Nigerian Dramatists and the Postcolonial Dreams: Poetics of Ethnic Unity in Diversity

Abstract

This study examines the ideological persuasions of the pioneer Nigerian dramatists given their penchant to edifying the former British colony. Drawing on primary and secondary data, the study contends that contemporary Nigerian playwrights are steep in their ‘social commitments’ to aspire for a better and unified nation, in the face of ethnic diversities. It critically analyses, John Iwuh’s Birthright and Barclays Ayakoroma’s Castle in the Air, using Ngugi wa Thiong’O’s conceptualization of Liberation and Abiola Irele’s Alienation as a conceptual footing to demonstrate the exceptional social visions in the selected plays. In doing this, the study unpacks the boundary crossing between aesthetic, social-political and cultural realities to reconfigure the fractious environment for the holistic integrated and a better postcolonial Nigeria.