Literature-In-English Paper 3 Nov/Dec 2015

Question 4

    FEMI OSOFISAN: Women of Owu

    Examine the significance of the conflict among the gods in the play


Observation

This was not a popular question. Many of the candidates who attempted it did not understand the significance of the conflict among the gods in the play.

The significance of the conflict among the gods includes:

  • It is closely linked to the fate of the Owu people. This is shown by the conflict of interests between Lawumni and Anlugbua.
  • Lawumi, a deity and princess from Ife, but married to the priest who founded Owu Ipole feels slighted by the town’s attack on Ife, the ancestral home of the Yoruba people.
  • Though the people of Owu break a covenant in sacking Apomu, they would have been spared had they not destroyed Lawumi’s shrine.
  • The gods all have a stake in Owu; this is why it is a tragedy for Owu and the Allied Forces to suffer when the gods get whimsical.
Candidates’ performance in this question was poor.