Jenna Radley
FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY- NOT FOR REDISTRIBUTION
ENGLISH 110 STUDY NOTES
Notes on Plays
Disclaimer & Usage Terms
These notes are for personal use only. Please do not share, copy, or redistribute them.
Jenna Academic Notes – Study smarter
1
, Jenna Radley
FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY- NOT FOR REDISTRIBUTION
THE LION AND THE JEWEL
by Wole Soyinka
EXAM REVISION GUIDE
Disclaimer & Usage Terms
These notes are for personal use only. Please do not share, copy, or redistribute them.
2
, Jenna Radley
FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY- NOT FOR REDISTRIBUTION
Content
Index:
1. Section 1: Plot Summary
2. Section 2: Character analysis
3. Section 3: Themes
4. Section 4: Quote Bank
5. Section 5: Diction & Word Choice
6. Section 6: Stage Directions
7. Section 7: Symbolism
8. Section 8: Metaphor
9. Section 9: Meta-Drama
10. Section 10: Essay Writing Support
11. Section 11: Exam Tips
12.Section 12: Quick Revision Section
DISCLAIMER ABOUT INFOGRAPHICS!!
Please Note: The diagrams and visuals in this guide were made using AI tools. Because of this,
there may be a few spelling or typing errors in some of the visuals. The written sections of the
guide have been carefully checked and are accurate. If something in a visual looks off, please
use the written sections as your main reference.
3
, Jenna Radley
FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY- NOT FOR REDISTRIBUTION
SECTION 1: PLOT SUMMARY
The play is divided into three sections named after times of day, each marking a shift in
power and perspective
Overview
Title The Lion and the Jewel
Wole Soyinka (Nigerian, 1934)
Playwright
1963
Published
Ilujinle, a small Yoruba village in Nigeria
Setting
Three scenes: Morning, Noon, Night -> no act breaks
Structure
African tragicomedy; satirical play
Genre
MORNING: The Conflict Introduced
• Sidi, the village belle, enters carrying a water pail. Lakunle (the school teacher) tries to carry
it for her
• Lakunle argues that carrying loads on the head is 'uncivilised'. He repeatedly tries to
modernise Sidi
• Lakunle proposes marriage but refuses to pay the bride-price - calling it a 'savage custom'.
Sidi refuses to marry without it
• Villagers arrive with exciting news: a city photographer ('the stranger') has returned with a
magazine featuring photographs of Sidi and Baroka the Bale (village chief).
• Sidi's picture appears on the cover and across two full pages; Baroka appears in a tiny
corner - next to a latrine
• Sidi is now more famous than the powerful Baroka. She declares she would not 'demean'
herself by marrying a mere school teacher
• KEY TURNING POINT: The meta-dramatic dance is performed - the villagers re-enact the
stranger's arrival through mime and music
• Baroka, watching from behind, sees the magazine and decides: 'five full months since last I
took a wife’
NOON: The Battle for Sidi Begins
• Sadiku (Baroka's head wife) delivers Baroka's marriage proposal to Sidi in the marketplace
• Sidi refuses, saying Baroka only wants her now because her fame has surpassed his own
• Lakunle recounts how Baroka cleverly bribed a surveyor to reroute the railway away from
Ilujinle -> another meta-dramatic mime sequence
• Baroka is revealed to be cunning, manipulative, and resistant to 'progress'
• In a private scene, Baroka tells Sadiku he has become impotent. He trusts Sadiku as his
'most faithful wife'
• KEY DRAMATIC IRONY: Baroka has fabricated his impotence - he knows Sadiku will
gossip
4
FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY- NOT FOR REDISTRIBUTION
ENGLISH 110 STUDY NOTES
Notes on Plays
Disclaimer & Usage Terms
These notes are for personal use only. Please do not share, copy, or redistribute them.
Jenna Academic Notes – Study smarter
1
, Jenna Radley
FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY- NOT FOR REDISTRIBUTION
THE LION AND THE JEWEL
by Wole Soyinka
EXAM REVISION GUIDE
Disclaimer & Usage Terms
These notes are for personal use only. Please do not share, copy, or redistribute them.
2
, Jenna Radley
FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY- NOT FOR REDISTRIBUTION
Content
Index:
1. Section 1: Plot Summary
2. Section 2: Character analysis
3. Section 3: Themes
4. Section 4: Quote Bank
5. Section 5: Diction & Word Choice
6. Section 6: Stage Directions
7. Section 7: Symbolism
8. Section 8: Metaphor
9. Section 9: Meta-Drama
10. Section 10: Essay Writing Support
11. Section 11: Exam Tips
12.Section 12: Quick Revision Section
DISCLAIMER ABOUT INFOGRAPHICS!!
Please Note: The diagrams and visuals in this guide were made using AI tools. Because of this,
there may be a few spelling or typing errors in some of the visuals. The written sections of the
guide have been carefully checked and are accurate. If something in a visual looks off, please
use the written sections as your main reference.
3
, Jenna Radley
FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY- NOT FOR REDISTRIBUTION
SECTION 1: PLOT SUMMARY
The play is divided into three sections named after times of day, each marking a shift in
power and perspective
Overview
Title The Lion and the Jewel
Wole Soyinka (Nigerian, 1934)
Playwright
1963
Published
Ilujinle, a small Yoruba village in Nigeria
Setting
Three scenes: Morning, Noon, Night -> no act breaks
Structure
African tragicomedy; satirical play
Genre
MORNING: The Conflict Introduced
• Sidi, the village belle, enters carrying a water pail. Lakunle (the school teacher) tries to carry
it for her
• Lakunle argues that carrying loads on the head is 'uncivilised'. He repeatedly tries to
modernise Sidi
• Lakunle proposes marriage but refuses to pay the bride-price - calling it a 'savage custom'.
Sidi refuses to marry without it
• Villagers arrive with exciting news: a city photographer ('the stranger') has returned with a
magazine featuring photographs of Sidi and Baroka the Bale (village chief).
• Sidi's picture appears on the cover and across two full pages; Baroka appears in a tiny
corner - next to a latrine
• Sidi is now more famous than the powerful Baroka. She declares she would not 'demean'
herself by marrying a mere school teacher
• KEY TURNING POINT: The meta-dramatic dance is performed - the villagers re-enact the
stranger's arrival through mime and music
• Baroka, watching from behind, sees the magazine and decides: 'five full months since last I
took a wife’
NOON: The Battle for Sidi Begins
• Sadiku (Baroka's head wife) delivers Baroka's marriage proposal to Sidi in the marketplace
• Sidi refuses, saying Baroka only wants her now because her fame has surpassed his own
• Lakunle recounts how Baroka cleverly bribed a surveyor to reroute the railway away from
Ilujinle -> another meta-dramatic mime sequence
• Baroka is revealed to be cunning, manipulative, and resistant to 'progress'
• In a private scene, Baroka tells Sadiku he has become impotent. He trusts Sadiku as his
'most faithful wife'
• KEY DRAMATIC IRONY: Baroka has fabricated his impotence - he knows Sadiku will
gossip
4
