masked ancestral spirit", fi-om

the literal perspective while from the figurative represeimtion it could stand for "a

pretender or an impersonator."

Hut urdilte the play title Sorzg oj'u Go~rt, which the reader may find almost too

dif'ficui~, linliing its probable meaning to the play's content, the meaning of the

title, The hlusc~uerude, is readily appreciated in the play's content. "Now get out of

my housc, you M:isquerade." (p.71) This sLatement by Umuko is directed to Tufa,

who is refelred to as the Masquerader.

rattier that he decided to because he has landed a job in a new government

ministry. Akomonye tried persuading Obiara to accept the offer, while he,

Akornonye, will do the priestly dl~tics on his behalf, but Obiora also rejected the

oll'cr; inslead, he promptly left for the city with his wife. Finally, the custodians

met and pronounced Ojinaka the new chief priest.

This play, rich in symbolism, deals with the univtrsal human emotions of

greed, anger, fear and inverted compassion Iiom which we shall see the

percepkons of madness as projected ip the play.

3.8.1 THE PERCEY'TIONS AND COLOURS OF MADNESS AS Y O l ~ l R A Y ED IN rl'l 1 E PI A Y , ECflOES OF MADNEW

In the words of the character @$we: Old age undertakes tasks that Youth :;hirlcs; tasks that show l'he real worth of man. Young men you've come here to Celebrate the inadness of present

Generation (p.3)

The words of Qdukwe come as a strong rebuttal to what he perceived as youths' Ilippant disrespect and disregard Ibr old age and the aged, clearly exhibited by Dimgba wllo recklessly derided old age, making it a subject ofjest.

Dinlgba: You are old when you Need oeher people's eyes to Find your bed (1ulrglzit.r) or W1wn you summon your wife And wonder why you called f Icr! (morc laughcr.) (p.2)

This he followed up with similar jest:

You're old when people begin 'L'o tell you that you are looking Good, but no one cvcr says you're Good looking. (7he yorlrhs I ~ r r & i ) Aid above all, you are considcwd Old wl~cn you think that today's Militay ol'ficers look like policenlen (tt~orc. lauj$i'llfc~r,) (p.3)

It is these jests by Dimgba which arc responded to heartily by the youth

by their lnuglrter which Odukwe, * a n~ernber of the "old ones," perceives as.thc +

“madness of the present generation" (p.3)

Another allusion to "Madness" is seen when Akoinonye and Chinwe visited

Obiora. Akomonye wants O b i p to accept the offer to be the next chief priest,

with the condition that he, Akomonye, will do the priestly duties on his bel~alf.

In Obipra's reaction to the suggestion, he says:

What the hell are you s:ying Uncle? Are you telling me that 1 can't rely on you? Are you Saying that with all your Sopliistication and exposure, You still fall lbr such Madness a(; feeding an oracle? (p. 1 8)

Akompye, determined to convince him, went on: Please, let me finish.. . (p. 18)

13ut Obipra will not want to be convinced, hence he charges out: 1 don't want to listen

To such madness. (p.18)

In this instance Akomonye's desire to be the chief priest on behalf of

Obiora, because of his greed and avarice, is seen by Obiora as a sort of "madness."

To Akomonye, Obiora's r e f i d to see it as wise to accept his offer is a sort

of "madness," too. This he portrays in the following words:

Abornonyc.: This is sheer madness. f h t wc shall see. We shall Set* whose niadness is greater (p.2 1)

In this case, Akomonye sees Obiora's anger, fear and his modern

generation tllinlting as madness. t

'Then, in allother instance, Chinwe, Obiora's half-sister, reels of'f rhe litany

of Obiora's sins of ingratitude, this way:

You allowed 11s to complete all 'l'hn marriage rituals, we don't know 'I'hat you have other plans in that Your oblong head. D'you think that Your marriage will work'? We had to Scll the remaining plot offann land With the h i t s in it just to procure You a wife and make you think OL'ho~ne. Yet, you disappointed all of Lls. Can you compare Nkechi Adibe with 'That stick you call a wile? Obi~ra, you've I m t your senses. A decent son of (I)npn~a clan wants a wottyn who has Flesh, a woman with considerable size Capable of' carrying a pregnancy, a woman With a good storage on her chest to Feed 'her babies (p.20)

Obiora in his reply referred to all Chinwe had said as madness, thus: Obiora: This is madness.. .(p.20),

To Obiora, this madness could be fi-om nothing but inverted compassion, he

believes nobody is in a better position to know what is best for him other than

himself.

In yet another situation, in Akompye's house, in a meetirlg of some

selected members of the village, Akomonye attempts to embolden them, in their

plot spearheaded by him to see to it that he becomes the noxi chief priest, by

enumerating to them how he had sworn oaths and survived, hence Av~rja could be

manipulated. 13ut Ojinaka, one of the men in,the n~eeting~tl~inks differently:

1 may not be as lucky as You've been. 1 don't want to Continue with this ~na&iess (p.25).

'1'0 Ojinaka, the geed behind the plot to ensure that they manipulate the

outcome of who becomes the chief priest and other attendant diabolical acts, he

proclaims as "~nadiiess."

Finally, in Akompye's house, Ugodie caught Akomonye, her liush'md, in

passionate embrace with his niece. The following dialogue clarifies further:

Chinwc: Mama, you're mistaken. Akoniony e was just . .

Ugodie: Shut up! Idiot!! You're not ashamed Of yourself. (To Akomyiye) and you 'l'here, go on and teach me a lesson. 1 couldn't have believed it if I lladn't seen you wilh my own eyes. S l~meless idiot!

Akomonye: I can't stand this madness! You're Going to regret it. Believe me (p.23)

To Akorntnye, his wise's boldness and audacity to accuse him of having an

affair with his niece is 'madness.'

In the last instance, when Ugodie went to complain to Obi9ra about her

husband's supposedly shtmeSul romance with Chinwe, she ended up refen-ing to

niarriage, as madness, tl~us:

Ugodie: Marriage is madness . . .(p.30)

It is all these "colours and manifestations of madness" as perceived by the

+ characters, that the playwright ostensibly reSers to as 'Echoes of Madness'.

3.9.0 EM EKA NWAB'IJEXE'S A PARLIAMENT O F VULTIJRli'S: TI IE l~lGUHAT1VE JIEYRESENrTATION OF VUIJrI'IJHES IN TILE, PLAY'S CONrI'EN1'.

In this play, which paints an unflattering portrait of the hypocrites who

infest the Afiican politics, the story revolves around the hypocritical and corrupt

~nearls politicians use to find their way to elective posts, particwlarly the

parlian~ent~uy seats. In this play, we see a bunch of mediocre personalities

represented by I-labanlero, Rcv. Jossy, Madarn Omeaku and Mr. Brown, aligned to

frustrate a rd dislodge the few serious-inindod patriots, represented in Dr. I'arkers

and Mr. Otobo.

%llicil the oppositions of Dr. Parkers and Mr. Otobo could not he easily

contained, they plotted to frame them up as felonies. The arrest and incnrcmtion

by the police of Dr. I'arkers and Mr. Otobo triggered off a revolt by the student

aclivists, who mobilized and stormed the presidential villa m d parlia~rlctnt, burning

then1 with reckless abanclon.

3.9. I '1-1 {E FIGUB~ATIVK ~~ISI'MESEN'I'ATION 01; v u c r u l u c s IN '1'1 IE PLAY.

']he vulture image, which is generally used to portray all the corrupt

politicians, simply equates the politicians with man's perception of a vulture.

Metaphorically, a person referred to as a vulture is a rapacious person seeking to

b protit from the mislortunes of others.

The actions of these politicians, wl-rich centre mainly on looting, self-

aggrandizement and all m a ~ n e r of corruption, qualify tl~cni to be referred to as

vultures.

Their activilizs range from electoral fraud to embezzlement, as portrayed in

the words of the cliaracter, Mr. I3rown.

Ith-own: 1 laving lived in the United States of America for Inore

Than filiecn years we felt lie Should have enough connections r . I o hclp us put money in foreign E3anks. After a11 what was the worth Of his campaign? I le could've crashed like a pack OS cards if I hadn't stcppcd in '1'0 rcscue him. Fortunately, the I<eturning officer was my classmate. It wasn't difficult for me to

Negotiate h e right figures for him As I did in your own ca:,u (p.4)

The play portrays the level of n~indless looting and frivolities that goes on in tlle

pwlianlent in the name ofpolitics.

l'he character Mr. Omeaku sums up the significance of the "vulture image"

as portrayed in the play, in the following words:

19 So his,what you people are doing? 'I'his is my nation's parliament at work Do you know what you people are? You are vultures! This is a parliainent

b Of vultures, Eating my nations to death, Leaving nothing for the masses to quench their thirst.. . (p. 1 S)

'The play title is l'airly ambiguous, because the representation of the title's meaning is readily appreciated once the reader reads the play.

According to John Locke as cited in Great Books, Vol. 33:

To nlakt. words serviceable to the end of communication, it is neccssary,as has bcen said, that they excite in the hearer exactly the same idea they stand for in the miid of' the speaker. Without this, men fil l one another's hcads with noise and sounds; but convey not thereby their thougl~ts, and lay out before one another their ideas, which is the end of discourse and language (p.285)

In Locke's vicw, when ambiguity as a literary means of heightening interest

by creating intended obscurity in title, is employed, such creates mystery towards

the discovery and appreciation of the meaning of a play title, it can translate to an

unwanted situation he refers to as '111~' imperfection of words." 'This he

describes as the "doubtf~llness of their signification." (pp.284-285)

'l'he doubtfulness of the signification of words, according to Locke in Greut

Books (1 093:284-285), could arise when:

"Firstly, the ideas they stand for are very complex and made up of a great

number of ideas put togcher."

"Secondly, whcn the ideas they stand for have no certain conncction in

natiire; and so no settled standard anywhere in the nature existing to rectify and

adjudge them by ."

"'l'hirdly, when the signification of the word is referred to a standard, which

standard is not easy to be known."

"Fourthly, where the signification of 11le word and the real essence of the

thing are not exactly thc same."

Tl~ese,he went on to say, "are the difficulties that attend the significiition of

several words that are intelligible." Then, ''those which are not intelligible at all,

such as names standing for any simple idea which another has not organs or

faculties to attain; as the names of colours to a blind rnan or sounds to a deaf man,

need not here be mentioned.

'l'hough the words of the title Song qf'u Gout are separately intelligible, but

then the expression Song oJ'a Gout is ambiguous because it is abstract, and a

reading of the play l~ardly gives a good or plausible connection to nature and

reality. This sub~nission is based on the premise that, direct title signi lication ilr

the play content is uncertain. May we also point out that 'Song of a Goat', could

be the author's expression of the Greek word tragedy ('Sraigoidia), which means

'goat song'. The roots of tragedy, as a dramatic fonn,m believed to have evolved

from this 'goat song': an integral part of Dionysian festival.

In tlie next chapter our focus will be mainly on the acsthe~ics ol'play titles.

We s l d look into the conditions that enhance better appreciation of play titles. b

Also we shall look at the individual's faculty level of imderstandirlg the lilerary

essence as the major factor controlling the degree of interest derivable from a play

title.

4. AESI'IIE'I'ICS OF PLAY 'l'IrI'LES.

'l'llis chapter will focus on the aesthetics of play titles. It will pay special

attuntion to the following areas like: the level of aesthetics appreciable fiom a play

title, what we mean by the word aesthetics, the major hctor responsible for the

clif'f'erent levels of play title appreciation and judgment, and the various lcvels of

information appreciable from play titles. The nature of the book usually

determines the type of title the author wiW give to it. Also the intended consumer

could influence the choice of the book title. For instance, books intended for

primary scliool pupils are usually devoid of figc~rative ~itles. 'This is bcczi~~se the

ppi\5' level of ~ficonceptualization is still low, hence, the need to p,ive tlwm literal and

simplistic titlcs. Meanwhile, books are classified into two major groups, namely,

tiction and non- fiction. Mostly, fictions, narratives and all categories of

'stories' nlalie use of metaphorical expressions as the titles, while nurl-fictions

make use of literal expressions mostly as the titles.

*u However, in this study, our cardinal focus is purely on drama, andnplay title

essence. Our inquiry is to find out the reasons behind the different l e \ds of

individual appreciation and judgmlent of the play titles. 13ut then let us first probe a

little into the meaning of aesthetics.

Aesthetics, according to 7'hc New Wehsier ' s Diciiontlry (1995), Incans thc

"appreciation of the beautifill, especially in the arts." It goes on to say that it is,

"the part of philosoplly, wllich deals with the perceptio11 of the beautiful as

distinguished from the moral or the useful", also, "the branch of psychology which

deals with sensations and emotions evoked by beauty, hence pcrccptiblc to the

F. 1 o Lon,qmnn Dicfiotm-y, a~sthetics simply is "the study of beauty, b

especially beauty in art." In the words of the great psychologist and pliilosopl~er,

Sigmund Freud, in his treatise, Poefry mLl FUYI~LISY in Mathew Levich's

C'otlietr~por~~ry Acsfhefics (1 963:7), aesthetics stands for:

'l'tmse i~quiries into specific philosophical problems within thc domain of art itself - for example, the nature of the work of art and the way we make and appreciate and judge works of art - -

constitute the Geld of aesthetics.

The summary of the positions of' above cited sources is that aesthetics is

mainly about the appreciation of beauty in something. It could be the intriguing,

fascinating or thrilling nature of a play title or the satirical qiiality of an

expression. But then, the interpretation of the meaning of the metaphorical essence

4

in a metaphorical title, which naturally will yield the beauty in such play title, we Ic

say, is determined mainly by a central factor, and that we shall look iiito.

4.2 THE REASONS BEIIIND 'TIIE DIFIW,REN'I' LEVELS OF P I A Y I APPKICCIA'J'ION AND JIJDCMENT BY D ~ ~ ~ l W U E N T INDIVIDUALS.

According to George Berkeley in Grcnl Ilooks oJ'/he Wcsfcrn bfirlcl, Vol.

Philosophy being nothing else but tlie study of wisdom and truth, it may with reason be expected that those who have spent s no st time and pains in it should enjoy a greater culrll and serenity of mind, a greater clearness and evidence of knowledge, and be l ep disturbed with doubts and difficulties than other Inen.

From the above position oS George Berkeley, we can appreciate that the greater

the quantity and quality of information and idea a man Iias, the greater his

propc'nsity to lind it relatively easy to decode, understand and relate the

significance of words and expressions, more than he who is less versed. The

major cause of the obscurity of wolds and expression naturally is based on the

inirnediate inadequacy of our fiiculty to comprehend and interpret such words or

expressions.

One then may begin to ask questions like; why can't one interpret such

words or expressions? What is the reason behind the inadequacy of one's faculty

towards the interpretation of certain ideas? To my mind the following submission

of Joh11 Locke in Book 11, under tlie sub-title, Of Ideas, in Grecit Rooks oj'fhe

Wcsforn World, Vol. 33 (1993:121) that: all ideas come from sensation or

reflection is important. )Ie goes on to elaborate, saying:

Let us then suppose the mind to be, as we say, white paper, void of all character, without any ideas: How comes it lo be furnished? Whence comes it by that vast store whirh the busy and boundless hncy of nun has paintcd on it with an almost endless variety? Wllc~lce has all the materials of rcason and knowledge'! '1'0 this I ailswer, in o w word, li-om experience.

From the elaboration of John Locke, we can deduce that that which rl~akes lnan +

capable of interpreting things, words and cxpressions is the quantity of cxpcv-ience

acquired by nlan. Then, we may want to know how man acquires these

experiences. To this, we say that our senses do convey into the mind CL Lt

of distinct perceptions of things, according to those various ways they are

encountered.

llence, the nlabwitude of experience in every individual depends mainly on

the degree of the individual exposure to the materials, which will coilst.itute part of

the body of experience. Naturally, the conduit of gaining experiences is through

the senses in man-the idea of taste fiom our tongue, what we see with our eyes,

what we feel with 3ur hands and body and what we smell with our nose. Then the

sensation or ideas gathered through the aforementioned senses generates

inlpressions in our psyche and mind.

I-laving said this, let us relate our analysis to our study; the reasons behind

the difkrent levels of the play title appreciation and judgment among diftkre~lt

individuals.

The major reason is, basically, the vastness and dtnsity of an individual's

Giculty in "literary language." Our interpretation and understanding of a

metapl~orical play title comes spontaneously from the various sensations or ideas

imprinted in our minds, thl-ough our senses. The greater the faculty, the greater the

responsiveness of the irdividual towards ,interpreting and understimding of the

play ti& will be.

F'or instance, a professor of Literary Arts is expected to be more \,zrsed in

creative literature than a profcssor of Animal Science, hencc the professor of ~ c P - M ~ L ' ~

Literary Arts is expected to be in a better position to appreciate and interpret an n

figurative play titk better Ihan the profcssor of Animal Science.

'fhen a university graduate is expected to have a greater faculty i l l the

interpretation of a metaphorical play title than a local artisan on the streets of

Onitsha.

Also an undergraduate student of' Theatre Arts is ma= L K L ~ ~ to have a

sound faculty in interpreting play titles th'an an undergraduate student of'

Mathematics.

What all these malogies point to, is that the greater tlw depth of an

individual in "creative literature", the bet-ter his faculty's capacity to decode and

According to Tkwitt Parker (1920:3), in 14s book, The Pr.inciplcs o j

Means to find an idea or definition which applies to it and to no other activity and at the sanve time to determine its relation to other elements of human culture; and our understanding will be complete, if our idea includes all tlw distiiiguisliing characteristic of art, not simply errimleratcd but exhibited i l l

b their relationship.

The appreciation of the aesthetic 01' play titles is, as we have earlier pointed

out, a spontaneous experience from within, that is, the faculty, but the impetus and ,

degree of spontaneous response is primarily hinged 011 our individual level of

discerning and deducing the meaning(s) and nlessage (s) loaded in play titles.

'This variation in the level of reception, deducing and discerning, which

simply trmslates to the appreciation of the aesthetic, are deternlined nlainly by

some important fac~ors.

4.3 THE LEVEE OF EDUCATION AND KNOWLEDGE OF THE 1NDIVIIUIJAL.S CONCEIWiED.

According to Dewitt Parker (1920:2),

Long acquaintance with any class of objects leads naturally to the formation of some definition or general ideas of them.. .

'I'he discerning of' the apparent, actual and implied meaning and message,

derivable fiom play titles is based, to a very large extent, on our level of education

a~ld lalowledge of literature. ?'hat is to say that a person with higher education and

laowledge of l i t~~ature will t c ~ d to better appreciate the aesthetics of play titles

than those with liule or kss knowledge of literature.

A l'rofissor of Ilrama, a playwright, a student of' Llran~x, a co~moisseur, n

passive lover of drama, an illiterale road-side ~nechanic or an illiterate street

hawker, are expecled to exhibit dif'erent degrees of grasp m d apprccia~ion of the

probable beauty (aesthetics) in a metaphorical play title.

It is, however, believed that the higher one goes i11 his educational adventure, the

better libemted and sophisticated his brilin and mind will be towards the critical

perception and analysis of literature.

Our power of interpretation comes from the various sensations or ideas

imprinted on our mind. The more one encounters these sensations or ideas, the

inore deepened the person's faculty will be. ll.wally, the figurative language is

perceived as the lang~age of the knowledgeable and discerr~ing individuals. This

supports our earlier position that the level of education i n literature deternlines the

level of appreciation of metaphorical representation in metaphorical play titles.

At this point, let us use $oyinka's play title, The Rood, to look at the

various perceptions and perspectives to a metaphorical title.

4.4SOYlNKA'S f A : THE VARIOUS Pl<RCIE:I'TIONS AND ~ ~ L ~ I ~ S ~ ~ I ; . C ' I ' L V ~ S TO THE PL,AY rrIrrl,k:.

Tile J\'oud is a play about a group of lor-ry drivers and associated persons

whose activities revolve around thc palm wine feast ofrered every evening by the

professor, sometime a church lay reader, tiow proprietor of the 'Aksident' store

where loot Crom wrecks is collected and sold. The store is adjaccnt to professor's

old church. Minor characters include Chief-in-Town, a corrupt Politician.

I'articulars Joe, a corrupt policeman, andl n gang of thugs available for political usc

led by Say Tokyo Kid. Other notable characters are; a former driver Kotonu, his

tout Samson, a would-be driver Salubi, as well as the character Murano.

The Roud can be viewed from both the !;teral and nretaphorical points of

view. From the literal perception, on the road a major accident occurred when a

speeding lorry is not sustained on a 'rotten' bridge (pp.34'55-59), and then nearby

apparently is a curve, marked by a s i p ($8). The two expressions portray the road

as a specially prcpared hard surfiice for cars, buses, bicycles, etc to travel on. On

the road the ill-fated kola-nut lorry, carrying passengers, arrives at a d goes off,

thc bridge; a following lorry makes a sudden halt in time to avoid the partially

destroyed bridge. The vehicles that travel that road inherit the road's link with

traffic fatality. The road is invested with human essence in the play. The road is

projected as a traitor or one who lies in ambush. This the character Silmson agrees

to when he prays:

May we never walk when The road waits, f'arnished (p.99)

And subsequently the lay-about laments the treachery of the road thus;

The road played us foul. A tree had fallen across The road md our driver Didn't see it in time (p.213).

The physical road is the road to death yhile the met:iphorical road serves as

the link: the passage of transition. The Agemo , I . n ~~msquerade that speaks in the

prehce poem visits the living through the metaphysical road, and then victims of

the physical road join their ancestors by passing along the metaphysical road.

'l'hc road is nlystitieci in the play, projecting it as an agent of Ogun. The

character Samson expresses that line of thought in the following words:

Kill us a dog Kotonu, kill us a clog Kill us a dog before the hungry god Lies in wait r.nd ~nakes a Substitute of mc . . . Serve Ogun His ~IL-bi t so the road won't Look at us one day and say 1 lo 110 you two boys you look Juicy to me. Rut what's the use? The one who won't give Ogu11 Willingly will yield heavier meat l3y Ogun's designing (pp. 1 89.- 190)

13asically, f'rom thc submission of Samson, the road empowered by ()gun,

selects its victims, hence one's carefulness on the road, as regards vchicle

niaintenance and driving carefidly is not the answer to sakty bu1 sacrifice to

assuage his thirst for bloocl.

A vivid metaphorical presentation of tlw road cxcurs at the end of thc play

wl-lcn the road is projected as a python. This comes liorn the character I'roSessor,

who urges his men to: +

Breathe like the road. ;i: the road. Coil yourself'in dreams, lay flat in Trreachely and deceit at The nloment oC a trusting step, Rear your head and strike thc Traveller i n his confider~ce, swallow H i m whole or break him on the Earth (p.28)

I n another instance, it is Professor, the prophet of doom, who refers to the

road as a slaughterhouse:

When the road raises a victory Cry to break my sleep, I hurry to A disgruntled swarm of souls Full of spite for their rejected Bodies. It is a market of stale Meat, noisy with flies and Quarrelsome with old women (p. 159)

The road, despite its portrayal as full of i~nccrtainties and dzlngci-s, is

somehow projected as a ready provider to some ~ o u p ol'individuals. In thc words

of Samson talking about Kotollu to Chief-in-Town, he says:

1 le used to be my driver hand I his tout. Now he poesn't want any pard of f l ie road.. . except what f s lefi of the sacrifice (p. 168)

'The remains and wreckages ofthe accident 011 the road r e l ~ r e d to ;is 'what

is left of the sacrifice,' on thc road ranges liom the parts of tlie vehicle or vehicles, #

either crusl~A or disn~ernbcred in the accidc~lt and the personal eflkcts of t l ~ e

. accident victims, mainly the dead. Similarly, Kotonu rcf'ers to "what is left of

the sacrifice," on the road as 'the 1 ~ - v e s t of the road." (p. 18 1 .)

'l'lie road, as perceived in the play by the characters that could be taken as the

representative of Soyinka's society, is that 001' high risk and Eitality. T11e play is inspircd

hy Soyinka's awareness of the deadly realities of the road in Nigeria; hence the 0

title Tjw R o d furnishes the reader with the "subject of discourse" in the play.

From this ~itle, which is simply tlie subject matter of the play, the reader certai~tly

can project the themes of the play as, 'The Horrors of the Road', 'Tlw Death on

the Road' and so on.

Our level of interpretation of words and of the figurative esscncc of words

dcpends mainly on the strength of our Gicully to comprehend and decodc

accordingly. We can only appreciate aesthetic qil,dity in a particular thing, if our

ficulty is imprinted with enough experience about that ~hing.

People have to see the grace, or unity of a work, hear the plaintiveness of l ' r e r ~ y in tl~c music, notice thc gaudiness of'a colour sclieme, fkel the power of a novel, ids mood Or

its uncertainty of tone. They i m y bc struck by these qunlitics at once, or they nlay come to perceive them only after repeated viewing, heariq or reading, and with the help u f critics. But irnless they do perceive them h r themselves, aesthetic er!joynent, appreciation and judgment are beyond them.

From h e above quotation, one can infer that the perception of aesthetic

value in a play title has to do with mainly the I-eader's magnitude of experience.

Meanwlde the allusion to the 'things' or 'ideas', beyond one's fiiculty

results in a situation whereby such 'things' or ' ideas' seem unintelligible.

I~ir~ally, we rnay add that the quest for man to resolve that which seems

unintelligihl:. is the beginning of the adventure in literruy aesthetics by a reader.

CONCLUSION.

The sigl~ification of play titles, the trends in play titling and the

representation of the play title signification in thq play content are areas of study

tliat one may say, could help irnnlensely to lay bare the signitication of a play

story and essence. In the pursuance of this objective, we segmented our nlaijor

areas of study intu chapters, ranging from chapter one to chapter four.

In chapter one we focused on 111s ~ n e d ~ ~ i n g and significance of play titles.

We say that title is an English word derived from the Latin vocabulary titulus,

which means an inscription or superscription set over or on anything, that is, the

name of a poem, essay, play, chapter, book and so on. Iniportantly, we added that

a title, as the name of a play, may be describing its subject, content or nature. We

ci

cite exaniples like Soyinka's The lioud, for title indicating a play's subject, 9 g L

Nwabueze's Echoes of &l~rdne,ss rept.csenting titles indicating a play's content and

Ngugi and Mugo's Tile Tricrl o f ' D c ~ h n Kimulhi and Soyinka's D ~ u l h uncl /he

Kiujg's I-Iorserntrn, representing titles indicating the play's nature. Also we cite

Soyinka's 7'lzc Swmrlp D~vcllrrs, for a title suggesting thc play's setting.

Wc attempted a study of the nature of' a play title, which propelled us

towarcls the study on the forms of play titles. These forms we classiiied as major

trends in play titling in the next chapter.

Largely, in chapter two, our study centred on the major trends appreciable

in play titling. In order to justiry the categorization of the appreciable limns of

play titles as titling trends, w c nssernbltxi more than ninety play scripts ti-om works

of playwrights across the four regions of Africa.

r * I hc major trends, as we froin our studx are; the metaplrorical titles,

4 where the playwright uses~rietapl~orical expression as the play title; the synrbolic

titles, where the playwright en~ploys symbolic words as play tide, like Soyinli;~'~ A +

l'luy oJ'Giur1f.i and The Lion w ~ d the Jcwcl-and Osofisan's Red is the fieedotn P * O

Houd. For instance, for the title 7he Lion und f/ze Jewel, the lion syrnbolizcs the

crafty and brave chief, Ihroka, while tlle jewel symbolizes the very beautif~ll

maiden, Sidi. The next titling trend is titles that suggest the central incidents that

cortcern the chief character. We cited examples like Fred Agbeyegbe's 771e King

Musf Dunce Nuked, Ahined Y eri 111 a' s The Triuls of O v o n r ~ ~ m wcn and E fila

Sutherland's The Murriuge c,J',-ln~ut~sew~r. The fourth g o u p is the ones where

playwrights use the name of the play's chief clwacter as the plays title. We cited

examples like Ama Ata Aidoo's Anowcr, Efua Sutherland's Ed~dir, Ebrahim

lhssein's Kinjekelile, Qla Rotimi's Ovonrumwen Noghuisi and J.P. Clark's Ozidi.

rut- art

We arrived at classification through analytical study of some selected play scripts P' r-

to support our postulations.

In chapter three our study focused on thc relationship between :i play title

and the play content on one hand 'and the study of the degree of andjiguity in

figurative play titles 011 the other hand. We started by discussing the place of

anlbiguity in play titles, and we said that ambiguity in langw:g,e i l l creative writing

is a n established literary technique, which is universally appreciated and employed

by writers .-from classical Grcek phywrights like Aristophmcs exempliiied in his

We examined the word ambiguity, as it applies,-tc play titles, We defi~w

M ambiguity as a situation whereby a ~ o r d , ' ~ h r a s e or cxpression is capable of

C A

projecting more than one signilication to a reader, llence capable oi' being

iunderstood differently by different individuals.

We suggest that in figurative play titles, a play title could be fkirly

ambiguous or totally ambiguous. In order to buttress this classification further, we

cited J.P. Clark's 'T/2c Musperrru'c as a fairly ambiguous play title, because the

signification of the play title opens up to the reader when the reader reads the play

script while on the i h e r hand we cited J.P. Clark's Song of'u Gout as a totally

ambiguous play title. We refer to it as a totally ambiguous play title because, after

a critical and not a cursory reading of the play script, w e still remain doubtful

about the actual signification of the play title in relation to the play's content.

Meanwhile, we also add that play titles that could be referred 10 as totally

ambiguous in this sense of J.P. Clark's Song of'cr G m , are not common.

I n order to further elaborate on tlle play title s~rggestiull and indica~ion of

the play's content, we se1u~t.d Nwabueze's Echlrocs of'A~kr~i't~~~ss-nnd A Pwli~~t)icn[

q/!/' Vultures as our case study. In the Echoes of'Mrrhess, we analyzed the different

perceptions and perspectives to the play title signification in reli.\tion to the play's b

content. Ir\ A PrrrliLrt~en[ oJ' Vul/urcs, our study focusc.d on the inctapllorical

representation of the vulture essence in the play.

We concludcci the chapter by pointing out that the metaphorical play titles,

from our study of over ninety play titles, constitute the most popular play-titling

trend, among other trends. This is because out of over ninety play titles studied,

seventy per cent are among the figurative play titles, while the remaining tl~irty per

cent are shared between play titles that suggest the central irlcident(s) concerning

the chief character and the play titles that are just the name(s) of the chief

character or characters. I-Iowever, between these two categories of play titles, the

play titles that simply represent the natne of the chief character are the least

popular among playwrights in contemporary Africa.

In chapter lbur we focused on the aesthetics of play titles, the rlleilning of

aesthetics, the perception of play title aesthetics and the major factors influe~icing

... the appreciation and judgment of play title aesthetics by different individuals.

We profir that the ~najor fktor influelicing the iippreciation and judgment

of play title aesthetics dt:penci largely on the level of education and knowledge

acquired by the individuals co~icerned.

We believe that the level of an individual's education and knowledge

constitutes what we refer to as experience, which represents the vastness and +

destiny of an individual's i'aculty. l rp.~ts to the body of experience, we say, comes

through bits and bits of sensations a r d perceptions received through the human

sensts,?hse sensations and perceptions build impressions which are imprinted in

our igculty. At the time of the interpretation of a word, a phrase, an idea or an

expression, it is the imprinted body of inipressions in 'm individual's faculty that

helps with decoding and relating of the signification accordingly. 'IIat wl~ich is

beyorld our fiiculty, we say,creates an intelligibility problem.

Finally, we opine that in play title appreciation, it is expected that 'an

4 individual ~ ~ 6 4 in literature will have Agreater grasp of the metaphorical

representation in playt;t\~s tllan an individual that is less knowledgehk .

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