Wole Soyinka
- the very first African to win the Nobel Award for Literature; one of the
greatest playwrights the world has ever seen, a fecund, tantalising writer.
This early play of his already showcases the profound talent and ingenuity of
Soyinka...a piece of drama that teems with wry humour, self-deprecation (of the
protagonist, "Brother Jero")
and multifarious absurdity rooted in his native country (Nigeria). What type of
man (alleged "man of God") is our brother Jero? Some readers might
bluntly call him names like "unscrupulous", "opportunistic",
"canny", even "dishonest" - but he is simply a creature of
his own society. Trying to survive as a man of God whilst in this world.
Negotiating the daily minefield of strictures, frustrations and challenges. He
does all he can to hold his "flock", such as it is, together. Chume,
a farcical character is one of those frequenting the
"brother/prophet", and there are comical ripples also involving his
wife - and other women. Indeed Jero himself confesses early on that he faces
many trials from women, including lascivious temptations. Brother Jero is
presented as a tarnished man, cunning and resourceful...his own words rather
condemn him intermittently and he does not take himself too serious. Hence we
see him exactly the way he is - "a man of God" trying to survive in a
world fraught with sundry challenges. His creator (Soyinka) unleashes and
unravels a gamut of wry situations and comments, and one can imagine the young
Soyinka chuckling aloud! (Like he must have done when creating another early superb
play, The lion and the jewel). Apart from the touch of comic around Jero, there
is also the patina of rascality...but Soyinka's vision is of course much wider,
and one gets the impression of the gullibility and haplessness of society (the
people) at large. At the end of the play, Brother Jero gets his way and even
somewhat moves up notches, spiritually! (There is another hilarious sequel to
this play, titled Jero's Metamorphosis)
- by O Bolaji
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