A Failed Attempt at Colonizing Nature: A Study of The Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka

Abstract

Colonialism views nature as fundamentally 'other,' enforcing a distinct separation between humans and nature. In The Lion and the Jewel, Lakunle, the schoolteacher who embodies colonial ideology, aspires to modernize the village of Ilujinle by bringing in bridges, motor roads, and railways at the cost of nature with the excuse of ‘civilizing’ the local people. With this background, this paper investigates the colonial dynamics within Lagos and their influences on the Yoruba legacy, alongside the resistance led by Baroka, the community leader, who fights this construction mission. Additionally, Sidi, the village belle, contradicts the colonial mechanisms of her lover Lakunle, which he expects her to abide by. This paper aims to explore the destructive consequences in ecology as a result of the colonial construction project, interfering with the interdependence between nature and humans. Using a qualitative method, this study applies textual and intertextual analysis, literary criticism and theory to elucidate the failed attempt of Lakunle to colonize the ecology of the village.