Abstract

Motivated by their desire to assert their Africanness and to preserve their traditional religio-cultural values, Nigerian writers portray a way of life which has survived to some extent and might have survived more fully if certain historical events had not so drastically affected Nigerian attitudes. ;This dissertation explores the problems resulting from the confrontation of modernity and tradition in the religio-cultural life of Nigerians as dramatized in the plays of Wole Soyinka and James Henshaw. Sine religion is the binding force that undergirds African life in its entirety, this dissertation identifies the ways in which traditional religious elements and values are used by each author to demonstrate their resilience and as a basis for the author's criticism of contemporary society. ;An explanation of the cultural and historical setting of Nigerian literature provides the context for this study. Since we are dealing with religion in drama, there is an overview of traditional drama and its function in Nigerian society. This is followed by an interpretative analysis of the relevant plays of the authors concerned. The focus of the analysis is literary in as much as it examines the authors use of traditional religion to criticize modern society; the influence of this tradition on the artist's self-consciousness surfaces, along with the significance of traditional religion in the contemporary search for African values and identity. ;The two playwrights reflect common concerns: the need to appreciate and where necessary to retain traditional religious values as well as the need to rid society of those traditions that hinder human and society's growth. Adaptation of modern values and the quest for roots as fundamental to the present well-being of Nigeria is paramount. Each author approaches these concerns from a different perspective: Soyinka takes the traditional stance while Henshaw takes the Christian stance. Both emphasize the reasonableness of their concern in establishing an African identity, stressing the importance of religion in the process. ;Traditional religion is significant in this quest for African identity in that religion contains core elements of culture and personality. Religious life focuses on the meanings and meaning-apprehending qualities of human experience. It also expresses the integrity of human identity. In these respects, the rise of Nigerian/African independence takes on added significance as the fundamental factor in the new respectability enjoyed by traditional religion as carrier of the past