Sidi’s Decision to Marry Baroka
Sidi, a
village beauty of sixteen or seventeen, centres round the plot of ‘The Lion and
the Jewel’. Lakunle, a young man of about twenty-three wants to marry her but
at the end of the play, Sidi’s hand is won by Baroka, an old man of sixty-two.
Lakunle is infatuated with Sidi and wants to
marry her but without paying bride-price. Sidi is ready to respond to his
infatuation but wants her bride-price. She tells him that she will marry him
any day, if her bride-price is paid first. If she marries him without any
bride-price, she will be a laughing stock to the villagers. She does not want
to be a cheap object of hatred of the village people. Bride-price is the honour
for the girl who gets it. If a girl marries without bride-price, she is
suspected of losing her virginity. It is believed that the girls who have lost
their virginity or chastity are compelled to marry without bride-price. So,
Sidi refuses to marry Lakunle without bride-price. Thus, Sidi’s attitude
towards Lakunle is positive in the beginning of the play.
On the other hand, in the beginning of the
play, Sidi’s attitude towards Baroka is negative. When Sadiku, head wife of
Baroka, offers her to marry Baroka, she rejects the proposal on the grounds
that he is too old for her. She is also proud of her beauty. After the printing
of her photographs in the magazine, she realizes that she possesses more beauty
than that of a goddess. She tells Sadiku that the printing of her images in the
magazine brings her fame and worth more than Baroka. She thinks that being
jealous of her beauty, Baroka wants to possess her as his personal property. To
Sidi, Baroka wants to marry her to seek new fame by possessing the “jewel”
(Sidi).
But, when
Sidi learns from Sadiku that Baroka has lost his manhood, she goes to mock him
and is seduced by him. Lakunle then offers to marry her in spite of her loss of
virginity but refuses to pay the bride-price. But Sidi cannot accept his offer
because Baroka has taken her virginity. She in no longer able to take any other
man as her husband. So, she chooses Baroka for her husband instead of Lakunle.
Her decision is due to the concept of chastity. She would have chosen young
Lakunle to marry, but her loss of virginity makes her to marry the old Baroka.
Her respect for chastity prevents her from accepting the proposal of Lakunle.
She decides to marry Baroka not for his manliness but for the age old tradition
that a woman should marry and live with only one man.
Thus, at the end of the play, commonsense
prevails on Sidi which changes her attitude towards marriage and her choice of
husband.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………
Written By
S. MALLICK
…………………………………………………………………………………………………
BIBLIOGRAPHY – Text Book (FBC), A Study Guide
(FBC) & Handnote Series (Lecture)
0 Comments
Drop your comment here ⬇