Wole Soyinka, born Akinwande Oluwole Babatunde Soyinka on July 13, 1934, in Abeokuta, Nigeria, is a distinguished Nigerian playwright, poet, and essayist. Regarded as one of Africa’s most celebrated and influential writers, Soyinka’s literary contributions have made a profound impact on both the African and global literary landscapes.
Soyinka’s early exposure to literature, combined with his experiences growing up in a multicultural and politically charged Nigeria, shaped his literary trajectory. He attended universities in Nigeria, the United Kingdom, and the United States, where he honed his craft and developed a unique voice that blended indigenous Yoruba culture with Western literary traditions.
Soyinka’s works often explore themes of African identity, political corruption, social justice, and the clash between tradition and modernity. In his plays, such as “Death and the King’s Horseman” and “A Dance of the Forests,” he delves into the complexities of African history, culture, and the impact of colonization. Soyinka fearlessly exposed societal injustices and challenged oppressive regimes through his art, earning him both admiration and criticism.
In 1986, Soyinka became the first African writer to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, a testament to his profound literary achievements and impact. The Nobel Committee recognized his powerful works that “in a wide cultural perspective and with poetic overtones, fashions the drama of existence.” This prestigious accolade brought global attention to Soyinka’s literary prowess and further elevated African literature on the world stage.
Soyinka’s literary contributions were intertwined with his activism and unwavering commitment to social justice. He openly criticized oppressive regimes, corruption, and abuses of power, often risking his own safety and freedom. His outspokenness and involvement in political activism, including his opposition to Nigeria’s military dictatorship, resulted in periods of exile and imprisonment.
Wole Soyinka’s impact extends beyond his literary achievements. He has inspired generations of African writers and artists to embrace their cultural heritage, speak truth to power, and explore complex social and political issues through their creative expressions. Soyinka’s powerful words and unwavering commitment to justice continue to resonate with readers worldwide, challenging assumptions, sparking dialogue, and urging societies to strive for a more equitable and just world.
Wole Soyinka’s literary genius, activism, and profound insights into the human condition have solidified his status as a literary giant and a voice of African consciousness. Through his plays, poetry, and essays, Soyinka has enriched the global literary landscape, providing a platform for African narratives and offering invaluable perspectives on the complexities of identity, power, and social justice. His unwavering dedication to truth, justice, and artistic excellence ensures that Wole Soyinka’s legacy will continue to inspire and shape generations of writers, thinkers, and activists, both on the African continent and beyond.
But the ultimate lesson is just sit down and write. That’s all.
Wole Soyinka
Even when I’m writing plays I enjoy having company and mentally I think of that company as the company I’m writing for.
Wole Soyinka
See, even despite pious statements to the contrary, much of the industrialized world has not yet come to terms with the recognition of the fallacy of what I call the strong man syndrome.
Wole Soyinka
But when you’re deprived of it for a lengthy period then you value human companionship. But you have to survive and so you devise all kinds of mental exercises and it’s amazing.
Wole Soyinka
I consider the process of gestation just as important as when you’re actually sitting down putting words to the paper.
Wole Soyinka
Read more quotes from these Nobel Laureates in Literature:
[table “111” could not be loaded /]I don’t really consider myself a novelist, it just came out purely by accident.
Wole Soyinka
I found, when I left, that there were others who felt the same way. We’d meet, they’d come and seek me out, we’d talk about the future. And I found that their depression and pessimism was every bit as acute as mine.
Wole Soyinka
I grew up in an atmosphere where words were an integral part of culture.
Wole Soyinka
I think that feeling that if one believed absolutely in any cause, then one must have the confidence, the self-certainty, to go through with that particular course of action.
Wole Soyinka
I’m not one of those writers I learned about who get up in the morning, put a piece of paper in their typewriter machine and start writing. That I’ve never understood.
Wole Soyinka
Looking at faces of people, one gets the feeling there’s a lot of work to be done.
Wole Soyinka
My horizon on humanity is enlarged by reading the writers of poems, seeing a painting, listening to some music, some opera, which has nothing at all to do with a volatile human condition or struggle or whatever. It enriches me as a human being.
Wole Soyinka
One thing I can tell you is this, that I am not a methodical writer.
Wole Soyinka
Power is domination, control, and therefore a very selective form of truth which is a lie.
Wole Soyinka
Books and all forms of writing are terror to those who wish to suppress the truth.
Wole Soyinka
The greatest threat to freedom is the absence of criticism.
Wole Soyinka
The hand that dips into the bottom of the pot will eat the biggest snail.
Wole Soyinka
The novel, for me, was an accident. I really don’t consider myself a novelist.
Wole Soyinka
One, a mass movement from within, which, as you know, is constantly being put down brutally but which, again, regroups and moves forward as is happening right now as we are speaking.
Wole Soyinka
And I believe that the best learning process of any kind of craft is just to look at the work of others.
Wole Soyinka
And gradually they’re beginning to recognize the fact that there’s nothing more secure than a democratic, accountable, and participatory form of government. But it’s sunk in only theoretically, it has not yet sunk in completely in practical terms.
Wole Soyinka
But theater, because of its nature, both text, images, multimedia effects, has a wider base of communication with an audience. That’s why I call it the most social of the various art forms.
Wole Soyinka
Well, first of all I’ll say that I come alive best in theater.
Wole Soyinka
Well, the first thing is that truth and power for me form an antithesis, an antagonism, which will hardly ever be resolved. I can define in fact, can simplify the history of human society, the evolution of human society, as a contest between power and freedom.
Wole Soyinka
Very conscious of the fact that an effort was being made to destroy my mind, because I was deprived of books, deprived of any means of writing, deprived of human companionship. You never know how much you need it until you’re deprived of it.
Wole Soyinka
There’s something about the theater which makes my fingertips tingle.
Wole Soyinka
There’s a kind of dynamic quality about theater and that dynamic quality expresses itself in relation to, first of all, the environment in which it’s being staged; then the audience, the nature of the audience, the quality of the audience.
Wole Soyinka
There are different kinds of artists and very often, I’ll be very frank with you, I wish I were a different kind.
Wole Soyinka
