WOLE SOYINKA

The traditional view of human tragedy which existed several centuries back in the ancient Greek religious myths was transposed not only to Western Europe but also to the African context in the literary representation of reality in tragedy. This project aims at examining the role of fate in tragedy. It is an evaluation of selected plays by two outstanding playwrights; Ola Rotimi and Wole Soyinka. The research can be used to examine how fate plays a major role in the life of man from the Yoruba point of view. It explored the universal theme of predestination and how it is emphasized in the Yoruba tradition. It also explored how oppressive political regimes, such as dictatorships can shape the fate of individuals and communities. Coming into the world in the West African Nigerian Yoruba metaphysical universe, the tragic personage holds his fate in his own hands. The gods and supernatural beings in the invisible realms claim foreknowledge of the fate which the tragic hero brings into the world, yet does not influence the fate-holder in the winding trail of life to the fulfillment of tragic fate. This research concludes that tragedy occurs as a product of the constant working of fate in the tragic hero which fulfills itself in a tragic conflict through the hero’s free-will, according to the prophecy of the gods in Ola Rotimi’s The gods are not to blame. This is more so in the Aristotelian concept of catharsis in tragedy due to the interplay between prehistoric fate and historic fate, the latter being the product of the former.