Aesthetics of Daydreaming In Reconstruction of Colonial History in Three African Plays (Published)
The nexus between history and drama accounts for the attraction shown by some playwrights in adopting history as a material for playwriting throughout the ages. Existing studies on historical plays have focused on the implacable explication of historical characters and predicaments in their societies, sometimes, ignoring the artistic techniques of the writers. This study, examines the technique of daydreaming as a pattern of dream to showcase the playwright’s dramaturgy with colonial history in order to investigate the link between the conflict of the characters and the predicament of their societies. The theoretical framework is on Psychoanalysis that allows for the investigation of characters’ emotions which manifest in recurring fantasies. Three of Ahmed Yerima’s plays are purposively selected and critically analyzed: The Trials of Oba Ovonramwen, Ameh Oboni the Great and Mojagbe. Daydreaming, therefore, has become a quintessential strategy for the development of the plot structure, characters and reconstruction of history.
Keywords: Ahmed Yerima, Daydreaming, Fantasies, Historical plays, Psychic context