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Death and the King's Horseman
Series: Modern Classics
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Check link for latest rating. ( 5,441 ratings, 413 reviews)
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Death and the King's Horseman
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?
Based on real events that took place in Oyo, the ancient Yoruba city of Nigeria, in 1946, Nobel Prize-winner Wole Soyinka's play tells how Simon Pilkings, a well-meaning District Officer, intervenes to prevent the ritual suicide of the Yoruba chief, Elesin. This Student Edition includes a full introduction, commentary and questions for study.
Based on real events that took place in Oyo, the ancient Yoruba city of Nigeria, in 1946, Nobel Prize-winner Wole Soyinka's play tells how Simon Pilkings, a well-meaning District Officer, intervenes to prevent the ritual suicide of the Yoruba chief, Elesin. This Student Edition includes a full introduction, commentary and questions for study.
Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and
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Description
The action of the play is as inevitable and eloquent as in Antigone: a clash of values and cultures so fundamental that tragedy issues: a tragedy for each individual, each tribe. – Daily Telegraph
This play, by the winner of a Nobel Prize for Literature, asks: 'On the authority of what gods' the white aliens rupture the world. It puts exciting political theatre back on the agenda ... a masterpiece of 20th century drama. – The Guardian
Death and the King's Horseman revolves around Elesin Oba, the King's Horseman, who has a single destiny. Upon the death of the King, it is his duty to commit ritual suicide and lead the King’s favourite horse and dog through the passage to the world of the ancestors. The intervention of a British Colonial Officer, Pilkings, disrupts this sacred duty.
This Student Edition includes a full introduction, commentary and questions for study by Jane Plastow, as well as an interview with Wole Soyinka.
Series: Modern Classics
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Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?
Wole Soyinka's play is celebrated as a masterpiece of modern drama, praised for reintroducing political themes and eliciting emotions akin to Greek tragedy. The Guardian describes it as a significant contribution to 20th-century theatre, while the Independent finds it transfixing. The play is noted for its inevitable and eloquent action, exploring a fundamental cultural and value clash that results in tragedy for individuals and communities, according to critics like Irving Wardle and Michael Schmidt.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9780413695505
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 02 July 1998
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Methuen Drama
Edition: New edition
Audience: Tertiary education
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 10.0mm
Width: 129.0mm
Height: 198.0mm
Weight: 156g
Pages: 160
About the Author
Wole Soyinka - playwright, novelist, poet and polemical essayist - was born in Nigeria in 1934. Educated there and at Leeds University, UK, he worked in the British theatre before returning to West Africa in 1960. In 1986 he became the first African writer to win the Nobel Prize for Literature.
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Death and the King's Horseman
A masterpiece of 20th century drama. - The Guardian Death and the King's Horseman centres around Elesin Oba, the King's Horseman, who has a single destiny. When the King dies, he must commit ritual suicide and lead his King's favourite horse and dog through the passage to the world of the ancestors. A British Colonial Officer, Pilkings, intervenes to prevent...Paperback$2799Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Soyinka Plays: 1
Six masterful works by the Nobel Prize-winning Nigerian playwright. Death and the King's Horseman: 'A transfixing work of modern world drama' - Independent Madmen and Specialists: 'A luminous play, examining the way in which war exposes and clarifies human conduct' - Observer Opera Wonyosi, adapted from Gay's The Beggar's Opera: 'Swaggering and scabrous, at once a verbal spree and a...Paperback$5199Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
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