The Swamp Dweller by Wole Soyinka’s

The Swamp Dweller by Wole Soyinka’s

The Swamp Dwellers is a novel written by Soyinka in which he has depicted the real picture of two sides of Modernity vs. tradition. The play is about Yoruba culture in which Makuri and Alu they are living and waiting for their son whose name is Awuchike. Soyinka has presented Yoruba culture which is full of swamp because of food in the village. And they are suffering because of plenty of water and Beggar who comes from Bhukanji and over there they were suffering because of scarcity of water.

Play starts with the description of village which shows traditional side of the play.

“A village in the swamps. Frogs rain and other noises. The scan is a hut on stilts,

built on one of the scattered semifirm island in the swamp. The walls are marsh stakes plaited with hump ropes. Near the left down stage are the baskets he makes from the rushes which are strewn in front of him.”(1 pg of TSD)

These all lines show that they are traditional people doing work but which can’t give them food. At some extent tradition is good because you have your own belief and way of looking towards life but not accepting change in life is bad. Too much exaggeration is bad for your life which is shown through the play. Igwezu went into city to earn more in life but he can’t accept the reality of life which is in city. There is starvation for shelter in city, so cold sophisticated life than village so we can say that Igwezu and Awuchike both are suffering because of their acceptance or to much exaggeration of their life. There is Constance struggle or conflict between the old and new ways of life in Africa. There is the dialogue that old and children are living in village. It means that yougs are living in city.