Nigerian Female Playwrights and the Question of Patriarchy

Abstract

One issue that Nigerian female writers have had to contend with repeatedly in their works is that of male domination as the manifestation of a deep patriarchal tradition that has for centuries been part of a people’s culture, behavior, and attitude. In almost all the plays authored by women in Nigeria, there is an indubitable promotion of a sexist agenda based on the sufferings of women from their sexual counterparts, men. This study therefore employs the patriarchy theory in its interpretation of selected plays of Nigerian female playwrights and interrogates Hartmann’s claim of a despondent relationship between patriarchy and capitalism. Through a study of selected works of female playwrights like Zulu Sofola, Tess Onwueme, and Foluke Ogunleye, the study discovers that capitalism, though an instrument employed for the furtherance of patriarchal interests, will not suffice to deliver women from male hegemonic deportments