alks a Jew lJaces, looks at bodl divlIns. He goes 10 ,.
nIH at, ller. Slle is st.ill.] i WO l E SOYINKA
b . 1934
s tile claar, stops, his back to tlWJIJ.]
!s towards KATES divan. He sits ou lI er divali , lies
Sill',
anuc1wir.
This material protected by
copyright law 17 US code)
Ve,y brig/'L l k
·1
•
A N ac ti ve writer for more th an five de-
n ca des, \,Vo le Soyinka is widel y regardcd
:'1 5 Africa's fore most dramati st an d one of
thc most co mpelling contem porary writers
in Englis h more ge nera ll y, a judgmcnt af-
nrm ed b), hi s bein g awa rd ed th e Nobel
Prize in Literature in 1986. Though he is
also an acco mpli shed poc t, noveli st, and
essayist, Soyinka's wo rldwid e accla im rests
main ly on his dra mat ic oeuvre. His plays
make use of th e ritu als and festival s of
Nige ria's Yoruba culture and are marked by
Nigeria's volati le hi story, but they also re-
flec t th e inAu ences of oth er cultures, such
as that of class ica l G reece. Soyinka has
been one of the co ntinent's Illost outspo-
f)
\ ,
ken critics of ab uses of power, in Nigeria
and elscwhere , evc n as he has crafted
plays th at can not be ti ed to a particu lar
political creed . For ll1;lny, hi s most sign ifi-
ca nt achievement is the creation of a new
form of tragedy th at draws on both \,Vest-
ern and Yoruba tradition s, a form th at is
perh aps most full y real ized in I)EATH ,\ 1\ '1)
TIlE KINe'S HOI/ SEMA N ( 19 75).
During Soyinka's formative yea rs, Nige-
ria was in iLS la st decades of British rul e.
Consequently, Soyinka rece ived a tmdition al
e{lucation in English, first at an el it e gram-
Illar school and then at Gove rnment Co l-
lege, Ibadan, where he excell ed in th e study
of var ious \,Vestern lit eratures, including
French and C ree k. He con tinued hi s edu-
QCu\.h(P,J t\e k,~}
Hlf~~I'\( Ile-
NcG" ~ An1iJi.j1 J--
8f~Y1'\d.,," VD\~.
\\J\\: I\\:;I-m, ;;/cpC{.
Io-·n- I[)Cj~
ca tion in England, where he stu died drama
at the Un iversit y of Lecds. In Lceds and
laler in London , Soyinka also int ensified
hi s engagement with the theat er and wrote
his first plays, whic h helped win him a re-
sea rch grant and begi n h is s\\~ft rise as a
dramatist. He returned to Nigeria in 1960,
the yea r of its independence from Britain
..md th e start of a period of intense conflict'
between di ffe rent regions of th e country.
Ove r the ne.xt few yea rs, Soyinka fou nded
thea ter grou ps; wrote fi ction and verse as
well as plays fo r stage, televi sion, and ra-
dio ; and tau ght as a uni versity lec turer in
English. At the sa mc time, he attempt ed to
preven t th e civil wa r that ultimately broke
out in 1967 when th e southeas t of Nigeria
declared its independen ce as Biafra; thesc
effo rts led to hi s impriso nment. He spent
much of hi s two yea rs of detention in soli-
tary confin ement, an experience he later
desc ribed in one of -his autobiograph ical
prose works , rn,e Mall Died: Prisoll Notes
of \'\0 Ie Soyill kn ( 1972 ). Hi s su bseq uent
cmeer has been marked by a seri es of ex-
il es and relUrn s. Soyinka ha s tau ght at the
University of Cam bridge and Ya le Univer-
sity and has direc ted shows in Europe and
the Uni ted States, but hi s mOSI susta ined
projec t has bee n the fostering of Nigc ria's
lit era ry culture and dcmocracy.
Th e cleares t indi cation s of Soyi nka's
chan ging alt itude. towa rd nationa li sm and
1043
 · _.- . v ",..c;:."".J
l...,·"c;:.,,,.,;e.J
[DEELEY turns. He goes towards KATEs divan. He sits on her a
across her lap.]
[Long silenCe.)
[DEELEY very slowly sits up.
He gets off ihe divan.
He walks s~ly to the annchair.
He sits, slumped.]
[Silence.)
[Lights up full sharply. ~ry bright.)
[DEELEY in armchair.
ANNA lYing on divan.
KATE sitting on divan. J
1044 I W OLE SOY INKA
cultural autonomy ca n be found in his es·
says. \Vriling in the sixties, Soyinka was of·
ten criti ca l of th ose see king an "authentic"
culture that existed before Europea ns coil
onized Afri ca, and focused instead on cul -
tural mbaure. By th e 1970s, however, he
had turned morc full y to Yoruba culture-
to which he was e.:\")Josea ea rl y, despite hi s
mother's ferve nt Chri stianity-as a re:-
source for drama. In the 1980s, as Soyinka
once more beca me dise nchar1te'd . wi th
Nigeria 's politica l rea lities, he pl ace'd less
em phas is on Yoruba cu lture. Hi s ' ~ritical
writin gs thu s chart a path through t1~e cui·
tu ral struggles of a former colo ny dea ling
with an imposed culture that has now fused ·
with local ones; after the terrible experience
of co lonialism, \A/estern .. nd indigenous
cullures had beco me perm anently in te r·
twin ed. Soyinka's rclmion to co loniali sm
wa s furth er co mplica ted by hi s decision to
write in Engli sh, albeit an English shot
through with metaphors, idioms, and say· '
ings fTom ' ,<> ruba. At varioll s times in his
career, he advocated the usc of ,Sw3 hili
throughout the comine nt as a lingua fran ca
to replace the languages of Africa's former
European colonizers, ' but this proposa l
won few followers.
Soyin ka's oeuvre oscillates between tra·
dition and modernity. His earliest plays,
Til e SW(lJJlIJ Dwellers ( 1958) and Tlte Liml
awl tlze Jewel (1959), prese nt a critique
of tradil-iona l Yoruba prnctices and socia l
stru ctures as they co me und er in creasing
pressure from forces of moderniza tion
both fr om within and from wi th out. Each
pl ay co nlai ns a vi llage pries t or ruler who
opposes modernization and who cunningly
seeks to hold on to vestiges of power pred·
icaled on the old ways. Soyinka clea rl y
does not en dors e this defensive rejection
of modern izatio n, although he recognizes
th e pain that .lCcompanied the transforma-
tion of the Nigerian hinterla nd. Ultimately,
th ese plays sa tirize the nttcmpt to prese rve
the old at all cost. A similar critiqu e is de·
ve loped in TIw Trials of Brodler Je ro (1960 )
and Jero's M etamorphosis ( 1973), two pin )'S
that revolve around a pseudo-proph et who
aLLracts followers solely for hi s own eco-
nomic ga in and who is rendy to empl oy
eve ry tri ck poss ible to ouLsmnrt hi s riva ls.
In ot her works, Soyinka is more full y co n-
cerned with the socia l reality of the OUt -
cas t. In TI, e Road ( 196 5), one of hi s best
plays , n number o f lowlifes are a ssen~blcd
around a figure ca ll ed Professo r, who is
nkin to the sham prophet Jcro. As Profes-
sor ekes ou t a living by forging doc ument s,
he is also engaged in an unlikely <Iu est for
spiritu al enlightenment. These plays show
that I,n odernity is not something imposed
onto Yoruba culture from the outside hut a
force at work wi thin it.
Som ~ of Soyi nka 's plays aim sq uarely at
Nigerian politics-for exa mple, From Z;(I,
1IIit.11 Love ( 1992), which hars hly indicts
the dictatorship- but hi s bes t· kn own plays
avoid direc t political engagement , seeking
instead to weave togeth er differe nt cu l-
tures and traditio ns. In hi s drama , Soyi nka
has continuall y insisted on the affinities
betwee n G ree k and Yoruba tragedy. Most
signifi ca ntly, he has related th e Yoruba god
Ogun, th e deity to whom he him se lf feels
closest. to the Gree k god Di onysus, who is
co nn ec ted with th e origins of Greek
tragedy. This attemp t to forge new fo rm s of
tra gedy out of \Vestern and African trndi-
tions led to a long·s tandin g co ntroversy
between Soyin ka and a group of Nige ri an
int ell ec tua ls and critics-dubbed by
Soyinka th e "Lefto cra cy"-w ho accused
him of seeking universa l human mea ning
whil e ignorin g the specil1cs of Nigeria's
pol itica l <l nd soc ial si tu atio n aft er inde-
pend ence.
Th e tensions between po litica l drama
and Ira ge~l y as we ll as the tensions between
th e use of \'' 'es tern and Yo rub a tradi tions
arc most visible in Soyinkn's adaptations of
EUIHPID E ' Til e Bacclwe (406 n. c.E.) and of
BEUTO LT IHlEc lrr's Tile TlzreepellH}' Opcm
(I928 ). TI<c Bacclwe of E"ril';c/es ( 19i3 )
provided Soyin ka with an occasion to
ga uge the similarities and di fferences
betwee n G reek and '-'a ruba myth s. Soyinka's
Di onys us is less vind ictive than Euripides"
and hi s pla y di splays a broader social ran ge
(its choru s is mnde up o f slaves). Yet be
shares with Euripides dlC atte mpt to co n-
nect drama to its lost origin in ritual.
Brec ht's TI,reepcltllY Opera is Illll ch more
overtl y politi ca l: Opem H'oll ),osi ( 1977 ) re-
pla ces the underworld of London, whi ch
Brec ht him se lf had borrowed from the
eight ce nth·centllry Bri ti sh pla ywright John
 WOlE SOY I NKA I 1045

Ihe out- Gay, with a p olitica lly corrupt West Africa. cntlcs have read the pl ayas a defe nse of
Ihis best In both . adaptations , Soyinka· demon- Yoruba c ustoms. In his author's 'n ote, how-
se mbled strates the power of translation and tran s- eve r,. Soyinka takes iss ue with all readings
who is position, encouraging cultural mixture th at reduce the play to a simp le "clash of
Profes- and cross-fertiliza tion in a way that re- cultures"; indeed,. the play spends co nsider-
ments, spects th e integrity of different traditions abI Cl.e ncq,')' trying-a nd failing-to bridge
es t for and practices . the gu lf be tween the m.
s show Soyinkn's project of inve ntin g .3 new The two cultures a re connected by vari-
, posed tragic form c ulminat es in Death mul tile , ous mediating figures, who partici pate in
Ie but a Killg 's Horse man, 3 play based on' a histori- or have knowled ge.of both wo rlds. The of-
ca l incident. In 1946, a British·co lonia l dis- fice r, for example. ' depe nds on hi s Yoruba
arel)' at trict officer interrupted the ritual suicide of employc:es for inform ation' about local cus-
lUt Zia, a village notabl e, the King's Horse man-a tom s and religion', ' '''hile ' Pilkings, who
indi cts sui cide prescribed by th e Yoruba religious arroga ntl y dismi sses their c ulture, often
n pl a)'s a nd social system-without rea lizing how finds it difficult to interpret what his in fo r-
Icelting hi s inte rfe re nce wou ld affect the village mants say, hi s \\~fe is somewhat· 'more
It c ul- and , 'Illos t importantly, the King's Horse- open- minded a nd thu s' more awa re of the
o}~nka ma n's son, who is also hi s protege. This inescapable cultural clash. The most com-
nnitics bistorical incident thus ties the officer, the pe tent intermediat)' is Olunde; the son of
Most King's Horseman, and his son in an inextri- Elcsin, th e King's Horseman. Se nt by Pilk-
ba god ca ble and fat al knot. The office r him self is ings to England to study medicin e again st
f feels prese nted as a rela ti vely two-dim ensional his ) fath e r's wishes, .Olunde has now re-
Nho is fi gure, di stinguished-mainly by his co lonia l turn ed fo r-- his father 's burial. Although he
Gr&~k arroga nce: Simon Pilkings inte rferes with is ' ·Vestern ized (as evide nced by the suit he
Ims of local c ustoms without knowing anything wears), he does nol di smiss the . require-
tradi- about th eir rol e in th e social order or th eir me nt tha t his father co mmit· suicide,
IVcrs), religious significance, As a result, so me knowing how deeply th e ritu al is \vove n
:eria n "

I ,by
:uscd
lning
eria's
ind c-

rama
",'cen
[ion s
lS of
,d of
pem
173)
, 10
lces
Ika's
les',
ngc
he
on-
Jal.
ore
.re-
ich
the
hn British colonial administrators meeting tribal representatives in L'lgos. Nigeria, ca. 1900,
1046 I WO l E SOY I NKA

into the soc i ~1 fab ric of the vill age. In elo- these variolls traditio ns of mu sic, dance,
quently criticiz.i ng th e fo lly of th e co lon ial an d thea ter into one seamless whole.
officer's atlcmp t to stop th e ritual, he Rather, the play thrives on their co ll is ions,
serves ~s an authoritative co mme ntato r on interchanges, and mutua l imitat ions.
the play's main conflict. Events take a The d iffe rent forms of ce remony, ritual ,
tragic tu rn at precisely th e mo ment when and dance that make up this co mplex play
th e so n feels forced to aba nd on hi s role as are mirrored and rei n fo rced by its unu sual
mediator and instead beco me a participant. lan guage and poet ry. Certain Yoruba songs
Eve n as Soyi nka emphas izes the signifi- that accompa ny th e play's ce ntra l event,
ca nce of the \u rub~ cus tom an d Eles in 's th e ritual suicidc, are rendered in poetic
socia l pos iti on, he also highlights the Engli sh. Like all of th e utterances of the
custo ms and social ritua ls of the Bri ti sh non-Bri tish charac ters, they are informed
co lonize rs. J ~ne, the co lonia l officer's wife, by the synul~ , idioms, express ions, proverbs,
approvingly recou nt s th e story of a Briti sh and metaphors of YOl'uba . T he res ult is a
capta in's suicide, co ndoned because it was mu ltilaye red English th at takes on deeper
dee med heroic. At th e sa me time, Soyinka mea ning as it draws on the Yoruba world_
confras ts Yoruba dances wit h a ma sque its flora, fauna , social structure, and cos-
held by the Bri tis h, who dress in cos tum es mology. T he play juxtaposes and blends
to attend a ball th at evo kes European co urt d ifferent languages as th orough ly as it inter-
culture and its rigid hierarc hi es. Eac h cul- mingles different form s of thea ter and per-
ture thu s ha s a place for suic id e and for form ance.
masked dance. To intertwin e the two cui·· T his commingling is perhaps the most
tures even more cl osely, Soyinka has eac h important fea tu re of De(ll l, and the King's
imit ate th e other. At one point, a gro up of ' -/orse fllall . For while th e pla y ce rt ainly
vill age wome n and girls mock the idioms shows th e violence that occurs at a moment
and intonati on of th eir co lonial rul ers. At of cultu ra l co ntact between th e British and
another, we see the Pilkingses appear
in sacred cos tum es assoc iated with the
Yoruba dead , mimicking ri tua l moveme nt s
(as best th ey ca n) to amuse their Europea n
audi cnce.
Soyinka's int erest in different forms of
ritu al is pa rt of an und ertakin g that in -
for ms his enti re oeuvre, incl uding DeatiJ
mul til e Killg's Horse lll(lIl: th e crealion of a
total thea ter. Like man y other t heate r artis ts
of the ni netee nth and twentieth centuri es,
Soyinka em ploys as man}' different modes
of express ion as possible, seeking to bring
togeth er song, poetry, dance, speec h, rit ual ,
and music. In this play, we encounter a vari-
et), of so und s and instruments-for exa m-
ple, th e royal drum s, whi ch werwe togeth er
the traditional rhythm s of wedding and
deat h and del in ea te the play's tragic traj ec -
tory; different dan ce int erl ud es, including
th e gripp ing suicidal dan ce of the King's
Horse man; and di fferent \,Veste rn mu sical
pieces, Sti ch as th e tango blaring fr om a
gramo ph one at th e co loni al office r's house
and a band playing "Hul e Bri tannia" in
honor of the Prin ce, who is visiting the
colo ny. But unlike so mc makers of tota l thc-
ater, Soyinka is not interested in unifying ,\ )'orubn tribal leader, 1960.
 WOLE SOY I N KA I 1047

Yorllba cultures, it, refuses to ,blame all the same lim e, Soyinka is trying to dismantle
problems on thei r clash. Each cu lture has the vestiges of colonialism-specifically, the
internal tensions. Thus )'aruba culture, for ass umption th at \~!es t e rn culture has a
Soyinka, is nc\'er siBiply an' authentic' and ' unique c1aHn to being modern and that in
monolith ic givcn that is th en, in a se~ond order fo r Yoruba culture to become modern
step, set against the putatively mode rn it would have to adapt \,Vestern custom s, re-
British cu lture. He instead views Yoruba ligion, and culture.
cuiLlirc as having itself undergone a pro - Dea th mul tile King 's Horseman has
cess of moderniza tion, making it a culture sometim es been accused of nosta lgica lly
compatible with th e internati onal, cos mo- privileging th e Yoruba ritu al by contra sting
politan world represented by Olundc, the it favorab ly with the ignorance of the colo-
mos t articulate figure in the play. At the nial officer, but Soyinka's complex mixing
same time, Soyinka points to tradition and of the different ,ritualistic practices shows
even ritualistic aspec ts of British culture. th at no false nos talgia is in fac t at work.
In this way, both )'aruba cultu re and British Like many ot her wo rks of modernism, wri t-
culture arc divided between tradition and o ten by former ' colon ize rs and colonized
modern iz.ation , thou gh Soyinka neve r lets alike, hi s plays di splay pol just a fasci nation
liS fo rget which one has suppres~ed a~d be- , with premodern myth ology and ritual but
liul cd ~he other., .; " also an awareness that such myths and rit-
The att empt to show thc different forms uals ca n, neve r be recovered in t!le present.
of moderniza ti on at work. 'in Yoruba and as
Just Richard ' ¥agner so ught to relate hi s
Bri ti sh cul ture stands behind the l11yth i ~ ope rati c artwork of the future to a mythic
const ru ctio n of thi s tragedy, which rests on Germa n past and J ~l11es Joyce fashioned
the ass ulppti on that U1 C .Yoruba gods and his groundbrea king novel after Homer, so
the Grcek gods arc some how co mpatible Soyi nka's play ga ins its strengt h by invok-
or comparable. It was a projec t conceived in g but not embracing different' ritu al
as a res ponse to th e more simplistic forms practices. 'W hile its charac ters accept and
of postcolonial nationalism, \~'hoi ch tookr'· pcrl'or'm th e ritu al, Soyinka 's play itse lf is
shape as incipien t nations sought to create and rema ins a modern work, albeit one
di stinct nationnl traditions in isolation, At with living roots in th e past. M .P.
 " ,.
Death 'a nd the
, King' s Horse'inan
,., ' 'Ij "

Dedicated
[nAfjectiOlUl te Greeti llg
to
1\11)' FatJwr, A)'o(lele
111/' 0 lately d{/Jlceci, flIld j O; Iled tile Allcestors.'

Autl,Ot"s Note
This pl ay is based on eve nts \\'hich took pla ce in Oyo, I a ncient Yaruba c it)' of Nige ria,
in 1946. Tha i year, t he lives of EJes in (O Iori Elesin ); hi s SOil , a nd the Colo nia l District '
O rh ccr inte rt wined with the disastrous res ult s set o ut in the pia)'. Th e c hnnges I have
l1l<lde are in matt ers of deta il . sequ e nce, and of co urse characte risa ti on. The action
h:ls also been ser back two o r three yea rs to while th e war was still o n ,2 for mino r rca-
so ns of dramaturgy.
The fac lu al account sti ll exists in the nrc hi vcs of th e British Co lon ia l Adm inistra -
t ion. It has a lready inspired a fin e pla y in Yoruba (O ba \~'aja3) b)1 Du ro Ladipo. It has
a lso mi sbegoHe n a fi lm by some German televisio n· compa ny.
Th e ban e of t hemes of thi s ge nre is tha t th ey are no sooner employed c rea tively than
th ey acqu ire th c facile tag of 'cla sh of c ultures', a prej udi cia l label whic h, quit e apart
from its fTcque nt m isapplication , )iresupposes a potent ia l equa lity ill ever), give" silua-
tioll of th e alien cu lture a nd the indigenou s, o n the actual soil of the latt er. (In th e a rea
of mi sa pp lica tion , th e overseas prize for ill itera cy and m ent a l conditi oning undoubt-
ed ly goes to t he blurb-writer for the American editio n of my nove l Season of Anomy"
who unblu shingly decla res tha t thi s work portrays the 'clash betwee n o ld va lu es and
new ways, be twccn western methods a nd Afri ca n traditio ns'J) It is th a nks to this kind of
pen'e rse menta lity th :ll J find it necessa ry to ca ution th e wou ld -be produ cer of this pia)'
aga inst a sadly fam il ia r reductionis t te nd e ncy, a nd to direc t his visio n instead to th e far
morc difficult :ll1d risky ta sk of e lici ting th e play's thre nod ic s essence.
One of th e more obvio us alte rn at ive stru ct ures of the play would be to m ake th e
Distri c t Office r the vic ti m of a c ru e l d il e mm a. Th is is not to my tas te and it is not by
c hance th nt J have avoided di a logue or situ ation whic h wo uld e ncourage th is. No at-
te mpt shou ld be made in production to suggest it. The Colon ia l Fac tor is an incident ,
a caw lyti c incident mere ly. T he co nfro nta tion in the pia )' is largel)1 metaph)'sical , con-
ta ined in the human veh icl e wh ic h is Eles in and the universe of th e Yoruba mind- th e
wo rld of th e living, the dea d and the unborn. and the numinous passage whi c h lin ks
a ll : tran sit io n. Dea l], allll tIle Kiug 's J-/orse llltl ll ca n be fu lly rea li sed o nly thro ugh a n
evocation of music from th e a byss of t ra nsition . w.s.

I. ,\ c ity in western Nigeria, about 100 miles 4. Pu blished in New York in 1974 (London,
nort h of L:lgos. 1973 ).
2. That is, World War II. 5. n csc mblillg n threnody, or so ng of la mell t
3. Tlw Killg fs DMti ( 1964 ). for the dead.
 DEATti AND T HE KING'S H ORSEMAN. ACT 1 I 104 9

CHARACT ERS

PHAISE·S INGER
E LESI N,Horseman of th e King
.. I V~LOjA,
'Mother' of the market
SIMON I' ILKINGS, bistr'ict Officer
JA NE PILKI NGS, his wife
SE HGEANT Al\WSA
J OSE PH , houseboy to the Pilkillgses
BRIDE
H.H.I-I. THE PRINCE
TI'IE nESIDE~
AIDE-OE· CAl\ IP
OLUNOE , eldest so n of Elesin

OHUl\ IMEnS, WOl\IEN , YO UNG GlHlS, D:o\NCERS ,\T HIE BAll

Tile pia)' sllould nUl witllOlit an illt croal. For ral,;d SCC II C c1WIlgCS, Olle ncljltstable outline
set is vcr)' appropriate.

Act I
A passage tl!rotlgh a marlwt in its closillg stages. TIle sl.alls are beil'g emptjed, m at·s
fo lded. A f ew WOl\IEN pass tlu'ollgh all- tlleir way home,' loaded wiLli bashets. a,l a
clodl-staud, bolts of clot.h are talum dounz, display pieces folded (md piled 0 " a tray.
E LESI N OBA el1 t.ers almlg a 11assage before t.lw."wrhet, 1ntrsll ed by "is ORUMMEns (lIld
PHAISE·S INGE RS. He is a mall of enormous vi talit)~ speahs, dlll/ces, ami sillgs with
tlUlI. illjectiolfs enjo)'lIIelit oj life whieh ae~om.panies all his aetiol/s.

PRAIS E·SINGEH Eles in o! Elesin Oba! l-IowuF What trys t is t his th e cockerel
goes to keep with such haste thal he muslleave his tail behind?
ELES IN [slows dowll {/ bit, lallghiltgJ A tryst where th e cockerel needs no
adornme nt.
s PRAISE-SINGER O·oh, yo u hea r that my cornpanio l1s? That's th e way th e
world goes. Because the man approaches a brand-new bride he forgets the
long faithful mother of his children· .
E LES IN ' ,Vhen the horse sniffs the stable does he not strain at the bridle?
The market is th e long-suffering ho me 'of my spiri t and the women are
10 packi ng up to go. That Es u9-ha ras~ed day slipped into th e slewpot while we
feasted. ''''e ate it 1,lP with th e res t of th e meat. I have neglec ted my women.
PR;\I SE· S INGER "Ve know a ll that. Still it 's no reaso n for shedding yo u r ta'i1 on
this day of all days. I know the wo men will cover yo u' in damask and alar;!
but when th e wind blows cold From behind , th a t's when 'th e Fowl knows his
15 tru e friends.

6. Th e ranking British o ffi ccr in a province. 9. Thc Yoruba t rickster god .

7. Why havc you come? (Yoruba greeting). I . A ric h, woven cloth , brightly coloured
Oba: King (Yoruba ). ISoyi nkal. DllJ)fllS/l; a lustrous p:Hlc rncd fab-
8. Traditiona lly, Yortl!>a men had Illultipl e .. ie.
wi\·cs.
r 050 J WOLE SOY I NKA

ELES IN Olohun- iyo!2

rHAJ SE-S INGER Are yo u sure th ere wi ll be one like me all the other side)
ELES IN O lohun-iyo! ,/ '
PHAISE-S ING En Far be it for me to belittle the dwellers of that place but, a
20 man is either born to his art or he isn't~ And I don 't know for certain that
you'l! meet my father, so who is going 'to' sillg these deeds 'i n acce nts th at
will pierce th e deafn ess of the a ncient ones, I have prepared :my,going-jusl
tell me: Olohun-iyo, I need yo u on this j ourn ey and I shall be behind you.
ELES IN You're like a jea lou s wife. St~lY c10sti to 1l1e, but only on', Hlis side, My
2; fam e, my honoul" are legacies to the li ving; stay b ~ hind and le t th e world
sip its honey from yo ur lii)S. .
PBAISE-S INGEH Your name will be like th e sweet berry 'a child places und er
his tongue to sweeten the passage of food. The wo rld will never spit it out.
ELES IN Come th e n. This ma rket is my ~oo s t'. \"'hen I come among the
30 wo men I a m a chi cken with a hundred mothers. I become a monarch
whose palace is built with tendern~ss and bea ~t),. ", ,
['BAISE-S INGE R They love 'to spoil yo u but bewa re . The hands of women also
\veake n th e unwa ry. "
ELES IN Thi s ni ght I'll la y my head upo~ th~ir I~p and go to slee p. This 'I~igl~t
35 I'll touch feet with th eir feet in a dance that is no longer of this earth. But
the smell of their Aesh, their swea t, the sme ll of indig0 3 on th ei r cloth, this
is th e las t air I wish to breathe as I go to meet my great foreb ea rs.
PHAISE-S INGER In th e ir time th e wo rld was never tilted from its groove, it
shall nol be in yo urs.
40 EL,ES IN The gods have said No . ,
pnAISE-S INGER In th eir time th e grea t wars came and went, the little wars
ca me and we nt; the white slave rs ca me and went, th ey took away the hea rt
of-our race, they'bote away th e mind and muscle of our race. The city fell
and was rebu ilt; the city fell and 'o ur peop'le trud ged through moun tai n and
4; fores t to found a new home bUl-Elesin Oba do yo u hear me? ' .
ELES IN ) hear yo ur vo ice O lohun-i yo.
PHAlS E~S I NGE n ,O ur worlchvas never wre nched from its tru e course.
ELES IN The gods have said No .
pnA I SE~S I NGE n There is o~ l y OJle 'home to th e life of a ri ver~ mu sse l j there is
50 onl y one home to th e life of a tortoise; th ere is o nl y one shell to the so ul of
ma n; there is only one world to th e spirit of ou r race. If th at worli:lleaves its
cOll~se and s m ~~ h es o n boulders of th e grea t vo id, whose world \vill giyc us
s h e l ~~ . , ." .
ELES I1"'.i It did not in the time of illY fo rebears, it shall not in mine.
55 PHAISE~S I NGEH The cockerel 1l111 St -not b e seen without his feathers. '
ELES IN Nor will tl~c Not- I bird 4 l?e 'ni uch longer without his nes t.
PHAISE-SI NGE H Istopped in his ly ric st,rideJ The Not-I bird, Elesin?
ELES IN I said , th e No t-) bird .
PHAISE- SINGE B All res pect to our elders Jj'ut, is the re really sllch a. bird?
(,0 ELESI N \"' haL! Co uld it be th a t he failed to kn ock o n yo ur doo r?

2. Prai se·s in ger (\'o ruba). 4, A bird whose call rcseml> les the Yoruba
3. A costly blu e dye made fro m planls and phra se that means "not I."
used by royalty in Africa,
 DEATH AND THE KING'S H ORSE M A'N, ACT I I 10 5 1

PRAISE-SINGER (swilin.g] Elesin's riddles are not merely th e nut in the 'kernel
that breaks human teeth; he also buries th e kernel in ho.t embers and :dares
a man's fingers to draw it out. : j " •

ELESIN I am sure he called on,yo'u, Olohuh-iyo .. Did,yo u hide,in ,the loft and
push out the sen/ant to tell him yo u were out? · !f , ,i:
[ELESIN exectlt·es a brief,: ,halFtartn tillg dauce. TIzc ' DRUi\IMER .moves in
(Iud draws a rhytllln out of his ste1}s. ELES IN da.l~ces tmvards tile mar/wt-
111ace as li e c1WIlts tile stor), oftli,e NOt- ! bird, his'voice c1Zal1gj,jg dext.er-
aHsly to mimic }lis characte rs. 'He 'jJerjomls lihe l a b'Oi'JI." "rdc(mtellr,
infecting his retiwJe wi th his 111IIIloHr and eHerg)~ Nlore WOi\'lEN arrive
durillg '1is recit,al, il1ci udillg IYALOJA.] "' . !. .
, '" ';.

I'
Death came calling. . . I,'
\,Vho does not know his rasp bf reeds?
A twilight whisper in ' the leavc$ before'
The great ara ba' falls? Did yo'u hear it?
Not I! swears the fa n~~r. He S I\'~ 'pS . ( ", .
His fingers round his head, ab'a nd ons .,
A hard-worn harvest and begins /
A rapid dialogue with his legs" .
'Not I,' shouts the fearless hunter, 'but-
75 It's getting dark, and this nighi-Iamp ' ..
I,
Has leaked out all its oil. I think
It's best to go home and resum e :my hunt·
Another day.' But now he pauses, sudd enl y
Lets out a wa il: 10h foolish mouth, ca lling
" '
so Down a c urse on your own head( Your lamp
I
Has leaked out all its oil, has it?' ",'
Forwards or backwards now he dare' Dot move.
To search for leaves and make et~ tLu6 '
On that spot? Or ~ace home to th e ,s~fety .
85 Of his hearth? Ten market-days have passell
My fri ends, and still he's rootcd there
Rigid as the plinth of Orayan,' I

The mouth of the courtesan barely

Opened wide enough to take a ha'pe nny robo s
90 When she wailed: 'Not I.' An dressed :she was
To call upon my friend the C hief-Tax Officer,
But now she sends her go-between instead: ·
'Tell him I'm ill: my period has come suddenl );
,,' But not- I hope-my time .'
95 Why in he ]:lUpil crying? '.'
,His hapless"head was made to taste

5. A silk-cotton .:lree ' (Yoruba), wh ic h ~;iclds first Yoruba king, and proge nitor of all su bse-
the fiber kapok. . quent kings.
6. Placatory riles or m'cdi~ine [Soyinka's]. 8 . A delicacy made hom c ru shed melon
7. t\ tall landma rk in lI e- fre,. ancest ral home seeds, rricd in l in)' ba ll s [Soyinka's].
of th e Yorllba. Oraya n was a so n of Od udll wa,.
1052 r WO L E SOY I NKA

The knu ckl es of my friend the Malla m."

Ilf yo u we re th en reciti ng the Koran
Would yo u have ears for idle noi ses
100 Darkenin g the trees, yo u c hild of ill omen?'
He shu ts down sc hool beFore its tim e
Run s home and rings himself \\,jth ainu lets.
And 't ake Illy good kinsman Ifawom i.
His hands were li ke a carver's, strong
105 And true. I saw th em
Tremble like wet wings of a fO\-\'1
O ne day he cast his time-s moothed opele l
Ac ross th e divinalion board. And all beca use
T he suppliant looked him in th e eye and as ked,
110 lDid yo u hea r that wh isper in th e leaves?'
lNo t 1,' was his, repl Xi: perhaps I'in growin g deaf-
Good-day.' And Ifa spoke no more th at day
T he priest locked fast his doors,
Scaled up his leaki ng roof-but wa it!
11 5 Th is sudden care was not for Fawomi
But for Osanyin ,2 courier-bird of Ifa 's
Hea rt of wisdom. I did not. know a kite
\\'as hoveri ng in the sky
And Ifa now a twitlering chicken in
120 The brood of Fawomi the r\1olhe r Hen.
Ah, but I must not forget my eve nin g
Co uri er from the abundant palm , whose groan
Became No t I, as he constipated down
A ways ide bus h. He wo nd ers if Elegbara 3
125 Has tri cked his buttocks to disc harge
Against a sacred grove. Hea r him
Mutter spell s to ward off penalties
For an abo minati on he did not int end .
If any here
130 Stumbles on (j go urd of wine, fe rm enting
Nea r th e road, a nd nea rb y hea rs a stream
Of spells issuin g from a cro w;:hing form ,
Brother to a sigidi.,4 bring home my wi ne,
Tell my tapper; I have ejected
135 Fear from home and farm. Ass ure him ,
All is well.
rn yo ur lime we do not doubt th e peace of farmstead an d
PRA I SE-S I NGE R
home, the peace of roa d and hea rth , we do not doub t th e peace of th e fores t.

9 . f\ teache r of Islamic doctrine (I·bU S:l).
I. S iring of beads Il sed in Ifa divinati on
[Soyink<l].
2. Patron deit \' of divine rs. FllIm llli : a re fe r·
CIl CC to l[a , th~ Yoruba god of d ivinn ti o ll .
3 . Anothe r name fo r Es u , the t ric ks te r god .
4. A squ at , carved figure , endowed with the
powers of :Hl inc ub us ISo)'inka J, wh ich is a
d e mon Ih al lies 011 peopl e in t h e ir sl ee p.
5. The persoll who co ll ects th e sap of palm
trees, whic h is fCrtnCnl c d into wine.
 DEATH AND TliE KING 'S IWRSEMAN. ACT ·I I 1053

ELES IN There was fea r in the forest too.

Not-I was lately heard even -in the lair
Of heasts . The hyena cadded ·Ioud Not I,
The civet' twitched his fiery tail ahd glared:
'. Not I. No t-I became the ans\Veri~g- name
Of the restless bird, that little one
. 14 5 Whom Death fo und nesting·in the leaves
\~h en whisper of his coming ran
Before him on the wind. Not-I
Has long abandoned home. T his same dawn
I heard him twitter in th e gods' abode.
15. Ah, companions of this living. \vorld
\\lhat a thing thi s is, that even those
We call immortal '. ,
Shou ld fear to die.
Il'ALOjA But yo u, husband of multitudes?
155 ELESIN I, when that Not- I hird perched
Upon my roof, bade him seek his nes t aga in ,
Safe, without care. or fear. I unrolled
My welcome mat for him to see. Not- I
Flew happ il y away, yo u'll hear his vo ice
160 No morc in this lifetime-You all know
What I am.
PRAISE- $INGEn That rock which turns its ope n lodes
Into the path of Iightn ing.A gal'
Thoroughbred whose stride disdains
16' To fa lter though an adder reared
Sudd en ly in his path .
ELESIN My rein is loosened .
I am maste r of my Fate. vVh en the hour comes
Watch me dance along the narrowing path
liO Glazed by th e so les of my grea t precursors.
My soul is eage r. I shall not turn as ide.
WOMEN You will not de,id y? . ~
ELES IN vVhe re the storq; j-> Ieases, and whe n , it directs
The giants of the forest. When friends hip SUlTImons
175 Is whe n th e lTue comrade goes.
WO,iEN Nothing will hold you back?
ELES IN Nothing. What! Has no one told you yet?
i go to keep my fri e nd an d maste r company.
Vl ho says lh e mouth does not be li eve in
180 'No, I have c hewcd all that before?' I say I havc.
The world is not a co nstant ho ney.pot.
Whe re I found little I made do with little.
Where th ere was plenty I go rged myself.
My master's ha nds and mine have always
18; Dipped toget he r and , home or sacred feast ,
T he bowl was bea ten bronze, the meats

6. A weasel-like cn rnivorOli S mamma l (especially Ihe species mllivc to Arrica),

1054 J WOLE SOYINKA

So succulent our teeth accused us of neglect.

We shared the choicest of the season's .
Harvest of yams. How my friend would read
190 Desire in my eyes before I knew the cause-
However rare, however precious, it was mine.
WOMEN The town, the very land was yours.
ELESIN The world was mine. Our joint hands
Raised houseposts of trust that withstopd .
195 The siege of envy and the termites of time.
But the twilight hour brings bats and rodents-
ShaU I yield them cause to foul the rafters?
PRAISE-SINGER Elesin Oba! Are you not that man who
Looked out of doors that stormy day
200 The god of luck limped by, drenched
To the very lice that held
His rags together? You took pity upon'
His sores and wished him fortune.
Fortune was footloose this dawn, he replied,
205 Till you trapped him in a heartfelt wish
That now returns to you. Elesin Oba!
I say you are that man who
Chanced upon the calabash7 of honour'
You thought it was palm wine and
210 Drained its contents to the final drop;
ELESIN Life has an end. A life that will outlive
Fame and friendship begs another name.
What elder takes his tongue to his plate,
Licks it clean of every crumb? He will encounter
215 Silence when he calls on children to fulfill
The smallest errand! Life is honour.
It ends when honour ends:
WOMEN We' know you for a man-of honour.
ELESIN Stop! Enough of that!
WOMEN [puzzled, they whisper among themselves, turning mostly to IYALOjA]
220 What is it? Did we say something to give offence? Have we slighted him in
some way?
ELESIN Enough of that sound I say. Let me hear no more in that vein. I've
heard enough.
IYALOjA We must. have said something wrong. [Comes fonvard a little.]
225 Elesin Oba, we ask forgiveness before you .speak.
ELESIN I am bitterly offended. ;
IYALOjA Our unworthiness has betrayed us. All we can do is ask your for·
giveness. Correct us like a kind father.
ELESIN This day of all days . . . . . . .
230 IYALOjA It does not bear thinking. If we offend you now we have mortified
the gods. We offend heaven itself. Father of us all; tell us \Yhere. we went
astray. [She kneels, the other women follow.] .

7. A drinking vessel made from a gourd.

 D EAT H AND TH E KI NG'S H O RSE M AN . ACT I I I OS5

ELESI N Are you not as hamed? Eve n -3 tea r-veiled ) :.

,; .
Eye preserves its fun ction of sight. ., '" ' ;' " ,.
Because my mind was raised to horizo ns :.. , ."
Eve n th e boldest man lowers his gaze ' .: ."
[n thinking of, must my body,here .,:

Be taken for a vagra nt's? " ..,. ", . '.

IYALOjA Ho rseman ,pf\he.)<ing, [am more. ba~f1ed than ,ever' ,,' "
PRAISE- sfNGE R : T he'stri ctest. fathe r unb ends his brow wheh the child is pe n-
itent, Elesin. When time is:shot t; we do' not'spend it proloriging the riddl e .
Their shoulders are bowed with the weight .o f fea r lest ,th ey bave ma rred
your day beyond repair. Speak now in plain .\\;ords and let us put;sue the ail-
ment to th e home qfremedies. L ,! .: ,~," ,, ~
ELES IN Words arc chea p. I\i\fe kn ow you for . .:
A man of hon our,' Well tell mc, is this, ho\y .
A man of honour should be seen?
Are th ese not th e same clothes in which ",
[ came among yo u a full half-hour ago? ' " ,
[He roars w ith laflghter and tl l(} . w01\l EN~; relieved, rise alld 'ru sh in to' stalls
to fe tch rich cloths. ]
WOMEN The gods are kind. A fault 'soon re medied is soon forgiven'! Elesin Oba,
even as we match our words with deed, let'your'heart forgive us completely.
ELES IN You who are breath and giver of my being '
How shall I dare refu se you forgiveness
Even if the offence were real. - : ' ,. ', '. /.:
IYALOJA [dancing ro ull d him. Sings]
He fo rgives us. He forgives us. , ".
What a fearful thing it is when .' .', .... .'
The Voyager sets fo rth
But a curse remains behind. ,I
WOi\'IEN For a while we truly fear;-ed.
Our hands had wrenched: th e wo rld adrift
In e mp tiness . .,
[YAWj A Richly, richly, robe him ric hl y
The cloth of hon our is alar;
Saaya/! is th e band o f. fri~ nds hip
Boa-skin' makes slippers of ~steem
WO ME N For a while we truly fea red .: , ,
Our hands had wrenched the wdrld adrift .,
In emptiness .
PRAIS E-SINGER He who m.ust, must yoyage forth .
-0 . The'world will not N il }Jackwa rds

:.. , It is he who must, wiJh.one

:.. , Gre.a t ges ture ove rtake th e \'\!o ri cl.
WOMEN For a while we truly fea red
Ou r hands had wrenched the wo rl d . ','
75 In emp tiilCSS .
PRA ISE-S INGE R The go urd yo u bea r is not fo r s!li rking.
T he go urd is not fo r settin g down

8. Tha t is , snake skin . Sm l ~'{/II : a ric hly valu ed wove n cloth ISoyin ka /.
1056 I ,,,IO L E SO YI N KA

At the first cross road or wayside grove.

Only one river may know its contents.
280 WOM EN \IVe s h~ 1I all meet a t the great marke t')
We shall all meet at th e great market
He who goes early takes th e bes t bargains
But we shall mee t, a nd res ume our ba nter.
[ ELES IN stmllis respiemiellt;11 ricll clotll es, ca p, s/z awl, etc. His sash is
of a brigh t red alari clotll. Th e WOMEN dallce rOt",d h i", . S llddelzl)~ his
nt,tel/tiolt is cat/gilt by a n objec t off s tage. J
ELES tN The world I know is ·good.
285 WOi\ IEN Vve know you'lIl e~ve it so.
ELES IN The world I know is the bounty
Of hi ves after bees ha ve swarmed.
No goodn ess teems with such ope n hands
Even in th e dreams of deities .
290 WOi\ IEN And we know you 'll leave it so.
ELES IN I was born to keep it so. A hi ve
Is never kn own to wander. An anthi ll
Does not desert its roots. "Ve cann ot see
The still grea t wo mb of th e world-
295 No man beholds his mother's wo mb-
Yet who denies it's th ere? Coiled
To the navel of th e world is that
End less cord tha t links us all
To th e great origin . If I lose my way
300 The tra iling cord will bring me to th e roots .
WOi\I EN The world is in your hands.
[Th e earlier distrnctio ll , a IJeallt.i! lIi YO UNG GIRL, cO lli es aiOllg tile 1}f1ssnge
I/,rougl' which ELES IN fi rst. made I, is eHt.')~ ]
E LES IN I embrace it. And let me tell you , wom en-
I like this farewell that th e world des igned,
Unless my eyes deceive me, unl ess
10 5 ' ¥e a re already parted, the wo rld a nd I,
And all th at breeds des ire is lodged
Among our tireless ancestors. Tell me fri ends,
Am I still ea rthed in that beloved market
or my yo uth ) Or co uld it be my will
3 10 Has o utiea ptlhe conscious ac t and I ha ve come
Among th e great departed?
pnAISE- S INGE n Eles in-Oba why do yo ur eyes ro ll like a bu sh-rat who sees
his rale like hi s fath e r's spirit, mirrored in th e eye of a s nake? And all
th ese q ues lio ns! Yo u're sta nding o n th e sa me earth yo u've always stood
3 15 up on . Thi s vo ice you hea r is mine, O luhun-i yo, not that of a n aco lyte in
heave n .
ELES IN How can that be? In all my life
'As Horseman of th e Kin g, th e juicies t
Fruit on every tree was mine. I sa w,
320 I touched, I wooed, rarel y was th e answer No .

9. That is, in the art erli re.

 DEAT H AND TH E KI NG'S H ORSEMAN , ACT I I I qS7

T he honour of my place, the ve neration I

Received in the eye of man or woman
Prospered my suit and
Played havQc with my sleeping hours.
And they tell me my eyes were a hawk
In perpetual hunge r. Split an iroko' tree
In twa, hide a \\loman's beau ty in its-heartwood
And s~al it up again-Elesin; journeying by,
. -
JlO
Wo uld make his camp beside .that tree ,-.
Of all the shades in, tl,e fo rest. . . .
PRAISE- SINGE R Who would deny your reputation , snake-on-the-Ioose in dark
passages of the market!' B ~d-bug wb? ~~'~ges war on, the ~at an~ receiv~.~ .th e
thanks of the va nquished! When ' caught .with his bride's . own sister he
protested- but I was only prostniting myself to her as becomes a grateful in-
law, Hun ter who carries his powder-horn o"n the hips ana fi res crouching or
standing! Warrior who neve r makes .that excuse of the whining coward- but
how caq I go to battle without my ~ rousers?-tro userl ess or shirtless it's all
one to him , Oka 2-rearing-fro m-a·ca moy.fl age-o.£-leaves, bef<;> re. he strikes the
victim is already prone! Once they told him~ Howu, a stallion qoe? not feed
on the grass beneath him: he replied, true, hut surely he can roll on i.t! -
'" WOMEN Ba-a-a-ba Ot
PRAISE-S INGE ;' Ah, bu t listen ye t. Yo u know tl;ere is the leaf-nibblin g grub
and there is the cola-c hewing be.ctle; the leaf-nibblin g grub lives on the
,. leaf, the cola-chewing beetle Hves in. the colanut. Don't we kn ow.what our
man feeds on when we· find him cocoori"ed iq a wo man's wrapper?
'" ELES IN Er\ough, enough, yo u all have ca use .
To kn ow me well. But, if YOll say tbis earth
Is still the same as gave birt h to those songs,
Tell me who was that goddess through whose lips
350 I saw the ivory pebbles of Oya's3 ri ver-bed.
Iyaloja, who is she? I saw her ente r .
Yo ur stall ; all your daughters I know well.
No, not even Ogun 4 -of-the-farm tailing ·
Dawn till dusk on his tuber patch
Not even Ogun wi th the fi nes t hoe he ever
Forged at the anvil could have shaped .
That· rise of buttocks, not 'though he had
The richest earth between' his fi ngers .
Her wrapper was no disguise .
360 For thighs whose ripples shamed the rive r's
Coils aro und the hills of Ilesi' Her eyes
Were new-laid eggs glowing in the dark.
Her skin . , .

I. A la rge tree of th c mulberry fam ily, ·so Il1c-
times called Africa n teak; according to Yoruba
folklore , its dcnser, Illult icolored heartwood is
inh abi ted by an impish spirit .
2. A sna ke . .
3. The goddess of the Nige r Il h'c r and of
winds.
4. The god of iron and war, and pa tron of
blacks mit hs. Soyin ka compares him ( 0 vari-
OLIS gods an d fig ures from Greek m yl h -
Apo lio, Prom etheu s, a nd especially Dionys us,
the god of fertili ty a nd wine , a nd patro n of
theater.
5. A town in wes te rn Nigeri a .
IOS8 I WOLE SOYINKA

IYALO}A Elesin Oba ...

365 ELESIN What! Where do you all say I am?
IYALOJA Still among the living.
ELESIN And that radiance which so suddenly
Lit up this market I could boast
I knew so well?
370 IYALO}A Has one step already in her husband's home. She is betrothed:
ELESIN [irritated] Why do you tell me"that? . ) ..
[IYALOJA falls silent. The WOMEN shuffte uneasily.]
IYALO}A Not because we dare give you offence;EJ~sin. Today is your day and
the whole world is yours. StilI, even those' who le~ve town.to make a new
dwelling elsewhere' like to be remembered by what they-leave behind.
375 ELESIN Who does' hot seek to be remembe"red? .
Memory is' Master of Death, the chink .
In his armour of cQIlceit. I shall leave
That.whkh makes my going "the sheerest
" Dream of an afternoon. Should voyagers
380 Not travel nght? Let the considera~e traveller
Shed, of his" excessive load, all ,": .
That may benefit the liVing.
WOMEN [relieved] Ah Elesin Oba, we knew you for a man of honour.
ELESIN 'Then honour me. I deserve a bed of honour to lie upon.' ; "
385 IYALOJA' The best'is yours. We kno-wyou for a man of honour. You are not
". one who "eats and leaves'nothing on his plate for children. Did you noesay
it yourself?' Not one who' blights the happiness of others for a moment's
pleasure. "" , ..
ELESIN Who speaks of pleasure? 0 wOinen, listen!
390 Pleasure palls. Our acts should" have meaning.
The sap of the plan"tain neve~' d~es.. .
You have seen the young shoot swelling
Even as the parent stalk begins to Wither.
Women, let my going be likened to "
395 The tWilight hour of the plantain. " . " "
WOMEN What does he mean Iyaloja? This language is the language of our
elders, we do not fully grasp' it.' "
IYALOJA I dare not understand you yet Elesin.
ELESIN All you who stand before the spirit 'that dares
400 The opening of the last door of passage,
Dare to rid my going of regrets! My Wish
Transcends the blotting out of tho~ght
In one mere moment's tremor of the senses.
Do me credit; And do me honour.
405 I am girded for the route beyond
Burdens of waste and longing.
Then let me travel light. Let
Seed that will not serve the stomach
On the way remain behind. Let it take root
410 In the earth of my choice, in this earth
I leave b~hi~d. "
 DEATH AND TI-tE K I NG'S 110RSEMAN, ACT 1 I 1059

IYALOjA [tUrHS to WOMEN] The voice·. ·hear is already touched by the waiting
fin gers of our departed. I dare not refuse. '. , . .' ... ,'
WOI\,IEN '.~ But Iyaloja .. . i 'I.' , :
J I" I I,. .. " .
415 IYALOjA The m ~ tter isi·no longer in our hands,
WOMAN .. ;. But slle. is betrothed.· to your, O\vn son, Tell ·him.,'.· . i.'
IYALOj A IMy son's ·\vish is mine. I did , the askingl for ' himl,the !los!s can 'be
remedied: But who will 'remedy the blight of closed hands on .the·day whe n
all should be openness and light? Tell him, you :say! .You wis h·that I burden
42 0 'him with knowledge tha ~will sour hiswish and lay regrets on the last' mo-
ments of his mind. You pray to him who is yo ur ,jntercessor·to ,the world-
don't set this world adrift in' your. own time; would 'you ' rather' it was ·my
.Hrind .whose .sacrilege wrenched it·loose? "i ·j.l ~,r" '. "'I ' : .1
l
WOMAN Not many men will brave the curse of a .dispossessed husba nd.
m !YALO)A Only·the 'curses of. the departed are to be fea red. The claims of one
! whose foot is on the.threshom 'of their abode surpasses' even t he' 'claims of
blood. It is impiety even to place hindrances in their ways. .'" ! • ,
ELESIN What do my mothers say? Shall I step ···· ..... , ..•..
B(Jrdened jnto,the unkn own? :.' .~ t~ ,

410 IYALOjA" Not we,.but the very earth' says No: The sap .in the plantain does not
dry. Let grain.. that' will 'not feed ,the voygger at his passage drop here-and
take root as 'ile' steps beyond this 'ea rth 'and ti s'. Oh yo u' ;v],o fill the home
from hearth to threshold with the voices of children, yo u who now bestride
the hidden gulf and pause to draw.'the right foot across a nd into the
restiryg-: h1on!e of,the great :forebears, ;it is. .good . that ·your, 19in~" be ,drfl in<;!d
il]to the.ear\h we know, that yo ur las t. stre ngth be ploughed back int!) J,he
womb that gave yo u being. ' ',~
PRAISE-S INGER Iyaloja, .mother' of multitudes in the -teeming market-· of che
worldl,how you r \\'isdon; ·transfigures yo u! .
440 IYALOjr\ '[smiling ' hro(Ull)~' cOllipIetely reconciled) Elesin: even af the narrow
.. end 'o~ the passage I 'know you ',~ II look back ,md sigh a las t regret for the
'Resh that: n~s l;ed past yo ur sp'i'rii'i,; ' nigh't.~o u · al ways had 'a res.tle.,s eye:
Your choice has my blessing. [10 tl, e \i'OMEN] Take the good Ilews to our
daughter 'and make her re·ady. [So ,,;e ;VOMEN g';'off.l' . ,." :.... ' ..
H 5 ELES IN Your eyes we re clouded at first. .
IYALOjA Not for long. It is those who · sta nd !at the , ga teway of the great
change to whose cry we must pay heed. And the n, think of this---.-it makes
the mind tremble. The Fruit of such a union is rare.·lt will be neither of th is
wo rld no r. of the next. Nor of the one behind us. A" if the timelessness of
;50 the a'il c~s tor .wo rld and the unborti' have joined 'spirits to· wri ng an issue of
the elusive being of passage ... Elesin !
ELES IN I am here. '\'hat is it?; ,
IYALOjA Did you hear all I said just now?
CLES IN Yes .
4)5 IYALOjA The li ving must eat and drink. Wh en the· moment comes, don't turn
the food to rodents' droppin gs in the ir , mouth . Don't let the l'n tas te the
as hes of the wo rld when they step out at dawn to breathe the morn ing dew.
E LC S IN This doubt is unworthy of yo u Iya loja.
IYALOj A Eatin g the awusa nu t6 is not so difficult as drinking wa ter a fterwa rds.

6. A wal nudike sced th at is eatcn or lI sed to producc o il. Haw, it hilS a bitt er fl avor.
 1060 I WOLE SOYINKA

460 ELESIN The waters of the bitter stream are honey to a man
Whose 'tongue has savoured all. ,
IYALOjA No one knows when the ants desert their home; they leave the
mound intact. The swallow is never seen to peck holes in its nest when it is
time to move with the season. There are always' throngs of humanity be-
465 hind the leave-taker. The rain should not come through the roof for them,
the wind must not blow through the walls at night.
ELESIN I refuse to take offence .
.vk.OjA You wish ·to travel light. Well, the earth is yours. But be sure the
seed you .l~ave in it attracts no curse.
470 ELESIN You really mistake my person Iyaloja.
IYALOjA I said nothing. Now we must go prepare your bridal chamber. Then
these same' hands wil~ lay your shrouds.
ELESIN [exasperated] Must you be so blunt? [Recovers.] Well, weave your
shrouds, but lei the fingers of my bride se~l my eyelids with earth and wash
475' my body. .
IYALOjA Prepare yourself Elesin.
[She gets up to leave. At that moment the WOMEN return, leading the
BRIDE. Et..ESINS face glows with pleasu~e. He flicks the sleeves of his ag-
bada 7 w,ith renewed confidence and steps forward to meet the group. As
ihe girl kneels before IYALO)A, lights fade put on ~he scene.]

Act 2
The verandah of the District Officers bungalow. A tango is playing from .an old
hand-cranked gramophone and, glimpsed through the wide windows and doors
which open onto the forestage verandah are the shapes of SIMON PILKINGS and his
wife, JANE, tangoing in and out of shadows in the living room. They are wearing
what is immediately apparent as some form of fancy dress. 8 The dance goes on for
some moments and then the figure of a 'NATIVE ADMINISTRATION' POLICEMAN
emerges and climbs up the steps onto the verandah. He peeps through and obseroes
the d~ncing couple, reacting with what is obviously a long-standing b~lderment.
He s~iffens suddenly, his expression changes to one of disbelief and horror. In his ex-
citement he upsets a flowerpot and attracts the attention of the couple. '!'hey
stop
dancing.

PILKINGS Is there anyone out there?

JANE I'll turn off the gramophone.
PILKINGS [approaching the verandah] I'm sure I heard something fall over.
[The CONSTABLE retreats. slowly, open-mouthed as PILKINGS approaches tlt.e
verandah.] Oh it's you' Amusa. Why didn't you just knock instead of knock-
ing ~hings over?
AMUSA [stammers badly and points a shaky finger at his' dress] Mista
Pirinkin ... Mista Pirinkin ...
PILKINGS What is the matter with you?
JANE [emerging] Who is it dear? Oh, Amusa ...
10 PILKINGS Yes it's Amusa, and acting most strangely.
AMUSA [his attention now transf~rre4 to MRS PILKINGS] Mammadam ... you
too!

7. A flowing, wide-sleeved robe worn by im- 8. That is, costumes.

portant men.

L
 DEATH AND THE KING'S HORSEMAN. ACT 2 I 1061

PILKINGS What the hell is the matterJwith you IrIan!

JANE' Your costume ,darling. Our fancy dress., , .' '
~ILKINGS Oh hell, I'd forgotten all ~bout that. (Lifts the face mask over:· his
head showing his face. His wife follows suit.]
JANE I think you've shocked his big pagan heart bless him. '
PILKINGS Nonsense, he's a Moslem~ Come on.Amusa, you don't believe in
all this ,nonsense do you? I thought you, were a good Moslem., '
AMUSA Mista Pirinkin, I·b~g you sir, what you think you do with that 4ress?
It belong to dead ~ult, not for human being.
PILKINGS Oh Aniusa, what a let down'you are. I swear by you at the .club you
know~thank God for Amusa, he' doesn't beli~ve in" any mumbo-jumb~.
And now look at you! ' , ," ' '
AMUSA Mi,sta Pirinkin, I beg you, take it off. Is riot g90d for man like you to
~ touch that cloth. '" " , "
PILKINGS Well, rve got iton. And what's more Jane and,~ have bet on it w:e'~e
taking firstp~ize at the ball. Now, ifycm ~~n just pull yourself together and
tell' me what you wanted to see m~ ,about. '. . '
AMUSA Sir; I cannot talk this matter to, you in that dress. I no fit.
PILKINGS ,What's Jhat rupbish' ~gain? , ' ' , ,
JANE He is dead earnest too Simon. I think you'~l h~ye to h~ndle this 4elicately.
PI~KINGS Delicately iny ... !~ok ,here Amusa, I think this Iitt~e joke has
,gone far e~oug)I hm?,L~t's have 'some 'sense. You seem to forget that you
are a police officer in the service of His Majesty's Government. I order 'you
to report your business 'at pnce.~r face disciplinary action., , '
AMUSA Sir, it is a matter 'of dea'th. How can man talk against death to person
in .uniform of death? Is like. talking against government to persop in upi-
form of po~ice.Please sir,' t go. and come 'back.
PIL~N.GS [r.oars] Now! [AMUSASwitches hiS gaze to the ceiling sudf1enly, re-
mains mute.] ,
JANE' Oh ~usa, what is there to be scared 'of in the cos't~me? You saw it
confiscated 1ast mo~th from those egungun9 men who wer~ creating trou-
ble in town. You helped arrest the cult leaders yourself-if th~ juju I didn't
harm you at the time. how'coul~ it poss~bly harm you now? And mer~'y by
looking at it? ' .. I , '

AMUSA [withf!ut looking down] lYIadam, I arrest the ringleaders who make
trouble but me I no touch egungun. That egungun itself, I no touch. And I
no abuse 'am..,1 arrest ringleader but I treat egungun wi~h respect.
PILKINGS It's hopeless. We'll merely end up missing the best part., of the ball.
When tpey get this way there is nothing you can do. It's simply hammering
agaiqst a brick wall. Wri~e your report or whatever it is', on that pad Amusa
and tak~ yourself out of ·here.Come on Jane. We o~ly lJpset his delicate
sensibilities by remaining here. , ' , ',
[AMUSA waits for t~tn to leave, then write~ in the notebook, somewhat
laboriously. Drumming from the direction of the town wells up. AMUSA
listens, makes a movement as 'if h~ wants to recall PILKINGS but changes
his mind. Cpmpletes his note and goes. A few moments later PILKINGS
emerges, picks up the pad and reacf,s.] ,

9. Ancestral masquerade [Soyinka). The spirits those wearing these costumes.

of the dead are believed to temporarily possess I. Magic associated with fetish objects.
1062 I WOlE SOY I NKA

PI LKINGS Jane!
J ANE [from the bedroo m] Coming darling. Nearly ready.
55 PJLKINGS Never mind being ready,ljust.listen to this . .
J ANE What is it?
PILKI NGS Amusa's report. Liste n. 'I have to report that it- come to my inFor;-
mation that one prominent c hieF, namely, th e Elesin Oba, is to commit
dea th tonight as a res ult of native custom. Because this is crimina l offence
60 I awa it .further instru ction at charge office. Sergeant Amusa.'
[JANE co mes out outo die verandah-l't/hUe he is readillg.]
J ANE Did r hea r YO'u ' say commit death?
PILKI NGS . Obviously' he means rnurder.
J ANE You mea n a ritual murder?
PI LKINGS Must be . You think yo u"ve s t~ mped it 'an out but it's al\\7ays li.lrking
65 und er th e surfac;e somewhere. . ' .
J ANE Oh . Does it mcim we are not ge ttin g to thc" ball at all ? .~ .
P IL KINGS Nci:o." ['II have the man arrested. Everyb nc' remotely irivo l ved ~ In
any case there may be nothing (0 it. Just ru inours. . .
J ANE Rea liy? I thou ght you fOUI1a 1\.lllUsa's rum ours ge rieraliy re liable . ·1
iO PILKI NGS That's tru e eno ugh . But w~lO knows what may ha\re bee n' givi ng
him th e scq re lately. Look at his co nduct toni ght: · ;.
J ANE [/allg/dug] ·You ha ve to admi t he h ~d his own peculiar logic . [DeepellS
her voice.] How ca n ma n ta lk:aga ipst dea th to perso n in unifo rm of death?
[La ughs.] Anyway, yo u ca n't go into the police station dressed like th at.
i5 PILKINGS I'll send Joseph with inst"rllctions. Damn it, w hat ' 3 ' confo unded
nuisance! .
J ANE But don 't yo u think yo u shou ld talk 'first to th'e man, Simon? .
PILKI NGS Do yo u wa nt to go to lh ~ ba ll or n"'6 t?
)ANE Darling, why are yo u ge tting rattled' I· was only trying to be· intelligen t. It
80 seems hardly fair ju st to lock up a man-and a chief at that-s i!llply on~ the
er ... what is th e legal wo rd aga in?-un corrobo rated word of a sergea nt.
PILKI NGS Well , that's easil y decided. Joseph !
JOSE PH [from within.] Yes master.
PILKiNGS You're quite ri ght of cotirse, I am getting rattled . Probably the ef-
85 feet of those bloody drum s. Do yo u hea r how they go on a nd Oi1? .
JA NE I wonde red when yo u'd notice. Do yo u suppose it has sOh1ething fo do
with this affa ir? .I
P ILKI NGS vVh o knows? They a lways find ai1 exc use for maki ng a noise . ..
[Though/filII)'] Eve n so ...
90 JA NE Yes Simon?
P ILKI NGS It's different Jane. I don 't think I've heard this partiClila'r-
sou nd- before. Something 'unsettlin g a bo ut ·it.
J ANE I th ought all bu sh drummin g so und ed th e same.
PILKI NGS Don't tease me now Ja ne . This may be seri ous.
95 J ANE I'm so rry. [Gets 11·1) flIld throws lI er ann.s arou.nd his nech. Kisses hi.ln.
T he HOUSEBOY eaters, f'etreats and hJlo~ h.s. ) . , .
PILKINGS [wearily] O h, come in J ~seph ! I d o n 't' lm ~w where yo u pick up all
th ese eleph antine notions of tac t. Co me over here:
J OSE PH Sir?
PILKINGS Jose ph , arc yo u a C hri stian or not?
 DEATH AND THE KING'S HORSEMAN, ACT ,2 I 106-3

100 JOS~PH ',·Yessir~: ;l' '~',;\.'. " , ;;,' i', . i: . .j,

PILKINGS Does seeing me in this outfit bother you? · :'

JOSEPH!' NO'sir;lit has no power, "j;; ;~"L 'i '. '.':, i;,' ; . : ';: /!: ..

PILKINGS Thank God for some,sanity;at lastJ'Now-Joseph,;answer me.on the

\ honoirr of'a.Christiarii-wha:t-is sripposed to be: gbing oniln townt'tonight?
.~.105 JOSEPH Tonight sir? You mean the chief who is going: to ,kill :himself:?: .'\
')~ PILIaNbs.kWhat? :,: ',: ;." .... ,' ; ::: ..:~. .:.:: ,: 'I ,I,i.-: ~.' .•. '; !.' '. ~ !

~\ JANE' What do y~u mean, kill himself? ...... J.'

)£ PILKINGS You do mean'be is going to'kills6mebody' don~t.you?', ' ,;" .... ';
';" JOSEPH No master. He will not kill anybody and no .0n~WUI kill him. :He .will
110 simply die. (',Lf.!"''':';'l;,; :,'~ ;:. ::'

.. , jANEi.· Btit~whyJoseph'?: '.;·:'-·,:·i.I:'~;' .:.' '''; ,".: ':." L,;d.i

JOSEPH It is native law andcustom~ The:King die last'month;!Tonight:is his
t'. :: biIria1.'·;Bu~ before they can bury'him; the'ElesinmiIsti~e'~o'as to accom.:.
"pany,him'to;heaven.·'· -.. >: :'~:i::! ,,' ','~~" ,1:,'.',., '.,'
115 PILiaNGS . I seem.to·be fated;to'clash:more'Often' with that~man tha~ with, any
of the other chiefs. ':'~:.)!:;:' . ,!, .,'~:I:: !i" 'f:: . ,: " " "

JOSEPH' 'He·i!;:the·King'sChiefHorseman. '" ':::: ,,," ,.

0; PIl;KlNGS [in-a" tesigned,way).: ·:-lknciw.;,',,' y' , ':.,,: ::. '~": .11,' "',

JANE Simon, what's the matter? ' ;;'; "".;.

120 PILKINGS';,-Itwould·hi1veto'be,him!·,;; ";'; ';,;:,.' ,',;,' ,"; .~,.-' i",'
)ANE"Who is he?':,:t .. : .' <:b;): ,,;' , ' , , i ~ '. : -: 'I;, . ,: ~ . : " , ',;

PILKINGS Don't you remember? He's that chief with whom Thad a;,scrap
some three' or four ,year~' ago'~':I: helped ;his<son; get; to a, medic~l school !in
England;,:remeritber? He foughttoothand'nail to,prevent:it. h"l' , ;') ','" ':,
. 125 JANE Oh now I remember:· He was that ,very sensitive yOung·mah. Whatwa's
his name again? : .,.~,,~', ""~ ,
p~~~qs • . Q~lJ~de:aI1ayen~t:X~Hli~dJ~ his J~.~t l~u~r~orne t,o thin~.~f it. Ih~
old pagan wanted him to stay ~n~ j~aI;l"Y; o,~, ~~Il1~'f~m;~ly .~r~Pi~~on pr: .the
:. : ~~h~~·:lJ~~~.s~f;}co,ulqn't ~n4~r~~~nd Jhe Jus~ !h~ ~~4~· IJ~,teFally ,h~d',tq
130 help the boy escape from close confinement and l~~~/~~ 1Q.~tp ,th~,inext
. :boat.:4-mC?~t:intelliger:t:~!bpy,;r~a~Yiprig~t. ,,'j ,~.i:.· ;,:,.:' i ; 'I, ;; .: ,;
J~~, ". ~., r:~~~~r; th,?l;Ight h~ W~ :D.tp«7hJPo :s~p'siti~~, y~~:~~w.. The, killd Q~I?~r­
,! .soll:y~u: f~elshpI:,l14,b~: ~,PQ~~ ~9l..LJn~h.,il;tg ~q~,~M~~,t~l~ .!~ ~lqQll1sbury.~. ',,:;
PILKINGS Well, he's going to make a first-class doctor.; Hls .mind is .set on
135 that. And as long ashe wants my help h,eJs 'relc~~~~tQ)t: - ",." '."':":1'
JANEJa~,~ a, pa~~] .Shpon. . ': , " ' . .:; I ; , ',.

PILKiNGs'Yes? , . , . .' ," '.. .-',. ','"

J~~~E, :"TN,s. ~~y, h~ :w~s ~,~e~l~~(~t, "s~n. 'Y~~n't, l~e?,. '~l';:
PILKINGS I m not sure. Who could tell WIth that old ram? -.
; /.
140 JANEDoyouknow,Joseph~; . ,:",:,:J :' : ' , : ' . _";"': -:, '. . "" ,

JOSEPH' Oh;'y~s ni~dain'. H~ w~s' the el~~st~~~ri: That's ~hy: ;Elesin .curs~d
master good and proper. The eldest' so~' is ~~t: ~Jppo~'e'd ~o' t~ay~l a~ayfrom
the land. ', . ". . '.- ."~!, . . /. " -
:. ': ~", ."'. ' . ,~., •• ':~ '':' •• ~\, 1. ',! : './.~ .,~.'. .' : ..... ,.~ . ;"i
jAN.E [~iggli~g] Is th,~.t true S~m~ri? I?i~,'h~' ~e~Iy c~r~e you gqod ard proper?
145 PILKINGS 'By' all accounts I s'hould be'dead by ·flOW. ,<', ' r" , '" ;',.'.,:: '.

2. The district of central London in which the art and literary culture, notably the Pre-Rapha-
British Museum and the University of London elites in the 19th century and Virginia Woolf
are located; it has long been associated with and the "Bloomsbury Group" 4n the 20th;' ,:

- - .. - ------~---.---------------"'j
I~,I '~
! 1064 I WO LE SOYINKA
III
JOSE PH Oh no, master is white man. And good C hristian . Black man juju
can't touch master.
J ANE If he was his eldest, it means that he wo uld be the Eles in to the next
king. lfs a family thing isn't it Joseph?
IS. JOSE PH Yes madam . And iF this Elesin had died before the King, his eldest
so n mu st take his ·place.
JANE That wou ld expla in why th e old c hief was so mad you took the boy
away.
I'I LK INGS Well it makes me all the more happy I did.
155 JANE I wonqet jf he knew.
P ILKINGS ""Vho? Oh, you mean Olunde?
JANE Yes. ' -\1as th a ~ why he was so determined to get away? I wo uldn't stay if
I knew I was trapped in slich a ho rribl e custom .
I'IL KINGS 1llloIIglttfu lly] No, I don 'tthii,k he knew. At least he gave no indi-
160 cation . But YO ll co uldn't rcall y tell with him . I-Ie was rat her c1ose 3 yo u
kn ow, quite unlike most of the m. Didn't give much awa y, not even to me. '
J ANE Aren't th ey all rath~r close, Simo n?
PILKI NGS These nat ives here? Good gracious. They'll open their mou ths and
ya p with yo u about th eir Family secrets before yo u can stop them. Only-the
16> other day ...
JA NE But Sirnon, do th ey rea lly give anything away? J mean, anything th at
rea ll y co unts. T his affai r for insta nce, we didn 't know they still practised
that custom did we?
PILKI NGS .Ye-e-es , I suppose yo u're right there. Sly, devious bastards.
liO JOSE PH [st~(f1)'} Can I go now m as ter? I ·have to clean th e kitchen .
PILKI NGS What? Oh , you can go. Forgo t yo u we re still th ere.
[JOSEP H goes.]
JANE Simon, yo u rea lly must watc h you r language. Bastard isn't just a sim -
. pie swear-word in th ese parts, yo u kn ow.
PILKI NGS Look, just when did yo u become a social anthropologist, th at's
li5 what I'd like to know.
JANE I'm not claiming to know anyt hin g. I just happe n to have overheard
qu arrels among th e sen'a nts. That's hO\\; I know they consider it a smear.
PILK INGS I thought t he extended family system took care of all that. Elastic
family, no bastards.
ISO J ANE [shmgs ] I-lave it yo ur own way.
[Alllhlllnrd sile/l ce. The dnlll/:/Ilillg j'1crellses i ll volllllle. J ANE get.s 1fJ1
Slfddel"/.l)~ rest,/ess· 1
That drummin g Simo n, do you think it might really be con nected with this
ritual? It's bee n going on all even ing.
PIL KINGS Let's ask our native guide. Joseph! Ju st a minu te Joseph. UOSEPH
reeuters. ] ' .\fhat's th e druni ming a bou t?
18:; J OSE PH I don't know master.
PILK1 NGS ' '''hat do you mea n yo u don't know? It's o nl y two yea rs s ince your
conv·ersion. Don't te ll me all th at hol y wate r nonsense a lso wiped ou t yo ur
trib al memory.
J OSE PH Ivisibly sllOched] MaSler!

3. Sec ret ive. taciturn.

 DEA'Tli AN D T HE KI NG'S IW RSE M AN . AC T 2 I 106S

1?O JANE Now yo u've.done it ,' "

PJLKINGS ' vVhat'have··I .done now?
JANE Never mind .. Listen Joseph , just tell me thi s. :ls that drumming con-
nec ted with dyin g or anythin g of that nature? ' ." .. , ' , '.
JO SE PH Madam , this is what I am tryi ng to say: 1 am not sure . It sounds like
19'
the dea th of a grea t chief and th en, it sounds like the wedding of a great
: chief. ;!t really mix me up , ' .
PILKI NGS Oh ge t back to th e kitchen, A fa t lot of help you are,
JOS EPH Yes master. [Goes.] " .
JANE S imon.. . " ....
200 PILKI NGS Alright, alright. I'm in no mood fo r preaching.
) /\ N E It isn't my preaching yo u have to wo rry about, it's the preaching of th e
missionaries who preceded you he re." Vlh e n th ey ma ke, co nverts they rea ll y
convert th em, Calling holy wate'r non sense to ourJoseph is reall y like in-
sulting th e Virgin Mary before a Roman Catholic. H e's going to ha nd in his
20; notice tom orrow you mark my wo rd.
PI LKI NGS Now you're be ing ridic ulous . \;
JANE Am I? What.are yoti willing to bet -that tomorrow we are go in g to be
without a .steward -boy? Did you see his face?
PILKI NGS I am more concerned about whe ther or not we will be one nat ive
lIO chief short by tomorrow. C hrist!, JU's t listen to those drums .. [He strides "1'
. Cll1ci !clotvll, 1indec ided:}: :
JANE [getting Hp] ; I'll change and make us so me ·supp er,
P ILKI NGS What's that?
JANE Simon ,.it's .obvious·we ,have to miss this ball.
PILKI NGS Nonsense. It's the fi rs t bit of rea l fun th e European club has 'man-
21 5 aged to orga nise for over a ye ar, I'm damned if I'm goin g to miss it: And it
is a rath er special occasion; ,Doesn't happen every day.
JANE You kn ow this business has to be stopped Simon. And yo u are th e onl y
man wh o ca n qo it. '.
PILKI NGS I don't ha ve to stop anythin g. If th ey wa nt to thro w th emselves off
220 th e , top .of a cliff or poison th emselves for th e sake of some: barbaric C lI S -
tom what is th at t o me? If it were· ri tual murder or some thin g like that I'd
be duty-bound. to do something. I ca n'.t kee p ah eye on all . the pote ntial
suicides in thi s provin ce. And as for th at man- be lieve me it's good rid-
dance. , ~I
225 JANE {laughs] I kn ow YO ll be tter th an th at Sim on. You are go in g to have to do
some thing to stop it-after yo u've fini shed blu stering.
PIL KI NGS [shollis after her] . And suppose a fter. a ll it's onl y a wedding. -I'd 'Ioo k
a proper fool if I interrupted a chie f on his honeymoon, wo uldn't I? [Re-
SH'III es his angry st ride, slows down.] Ah well , who ca n te Jl what th ose chie fs
230 : act ually do on th e ir honeymoon·anyway? [I-Ie t.{l ltes up the'1Jad all cl scdbbles
rapidly on it,] Jose ph! Jose ph ! Jose ph ! [So llle ,1I/Omeuls laler JOSE PH p lll.s ill
a sldhy appearance. ] Did yo u hea r me call yo u? W hy th e hell didn 't yo u a n-
swer?
JOSE PH I didn't hear mas ter.
235 PILKINGS Yo u didn 't hear me! How come yo u are here th e n?
JOSE PH [stlJ1Jbomly] I didn't hear mas ter,
I' ILKI NGS [co nl,ro ls h;'IIIse lfw il-h, an effo rl] \ ,Ve'll talk abo ut it' in th e morning.
1066 I WO LE SOY JNKA

I wa nt YO LI to take thi s no te direc tly to Se rgeant Amusa. Yo u'll find him at

th e c ha rge office. 4 Ge t o n yo ur bicycle and race th e re with it. I expec t you
NO back in twe nty minutes exac tl y. Twe nty minutes) is that cle ar?
JOSE PH Yes mas ter. (Go iug ]
PILKINGS Oh e r .. . J oseph .
JOSEPH Yes master?
PILKI NG S [vet.lIIee11. gritt ed t.eel.h] Er ... forge t w hat I said ju st now. The holy
245 wat er is not no nse nse. I was ta lking nonse n se.
JOS EPH Yes maste r. [Goes.]
JANE fpohes her li ead ronnel th e door] Ha ve YOl' found him ?
PILKI NGS Found who ?
Ji\ NE Joseph . \J\lere n 't you shoutin g for him?
250 PI LKINGS O h yes ) he turn e d up finall y.
JANE Yo u so unde d d es perate . \~/ hat was it all a bout?
PILKI NGS Oh no thing. I ju st wanted to ap ologise to him . Assure him tha t th e
hol y wa te r isn't rea lly non se n se.
J,\NE O h? And how did he take it?
255 PILKI NGS \\' ho th e h e ll gives a damn! I had a sudde n vision of o ur Ve ry Rev-
e re nd Mac Farl a ne drafting a noth e r le tt er o f complaint to th e Reside nt
about my un c hristian lan gua ge towa rds his pa ri shi o ne rs.
JANE Oh I think he's give n lip on yo u by n ow.
PILKI NGS Don't be too s ure . And an yway, I wa nted to m ake sure J oseph
260 didn 't 'lose) my no te on th e wa y. H e looke d s uffici e ntly full of the holy cru-
sade to do so me sti c h thin g.
JANE If yo u've fini she d exagge ra ting) come and have som e thing to ca t.
PIL KINGS No) put it a ll a wa y. \Ve can sti ll ge t to th e ba ll.
JA NE Simo n ...
265 PI LK INGS Ge l your cos tum e back on . Not hing to worry abotlt. I\re instru cted
Amusa to a rres t th e ma n a nd loc k him tip.
j l\ NE But that stati o n is hardly se c ure S imon . He'll soo n gel his fri e nd s to
he lp him escape .
PILKI NGS A- a h , th il t's w he re I have o ut-th ought you. I'm not havin g him PUI
2;0 in Ihe sl3tio n cell. Amusa wi ll bring him right here a nd loc k him up in my
stud y. And he 'll sta y with him till we ge t back. No one will da re co me here
to inci te him to an ythin g.
JANE How cleve r of yotl d a rlin g. I'll ge t ready.
PILKI NGS Hey.
2;; JANE Yes da rlin g.
PILKI NGS I have a surpri se for yo u . I wns going to kee p it unti l we ac tu all)
gO l" to the ball.
j~\ NE \"'ha t is it?
PILKI NGS You kno w th e Prince 5 is on a to ur of th e co loni es do n't you ? \,Vell
280 he doc ked in th e capita l o nly th is morning but he is already at th e Hcsi
de ney. He is go in g to grace th e ba ll with hi s prese nce lat e r tonight.
J:\ NE S im on! No t rca ll y.

-4. Policc sta tioll . bed; II. toured Ccvloll (Sri L'w ka). [ndia , :ln
' 5. Prince II en ry, duke of Gloucester ( 1900- Nort h l\ frica in [942.
I 97-t ). Ihe uncle of the future Quee n Eliza -
 DEATH AND THE KING'S HORSEMAN; ACT 3 r 1067

\.K1NGS Yes he is. He's been invited to give' away: the prizes· and he has
agreed. You inust admit old Engleton· is the best Club Secretary we ever
had. Quick off the mark that lad.
m But how thrilling.' .)
,KINGS The other provincials are going to be damned envious;'
rE I wonder what he'll come as. .
KINGS' Oh I don't know. As a' 'coat-of-arms perhaps. Anyway it won't be
mything to touch this. . . '
iE Well that's lucky. Ifwe are to be presented I won't have to start looking
Or a pair of gloves. It's all 'sewn on.
KINGS [laughing] Quite right. Trust a woman to think of that ..Come on,
et's get going.
E [rushing off] Won't be a second. [Stops.l Now I see why:you've beeI.1 so
dgy all evening. I thought you weren't handling this affair with your usual
rilliance-to begin with that is. . .
ClNGS [his mood is much improved] Shut up woman and get'your things
l

n.
Alright boss, coming.
[PILKINGS suddenly begins to hum the tango to which they were dancing
before. Starts to execute a few practice steps. Lights fade. J

'Act 3
~elli~g,' agit4ted hum of women s ~oices rises immediately inth~ background.
lights come on and we see the frontage of a converted clOth stall in the market~
floor leading up to the entrance is covered in rich velvets and wOven cloth. The
EN' come on stage, borne backwards by the detennined progress of Sergeant
iA and his two CONSTABLES who already have their batons out and use them as
'ssure,against the WOMEN. At the edge of the cloth-covered.jloor however the
EN take a detennined stand and block all further progress of the men. They be-
) tease them mercilessly.

:A I am tell you women for last time. to commotmy road. 6 I am here on

icial business. . . .
. \N Qfficial business you white man's eunuch? Official business is tak-
; place where you want to go and it's a business you wouldn't under-
I

nd. , .
IN [makes a quick tug at the CONSTABLES baton] . Tha~ doesn't fool any-
~ you know. It's the one you carry under yopr government knickers 7 that
lOtS. as.
[Shebends.l ow .if.to peep untkr the baggy shorts. The embarr~sed
liSTABLE quickly puts his knees together. The ~OMEN roar.]
N You mean there is nothing there at all?
N Oh there was something. You know that handbeII which the white-
1 uses to summon his·servants ... ?
. [he ma1'Ufges to· pr'eservesome dignity t~roughout] . I hope you, women
w that interfering with officer in execution of his duty-is.criminal offence .
.~ Interfere? He says we're interfering with him. You foolish man we're
ng you there's nothing to interfere with. .,

~ out of my road (pidgin English); that ous reference to the khaki shorts worn by
It of my way. colonial policemen.
an's underpants; here, a contemptu-

--
 1068 I WO l f SOY I NKA

MI'I USA I am order yo u now to clea r the road.

WOMAN vVhat road? The o ne yo ur father built?
WOMAN You are a Policeman 'Ilot so? Tllc n yo u know what they call tres -
passing in cou rt. Or-[PoiuUl1g to the clot.h-lilled st.eps]-do you think that
20 kind of road is built for ever), kind of feet.
WOi\'1AN Go back and te ll th e wh ite man who se nt you to come himself.
I, AM USA If I go I will come bac k with reinfo rcement. And we wi ll all return
Iii carrying weapo ns.
WOMAN O h, now I understa nd . Befo re they can put on th ose kni ckers th e
2; white man first cuts off their wea pons.
WOJ\1;\ N \,yhat a cheek! You mea n ~'O U come here to show power to women
and yo u don 't eve n have a weapon.
AI\'l U SA [slzollt.ing above tIle laughter] For th e last' time I wa rn YO LI women to
clear th e road .
30 WOi\l,\N To where?
AM USA To that hut. I know he dey dere.
WOi\ IAN ,,,fho?
Ai\lUS:\ T he chief who ca ll himself Elesin Oba.
WOMAN You ignorant man. II is not he who ca lls himself Eles in Oba, it is his
35 blood t hat sa),s it. As it called ou t to his fat he, before him a nd wi ll to his
son after him. And that is in spite of everything yo ur white man can do.
WOi\ IAN Is it not th e same ocea l~ that was hes this la nd and th e white man's
land? Tell yo ur white man he can hide our so n away as lo ng as he li kes.
' ''' hen the time comes for him , th e same ocean wil l bring him back.
S
40 AI\ I US:\ The gove rnm e nt say dat kin' ting mu st stop.
WOMAN ,.vho will stop it? You? Tonight our husband a nd father will prove
himself greater th an th e laws of strangers.
Ai\ IUSA I te ll yo u nobody go prove a nyting toni ght or an);time . Is ignorant
and crimina l to prove dat kin' prove.
fYALOJ:\ [eutel'i llg, from t.he Ill1t.. S /l e is accompanied by a groHI' of YOUNG G IHLS
45 who IWl/e been at.temiillg tIl e a BID E ] ' ''' hat is it Amusa? vVh y do you come
here to disturb th e happiness of others.
Ai\ IUSA i'Vladame Iya loja, I glad yo u come. You know me, I no like trouble but
duty is duty. 1 am here to arres t Eles in for crimi nal inte nt. Tell these
women to stop obstru cting me in th e perfor mance of my duty.
50 IYALOJ A And yo u? ' ,Vhat gives yo u the right to obstru ct o ur leader of men in
th e performance of his duty?
Ai\ IUSA ' '''hat kin ' du ty be dat o nc Iya loja.
[YALOjA ' '''hat kin ' duty? What kin ' duty docs a man have to his new bride?
Ai\ IUSA {bewildered, looks (It './z e WOMEN (IIld at. t.he elltrallce to tJl e h1lt]
Iya loja, is il weddin g yo u ca ll d is kin ' ting?
55 IYr\LOjA YO ll have wives haven't yo u? ,.vhatever the white man has don e to
yo u he has n't stopped yo u havi ng wives. And if he has, at least he is mar-
ri ed. If yo u don 't kn ow what a marr iage is, go a nd ask him to tell yo u.
Ai\ l US,\ This no to wedd ing.
IYALOj,\ And ask him at the sa me time what he wo uld have done if a nyonc
60 had come to d isturb him on his weddin g ni gh t.
Ai\ IUSA Iyaloja , I say d is no to weddin g.

8. ThaI kind of thing (pidgi n English).

 DEATH AND THE KING'S HORSEMAN{ ACT.3 I 1:069.

lYALOjA You want to look inside; th~ bridal ~hamber? You want to '. se'e for
yourself how a man cu~s the virgin knot? :
I,.
AMUSA Madam·., •.·,:'" .:. '. ';, . ,. , ., . ,,,
;.
:. 65 WOMAN Perhaps his wives are still waiting for him to learn.;·,' ..
AMUSA Iyalpja, make you tell dese women make den no insult me again. If I
hear dat kin' insult once more . . . .. 1
GIRL [pushing her way through] You will do what? :. "
).. GIRL He's out of his mind.Jt's our mothers you're talking to, do you' know
70 that? Not to any illiterate villager you can bully andterrorise. How dare you
intrude here anyway?
GIRL What a cheek, what impertinence I ·.
GIRL You've treated them too gently. Now let themsee.what it is to tamper
with the mothers of this market. . .... ~ .
75 GIRL Your betters dare not enter the market when· the women say nor.
GIRL Haven't you learnt that yet, you jester in khaki and starch? ,:
lYALOjA. Daughters... '.
GIRL No no Iyaloja, leave us to deal with him. He no longer knoWs his
mother, we'll teach him.
[VVith a sudden movement they snatch the batonS' of the· two CONSTABLES.
They begin to hem them in.] ,.' :.
80 GIRL What next? We have your batons? What next? What are you going to do?
[VVith equally swift movements they' knock .'off t~ir ·hatS.] ,, ': '
GIRL Move if you dare. We have your hats., what' ~ll you '00 about it? Didn't
the white man teach you to take off your hats before' women?: ",
lYALOjA It's a wedding night. It's a night of joy'for us~ Peac'e .'~'~:' .
GIRL Not for him. Who asked him here? .. '
85 GIRL Does he dare go to the Residency without an)nVitation? ,
GIRL Not even where the servants eat the"left-overs. .
GIRL [in turn. In an 'English' accent] Well we~l itl M;~si:er Ainus.~.W~r~ you
invited? [Play-acting to one another. The ol~r. WOMEN enCourage them with
theirti,tter~.] ,.' ".' '.' .
-Yo~r ii~vitatio'~ card please?
90 -Who are you? Have we been introduced?
-And who did you say you were?
-Sorry, I didn't quite catch your name.
-May I take 'your. hat? ,I . ' ....

-If you insist .. May I take yours? [Exchanging the POLICEMENS hats]
95 -How very kind of you.
-Not at all. Won't you: sit down? : .
-After you.
~lino .
. ·'~I ·insist.
100 -You're most gracious.
-And how do you find the place?
-The natives are alright.
, '-Friendly? .
-Tractable.
105 -Not a teeny-weeny bit restless?
-Well, a teeny-weeny bit restless.
-One might even say, difficult?
 107:0 I WOLE SOYINKA

-Indeed one might be tempted to say, difficult.

-But you do manage to cope?
110 -Yes indeed I do. I have a rather faithful ox called Amusa.
-He's loyal?
-Absolutely.
-Lay down: his life for you what?
-Without a moment's thought.
115 -Had one like that once. Trust him with my life.
-Mostly of course they are liars.
-Never known a native to tell the truth.
-Does it get rather close9 around here?
-It's mild for this time of the year.
120 -But the rains may still come.
-They are late this year aren't they?
-They are keeping African time.
-Ha ha ha ha
-Ha ha ha ha
125 -The humidity is what gets me.
-It used to be whisky.
-Ha ha ha ha
-Ha ha ha ha
'-What's your handicap old chap?
130 -Is there racing by golly?
-Splendid golf course, you'll like it.
-I'm beginning to like it already.
-And a European club, exclusive.
-You've kept the flag flying.
135 -We do our best for the old country.
-It's a pleasure to serve.
-Another whisky old chap?
-You are indeed too too kind.
-Not at all sir. Where is that boy? [With a sudden bellaw] Sergeant!
140 AMUSA [snaps to attention] Yessir!
[The WOMEN collapse with laughter.]
GIRL Take your men out of here.
I\MUSA [realising the trick, he rages from loss offace] I'm give you warning.
GIRL Alright then. Off with his knickers!' [They surge slawly forward.]
IYALOJA Daughters, please.
145 AMUSA [squaring himself for defence] The first woman wey touch me ...
IYALOJA My children, I beg of you ...
GIRL Then tell him to leave this market. This is the home of our moth<
We don't want the eater of white left-overs at the feast their hands h:
prepared.
150 IYALOJA You heard them Amusa. You had better go.
GIRL. Now!
AMUSA [c.o.mmencing his retreat] We dey go now, but make you no say we
warn you.
GIRL Now!

9. Stifling, hot. .

. ~
I
1
 DEATH AND THE KING'S HORSEMAN, ACT 3 I 1071

GIRL Before we read theriot actl:....-you·should know all aboutthat.

AMUSA ' Make we go. [They 'depart, more' precipitately.]
, , [The WOMEN stHke theirp~lms aCTC?ssin the gesture of wonder.]
WOMEN '00 ~hey teach yo~ aIr 'that at schoQI? " . ' ",
WOMAN And to thhlk' I nearly kept Apinke away from ihe place. ,
woMAN' Did: you he~i"them?:' Did you see how th'ey mimicked the white
'niari?
WOMAN 'The voic~s e~a~,~iy. ,Hey, there are ~pndets in, this w6r1d!' " '
rYALO]A Well,' our elders"have said' it:' Dada 'may be- weak, but he has a
younger sibling who' is'truly fearless. 2 " '
WOMAN' 'The 'next time the white D:lan shows' his face.iri this market I will set
Wtiraol~3 d~ his tail. , ;" , ' .,' ,
[A WOMAN bursts. into song, and dance of eup~ria-'Tani l'awa ol'og-
beja? Kayi! A l'ogbeja: O~o Kekere l'ogbeja. 4 The rest of the WO~EN join
in, sOme 'placing the'~ GIRLS on iheir back like infants, others dancing
round' them. The, dance becomes general,' mounting in excitenumt.
ELESIN appears,in'wrapper-otily. In his hands a white velvet cloth folded
loosely 'as if it~held some delicate object. He cries out.]
ELESIN, Dh' you mothers of beautiful brides!· [1n:e dancing stops. They turn
and see him; and, the object in his hands. IYALO]A approaches and. gently takes
the cloth from 'him.] Take it. I~ is no mere virgin stain, but th~ union of life
and the seeds' of passage. My'vital flow, the last from this ~esh is intermin-
gled with the promise offuture life;,AlI is prepared. Listen! [A steady drUm-
beat from the distance.] Yes. It is nearly time., The King's dog has been
killed. The King's favourite horse is about to follow his master. My brother
chiefs know their task and perform it well.' [He listens again.]
[The BRIDE emerges, stands'shyly by the door. He turns to her~]
Our marriage is not yet wholiy fulfilled. When earth and passage w~d, the
consummation is complete only when there are grains of earth on the eye-
lids of passage. Stay by me till then. My faithful drummers, do me your last
service. This is where I have chosen to do my leave-taking, in this heart of
life, this hive which contains the swarm of the world in its small compass.
This is where I have known love an4 laughter 'away from the palace. Even
, the richest food cloys whe,l} eaten days on end; i~ the m~rket, 'nothing, ever
cloys. Listen. [They listen' to the drums.] Th,ey have begun to see~ out the
heart of the King's favourite horse., Soon it Will ride in'its bolt of raffiaS with
the dog at its feet. Together they~lI. ride on the shoulders of the King's
grooms through the pulse centres of the town. They know it is here I shall
await them. I have told them. [His eyes appear to C;loud. He passes his ha,nd
over them as if to clear his sigh,t. He gives a faint ~mile.] It promises well; just
then I felt my spirit's eagerness: The kite6 makes for wide spac~s and the

1. The act of Parliament (1716) that enabled
local authorities to dec'lare a group unlaw-
fully assembled; before the law could be en-
forced, a proclamation ordering them to
disperse had to be read,
2, Dada, the mythical king of Oyo and god of
vegetables, abdicated in favor of his fierce
younger brother Shango, who was god of
lightning.
3. A common Yorub~ girl's name; it means
"rich gold.", '.
4. Who says we haven't a defender? Silence!
We have our defenders. Little children are
our champions [Soyinka's translatio~].
5. The fiber of raffia palms, used to fringe the
masks of egungun and make their skirts.
6. One of a number of birds in the famih; that
includes hawks. .

:---
1072 I \'V OlE SOY I NKA

wind c reeps up be hind its tail; can the kite say less tha n- thank yo
qui cke r th e be tter? But wait a while my spirit. Wait. \Nait for the COlT
t he co uri e r of th e Kjng. Do you kn ow, fri e nds, the h orse is born to th
t90 des tin y, to bea r th e burden th a t is ma n upo n its bac k. Except for this
this n ight al o ne wh e n the spotless stallion willl'ide in triumph on tho
of man. In th e tim e of my fa th e r I witnessed th e strange sight. Perh:
ni ght also I shall see it for th e las t tim e. If th ey a rri ve beFore th e drulT
for me, I shall tell them to le t th e Alahn' know I foll ow swiftl y. If th e)
t95 after th e drum s have so und ed , why th e n, all is well .for I have gone
O ur spirits shall fall in step a long th e grea t passage. [He lisl.eus 10 Ih e,
He see /lis aga; II 1.0 ve jaUillg ;nt.o a slat.e of sel1li-hYP"Osisi ilis eyes scali
VIII. it is ill a i.:.illd of da ze. His voice is a lit.tle breathless. ] The 111 00 n h
a glow rrom its full stomac h flil s th e sky and air, but I ca nnot tell w
lhaL ga teway throu gh whi c h I must pass. M y faithful Friends, let 0
200 touc h toge th e r this las t lime, lead me into th e oth e r ma rke t with :
th at cover my skin with down yet make my limbs strike earth like
oughbred. Dear moth e rs, le t me dan ce into the passage eve n as I ha\
be neath yo ur roofs. [He CO llles dotv/l. l'rogressively a lllo ng tllClll. TIle.
way Jor IJiIll, t.he DnU~l j'rIEn s 11layilzg. I-lis dance is olle oj soiellUl, re!
tjOltS, each gest.llre of t.1w body is II/tIde wit.1! a solellm·fina/it} Tlw WOi\ 1
him, t.lwir steps a somewhat m ore flui ci ve rsjOlt of his. Beneath t.lle
S INGE RS e.:d l ortat.jons t.he wOlll en dirge 'A ll; l~ I~, awo Ill; lQ. /8 J
PR~\I SE - S I NGEn Eles in Alafin , ca n yo u hea r m y vo ice?
205 ELES IN F:l intl y, my Frie nd , faintl y.
PHA I SE~S I NGE n Eles in Al afin , ca n yo u hear m y call?
ELES I N Fa intl y my king, faintl y.
pnf\I SE~S I NG En Is yo ur memory sound Eles in?
S hall my vo ice be a b lad e of grass a nd
210 Tic kJ e th e a rmpit of th e past?
EL ES I N My me mory n eeds no prodding but
\tVll:l t do yo u wis h to say to me?
PRA ISE-S INGE Il Onl y what has bee n spoke n. O nly wh a t conce rn s
The dying wish of th e fath e r o f all.
21 5 EL ES IN It is buri ed like seed- ya m in my mind .
This is th e season o f qui ck rains, th e harves t
Is this mome nt du e for gath e rin g.
PH1\1 SE-S INGE n IF yo u ca nn ot co me, I sa id , swea r
You'l! tell m y Fa vo urite horse. I shall
220 Hide on through th e ga tes alone.
ELES IN Elesin's message will be read
O nl y whe n his loyal h ea rt n o lo nge r bea ts.
PHA I SE-5 INGE n If yo u ca nn ot co me Elesin , te ll my dog.
J ca nn o t stay th e kee pe r to o lo ng
225 At th e gate .
E LE51 N A dog does not out run th e ha nd
TIl;] t feeds it meat. A horse th a t throws its rid e r

7 . T he till e of the para mount king of t he man

\aru ba (that is. lilt: deceased king); thu s 8. N ight ha s fall en, the sC;lsoncd
"Elcsi n r\la fin. " hclo \,~ means "King's Horse· Icaving ();a ruba).
 DEATH AND THE KING'S HORSEMAN, ACT 3 r 107'3

Slows down to a' stop. Elesin.Alafin '. .'

Trusts no beasts with messages betWeen
230 A king and his companion. i;" ,.. '
PRAISE-SINGER . If you get lost my dog will track .
The hidden path to me .. : .. ;: " . ;.
9
ELESIN . The seven-waycrossroads confuses . '
· :Only the :strang~r..The Horseman of the King
235 Was ·bornin the'recesses of the house.
PRAlSE,,:SINGER '. "know the wiokedness .of men. If,thereis'
Weight on the: loos~ end of your sash" such weight
As no mere man can shift; if 'your sash is earthed
I: ,By·.evil·minds who .mean to part us at the last '. ; .
240 ELESIN My sash' is of the deep' purple' alan; ...
I.t ~,no. teth~ring-rop~., The.elephant .... '
.. , ,Tr:ails~Jl.o tethering-rope; thatking ," .
I,. )~ not' yet crp~edwlw:wilJ.pegan elephant-~, "

Not ~ve;n you nn~Jriend: ~nd .King. Y·. i,;'

245 .Ptw.SEi~~~G~~ " And. yet~~s.f~r 'YiII,not4epart &om me
. The darkness of this new abode is deep- , :
. i~:'\ ;Will you.r.~~'n~n.'~ye~.suff\c~~." " . ':,
E~E§p\j ; ..~n.i~}lig~()V~i~h.Jans.~ef9re our eyes.
,i" J-IQ~evcrr d~~p,we do n9t .~iss our way.. ' '.,.,
250 ~~SEj'7SJ~GER !,:~h~ll ~:~o~ not a~kno~l~dg~ ~ have:stood
,,)¥her~,.wQl)de:r:s~et the'r~nd?' T~e ~l~phant.des,enres
" Bett~r thal].that we ~ay ,'I.hav;e caugh~, "
" .;~ glimpse. of ~Q~eth'~.g'., ~f ~e seC! the tam¢r ..
;. ~ :Qf the f9r~st.1et, USS8r, plainly" we hay~ seen
255 '.' .~ elephan~! ' : . . ' ,I ' .
J::LESIN.' [his v9~ce'r4 drowsyl.. ' ' ,
, .'''' l;1.~ve,fre~~ .myself of earth' and now . " " " ..
~. ...lfs. getti~g 4,ark. Stra~ge .V9ic~s .guj~~ my feet: .
PRAI~~;S'N9ER.: )be ..fiver;is never so hig~:~hat.~Qe eyes
: : :9r ~.lish ~,e,. c~)Ve~ed .. T~e night is not sq, d.a~k '
260 . :: ~,at ~~e:~I~iIlOl fails;lo fin,~ his way. A chil~, ... '; :'
· . :R~.t~rnirig ho~.e\y~~~~: <;f~X~S n~ leading by th~ han4. ..'
: G.ra~efl;ll.Iy yoes. th~m~sk ~~ga~n h~ grove at the end of the day .~,' .
G~~c~fully~, Gr~~efuJly. ~oe~i ~he mask dance , '
· . :HQf!1~w~rd; at, the end ~pf lhe: d,ay,. g~acefully . ",' ,
[ELESINS trance.app¢a~)o be.4eepening;.his s~ps heavier.]
265 IYALojAlt is the death ofwarth at· kills the valiant,
, : " Death!of water is·how the· sWimmer goes
'. r It is,the death of markets that kills the trader'
':,And death of indecision takes the idle away
The trade' of the cutlas's blunts· its edge .
270 · . , And the beautiful die the' death of beauty.
It takes an Elesin to die the death of death , ..

9. A symbol of confusion; in Yoruba folklore. I, Yoruba view albinism as a handicap (while

the trickster god; Esu Elegba, is often found believing that handicapped people are sacred
at such a crossroads. to the creator of humans).
10 74 I WOLE SOYINKA

On ly Elesin ... di es th e unkn owa ble deat h of dea th ...

Gracefull y, gracefu ll y does th e ho rse man rega in
T he s tables at th e end of day, gracefu ll y ...
275 rUA ISE-S ING En How s ha ll I te ll w ha t m)' eyes have see n? The H o rse ma n ga l-
lo ps o n be fo re th e co uri e r, how s ha ll I te ll what my eyes ha ve see n? He says
a dog Ill il )' be co nfu sed by new sce nt s of be ings he neve r dreamt of, so he
mllst precede th e dog to heave n . H e says a ho rse m ay st umbl e o n stra nge
bo ulde rs and be lam ed, so he ra ces on befo re th e horse to he ave n. It is
280 bes t, he says, to tru st no messe nge r w ho ma y fa lte r at th e OtHer ga te; oh
how s ha ll J te ll wha t my ears have hea rd? But do yo u hear me s till Eles in,
do yo u he ar ),o ur fa ithful o ne?
I ELES IN ill his 1Il0liOllS ap pears 1-0 feci f or a tlirec/ioll of SO Ill IlI, s lfbtl)~ but
', e Ol dy sill/ti dee per iliiO his tmllce-dtlllce. ]
Eles in Alafin , I n o lo nge r sen se ),o ur fl es h. The d r um s are c ha ngin g now
bu t yo u have go ne Far a hcnd o r th e wo rld . It is not yet noo n in heave n; let
285 th ose w ho clai m it is begin t he ir o wn journey ho me. So w hy mu st you ru sh
like a n im patie nt bride: why do yo u race to dese rt YO llr O lo hun-i yo?
IE L ES IN is /lOW 51111 h fll II)' dee p jJl I,is tmll ce, tlwre is 110 10llger sigH of lilly
awa relless of ',is SII rro Hl llfi llgs .!
Does th e deep vo ice of gbedll 2 cover you th e n , like ('h e passage o f ro ya l ele-
pha nt s? Those drum s that broo k no riva ls, have th ey b locked th e passage to
you r ca rs that my voi ce passes int o wi nd , ;l me re lea f noat in g in th e night ?
290 Is yo ur fl es h lig hte ned Eles in , is th a t lu mp o f earth I s li d be tween yo ur
s lippe rs to keep yo u lo nge r s lowly siftin g from YOllr feel? Are th e drum s on
th e o th e r side now tu ning skin to skin with o urs in OSlIgVO?3 Are th ere
so und s th e re I ca nn o t hea r, do foo tste ps s urro und yo u wh ic h po und the
en rt h li kegvedll-, roll like thund e r rOllnd th e do me or
th e wo rld ? Is the dark-
295 ness ga th e ring in yo ur head Eles in? Is th ere now a strea k of lig ht a t th e end
o r t he passage, a lig ht I da re not loo k up o n? Does it reveal whose vo ices we
o fI en hea rd , whose to uc hes we o fte n fe lt J whose wisdom s co m e sudde nly
in to th e m ind whe n th e wises t have shake n their heads a nd murm ured: It
ca nn o t be dOll e? Eles in Ala fin , do n't think I do not kno w why yo ur li ps arc
300 heavy, why yo ur limbs a re drowsy a s pa lm o il in th e cold of h a rl11 a ttan :~ I
wo ul d ca ll yo u bac k but whe n th e e le phant he ad s for th e jungle , th e tail is
too sma ll a ha ndh o ld for th e hunt e r th at would pu ll him bac k. The SUI1 th at
he ad s For th e sea no lo nge r heeds the prayers of t he fann er. \ ,Vhe n t'he rive r
begin s to t'as te th e sa lt of th e ocea n , we no lo nge r know w hat deit y to ca ll
305 all , th e ri ve r-go d o r O loku n . 5 No a rrow fl ies bac k to th e s tT in g~ th e c hild
docs no t re turn t hro ug h th e sa me passage th a t gave it birL h . Eles in O ba,
can yo u hear me a t a ll? Your eye lids a re glazed li ke a co urtesa n's, is it that
yo u see !'h e da rk g roo m a nd mas te r of li Fc? And will yo u see my rather? \Vill
yo u te ll him that' sta y·c d with yo u to th e last? \,Vill m)' vo ice ring in your
310 ea rs awhi le, will yo u re me mb e r O lohun-iyo eve n if th e mu sic on th e o ther
side s urpa sses hi s mo rta l c rafl ? But, wi ll th ey kn ow yo u ove r th ere? '-lave
th e\'• e)'es 10 oa0
uoe
0
vo ur won h I
"
the" th e hea rt to love )IOU , will Ihey
h ave .

2. ;\ deep-timbred roy", 1 dr u Jll ISo~·i l1 ka J . -I.A ti l!: dust-hcaring seasona l wind Ihat blows
3. Secret ··c.>;ec ut i\·c·· c ull ur the \ i m,ba: it s into \\'cst Africa rrom t he Sa har:l Desert.
meeting pla ce ISoyinb J. 5. The god or the ocean .
 DEATH AN D T H E KI NC ' S HORSH-\ AN, AC T 4 I 10 75

know what thoroughbred prances towards them in caparisons 6 of honour?

If they do not Elesin, if any there cuts your yam with a sma ll knife, or pours
,,, you wine in a small calabash, turn back and return to welcoming hands, If
the world were not greater than the wi~hes ,of O loh un-i yo, I wo~ ld not let
you go , . ,
(He appears td break dowH. ELESIN cimices Oil, co mpletely in a trallce.
TIle dirge wells 1fJ110lfder aHd strOllge r. ElESIN'S aa llce ·does n ot lose Us
elasticit)1but his gestures beco lll e, if 11Ossible, even more weighty. Lights
fade slowly ou '·/ze sce! ze. ]

Act 4
A iVlasqu e. 7 TI,e jTo nt side of t.lle stage is Imrt ofa wide corridor aroul" l ,.I,e great lzall of
tllC Residenc)' exteudiJlg bC)'oJl(I visiou i1lt o tlze rear aJld wings. It is redolent of th e
tawdr), decadeuce of a Jar-flullg bllt he)' imperial. froutier. ~I1l e couples iu a variety of
fUll cy-dress are ranged around ti,e walls, gaz;IIg ill ti,e sa llie directiOlI. TIle guest-oj.
1z01l0 ur is about to ",ahe all al' l,earallce. A l'0rtioll of til e local police rbrass baud witl, it-s
wllite com/llctor isjust visible. At. last, tl'Je ell trance of RoyaIL)( Tile bawl1,lays (Rule Bri-
t(HUlia', s badl)~ begiullillg 101lg bef ore lie is visible. TI,e couples boUl ami curtsey as IlC
passes b)' them. Botl, he allll ',is COIllIJlllliollS are dressed ill sevellteellth-ceJltury EurolJe-
all- cost,fI.Ill e. Followillg belli lui are t.he IlESID ENT ami his partller. similar(y al.tired. As t.fleY
gain tile eml of the llUll wllC re til e orchestra dais begias ti,e music COllies to an emi.-T/lC
!'HIN CE boUls 1,0 /.lie guests. The bmu[ strilws ;'1' a VielHlCse waltz ilj,d ti,e ~ IlINcEforJllall)'
opelis the floor. Several /)(Irs later the RES IDENT amlhis CO llll'UlliOIl f ollow suit. Ot-ll ers
f ollow ill (llJpropriate pechillg order. TIle ·ori:.1,estra's waltz; re,uliiiOlI is 1I0t. of the hIghest
musical st(lHdard.
So me t.ime lat er til e PIU NCE d(I/Ices (lgain iI/to view' allfi is settled illto a cOnler b)' tile
IlESIDEl"I'T wllO tllell proceeds to select CO uIJles as they da uce lJUst for il/troduction, some-
times t.lzre(l(lillg 'Iis way through 1.lze dancers to tal' .lll e lu eh)' co uple 0 11 tlzc' shoulder.
Desperate effo rts frollt 111(111.), to ellsure tlwt tile), are recogllised in spite of, per/lUps, tlze ir
costume. TllC ritual of iutrotiu ctiolls SOO~ l talws ill PILKI NGS mid his wife. The PRI NCE is
(I llite f(lscillated by I.heir cost,lIl11e ami t.lle)' demoHStrate til e adapta/iolls tile), /w ve made
to it, pull;ug down the ",ash 1-0 demonstrate I,ow tile cgungun lIonHally alJpears, t.l,ell
S/,owillg the l!ariollS press-bllttoll cOllt.rols they Iwye i,llJovatecl Jo r t.lle face flaps, til e
sleeves, etc. 11ley dell/ ollst.rat e the dmlce sfeps mul tile guttural sO'lImls made b)' tile
cgungun, lzarass otlzer dallcers ;n tile ' /{Ill, i\tRS PILKINGS 'playillg tile 'restrailler"} to PILK-
I NGS' mallie darts. Elleryoue is highl), eutertail/ed, tile Ro)'al Party eslJec iall), wilD lead
the applause.
At. III is 1,o i",. a li ve ried joot,lIIm l COllies ill tt;il.1I a Hote on a salver ami is interce pt ed (d-
most absellt.-milldcdly by t.lle' ilESIDENT wllO tahes tile note aud reads it. After lJolite
coug/JS lie slicceeds ill excmiug lite I'ILKI NGSjrollJ til e PHI NCE aud tahes ti,e", aside. Til e
!'IUNCE cOllsideratel)' offers tile RI3.SI DE !'.'TS wife llis I'(lf ul (lful dallcillg is resllllled.
011 t.h e ir wa)' Ollt, tlw nESIDENT gives ml order to Il ;s A IDE- DE- C'\ i\;II' . The)' cOlli e illto
tIl e side corridor where t/ze BESIDI3.NT hal/ds t./, e Hote to PILKI NGS.
HES ID ENT As YO ll sec it says lemergency' on the outside. 1 look the liberty of
opening it because His Highness was obviously enjoying the entertain-
ment. I didn't want to interrupl unless reall y necessary.

6, Ornament al cloths spread over th e saddle
or harn ess of horses.
i. Thai is, a masquerade, or clnborat c masked
bnll (3 Euro pean en tert ain ment).
S. A pa triotic song ( 1740); it s \\"ords, taken
fro m James Tho mso n's poe m of the sallle ti -
tle, arc se t to mu sic by Thomas Arn e.
9. The perso n who exerci ses a r<;stw ini ng in -
nuc nce 0 11 thc wil d movc'menls of the mai n
d:lIlcer.
 1076 I WOLE SOYINKA

PILKINGS Yes, yes of course, sir.

5 RESIDENT Is it really as bad as it says? What's it all about?
PILKINGS. Some strange custom they have sir. It seems because the King is
dead some important chief has to commit suicide. . .
RESIDENT The King? Isn't it the same one who died nearly a month ago?
PILKINGS Yes sir. . .
10 RESIDENT Haven't they buried him yet?
PILKINGS They take their time about these things, sir. The pteburial cere-
monies last nearly thirty days. It seems tonight is the final night.
RESIDENT But what has it got to do with the market wqmen? Why are they
rioting? We've waived that troublesome tax haven't we?
15 PILKINGS We don't quite know that they are exactly rioting yet sir. Sergeant
Amusa is sometimes prone to exaggerations.
RESIDENT He sounds desperate enough. That comes outeven in his rather
quaint grammar. Where is the man anyway? I asked' my aide-de-camp to
bring him here." .
20 PILKINGS They .are probably looking in the wrong verandah. I'll fetch him
myself.
RESIDENT No rio you stay here. 'Let your wife go 'a~d loo'k for them. Do you
mind my dear . : . ?
JANE . Certainly not, your Excellency. [Goes.] .
25 RESIDENT You 'should have kept me informed, Pilldngs. You realise how
disastro~s it would have been if things had erupted while His Highne~s
was here.
PILKINGS I wasn't aware of the whole business until tonight sir.
RESIDENT Nose to the ground Pilkings, nose· to the ground. If we all· let
30 these little things· slip past us where would the empire be eh? Tell me that.
Where would we all be?
PILKINGS [low voice] Sleeping peacefully at home I bet.
RESIDENT What did you say Pilkings?
PILKINGS It won't happen again sir.
35 RESIDENT It mustn't Pilkings. It mustn't. Where is that damned sergea·nt?1
ought to get back to His High~ess as quickly as possible and offer him
some plausible explanation for my rather abrupt conduct: Can you think of
one, Pilkings?
PILKINGS You could tell him the truth, sir.
40 RESIDENT I could? No no no Pilkings, that would never do. What! Go and
tell him there is a riot just two miles away from him? This is supposed to be
a secure colony of His Majesty, Pilkings.
PILKINGS Yes, sir.
RESIDENT Ah, there they are. No, these are not our native police. Are these
45 the ring-leaders of the riot?
PILKINGS Sir, these are my police officers.
RESIDENT Oh, I beg your pardon officers. You do look a little ... I say, isn't
there something missing in their uniform? I think they used to have some
rather colourful sashes. If I remember rightly I recommended them myself
50 in my young days in the service. A bit of colour always appeals to the natives,
yes, I remember putting that in my report. Well well well, where are we?
l\1ake your report man ..

h
 DEATH AND THE KING'S HORSEMAN'. ACT 4 I 1077

PILKINGS [moves close to' AMUSA; between his teeth] , And let's; have no more
supetstitious nonsense from you Airlusa or I'll throw'you in' ~he"guardroom
;for a month ~nd feed you pork!,·" , . ' .. " . . '
RESIDENT What's that? What 'has iiorkto 'do\/Vithit?
PILKINGS Sir, 1 was just warning him to be brief., I'm
,sure you are mostanx-
: ious to heat his report. '' , :" ' , ' . .
RESIDENT' Yes yes . yesof course. Come on man, speak up. He}) didn't we'give
o ,them some' colourful'fez hats wi'th·all,thos'e'wavy things, yes, pinktas-
sels. . . :.
PILKINGS' Sir, ,I think if he was permitted to :'makehis'report we might find
that he lost his hat in the riot. . .,,. ~.
RESIDENT Ah' yes' hldeed.', I'dbetter tell His Highness that. Lost his hat ':in
5 the riot, ha ha: He'll probably say well, as long as he didn't lose ~ his: head.
[Chuckles to himself.l Don't forget to send· me' -a report :firsf thing in the
morning'young Pilkings. ; : '
PILKiNGS No sir.
RESIDENT And whatever you do,' don't let things get out of hand. Keep a cool
o head and-nose 'to the ground Pilkings. [Wanders off in the general direc~
tion of the hall.] ,
PILKING'S : Yes, sir. '
AIDE-DE-CAMP Would you be needing me sir?'
PILKINGS 'No thanks:Boh. 1 think His 'Excellency's need of you is greater
than ours. .'
5 AIDE-DE~CAMP We have a detachment 'of soldiers from :the c'apital sir. They
accompanied His Highness up here.
PILINGS 1 doubt·if it will come' to that but; thanks, I'll bear it iri· mind. Oh,
. could you send, an drderly with my cloak., ~' .:' '
AIDE-DE-CAMP Very good sir. [Goes.]
o PILKINGS Now sergeant.
AMUSA " Sir .... [Makes an effort, stops:dead . Eyes to the ceiling.]
PILKiNGS Oh,not 'again. . .'
AMUSA: 1 cannot against death to dead cult. This dress get power'of dead.
PILKINGS Alright; 'lees go. You are relieved of all further· duty Amusa.Report
to me first thing in the morning.
JANE Shall 1 come Simon?
PILKINGS No,there's no need for that. If Lca.n ge.t back later I will .. Other-
, wise get Bob,tQ bring; you home.
JANE Be careful Simon, . '.. 1 mean, be clever. .
o PILKINGS Sure 1 will. You ~o, c~llle wi~h me. [Ashe turns togo, ~he clock in
the Residency ~egins, to chime. PILKINGS looks at his. watch then turns,
horror-stricken, tos~~re. at his wife. The s.am~. fhought clearly occurs to her.
He swallows hard. An orderly brings his ploak.]. It~s midnight. 1 had no idea
it was that late.
JANE But surely ... they don't count the hours the way.we ,do. The moon, or
something .. .
!5 PILKINGS 1 am ... not so sure.
I

I. The eating of pork isJorbidden to Muslims by the Qur'an.

I
1078 I \-VOLE SOY I NKA

I J-~e tU niS and breahs ill-to a sudden ntll. The I,w o CONSTABLESjollow, also
at a rim . Ai\I USA, wilD has hept lIis e),es all tIle ceiliug throughout waits
IIIlti/. th e last of tlw foo tsteps has faded 011/. of li earillg. He sallltes slid.
dell i); bllt. wililollt once loohillg ill tlw direction of the 1I1oma ll. J
Ai\1USA Good ni ght madam.
J r\NE O h. [S ize hesitates.J Amu sa ... [J-l e goes of! wit,hollt see millg 10 ha ve
heard.] Poor S imo n ... [A figu re emerges from tfle shadows, a young vlach
ilia", dressed 1/1. a sober west.e rn 51/;1.. He peel's 11l1.0 I.he Iw ll, trying 1.0 'Illahe
Oll t tlz e fig If res of t' le dallcers.] Who is that?
100 OLUNDE [emergi/lg iul.o I.he ligh.t] I didn 't mea n to sta rtle yo u mada m. I am
looki ng for th e Distri ct Officer.
) t\ NE \,Va it a minute . .. don't I know yo u? Yes, yo u are . O lunde, the young
ma n who . . .
OLUNDE Mrs Pilkings! How fortunate . I ca me he re to look for YO llr husband.
105 J:\NE O lunde! Le t's look at yo u. ' <Vha t a fin e yo un g man you've become.
Gra nd but sole mn. Good God , whe n did yo u return ? Si mon never said a
word . But yo u do loo k we ll O lunde . Really!
OLUNDE You arc .. . we ll , you look qu ire we ll yo urself Mrs Pilkings. From
what little I ca n see of you .
110 JA NE Oh) thi s. It's ca used quite a sti r I assure YO ll , a nd not a ll of it ,'e ry
jJleasa nl. YOLI are not shocked I hope?
OLUNDE ' .vhy sh ould L be? But don 't yo u fmd it rather hot in there? Your
ski n must find it d ifficul t to breat he.
JANE "Ve il , it is a littl e hot I must co nfess, but it's a ll in a good calise.
11 5 OLUNDE ' ,Vha t ca use [vIrs Pilkings?
JANE All this. The ball. And His Highn ess being he re in person and all th aI.
OLUNDE [mildly] And that is th e good ca use fo r whi c h you desec ra te a n an·
ces tra lm as k?
J ANE O h l so yo u are shoc ked afte r all. How di sa ppointing.
120 OLUNDE No I a m not shoc ked lVIrs Pilkings. YOLI forget th a t I have now spent
fou r years among yo ur peop le. I di scove red that YO ll have no res pect fo r
wha t yo u do not understa nd .
JANE O h. So yo u\ le re turn ed wit h a c hip on yo ur s ho uld e r. That's a pity
Olunde. I a m so rry.
IAII IIllcolllfortable silcllce follows. I
125 I take it rhen th a t yo u did not find yo ur stay in Engla nd altoget her edifyi ng.
OLUNDE I don't say th at. I found yo u r peop le quit e adm irable in man y ways)
th eir condu ct and cou rage in this war2 for instance .
J /\ NE Ah yes, the wa r. Here of co urse it is <1 11 rath e r re mole. From tim e to
time we have a bi ac k-oul drill j ust to re min d us th at th ere is a wa r on. And
1]0 th e rare co nvoy passes throug h on its way so mew he re or o n manoeuvres.
Mi nd you th e re is the occasiona l bi t of exc ite me nt like t hM ship that was
blown lip in th e hnrboul'.3
O LUN DE Here? Do YO ll mea n thro ugh e ne my ac ti on?

2. That i s, World War II. Illoored in thc h;trbor :II Lagos, an o il spill
3. Pcrhaps it rc rcrcncc 10 a Imgic inddc llt ca trglll firc. Thc' ships c'\l llodcd, kil ling aboul
t hai ilwo h'cd no heroism: on Decc mber 5, 200 men.
19 42. whc n Ihree British na\'al lrawlcrs wcre
 DEATH AND THE KI NG'S H ORSE M AN. AC T 4 I 10 79

JANE Oh no, th e war hasn't come that close. The captain did it ·himself. I
135 : don't quite understand it.really. Simon tried to e''Plain. The ship had to be
blown up because it had become dangerous to the other ships, even to th e
city itself. Hundreds of.the coastal population wou ld have died.
OLUNDE Maybe it was loaded with ammunition and had ca ught fire. Or
some of those lethal gases th ey've been experime nting on.
140 JAN E Something like th at. The captain blew himself up with it. Deliberately.
Simon said someone 11ad to re main on board to light th e fu se.
OLUNDE It must have been a very short fus c . .
JAN E [shmgs] I don 't know muc h about it. Only that there was·no other way
to save lives . No time to devise anything else. The ca ptain took th e decision
H5 and carried it out. :'
OLUNDE Yes ... ·1 quite' beli eve it. I met men like that in England .
JANE Oh ju st look at mel. Fancy welcoming yo u bac k with such morbid
news . Stale too. It was at leas t six months ago.
OLUNDE I do n't find it morbid at all. I find it rather inspiring. It is an affir-
150 math;e commentary on life.
JANE What is?
OLUNDE That ca ptain's self- sacrifice.
JAN E Nonsense. Life should never be thrown de libe ratel y away.
OLUNDE And th e-innocent people round the harbour?
155 JANE Oh , how does o ll e know? T he whole thing was probabl y exaggera ted
any,vay.
OLUNDE . That was a ri sk th e ca ptain couldn't take . But please ~ rs Pilkings,
do you think you could find your husband for me? I have to ta lk to him .
JANE Simon? O h . [As she recollects for the first ti ll,. tile flill sig"ifi cmlce of
160 OLUNDE 'S presell ce. ] Simon is .. . there is a little proble m in town . He was
sent for. But . .. when did you arrive? Does Simon know you're he re?
OLUNDE [sliddelll)' earnest] I need your help Mrs Pilkings. I've always found
you somewhat more unde rstanding than your husband . Please find him for
me and when you do, you must help me talk to him .
165 JANE I'm afraid I don't quite . .. follow yo u. Ha ve you seen my husband al-
ready?
OLUNDE 1 went to yo ur ho use. Yo ur house boy told me yo u we re he re . [He
smiles .] He even told me how I would recognise you and Mr Pilkings.
JAi'lE Then you must know what my husband is trying to do for yo u.
no OLUNDE For me?
JAN E For you. For YO llr people. A nd to think he didn't even know YO ll were
coming back! But how do yo u happe n to be here? Onl y thi s evening we were
talking about you. We thought YOLI we re still fOllr th ousand miles away.
OLUNDE l was sent a cable .
17; JANE A ca ble? Who did? Simon? The business of yo ur fath er didn 't begin till
toni ght.
OLUNDE A re lation sent it weeks ago, and it said nothing about my father. All
it said was, Our K.in g is dead. But 1 kn ew I had to re turn home at once so
as to bury my father. 1 unde rstood that.
180 JANE \'Vell , th ank God you don 't have to go through that ago ~l y. Si mon is go-
ing to stop it.
OL NOE That's why I wa nt to see him . He's ~vasti ng his lim e. And sin ce he
has been so he lp fu l to me I do n't wa nt him to incur th e e nmity o f our peo-
ple. Es pec iall y over nothing.
10801 WOLf SOYINKA

185 JANE [sits dOwn open-mouthed] YOU· •. ~:. you Olunde! . ..

OLUNDE Mrs Pilkings; I· came home to bury my father. As soon ~ I heard
the news I bo'oked my passage home .. In fact we· were fortunate. We trav-
elled in the same convoy as your Prince" so we had excellent pr6tection;
JANE But you don't think your father is also entitled ,to whatever' protection
190 is available to him? . . '.' " . . .' . . ;.. '
OLUNDE How can I .make you understand? He has protection.'·No one can
undertake what he does tonight' without the deepest protection the mind
can conceive. What can you offer him in place of his peace of mind, in
place of the honour and veneration df his oWnpeople?·.What would you
195 think-of your.Prince if he: refused· to accept the-risk of losing his life on' this
voyage? This ... showing-the-flag tou~ of colonial possessions .. '
JANE I see. So it isn't just medicine you studied 'in: England.
OLUNDE· Yet another error into which your 'people .. fall .. You believe that
everything' which appears to make·sense was learnt from you. !
200 JANE Not so fast Olunde. You have learnt to argue I can tell that, but·I·never
said you made sense. However clearly you try to put it, it is still a barbaric
custom. It is even worse-it's feudal! The king dies and a chieftainmustbe
buried with him. How feudalistic can you· get!
OLUNDE [waves:hishand towards the background. The PRINCE is dancing past
again.:...-to a different step!-and·all.the guests are bowing-and 'curtseying as he
. passes] Arid this? Even in: the· midst ofa devastating war, . look at that'.
205 What name would you give to that?
JANE :. Therapy, British style. The preservation of sanity in the midst of chaos.
OLUNDE Others would call it.decadence. However, it. doesn't. really interest
me. You·white races know how to survive; I've seen pro'of of that..Byalllog-
. , ical and natural laws this war should. end with all the white'races'wiping
210 out one another, wiping out their so-called civilisation for all·time. and re-
verting to a state of primitivism the likeiofwhich has so far only existed in
. your imagination when you' thought of. us: I thought all that at the begin-
ning. Then I slowly realised,that your greatest art is the a~t of survivaL But
at,least have the humility-to let others survive in their own way. : ,
215 JANE Through ritual suicide? .
OLUNDE Is that worse than mass suicide? Mrs Pilkings, what do you call
what those young· men are sent to do by their generals. in this war? Of
course you have also mastered the art of calling things hy, names which
don't remotely describe them.
220 JANE You talk! You people with your long-winded, roundabout way of mak-
ing conversation. .
OLUNDE Mrs Pilkings, whatever we do, we never suggest that a thing is the
opposite <;>f what it really is. In your newsreels I heard defeats, thorough,
murderous defeats described as ,strategic victories. No· wait, it wasn't just
225 on your ~ewsreels. Don't forget I was attached to hospitals all the time.
Hordes of your wounded passed through those wards~ -I spoke to them~· I
spent long evenings by their bedsides while they spoketernble truths of the
realities of that war. I know now how history is made.
JANE But surely, in a war of this nature, for the morale of the nation you
230 must expect ...
OLUNDE That a disaster beyond human reckoning be spoken. of as a' tri-
umph? No. I mean, is there no mourning in the home of the bereaved that
such blasphemy is permitted?
 DEATH AND HiE KING'S HORSEMAN. ACT 4 I 10 6 1

JA NE [after a 1Il0llteUt's pause] Perhaps I ca n und erstand you now. The time
we picked for you was not really one for seeing us at our bes t.
OLUNDE Don't thfnk it was just the war. Before that even sta rted I had
plenty of time to study your people. I saw nothing, finally, that gave you
th e right to pass judge ment on other peoples and their ways. Nothing
at all.
o JANE [h esit.antly] ~fas it th e ... colo l;Jr thing? I know there is some discrim-
ination .
OLUND£:: Don't make it so simple, Mrs Pilkings. You make it so und as if
when I left, I took nothing at all with me .
JANE Yes ... and to tell th e truth, only thi s evening, Si mon and I agreed that
we neve r reall y knew what yo u leFt with.
OLUNDE Neither did I. But I found out over the re. I am grateFul to your
country for th at. And I wi ll neve r give it up .
JANE Olunde please . .. promise me so me thing. \ Nha te ver you do, don 't
throwaway what yo u have started to do. You want to be a doctor. My hus-
band and I belie ve you wi ll make an excelle nt one, sympa th etic and com-
pete nt. DOI~ 't let anyt hing ma ke yo u throwaway yo ur training.
OLUNDE [genuinely surpdsed] Of course not. \Nh at a stran ge idea. I intend
to re turn and co mpl e te my training. Once the buria l of my fa ther is over.
JANE O h, please ... !
m OLUND£:: Liste n! Come outside. You ca n't hear anything again st that IHusic .
JANE \'\fhat is it? .
OLUND£:: The drums. Ca n yo u h ea r th'e c ha nges? Liste n.
rnle drums come over, still di slm tt bllt more distinct.. Th ere is a change
of rhyl.1ulI, it. rises to a cfescendo alUl tI, eH, sllddelll)" it. is CHt. off. After .a
silence, a Hew beat. begillS, slow ami reso lldllt.]
There, it's all ove r.
JANE · You mean he's ...
260 OLUNDE Yes, Mrs Pilkings, my fath e r is dead. His wi ll-power has always
been enormou s; I know he is dead.
JA NE [sc reams] I-I ow can you be so callous! So unfeeling! You announce your
fath e r's own dea th I li ke a surgeon loo kin g down on so me strange ...
strange r's body! You're ju st a savage like a ll the res t.
265 AIDE-DE- CAMP [rushing Ollt] Mrs Pilkings. Mrs Pilk.ings. [S he breaks down,
sobbing. ] Are yo u all right , Mrs l'i1kings?
OLUNDE She'll be all right'. [Jim,s to go .]
A I DE-DE~CAI\' IP Wh ~ are yo u? An.d who th e hell asked yo ur op inion?
OLUNDE You're quite right, nobod y. [Goilzg ]
2iO AIDE-D E- CAM P \o\/ha t th e hell! Did you hea r me ask yo u who yo u we re?
OLUNDE I have business 1"0 atte nd to.
AIOE - DE-CAMP I'll give you business in a mo ment yo u impude nt ni gger. An-
swer my question!
OLUND£:: I have a funeral to a rrange . Excu se me. [Going]
275 AIOE-DE-CAI\ IP I said stop! Orderl y!
JANE No, no, don 't do that. I'm alright. And for heaven's sa ke don 't act so
fooli shl y. He's a fami Ly fri e nd.
AIDE-DE-CAI\ IP \IVeli he'd belte r learn to answe r civil qu es ti ons when he's
(- asked I·he m. These nati ves put a suit o n a nd th ey gel h igh opinions o f
It l80 t he mselves.
 1082 I WOlE SOYINKA

OLUNDE Can Igo now?

JANE No no don't go. I must talk to you. I'm sorry about what I said.- .
OLUNDE . It's, nothing, Mrs Pilkings. And I'm really anxious to go. I couldn't
, see ,my father: before, it's forbidden for me;, ,his heir and successor, to set
285 eyes on him from the 'moment of the King~s;death. But now ... I would
like to touch his body while it is still warm.
JANE You will. I promise I shan,'t keep,you long. Only, I couldn't possibly let
you go like that. Bob, please excuse us. , '
AlDE-DE-CAMP' If you're:sure :. ~.' . '
290 JANE Of course I'm sure. Something'happenedto'upset me just then, but
. I'm alright now. Really. . ,
[The AIDE-DE-CAMP goes, somewhat reluctantly.]
OLUNDE 'r mustn't stay lorig. '
JANE Please, I promis~ not to keep you. It's just that .. '. oh; you s3'Yymirself
, what happens to ~nein this place. The Resident's man thoughfhe' was.be~
295 ing helpful, that's the way' we '~ll react. But rcan't' go i'n' a'rriqng that crowd
just ilow and iff stay by myself somebody will come'lookirig for me. Please,
just say somethlrig for 'a few' momef1tsand then: you can go. Just'so I :can re-
cover myself. ', . ." ' . ' '."
OLUNDE 'What do you waitt me to 's~y?' '
300 JANE Your calm acceptance for il1stance, can you explain that? It ~as' so un.:
natural. I don't understand that'at all. I feel a need toiind,erstand, all l"cari:
OLUNDE But you explained it yourself! My medical training' perhaps: I ha\?e
seen death too oft'en~ Andthes6ldieis who returned 'froni the tront, they
died on our hands ali the time.
305 JANE : No. It has to be ..hore tlian that. I feel' it h~s to'do With the many things
we don't really grasp aboufYourpeople. At least you can·expl~in. ,
OLUNDE All these things are part of it. And anyway, my father has been dead
in my mind for nearly a month. Ever sin~e I learnt of the King's death. I've
lived with my bereavement so long how that l caill'iot think of him alive.
310 'On that journey on the boat, I kept my~mind on my du'ties' as the one who
, musfperforln the rites over 'his b~dY:"I went through it all again:a~d again
in m'y miridas he himself:ha~ taught me. I didn't'want to':do anything
I wrong, something whi~hmightjeopard~se ~he welfare of my p:ebple~' ,
JANE But he had' disowhed you. When·you left he s~~re publicly y~~ were
. I

315 , no 'longer his s o n . ' . , " :, .. ' , ,

OLUNDE I told you, he was a man of tremendous Will. 'Sometimes that's an-
other way of saYing stubborn. But afuong our'people, you don't disown a
child just like that. Even if I had died before him I would still be buried like
his eldest son. But'it's time for'meto go. . '
320 JANE Thank you. I feel calmer. Don't let me leep"you from your duties.
OLUNDE ' Goodnight, Mrs Pilkings.' ': . .
,1, '"

JANE . Welcome home. [She holds out her hand. As he takes it footsteps 'are
heard approaching 'the drive~' A short ivh'ile later a 'Womanssobbing is also
heard.] ,. .',
PILKINGS [off] Keep them here till I get back~
[He 'strides in:to view, reacts at
the sight of OLUNDE but turns to his wife.] Thank goodness you're:stiU here.
325 JANE Simon, what happened? . '
PILKINGS Later Jane, please: Is Bob still here?
, JANE Yes, I think so. I'm sure he must be.

l
 OEATIi A~O THE KI NG'S H ORSEMAN, ACT ,4 I 1083

PllKI NGS ':rry and gel him out here as qU,ickly as: YOll can . Tell ,him it's 'ur ..
ge nt. ' :; : "
)30 JANE Of course. Oh Simon, .yim remember ·.·. :
P ILKINGS "Yes yes, I can see who it is. Geto Bob ·out here. [S he·nl1ls off.] At
, first I thought .I ·was seeing.a. ghost .... ,
OLUNDE Mr Pilkings, I appreciate what you tried to do. I wa nt you to believe
that. I can tell yo u it would have been a terrible calamity if' yo u1d suc-
ceeded. , , "
PllKINGS {opens his.molltlt. several times; shitts it] you ,. ', said wha t?
OlUNDE A 'calamil?y.for us, the entire people. : '
i

PILK.NGS [sighs], . I see. Hm. •.

OLUNDE .And now I must go. I 'lnust see him before he turns cold.
340 PllKI NGS' Oh ah·, . , em ' ,' , but this is a shockto see yo u. [ mean er think-
ing all this while yo u were in England a nd thanking God for that.
OLUNOE 1 came .on the mail boat. \Ve trave lled in, the Prince~s convo)',
PJlKINGS Ah yes, ~a-ah , hm, "~ er '\vell ; ,. !
OLUNDE .Goodnight. I can sec' you 'are shocked by the whole business, But
3~5 you must know by now there are things you cannot understand-or help. '
P l lKINGS , Yes. Just a min ~lte. There a re armed policemen that way and they
'have ,instructions to let no one pass , .1 sugges t you wait a little, I'll er, ..
give yo u an e,scort..· .
OLUNDE That's very kind of yo u. But do you think it could be quickly
no arranged? ,
P ILKI NGS Of course, In fac t, yes, what I'll do is send Bob over wit h s9~e
" men .to the er , eo " place. You cal} go wit h them. Here he comes now. Excuse
me a minute.
AIPE - I?E-CAl\'II' Anything wro ng s,ir? ,
355 PILKI NGS [takes him to aile side] Listen Bob, that cellar in the disused an-
nexe of the Re,s idency, you knO\~, whe::re:the slaves we re stored bef9re being
taken down to the coast ...
AIDE - OE-CAi\'1P 9h yes, we use it as;3 stor~~oom for broken fUrl) itu re.
PllKINGS But ies still go t the bars on it?
360 AIDE-OE-CAMP O h yes, they are' qu'ite intact.
PILKI NGS Get the keysi)1ease. I'll expIain later. And [ want a S lr?~g guard
over the Residency tonight. '
AIDE-DE·CAM P \.ve have that already, The 'deta'c hine nt 'fro~n 't he coast, ..
PILKINGS No, I don't want them at the gates of the 'Residen ty, 'I \V3Jlt }iOU to
'61 deploy them at the bottom of lhe hill , a Icing way·froin the main hall so they
, 'can dcal with any situation long before the sot'm d carries to the house.
AIDE-DE-CAi\,i p \ Yes of cou rse.
PI LKINds I d0l1't \\'ant His Highness alarmed. "
AIDE-OE-CAMP You thin k the riot \\~i1 1 spread 11ere?
70 PI,LKINGS It's unli ke ly hut ,I dOl~'t want to take a chance, I made them believe
' } was goi ng to lock thrl m'an 'up'in 'my house, ,'vhich was wbat I had phiilll.ed
~o do in the nrst place, T hey are probably assa iling it by now. ' I took a
. ro undabout route here so I don't think there is a ny: di,ngcr at ai l. At least
not before dawn . Nobody is to leave th:e pr~ mises of course-the native
is , employees I mean. They'll soon smell so mething is up and they can't kee p
thei r mouths sh ut'.
AIDE-DE-CAMP I'll give instructions at once,
 r084 I wOLf SoyrNKA

I PILKINGS I'll take the prisoner down myself. Two policemen will stay with
him throughout the night. Inside the cell.
380 AIDE-DE-CAMP Right sir. [Salutes and goes off at the double.]
PILKINGS Jane. Bob is coming back in a moment with a detachment. Until
he gets back please stay with Olunde. [He makes an extra warning gesture
with his eyes.] .
OLUNDE Please, Mr Pilkings ...
PILKINGS I hate to be stuffy old son, but we have a crisis on our hands. It
385 has to do with your father's affair if you must know. And it happens also at
a time when we have His Highness here. I am responsible for security so
you'll simply have to do as I s~y. I hope that's understood. [Marches off
quickly, in the direction from which he made his first appearance.]
OLUNDE What's going- on? All this can't be just because he failed to stop my
father killing himself. .
390 JANE I honestly don't know. Could it have sparked off a riot?
OLUNDE No. If he'd succeeded that would be more likely to start the riot.
Perhaps there were other factors involved. Was there a chieftancy dispute?
JANE None that I know of. '
ELESIN [an animal bellow from off] Leave me alone! Is it not enough that
395 you have covered me in shame! White man, take your hand from my body!
[OLUNDE stands frozen to the spot. JANE, understanding at last, tries to
move him.]
JANE Let's go in. It's getting chilly out here.
PILKINGS [off] Carry him.
ELESIN Give me back the name you have taken away from me you ghost
from the land of the nameless!
400 PILKINGS Carry him! I can't have a disturbance here. Quickly! stuff up his
mouth. '
JANE Oh God! Let's go in. Please Olunde. [OLUNDE does nbt move.]
ELESIN Take your albino's4 hand from me you ...
[Sounds of a struggle. His voice chokes as he is gagged.]
OLUNDE [quietly] That was my father's voice.
405 JANE Oh you poor orphan, what have you come home to?
[There is a sudden explosion of rage from offstage and powerful steps
come running up the drive.]
PILKINGS You bloody fools, after him!
[Immediately ELESIN, in handcuffs, comes pounding in the direction of
JANE and OLUNDE, followed some moments afterwards by PILKlNGSD,nd
the CONSTABLES. ELESIN, confronted by the seeming statue of his son,
stops dead. OLUNDE stares above his head into the distance. The CONSTA-
BLES try to grab him. JANE screams at them.]
JANE Leave him alorie! Simon, tell them to leave him alone.
PILKINGS All right, stand aside you. [Shrugs.] Maybe just as well. It might
help to calm him down.
[For several moments they hold th.e same position. ELESIN moves a step
forward, almost as if he's still in doubt.J.

4. A term of abuse when applied to a white person.

 DEATH AND THE KING'S HORSEMAN" ACT 5 I 1085

LESiN blunde? [He moves his head, inspecting himfrOm side to side.]
Olitnde! [He'colUipses s~ly at OLuNDE~feet.] Oh son, don't:let the sight
, bf your father turn you blind! ' , ' , ' ': , , ', '
OLUNDE ,[he moves Jorthe first time since' he heard his voice, brings' his head
sloWly down to lOok on him] I have no father, -eater of -left-overs.
[He walks slOWly down the~ way his father had run .. Light fades out on
ELESIN,sobbing into the ground.]

Act 5
A wide iron-bdrred 'ga~ stre~he~ almpsi the wh~le Wi4th, of i1,Je cell in ,which
ELESIN is'iniprisoned. His WristS 'areeticased in ihic~ iron bracelets,' chained "to-
gether;'he sta~:agaihst the bars, looking out. Seated on the ground to ~ne side on
the outside is his recent bride, her eyes bent perpetually to the ground. FigureS of the
two' GUARDS can be;seen deeper inside the cell, alert·to every m6vement ELESIN
makes. PILKINGS now in a police officer's unifonn, enters' npjselessly, observes him a
while. Then he coughs ostentatiously and approaches; Leans against the bars near a
corner, his back, to ELESIN. He is obviCJusly irying to.fall in mood with him. S~
m.oments'silence.

ptLKINGS., You ,seem fascinated by the moon. , ,

ELESIN [after apaitse] Yes, ghostly one. Your twin~brother up, there 'engages
my t h o u g h t s . , . '
PILKINGS It is a beautif~l night.
ELESIN Is that so? ," '
PI':-KINGS The,light on the.Ieaves, the peace ~fthe night ...
ELESIN The night is no~ at peace, Distrjct Officer. "
PILl<INGS No? I would have said it was. You Iolow, quiet ...
ELESIN And does quiet mean peace for,You? ,
PILKINGSWell, nearly the same thing. Naturally there is a subtle differ-
ence ...
E'L~SIN Th~ night is not at peace, ghostly one. The world is not at peace. You
have s~~ttered the peace of the world for ever. Thef(~ is no sleep in the
world tonight. . , '
PILKINGS,. tt is,still'agoodbargain if the world should lose one night's sleep
a~.thepiice of saving a man's life. , "
ELESlN You did not, save my l~fe, District Officer. You destroyed it.
PILKINGS Now come on . . . "
ELESIN And not merely my life but~he lives, of many. The end of the night's
work is not over. Neither this year nor the next will see it. If I wished you
well, I would pray that you do not ,stay l~ng enough on our land t'o see the
disas,~er you have brought upon us. , '
PILKINGS Well, I did my duty as I saw it. I have ~o regrets.
ELESIN No~ The'regrets ofHf~ .always~ome later. .
[Some 1,noments' .pause.]
You are waiting for dawn white man. I hear you saying to yourself: only so
m~ny hours. until dawn and then the danger is over: All I must do is to keep
him alive tonight., You don't quite understand it all but you' know that to-
night is when what ought to be must be brought about. I shall ease your
mind even more, ghostly one. It is not an entire night but a moment of the
o night, and that moment is past. The moon .was my messenger and gUide.
When it reached a certain gateway in the sky, it touched that moment for
1086 I WOLE S:OYlNKA

which my whole life' has been spent in blessings. Even I do.not know the "
gateway. I have stood here, and scanned .the sky for a glimpse of that door
but, I cannot see it. Human eyes are useless for a search ,of this nature. "But
35 in the house:of osugbo, those who keep watch through,the spirit recognised
the moment, they sent word to me through the voice ,of our sacred drums
to ,prepare myself. I he~rd them and I shed all thoughts of earth~ I began to
follow the moon to the abode of the gods ... servant of the white king, that
was when you entered my chosen place of departure on feet of desecration.
40 PILKINGS I'm sorry, but we all see our duty differently.
ELESIN I no longer blame you. You stole from me my first-born, sent him to
your country s() you could tum him into'so~ething in your 'own'image. Did
yo~ plan 'it- all beff?rehand?There ar~ 'moments. when '~t s,e~ms' part -of a
larger plan. lie who must follow my footsteps is taken from me, sent across
45 the ocean. Then, in my turn, ,I am stopp~d from fulfilling my destiny. Did
you think it all out before, this phm to push our world from- its course and
sever tile cord that links us to the 'great origin?,
PILKINGS - You don't really believe that. Anyway, if that was my intention with
your son, I appear to have failed.
50 ELESIN You did not fail in the main thing ghostly one. We know the roof cov-
ers the rafters, the cloth covers blemishes; who would have knoWn that'the
white skin covered our future, preventing us from seeing the death oui' en-
emies had prepared for us. The world is set adrift and its inhabitants are
lost. Around them, there is nothing but emptiness. ' '
55 PILKINGS Your son does not take so gloomy a view. , '
ELESIN Are you dreaming no~, white 'man? Were'you not present at the re-
union of shame? Did you not see when the world reversed itself and the fa~
ther fell before his son, asking forgiveness?' - '
PILKINGS That was in the heat 'of the moment. I spoke to him and ... if you
60 want to know, he 'Wishes he could cut out his tongue for uttering the words
he did. '
ELESIN No. What he said must never be unsaid. The contempt of my own
son rescued something of my shame at your hands. You have stopped me in
my duty but I know now that I did give birth to a son. ()nce I niist~sted
65 him for seeking the companionship of those my spirit knew as enemies of
our race. Now I understand. One should seek to obtain the secrets of his
enemies. He Will avenge my shame, white one. His spirit Will ,destrby you
and yours. ,: ' -
PILKINGS' lJtat kind of talk is hardly called for. If you don't:want;iny co'nso.;
70 ' lation ...
ELESIN No white man;" do not want your consolation.
PILKINGS As you wish. Your son, anyway, sends his consol,at!on. He asks your
forgiveness. ~en 'I asked him not to despise you his 'reply was: I cannot
judge him, and if 1 canno't judge him, -I 'cannot despise him. He wants to
75 come to you and say goodbye and to receive your blessing.
ELESIN Goodbye? Is he returning to your land? -' ' ,
PIL,KINGS Don't you think that's the most sensible thing for,him to do? I ad-
vised him to leave at once, before dawn, and he agrees ',that is the right
course of action., '
80 ELESIN Yes, it is best. And even if I did not think so, 1 have lost the father's
place of honour. My voice is broken.
 DEATH AND THE KING'S HORSEMAN, ACT 5 I r087

ILlQNGS;Youri~.Op,honours ,you. If.he didn't he'would not ask your ble~sing.

LESIN No. Even a thoroughbred is. not: without p.ity!.f~r.~the turf-he 1strikes
with.his:hoof.:Whenis;·he,coming? :-.' .,.' .' ' ; , ' :
:I~IQ:NGS. As ,SQonas:the' tOWl).iis:a little;'quieter.l a~vise.d it. .,;, ';' .....
,LESIN Yes white man, I am sure you advised it. You advise all our liv,es al-
though on thefs,utho,rity :of.whatgods,r:l ~.dP notlqiow. "~ " .', '. :: '.,':' . '.. "I
'ILKlNGS~ [opens ,~is:1#ou.th ,to. reply, then·appea~ JQ chan.g~, .his .mind. Turns to
go. Hesitlltes;(in4sro.ps·again]· Befor~I leave you, may Laskjust one/thing
of you? " :;o,:~. :J, ...(-. • .! '. ~ . . ~;I\·'
tLESIN, ' .I 2;lm.,lis~crning.. , i:. ' ) : '. ..,'~.: ' , j : . : : " . , I,';.'

'ILKINGS I wish to ask you to search the quiet of yo~r,heart andtelll11edo

you not find great contradictlQns·io: the;wisd9.mof yOW" .own race?: ' .: I '

sLESIN ,.Make yourself cle.ar"white 'one., 1-,' . , ' : . .:.;'.

'ILKINGS; I have lived among· you long enough. to .learn a,saying or t~o. . Qne
. :cameto; my{min.d..tonight~whenJstepped into the ,m~rket and saw what was
going on. You were surrounded by those who egged you on with song and
r ·pr~ises .. I .thought, are. these:not.the s.ame.:people who say: the eld~r grimly

approaches heaven and you ask him to. bear -YOllr: greetings:yonder; do YOil
;reaUy)hibk h,e makes th~ 1Q1,Im~y, vvill.ingly? After that, I did not. ~e~itate. '
,.[ApaUse;.ELEslNsighs. ·Before:he can.speak'a sound of running feet is
I).!

';'.', " · ... ·hear.d,,] ": '; i " :

r ','1
1 ' j':; .... ':, ,:
JANE [off] Simon! Simon! .,.
PiLKlNGs:,i.Whatonearth:.,. i.. ,! [Runs' off.] , " :
• ' .. ' <: ''[ELESiN'turns to his'new wife, gaieson her for §~ ;~ts.]
ELESIN My young ,bride, did you hear t.he ghostly one? You sit'~hd sob in
all
. yo'lii- silerit'Ii~att bur'say nothing ,to :this. First fhla'fued. the: white titan,
. ". thEm i bliuriea my gods fo{desetti~~ me. ~,o~I feel. I, ~~tit to blame you for
the mystery of the sapping of my Will .. B~t'blame is a strange' pe~ce offering
for a m~n to bring a, world he has. d~~ply wronged., 'and, to its, iill~ocent
.~,' ·dwellers. Dh'little' motI1et, I have taken <;olll,ltless wom~n'iri my
lif~'htit you
were. more than a desire of tqe flesh .. I' needed, you as the abyss' ac:r:oss
";whiCh my
biQdy'inu~s'fbe'dra~~): ~1~d:t~"Mth\.~a!t~>.. ~?·Wopped :~y seed
in it at the moment of preparedness for my crossing. You were ~he final gift
o~ the livi~g to thei~ emi~~~ry to :the land, o( the ·.a~c~st(jrs; .aI:id perhaps
your \varmth'andyouth 'brought new insights of 'this··w9rld 'to me 'and
turned my feet leaden on thissicle of 'the ~byss~''J?or fcbrifess to' you; aaugh-
ter, my weakness came not merely from the abomination of the' white man
,who came ,violently into' my fading presence, there~wa~'also' a weight of
longing on my earth-held liinbs. I would have shaken it off, 'already my foot
ha'd begun ·to ;lift but then; the, white ghost entered· and· all was defiled.
I, • " ;,~::;; (Apliroa6hing 'vOices loFpiLKI~{;S and 'hiS Wife.]"
;JANE Oh Simon, you will ~et her in wOh't y6'u?
r
, PILKlNG~ .. re~lly' ¥sh:Ydh'd st~p i~te~f~n~g. " ."
. ,.' [They'come'into View: JANE is'in a'dressi~g-g~ ... PIL;.hNG·sis'·hold;ng a
note to wh:ich he refers from time to' time.] . , ', . ,; : . . '. ,
jAN~ '·.9<?~d :gra~io~.s, J didn~~ i~i,~i~t~ this: I, wa$:·~i~ep·irg quietlY? ~r; trYi.ng to
anyway, when the servant 'br()ught it. It's not niy f~lUlt if one can't sleep
undisturbed even in the Residency. .' '
PILKINGS He'd have done the same thing if we were sleeping at home so
 I'
I. 10 88 I WO l E SOY I N KA

don 't sidetrac k the iss ue. He knows he ca n ge t ro und ' )(QU or he wouldn't
125 send yo u th e petition in the first place.
J ANE Be fair Simon . After all h e was th inking of yo ur own inte res ts. He is
gra te ful you know, YO ll seem to forget that. He feels he owes you ' so m e~
thing.
I' ILR INGS I just wish th ey'd leave t his man a lone to night, tha t's all.
130 JANE Trllst him Sim on. I-I e's pledged his wo rd it wi ll a ll go peacefull y.
P ILKINGS Yes, and th at's th e oth er thin g. I don't like being threatened.
JA NE Threa te ned? [Tnhes I." e 1I0te. jl didn 't spot any threa t.
I' ILK I NGS It's th ere. Ve iled, bu t it's there. The only way ("0 preve nt seriou s ri-
otin g tomo rrow-what a c heek!
[35 J ANE I don't think he's threatenin g yo u Simon.
P ILKINGS He's picked lip th e idiom alri ght. vVouldn 't surprise me if he's been
mi xi ng with commies or a narc hists ovcr thcrc. T hc phras ing so unds too
good 10 be Irlle. Damn! If on ly t he Prince hadn't picked this tim e for his
visit.
140 JANE "VeIl, cvcn so Simon, what have yo u go t to lose? You don't wa nl a riot
o n your hands, not wit h th e Prince here. .
PI LK INGS [go ing up to ELES IN] Lees sce what he ' has to say. C hicf Elcsin,
th cre is ye t a nother perso n who w~ nts to see yo u . As she is not a ncxt-of-
k.in I do n't rea ll y fee l obliged to le t her in. But yo ur so n senl a note with
14 5 her, so it's up to yo u.
EL[S IN I know who th at must be . So she fou nd o ut your hiding- place. " 'ell,
it was nol diffi cult. My ste nch of sham e is so strong, it requires no hunter's
dog 10 fo llow it.
P ILK INGS If yo u don 't wa nt to see her, ju st say so and I'll send her packing.
1')0 E LES IN '''' hy s ho uld I not want to see her? Let· her come . I havc no more
ho les in my rag of s ha me. All is laid bare.
PI LKINGS I'll bring he,. in. [Goes off]
JA NE [/Jesitates, tI, ell goes to ELES IN] Please, lry a nd und ersta nd . Eve rything
my husband did was fo r th e bes t.
E LES IN [h e g;lIes ller a long st.rallge stare, as ;f li e ;s I.ryillg 1.0 lll1derslal1l/, who s/le
15> is] You are the wife of th e Distri ct Officer?
J ANE Yes. M)' name, is Janc.
E L ES IN T hat is 111)' wiFe sitting down th ere . You notice how still a nd silent
she si rs? My business is with your hu sband.
[I' ILK1NGS rc tlll'llS w; IIIIYAI.OJ /\ .J
PILK INGS Herc she is. Now first I wa nt you r word of ho no ur th at yo u wi ll tl)'
160 nothing foolish.
ELES IN Honour? ' ,Vhile one, did YO LI say yo u wa nted Ill y word of hon our?
PILKINGS I know YO LI 10 be an ho nourab le ma n. G ive me yo ur word of hon-
o ur yo u wi ll receive nothin g from her.
ELES IN But I am sure yo u h ~lVe searchcd her clot hin g as yo u wo uld neve r
165 dare touch yo ur own mothe r. And th ere are th ese two li za rds of yo urs who
ro ll Ihe ir eyes cven when I scra tch.
PILKI NGS And I shall be sitting o n th at tree trunk watc hin g even how yo u
bl ink. Ju st Ihe sa me I wa nt your wo rd th at yo u will no l let her pass any-
thing to you.

5. That is. c irCLlIlI\·c nl . cajole .

..
 DEATH AND THE KI NG'S HOR SEMAN. ACT 5 1 1089

liO ELESIN You have my honour already.. It is locked up in that desk in which
you will put away yo ur report·of this night's events. Even the honour of my
people yo u have taken already; it i.s tied together ,with those papers of
treachel)1which make you masters in this land . .
PILKINGS Alright. ·1 am trying to make things easy but if .you mu st bring in
175 politics we'll have to do it the hard way. Ma'd am,' 1 'want you to remain
along this line and move no nearer to the cell door.'Guards! (They spring to
attent.ion.] If she moves beyond this point, . blow your whistle. Come on
Jane. [TIley go off] (,
IYALOJA How boldly the lizard struts before the pigeon when it was the eagle
180 itself he promised us. he would confront.
ELES IN I donJt ask yo u to take pity on me Iyaloja . .you have a message for me
or you would not have come: Even if it is the c urses of the world, I shall Iis-
ten.
IYALOjA, You made so bold with the seIVant of the white king who took your
185 side against death. I must tell yo ur brother c hiefs when I retu.rn how
bravely you waged war against him. Especially with words.
E LESIN . I more than deserve .your sco~n.
IYALOjA [w ith S1ulden allge·r.] . I warned yo u, if you must leave a seed behind,
be sure it is not tainted with the curses of the world. \Vho are you to open
190 a new .life\vhen yo u dared not open the door to a new existence? I say who
are you to make so bold? [The BRIDE sobs and IYALOJA nol.ices /zer. Her COIl-
tempt noticeablyillcreases as she t'urns bach to ELES I N.] Oh you self-vaunted
stem of the plantain, how hollow it all proves. The pith is gone in the par-
en t stem J so how will it prove with the new shoot? How will it with that go
195 earth that bears it? Who are you to bring this abomination on us!
E LESI N My powers deserted me. My charms, my spells, even- my voice
lacked strength when I made t"o summon the powers that would lead me
over the last measure of earth into the land of the fleshless . Yo u saw it,
lyaloja. You S3W me struggle to retrieve my will from the power of the
200 stranger whose shadow fe ll across the doorway .and left me floundering a nd
blundering in a maze I had never before encountered. My 'senses were
numbed when the tou ch of cold iron came upon .my wrists . J cou ld do
, nothing to save myself.
IYALOj A YOli have betrayed LI S. Vle fed yo u sweetmeats such as we hoped
205 awaited you on the other side. But you said No, I must eat the world's left-
overs. We said yo u were the hunter who brought the quarry down; to you
belonged the vital portions of the game. No, YOll said, 1 am the hunter's dog
and I shall eat the entrails of the game and the faeces of the hunter. We
said you were the hunter returning home in triumph, a slain buffalo press·
210 ing down on his neck j yo u said wait, I first mllst turn up this cricket hole
with my toes. We said yo urs was the doonvay at which we first spy the tap-
per when he comes down from the tree, yo urs was the bl essing of the twi-
light wine, the purl 6 that brings night spirits out of doors to steal their
portion before the light of day. We said yours was the body of ,,,ine whose
2 1S burden shakes the tapper like a sudden gust on his perch . YOll said, No, I
am content to lick the dregs from each calabas h when the drinkers are

6. A liquo r mad e by inrusing biller herbs in beer or ale . TlllifigJI/ wille: that is, th e fines t winc ;
pnlrn wine lapped beforc dawn is belic\'cd 10 be especially rresh and potent.
1090 I \,V OLE SOYINKA

done. HIe sa id , th e dew on ea rth 's surface was for yo u to was h your fl
alon g th e slopes of h onour. You sa id No, I sh all ste p in the vomit of c
a nd th e dropp ings of mi cci I sha ll fi ght th e m for th e le rt- overs of t he wor
220 ELES tN Enough Iya loja , e nough.
IY,\LOjA H Ie called yo u leader and o h, how yo u Icd us o n. \,Vhat we have
inten ti o n or ea ting sho uld no t be held to th e nose.
ELES IN Enough, e nough. 1'Vly shame is heavy e no ugh .
1\':\LOjA " V~lil. I ca me with a burde n.
2Z5 ELES IN You have mo re th a n d isc harged it.
l\'ALOjA I wish I co uld pity yo u.
EL ES H\' I need n eit her yo ur pity nor t he pity of th e wo rld . I need und
sta ndi ng. Even I need to und e rstand . Yo u we re present at my defeat. )
were part o r th e beginnings. You brought a bout th e re newa l of Ill y lic
230 ea rth , yo u helped in th e binding of the co rd .
IrALOjA I gave yo u warning. Th e ri ver whi c h fill s up before our eyes does I
sweep us away in its fl ood .
ELES IN ' '''hat we re warnings bes ide th e moist co m ac t of li ving ea rth I
twee n my fin ge rs? ' r\/hat were wa rnin gs bes ide th e re newal of fam ished e
235 bers lodged ete rnall y in the h ea rt o f Inan. I3ut even tha t, eve n if
ovc rwhelmed o ne with a th o usa ndfo ld tcmptations to linge r a li tt le while
ma n co uld overco me it. It is whe n th e ali e n hand po ll utes th e so urce
will , when a stra nge r force o f vio le nce shatle rs th e mind's ca lm resolu ti (
th is is whe n a man is madc to co mmit th e a wful treac he ry of relief, canu
240 in hi s th ouglll th e u nspea kab le blasph e my o r seeing th e hand oft- he gods
this alie n rupture of h is wo rld . I kn ow it was thi s tho ught that killed n
sapp ed In y powe rs a nd turn ed me in to a n infa nt in dl e ha nds of unn a mal
st ran gers. I made to ull e r m y spe lls anew but my tong ue me rely rattled
my mou th. I fin gered hidd e n c har ms a nd th e co ntac t was dam Pi th ere "
245 no spark left to seve r th e life-strings that sho uld stre tc h from every fin g
tip. My will was squ elch ed in th e spittle of a n alien race, a nd all becClus
had co mmitt ed this blasphe m y of th o ught- th a t t he re mi ght be th e ha
of th e gods in a stran ge r's inte rve ntion .
IYALOjA Explain it how yo u will , I ho pe it b rings yo u peace of mind . T
250 bli sh-rat ned hi s rightrul ca li se, reac hed th e marke t a nd se t up a lamen
ti on. ' Please save me!'-are th ese fill ing wo rd s to hea r frolll a n ancest
mas k? T he re's a wild beas t a t m y heels' is not becom ing language frolT
hu nte r.
ELESIN fvlJ y t he wor ld Fo rgive mc.
255 IYALOjA I cam e with a burde n I sa id. It approac hes th e gat es whi c h nrc
we ll guard ed by t hose jacka ls wh ose spit tl e will from th is da y be all yc
food a nd drin k. But first, tell me, yo u who were o nce Eles in Oba, tell n
you who kn ow so well th e cycle of th e p la ntain : is it th e parent shoo t whi
wi th e rs to give sa p to t he yo un ge r o r, does yo ur wisdo m see it running t
260 oth er way?
ELESIN I do n't see yo u r lTl e~l llin g Iya loja?
IrALOj:\ Did I ask yo u fo r :l mea nin g? I asked a q ues tion. \IVhose trunk wit
ers to givc sap LO t he oth e r? T he pa re nt shoo t o r the yo unge r?
ELESIN Th c pa re nt.
265 IYALOjA Ah. So yo u do know thal. Thc re are s ight s in thi s wo rld which ~
difre rc nt Eles in . T he re are som e wh o c hoose to reve rse th e cycle or our I
 DEATH AND THE KING'S HORSEMAN, ACT,.5 109'1

ing. Oh, you emptied bark that the world.once . saIuted fOf-:a pith-Iaden:be~
';.;ing;ishalk,l!tell youwhat-the'gods~have claimedio£.your ' ' .~ ".;.\: :
(',; ,.; :::1 [In her agitatiOn she steps beyond· the Une i»dicated·byPILKINGS and'the
:: . ; is ;rent by: piercing. whistles.. ·The.twa GU~DS also. leap fonvard' and
, ,: i'::' air;
. place 's4fe~giiafdlngi hatuls .Qn :EL~SIN. IYALOjA ,stops, :astbnished. PILKINGS
comes racing in, followed by JANE.]\' ': " ',~ ,,' , ' . ~ :. :
PILKINGS What is it? Did they try something?
, 270 GUARD Sh.~ ~t~ppedb~y.o~~ ;th~ Hn~". : , .'.,' . ~' . . ',.
ELESIN [in a bro1um:'vot(;~ 1.., Let.her.~I~ne ..;She' ~e~n;~ I?-0h~r~;,. ;, '.;
IYALOjA Oh ~.Ie~l~, see'what,yqu:ve:bf7cQ,m~~.pn~~ Y;~}1}l~d,no,n,~eH:to op~~
, y~)t~r, ~~u~ i~;~l~~w~ipn b~~a~~e,eviI;)Smem,~~$9~t~~j~~.hY.Qf h~d .a~~
·foot, had los~ ,their senses .. And:it was a brave m:;t.nind~ed whodar~d.lay
275 ?.ne
'~~~<;ls:on.iyp.u':hec'a~~~ 'ly~lqj~ stepp~~.'fr.~~: . ~id~: ~f: the :~arth' ~'n~o 'an-
otq~,...,N'ow ~o~:k,a~thcrspe,~tacle:pfyou~,~fe..J ~~v~f9rIY~Ht;,;" ,:,' "
P;H~~G~' .~ th.i~ ·Y:9u'~i~ett~~:lea~~.: ~ ~,~~p~ y~u h~ve. done. ~im muc~gopd
. ~Y. comirHt~ere. l,~~~ll tna~e: sw,e. )';~~ .af~:~9,t:~Howed to s~~, him aga.~n. I?
; ,~~y ca.se ;~t:L~,r¢lp'()yi?g..h~m ~q,~ .'d~ff~r~!O~ pl~ce. befor~.1 ~a\Vl" .s(). dqn t
280 bother to comeback. ,
IYALOjA We fqresaw t.hat. Hence th~; fiur(Ien I tru~gea ·he~e;. t~' lay beside
"'your'gates·. ;:,. " j ; ' . • :.: ''':,.' '. , . ' . \ ' - : 1 . . ';, ';.,' .,' .;,'

, PILKINGS What was that you said? ,...,. .

IYALOJA Didn~~ our son explain? Ask that 'orie~ He'kil()ws'~hat it is~'At least
285 we hope the:man:'weidnce' knew as ;Elesin'reineriib~rs~th~ les'~er'oaths he
need not ·break. '. ~. '., ,.... .,
~ILK;IN~S I?~You :~ow w~at she ~s~~lki~~ abou,t? '. . . . . :'
ELESIN . Go to,the' gates, gnostly one.Whate~er you find there; bnrig ~t to me~
.':<. ;",; ';, .
IYALOjA Not yet. It drags behiqd me on the slow, weary fee~ of women~' Slow
290 ' . 'as. ifis"Elesih, 'i~ihas iong ovcri:taken you.'· It'rldes ahead'pfyout: iagg~rd' Will.
PiLKINGS' , What'is slle 'saYing now? Christ! Must y()ur'people forever:speak in
.riddles? .' .'. " ,. i , ' . , ~; . '

ELESIN It will cot:Jle white mar:t, it will com'e. Teil yqiti-' men at th~:'gates to'let
.it t~otigh;; .'. I . ' . : : ' : : '. . ... ' . . . .;: : : , I. . ; , , ' .. " .'
295 PiLItiNGS,[dubiouslyJ 'I'll have t6see 1what-it'is." ;.: ~ ,"::
IYALOjA . rou Will. [Passionately] But this is one oath he cannot shirk. White
one; you';hav~'a "kliig he~e',a Visitor' ~Ol1f your-hmd. W~ know of his' pres-
'enddler~'. 'Tellilie,' were h~: to dIe \yould -youleavenis Sph1t. roa~iilg rest-
lessly ~n' the: s~iface '<;>f' 'earth?' WchJ14 you bury' hini' liere among those you
300 consider less than ht.irtian?'fll'l~your land have you no ·ceremonies·of the
dead? ' :." "
PILKINGS Yes. But we don't make our'chiefs' commit 'suicide' to keep 'him
company. . .
rYALoJA'" Child; I have ·not come tel help your' understanding. [Points'to
305 ELESIN.] This is the m~n whose weakened:'1:IIiderstanding holds 'us' in
. bondage to yo'u··. But ask him if you wish. He knows: the 'meiuling of a' lOng's
passage; he wa,s not born yesterdaY. He knows' tHe 'peril to the race when
ou'r dead father, who goes' as intermediary, waits and waits'and knows he is
betrayed. He knows when the narrow gate was opened and he knows it will
3/0 not stay for laggards who ·drag their feet ~ndung and vomit, whose lips are
reekin'g of the left-overs bf lesser men~ He knows he has condemned our
King to wander iri the' v(lid of evil With beings who are enemies of life. .
I I~
IlL!
",I
1092 I WOlE SOYINKA

iill PILKINGS Yes er ... but look here ...

I:'
IYALOjA What we ask is little enough. Let him release our King so he can
II!/:
',' 315 ride on homewards alone. ,The messenger is on his way on the backs of
Ii:/:
ill'l women. Let him. send word through the heart that is folded up within the
ii,
bolt. It is the least of all his oaths, it is the easiest fulfilled.
[The AIDE-DE-CAMP runs in.]
PILKINGS Bob?
AIDE-DE-CAMP . Sir, there's a group of women chanting up the hill.
320 PILKINGS [rounding on IYALOjA] If you people want trouble ...
JANE Simon, I think that's what Olunde referred to in his letter.
PILKINGS He knows damned well I can't have a crowd here! Damn it, I ex-
plained the delicacy of my position to him. I think it's about time I got him
out of town. Bob, send a car and two or three soldiers to bring him in. I
325 thin~ the sooner he takes his leave of his father and gets out the better.
IYALOjA Save your labour white one. If it is the f~ther of your prisoner you
want, Olunde, he who until this night we knew as Elesin's son, he comes
soon himself to take his leave. He has sent the women ahead, so let them in.
[PILKINGS remains undecided.]
AIDE-DE-CAMP What do we do about the invasion? We can still stop them far
330 from here.
PILKINGS What do they look like?
AIDE-DE-CAMP They're not many. And they seem quite peaceful.
PILKINGS No men?
AIDE-DE-CAMP Mm, two or three at the most.
335 JANE Honestly, Simon, I'd trust Olunde. I don't think he'll deceive you about
their intentions.
PILKINGS . He'd better not. Alright then, let them in Bob. Warn them to con-
trol themselves. Then hurry Olunde here. Make sure he brings his baggage
because I'm not returning him into town.
340 AIDE-DE-CAMP Very good, sir. [Goes.]
PILKINGS [to IYALOjA] I hope you understand that if anything goes wrong it
will be on your head. Mymen have orders to shoot at the first sign of trou-
ble.
IYALOjA To prevent one death you will actually make pther deaths? Ah, great
345 is the wisdom of the white race. But have no fear. Your Prince will sleep
peacefully. So at long last will ours. We will disturb you no further, servant
of the white King. Just let Elesin fulfil his oath and we will retire home and
pay homage to our King.
JANE I believe her Simon, don't you?
350 PILKINGS Maybe.
ELESIN Have no fear ghostly one. I have a message to send my King and
then you have nothing more to fear.
IYALOjA Olunde would have done it. The chiefs asked him to speak the
words but he said no, not while you lived.
355 ELESIN Even from the depths to which my spirit has sunk, I find some joy
that this little has been left to me.
[The WOMEN enter, intoning the dirge 'Ali! Ii! Ii!' and swaying from side
to side. On their shoulders is borne a longish object roughly like a
cylindrical bolt, covered in cloth. TIJey set it down on the spot where
 DEATI'I AN D THE K I NG'S HOR SEMAN, AC T 5 I 10 93

IYALOJA lIad stood earlier, ami form {l semi-circle rOl/ud it. TI, e PHAISE-
SINGEH ami OHUMM E R staJld au t.h e iHside of the semi-circle but til e
dmm is Jlot. used at all. . Th e ORUMl\IER iI/tones lInder th e PHAI SE-
SINGE H'S i JtvocatioH s. ]
PILKINGS [as tltey elller] What is I./tat?
IYALOjA The burden you have made white oite, but we bring it in peace,
PIU\.I NGS I said wha t. is it? .
160 E LES IN \,Vhite man, you mu st let me out. I have a duty to perform.
PILKIN GS I most certainly will not,
E LES IN There lies the courier of my King. Let me out so I can perform what
is demanded of me.
PILKI NGS You'll do what y~llI need to .do from inside there or not at all. I've
165 gone as far as I intend to with this business.
ELES IN The worshipper who lights a candle in your c hurch to bear a mes-
sage to his god bows his head .and speaks in a whisper to the flame. Have I
not seen it ghos tl y one? His voice does not ring out to the world. M~ne are
no words for anyone's ears" They are ~ot words even for the bea ~~rs of this
J;O load. They are' words I must speak secretly, even as my father whis'p ered
them in my ears anfl I in the ears of my first-born . .I fa nnot shout them to
the wind and the open night-sky.
JANE Simon ...
PILKING S Don't interfere. ,Please!
175 IYALOjA They have slain the favourite hor.se of the King .a nd slain his dog.
They have borne them from pulse to pulse centre of the land receiving
prayers for their King. Blit the rider has chosen to stay be hind. Is it too
much to ask that he speak hi s heart to heart of the waiting courier? [PILK-
INGS turn.s "is bach on her. ] So be it, Elesin Oba, you -see how even the
ISO mere leavings are denied you, [SIze gest.lIres.t.o t.lz e PRAIS E- S INGEH.]
PRAISE-SINGEH Elesin Oba! I ca ll YOll by that name only this last time. Re-
member when I said, if yo u cannot come, tell my horse. [P(l1lse.] \~/hat? I
cannot hear you? ! said, if YO ll cannot come, whisper in the ears of my
horse. rs yo ur tongue severed from the roots Elesin? I ca n hear no re-
185 sponse. I said, if there are boulders yo u cannot climb , mount my hors e's
back, this spotless blac k stallion, he'll bring YO ll over them. [Pallses.] Elesin
Oba, once YO LI had a tongue that darted like a drummer's stick. I sa id, if
yo u get lost my dog will tfrlck a path to me ..My memory fail s me but I think
you replied: My feet have found the path , Alann .
[n e dirge rises alld falls.]
'90 I said at the last, if evil hands hold you back, just te ll my horse there is
weight on the hem of yo ur smock. I dare not wait too' long.
I , . • • •

[71ze dirge rises allel falls .]

There lies the swiftest-ever messenger of a king, so set me free with the er-
rand of your hea rt. There lie the head and hea rt of the favourite of the
gods, whisper in his ears . Oh my companion, if YOll had foll.owed when yo u
395 should, we would not say that the horse preceded its rider. If yo u had fol-
J9wed when it was time, we would not say the dog h ilS raced beyond and
left his master behind. If YO LI had ra ised yo ur will to cut the thread of life at
the summons of the drums, we wo uld not say yo ur mere shadow fe ll across
the ga teway and took its owner's place at the banquet. But the hunte r,
laden with slain buffalo, stayed to root in the cric kel's hole with hi s toes.
 1094 I WOLE SOYINKA

What now i~ left? If there ;is ·a dearth of bats; the pigeon must serve us for
the offering. Speak the words over-your shadow which must now serve in
'your place. "
ELESIN I cannot approach. Take off the cloth~ I shall speak my message
405 from heart to heart of silence. .
IYALOJA [movesJorward and removes the covering] Your courier Elesirt, 'cast
your eyes on the favoured companion of the King.
[Rolled up in the mat, his head and feet showing at either end, is the .
body of OLUNDE.]
There lies the honour of your' household and ot our race. Because he' .could
not bear to let honourHy out of d~ors, he stopped it with his .life. The'Son
410 has proved the father, Elesin, and, there is nothing left in your mouth 'to
gnash but inf~nt gums. ,- .
PRAISE-SINGER Elesin, we placed the reins of the world in your hands yet you
watched it plunge over the edge of the bitter preCipice. You sat with folded
: arms while evil strangers tilted the ",vorld from "its course arid crashed it be-
415 yond the 'edge of emptiness-you. muttered, thereis little that one man can
do, you left us floundering in ablind future. Your heir h~s taken the burden
on himself. What the end will be, we are not gods to'tell. But this young
shoot has poured its sap into the parent stalk~ and We know this is "not'the
way of life. Our world is tumbling in the void of strangers, Elesitl. .
[ELESIN has stood rock-still, his knuckles taut on the bars,' his eyes glued
to the hody of his son. The stillness seizes and paralyses everyone, inc lud-
ing PILKINGS who has turned· ta look. Suddenly ELESIN flings one ann
round his neck; once, and with the loop of the chain, strangles·himself in
a swift, .decisive pull. The GUARDS rush fonvard to stop him but they are
only in time to let his body down. PILKINGS has leapt to the door at the
same time and struggles with the -lock. He. rus~ within, fufff,bles .with
the handc,-,ffs and unlocks, them, raises the body. to a sitting pqsition
while he tries to give resuscitation. The WOMEN continue their dirge, un-
moved by tltesudden event.] . .
420 IYALOjA Why do you strain yourself? Why.do you labour at tasks for which
no one, not even tJ:te man lying there, would give you thanks? He is gone at
last into the passage but oh, how late it all is. His son will feast on the meat
and throw him bones. The: passage is clogged. with droppings from the
King's stallion; he will arrive all stained in dung.
425 PILKINGS [in a tired voice] Was this what you wanted?
IYALOJA No child, it is what you brought to b.e, you who play with strangers'
lives, who even usurp the vestments of our dead, yet. believe that the stain
of death will not cling to you. The gods demanded; OIlly the old expired
plantain but you cut down the sap':laden shoot to' feed your pride. Ther~ is
430 your board, filled to overflowing. Feast on it. [She s"creams at him suddenl)~
seeing that PILKINGS'is about to close ELESINS staring eyes.] Let him alone!
However sunk he was in debt he is no pauper's carrion abandoned on the

I 435
road. Since ,when have strangers donned clothes of indigo before the be·
reaved cries out his loss?

Child.
[She turns to tile BRIDE who has remained motionless. t~rou.ghout.]

[The girl talres :up a little earth, walks calmly into the cell and closes

L
ELESINS eyes. SIte tllen pours some eartlt over each eyelid and comes out
again.]

: ----
I
~
.j--
-~
 DEATH AND THE KING'S HOR SEMAN, AC T S I 109 5

IYALOJA Now forget the dead, forge t even the living. Turn yo ur mind only to
th e unborn.
[S ite goes ofli accOJl/'1Ja1l.ied by tlw BIHDE. TIle dirge rises ;11. volume aud
die WOMEN CO I'lt,ill/1e their sway. Lights fad~ to a blach-Olft,}

Tile Emi

1
t
t
e

s·
n
d
is
J~
el
Ie
e-

;es
"'