Class Stratification, Poverty and Social Injustice: A Critical Analysis of Festus Iyayi’s Violence and Olu Obafemi Wheels
Chapter One
Purpose of Study
The purpose of this study is to shed more light on the issues of class stratification, social injustice, and poverty and how African writers like OluObafemi, Festus Iyayi, AyiKweiArmah, IsidoreOkpewho, NgugiwaThiong’o have used literature as a tool for the eradication of poverty and to breach the gap between the rich and the poor.
Also, in the light of these issues been faced in Africa, the aim of this study is to also bring to the reader’s notice the importance of fighting to get out of poverty in a dignifying manner and not allowing the oppression and exploitation of the bourgeois just as Festus Iyayi uses the character, Idemudia, in Violence to explain this, as well as how OluObafemi explores these issues in Wheels.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
This chapter reviewed works already done on poverty, class stratification and social injustice, suffering, political subjugation and other social injustices which the masses face in the hands of the bourgeois, especially in the post-colonial Nigeria
Many African writers have pursued different themes in their works of art. Among these are cross-cultural conflicts, corruption in politics and exploitation to mention but a few. In Nigeria, post war Nigerian writers have witnessed shifts in themes. This means that writers who try to eschew the big social and political contemporary Nigeria will end-up being completely irrelevant because his/her work would have no impact on the people and society because he has failed to address any of the issues at stake. The Marxist theory has now become very important in addressing these press issues. Balogun (2007: 202-203) states on Marxism:
Fundamentally anchored on the work of Karl Marx, Marxism is a dominant critical theory born in the middle of the 19th century and flourished tremendously throughout the twentieth century… Marxism identifies social and economic factors as crucial denominators of relationship in the society.
With this brief explanation on the origin and beginning of the Marxist theory, it is important to note that the founder of this theory was a radical who fought for the cause of the oppressed through his writing. He stated that a society where capitalism rules cannot flourish socially and emotionally, this is because class struggle will always exist just for people to get out of poverty and be wealthy. Joseph (2007: 191) states that:
…people have the right to eat from their labour but the capitalist economic system won’t allow them. This system groups the society into two: the capitalists and the proletariat. The capitalists control the society’s means of production, so the superstructure of the society is determined according to what is in their best interest. This results in alienation of the proletariats from their productions and societal affairs.
According to the Marxist theory, the society is structured in two ways-super ordinate and subordinate. This polarity is referred to as the bourgeoisie and the proletariat, that is, the rich and the poor respectively. This division is unjustifiably wide as very few have access to the basic necessities of life. Education which is meant for all is left to a selected few in society, i.e. The wealthy few enjoy it at the expense of the poor mass’ sweats. In order to attain an egalitarian society, the poor and oppressed must fight to gain freedom from the capitalists, but then they need a tool with which to do this and that has been provided by Marxist philosophers. Jossop (1990: xx) opines that:
In 1844 Marx wrote that ‘material force can only be overthrown by material force; but theory itself becomes a material force when it is seized by the masses’. In this situation the proletariat needs the philosophers to provide it with intellectual weapons; but the philosophers need the proletariat to realize their philosophy.
CHAPTER THREE
POVERTY, CLASS STRATIFICATION AND SOCIAL
INJUSTICE IN OLUOBAFEMI’S WHEELS
OluObafemi’s major pre-occupation in Wheels is to expose social injustice, class stratification and poverty, as well as the possibility of resolution of conflicts. The novel is a fictional dialectic of awareness and consciousness to the happenings around us in society. With the novel, he portrayed how society has been eaten up by poverty, class stratification and social injustice. The setting of the novel is in the Yoruba speaking community which the author deliberately splits into two – one for the rich (the Government Reserved Area – GRA) and the order section is meant for the poor, which is made up of slums and filth and the inhabitants comprises of people who can hardly afford to eat or clothe themselves. The GRA houses the ex-Governors, contractors, Politicians, Generals, while the rejected area is left for those who are low income earner, yet they do the bulk of the work with little or nothing to show for their efforts. This group of people forms the majority of the community.
This stratification in class went further to X-ray the differences in the lives of the people in that community, where as the rich live in splendour and affluence, the poor perpetually squalor and languish in abject poverty who had no option than to live in one bedroom apartment which are in most cases dilapidated, sharing the same bathroom and pit toilet. Poverty, class stratification and social injustice are shown at the beginning of the novel through the character called Sergeant Musa but is fondly known as Sonja. Sonja laments that he fought bravely in the Nigerian civil war while those who sent them out to this war, made orders from their offices or from their hotel rooms where they brought lots of girls to make love to them. Despite this act of bravery, he is forcefully detained in his rank after the war on the account that he is an illiterate. He was eventually retired from the military with only 30 pound which he stated won’t be enough for him and his family even with the addition of the small trade he does. He states thus:
CHAPTER FOUR
POVERTY, CLASS STRATIFICATION AND SOCIAL INJUSTICE
IN FESTUS IYAYI’S VIOLENCE
This chapter analysed of Festus Iyayi’s first novel, Violence and how he uses the Marxist theory to negate the issues of poverty, class stratification and social injustice. This novel is a product of class stratified society and depicts the issues of poverty and social injustice. Iyayi attempts to liberate society with this text from the shackles of capitalism and proffer a possible solution that could transform society. In this novel, Iyayi opposes the bourgeois class as it oppresses the proletariat its power and money. Iyayi, like other Marxist scholars find it ironic that those who labour tirelessly to make society an economic viable nation and producers of society wealth are the ones who wallow in poverty, are stratified and face a lot of social injustice.
CHAPTER FIVE
FINDINGS, SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
In the writing of Iyayi and OluObafemi research, various methods have been applied for better presentation and easier comprehensive of what the researcher aims to achieve from carrying out this research. First of all the research work was divided into five chapters in which the first chapter introduces the reader (s) on what the works all about. It also states the aim and objectives, justification, scope and limitation of the work as well as the theory to be use in establishing the facts that the researcher has gathered; it also gives an insight into the biography of the two writers whose works have been use as a case study. The second chapter looked at the review of literature of scholars who in one way or the other, discussed the theory used for the research work. The third and fourth chapter looked into the analysis of wheels by OluObafemi and Violence by Festus Iyayi respectively, in a bid to discuss the problem of poverty, class stratification and social injustice as has been discussed by both writers. Chapter five focuses on the summary, findings and conclusion of the research work.
This research work has to some extent try to examine and analysed what OluObafemi and Festus Iyayi have portrayed in their works; Wheels and Violence, respectively. In both novels, they have been able to show the ills of society, which include poverty, class stratification and social injustice, and have been able to the harm these ills had done society, while giving a possible solution to the problem, which centreson revolution of the masses as propounded Marxism. These writers portray that the ills that the society face as a result of man’s greed to attain wealth as well as over ambitiousness, will continue to retard society until the poor rise up to the challenge, thereby taking“the bull by the horn” and liberate themselves from the inhumane treatment that they are subjected to.
These works exist to make the people aware of the level of class stratification, poverty and social injustice that exist in society today. It is as a result of that fact that so many writers have elaborated these issues in their various works, in a bid to wipe off these problems. These writers in treating these issues dwell on the issues of poverty as the main reason for class divisions. It is as a result of poverty which exists amongst the majority in the society that breeds the notion of the “haves and the have-nots”. These writers preach the need for the people to fight against poverty, class stratification and social injustice, so as to make society a classless environment where discrimination will no longer be obtainable. They explore the physical, psychological, and emotional consequences of how the less privileged is exploited and stratified by the rich. In addition, their pity for the poor has become their reason for their agitation for the oppression of the poor to cease and for them to also be sensitised towards social rebirth.
In a bid to examine, analyse and discuss these problems present in society, these writers use the Marxist theory since that is an ideology that identifies with the suffering, oppression, exploitation and stratification of the poor. The ideology seeks for a way to help them out of their situation and as well, aims for the attainment of a classless and egalitarian society built on equality. This is what is obtainable in OluObafemi’sWheelsand Festus IyayiViolence. Both writers use Marxist ideology to evoke and reawaken the level of consciousness of society. In the ways; it differs through its characterisation, setting, plot, diction and its style of writing but the most important thing to note is that despite the differences in form or structure, the texts expose the ills of poverty class stratification and social injustice which is generally seen as man’s inhumanity to man.
The rich who own the means of production are also the ones who rule over the poor, who are the ones actually producing, without the poor, owning the capital for production will be as good as being useless. This complexity in society is what Obafemi and Iyayi explore, in the neo-colonial structure, which the leaders of today have set. Obafemi and Iyayi are ideologically inclined towards socialist-realism and their texts are filled with revolutionary flavour. In this sense therefore, they find it easier in dividing the society into two classes in which the ruling class comprises of politicians, senior military officers, businessmen, while the lower class consists of farmers, traders, and the working class. The Nigerian society has been a divided one from the inception of colonial rule and even after independence because of capitalism, which is bound with greed, violence, exploitation, oppression, injustice, marginalization, stratification and poverty. Obafemi and Iyayi also expose the decay in the socio-political and economic state, and the dilapidation basic social amenities witness in all spheres of the nation, despite the natural endowment in both human and material resources that are under-utilised, which has become an eyesore in the society.
The texts Wheels and Violence can be seen as therapeutic novels, which give room for self-examination and proffer a solution as to how a better society could be born. These novels do not only portray the menace of the above-discussed ills, they also make use of the socialist-realism to proffer solutions to society plight. In Wheels,OluObafemi does not just expose the decadence in society; he also attempts to present a way out of the socio-political and economic situations in the society by bringing the poor together to fight against all sorts of injustice they face. He has outrighly used the Marxist ideology as a tool to end the division between the rich and the poor. He artistically creates a gathering in which both the rich and the poor are present. This act goes a long way to show that these writers are really concerned about the situation in the country.
In Violence also, Iyayi focuses on the socio-political and economic situations pertinent in society and brings to light the need for these problems to be addressed and resolved for the birth of an egalitarian society. Iyayi proffers solution to society by exemplifying his protagonist Idemudia as one who incorruptible and does not accept bribe even in his state of poverty. Therefore, Iyayi tries to point out the need for justice and fair play in which corruption is abhorred. The readers are motivated into action because their level of awareness is raise, as Iyayi presents sordidly, man’s inhumanity to man.
As the reader is made aware of all these problems, he is forced to find the need to restore the dignity of man, which can only be achieved through collectivism, and unity of all so as to achieve their goal. Iyayi exposes the insatiable appetite of man to gain wealth and power at the expense of the less privileged. The acquisition of wealth and power that is done at the expense of the lower class brings happiness and all manners of celebration to the rich in contrast to the pain, suffering and sorrow the poor face continually. This is dehumanisation and it brings to mind what is locally referred to as ‘man eating man’. The only difference here is, in this sense it is the emotion and psychology of man that is been eaten up. This creates bitterness that could generate into crime of all sorts.
Iyayi exposes a society where majority of families cannot afford three meals a day not even to talk of two. There is anger in the hearts of the poor and the choice of the title Violence indicates man’s inhumanity to man, which is barbaric and dehumanising in nature. The oppressed class is made to engage in all sorts of menial and dehumanising jobs. As I had cited example, Idemudia had to sell his own blood just to make a living and be able to feed his family. He offloads a huge amount of blocks under the rain after which he was paid a miserly amount of five naira. This made him sick and even when he goes for treatment; there are no beds for him to lie on. Man is faced with poverty, danger, disease and injustice.
Obafemi and Iyayi have made their message clear that the masses have to be in unity to fight against all these ills they go through, to make the society a suitable place to live in. The thought of the hateful reflex that emanates from the poor to the rich gives us an understanding of the reason why the need for an egalitarian society is necessary. These writers cannot sit back anymore and watch while the society accepts social injustices as a way of life. They believe that once the society understands that corruption and all these forms of social injustice are unprofitable and harmful, they will abandon it.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
PRIMARY SOURCES
- Iyayi, F. (1979). Violence. London: Longman Group.
- Obafemi, O. (1992). Nigerian Writer on the Nigerian Civil War.Kwara:Christy David Publication.
- Obafemi, O. (1970). Wheels.Ibadan: Kraft Books Limited.
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