33 Efua Sutherland: The Marriage of Anansewa

Dr. Parimala Kulkarni

Content

1. Objectives

2. Introduction

3. About the author

4. Works

5. Themes and concerns

6. The Marriage of Anansewa

7. Critical acclaim

8. Summary

Objectives

• Efua Sutherland, Ghanaian playwright
• Her works, plays, major themes, influence
• Her play The Marriage of Anansewa
• Critical acclaim and her contribution to Ghanaian drama and culture

Introduction

Efua Sutherland (1924 -1996) was a pioneer of African theatre, prominent Ghanaian playwright, poet, producer, children’s author, teacher, research scholar, and social worker. She is best known as a dramatist but her work is informed by a vision of a better society which she believed could be established through imparting suitable cultural education. She is recognised as one of Ghana’s dynamic voices in employing traditional theatre for promoting social change. As a creative thinker and activist she used her talents and skills in educating the future generation.

About the Author

Born in Akan, Ghana, Sutherland was exposed to two dichotomous cultures, that of Europe and her Akan roots. Educated first at Ghana, and later in England, she returned to Ghana in 1950. After Ghana’s independence in 1952, Sutherland actively participated in the rebuilding of the nation. One of the foremost Ghanaian intellectual/activist/artists she contributed significantly to the educational and cultural life of Ghana.

Sutherland co-founded the Ghana Society of Writers (1957) and the literary magazine Okyeame (1961). In 1958 Sutherland established the Ghana Experimental Theatre in Accra. In 1960 she received funding from the U.S.-based Rockefeller Foundation and the Arts Council of Ghana and the Experimental Theatre became the Ghana Drama Studio. Initially she established the Drama Studio as a workshop for children’s writers. But it soon became a training ground for Ghanaian playwrights, providing an outlet for creative new theatre. When Ama Ata Aidoo another prominent Ghanaian playwright, studied drama at the University of Ghana in the early 1960s, Sutherland was her mentor.

Sutherland held a number of academic and government administrative positions in Ghana. She was the foundation member and later chairperson of the Ghana National Commission on Children. In the 1990s, she initiated the Mmofra Foundation (Mmofra means “children” in Akan), dedicated to enriching the cultural and intellectual lives of all children in Ghana.

Sutherland mooted the idea of the Panafest Movement, an original proposal for the Pan African Historical Theatre Festival. This was her artistic vision for enriching and reuniting African peoples which shows her commitment to forging links between Africa and the Diaspora. She was instrumental in establishing the W.E. B. DuBois Memorial Centre for Pan African Culture.

Works

A leading Ghanaian writer, Sutherland is also one of Africa’s best known literary voices. She wrote in both the Akan language and in English. Besides a number of essays, articles, short stories and poems, she also wrote a short biography and books and plays for children. It is her plays that brought her literary acclaim at home and abroad.

Plays

Sutherland began her career writing short stories, but she discovered that theatre/drama would have a wider reach in the newly independent Ghana, where most citizens were illiterate. She pioneered an indigenous movement in writing, publishing and development through drama. Her best-known plays are Foriwa (1962), Edufa (1967), and  The Marriage of Anansewa (1967).

Foriwa, Sutherland’s first major play, is based on a folktale in which African mothers caution their daughters from unknown handsome men with a message that young women  who break the community rules face disaster. Sutherland transforms the story to convey a positive message. Foriwa was considered a metaphor for the newly independent Ghana. Foriwa also emphasizes the role of women in the process of decolonization and the revitalization of communities through traditional customs and values and by adopting modernity judiciously.

Edufa is based on Euripedes’ Greek play Alcestis. Alcestis sacrifices her life in order to bring her husband back from the dead. In Edufa, Sutherland locates this myth in an African setting. Unlike in Euripedes’ play where the wife is restored to life, Sutherland’s play is a tragedy, where giving up traditional values in favour of contemporary materialism brings about the downfall of Edufa. The play contrasts Edufa’s individualistic self-centredness with other characters who favour the traditional communal ways.

Themes and concerns

Sutherland played a key role in modern Ghanaian theatre and through her research into the African way of life, discovered the need for reviving the rich African traditions. This awareness influenced her thematic concerns in her plays.

Tradition and modernity

Her plays focus on the alliance of old traditions and new ways in rebuilding a progressive contemporary Ghana. Foriwa’s central theme is to bring about a spirit of openness to new ideas and inter-ethnic cooperation while reinforcing the affirmative traditional values. Edufa portrays the tragedy of a westernised man who trades traditional values in favour of contemporary capitalist greed and vanity. In The Marriage of Anansewa, Sutherland combines the traditional folk tale conventions with modern dramatic techniques.

Role ofwomen

Sutherland examines the position and role of women in contemporary Ghanaian society. Foriwa places women in the forefront as agents of cultural transformation, development and modernity, while continuing to uphold traditional values. In Sutherland’s Edufa and The Marriage of Anansewa, woman’s objectification is a matter of key concern. Sutherland’s plays support a meaningful change in relationships between men and women.

The Marriage of Anansewa

The Marriage of Anansewa: A Storytelling Drama (1975) is considered Sutherland’s most valuable contribution to Ghanaian drama and theatre. A comic play, it was published after its productions in Akan and English by three companies in Ghana. The Marriage of Anansewa made a strong impact on contemporary African theatre after its premiere in Ghana in 1971 and later at the Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture in Lagos, Nigeria, in 1977.

Background

In her search for an Afro-centric medium of artistic expression, Sutherland started to explore the traditional theatrical forms and conventions and discovered that pre-colonial Ghana enjoyed a rich culture of pageantry. In the diverse traditions of all the ethnic groups in Ghana, drama, drumming and dancing were integral to their cultures. She used the rich oral tradition of storytelling, rendition of songs, ritual dances and several traditional ceremonies and festivals in her plays. The traditional theatre she developed is known as Anansegoro.

Anansegoro

In Marriage of Anansewa, Sutherland develops the Akan art of story-telling called Anansesem which includes elements such as musical interludes and community participation. The Anansesem, literally ‘Ananse stories’, is a term used both for the body of stories told  and for the story-telling performance itself. Ananse is the spider-trickster in Akan oral narratives. Sutherland develops the traditional Akan spider tales into a new dramatic  structure which she calls Anansegoro. In the foreword to the play she writes about the origin of Anansegoro, and the significance of Ananse a kind of “Everyman, artistically exaggerated and distorted to serve society as a medium for self-examination”(3). In Anansesem which is a community art, the Storyteller tells the whole story himself and musical performances called Mboguo are part of the stories and are performed in context led by the Storyteller. It is a convention for Mboguo to be contributed by other people present. Sutherland in the foreword says that “Mboguo in its traditional concept has been inherited wholesale by Anansegoro”(4) The play recreates the communal storytelling atmosphere with audience involvement, songs, dance and a storyteller who interacts with both players and audience. Anansegoro is Sutherland’s new theatrical form with emphasis on rhythm, music, and dance.

Summary of the play

The four act play centres around George Kweku Ananse, the famous spider-trickster figure of African oral narratives. In the play he is a crafty modern individual who uses every opportunity to acquire wealth by cunning and fraudulent means. Act one sets out Ananse’s problem-poverty and his plan to solve it. Ananse, devises a scheme to use his daughter’s physical beauty to secure not one but four suitors. He selects four rich chiefs and shows them a photograph of his marriageable daughter. He invites them to formally ask for his daughter’s hand in marriage while not informing them that each of them is competing against three others. He leads each of the four chiefs to believe that he is best suited for his beautiful daughter Anansewa.

Anansewa unwittingly types the letters that her father dictates. However, when she realises that the letters are for securing a husband for her, she protests. She accuses her father of selling her like “some parcel to a customer” (20). Her cunning father calls her ungrateful and reminds her of all the suffering that he underwent for her sake and finally convinces her of the necessity of such a plan and demands her cooperation in ensuring the material well- being of the family. Simultaneously he also arouses her interest in one of the chiefs, Chief- Who-is-Chief, whom he describes as “finely built, glowing black, large eyed, handsome as anything, courageous and famous” (21). In addition, the Chief has already given Ananse some money with which to pay Anansewa’s Secretarial school fees. Consequently, Anansewa becomes interested in this Chief. In Act Two Ananse’s scheme is successful, he gets rich. With the gifts received from all the Chiefs, he improves his lifestyle considerably, renovates his house and buys new clothes.

In Act Three tension mounts as all the four chiefs are interested in marrying Anansewa. Each chief chooses a date for the customary marriage, the ‘head-drink’ ceremony, a token by which the marriage is legally established.  Unfortunately, all the four chiefs  choose the same day for the ceremony. Ananse is caught in his own web. He needs to solve the serious problem before it brings trouble. He finds a solution by getting Anansewa to feign death. Then he invites his mother, Aya, his aunt Ekuwa and his friend Christie to the ‘outdooring’ ceremony for Anansewa. He cuts short the ceremony and sends back his mother and aunt on the pretext that the enemies have set fire to their cocoa farm in their hometown.

In the final act, the message of the unfortunate death of Anansewa is conveyed to each suitor. Hearing the news the Chiefs send their condolences along with their gifts. The messengers of the Chiefs inadvertently reveal the real intentions and motives behind the Chiefs’ decision to marry Anansewa. Three out of the four chiefs desire to marry Anansewa with an ulterior motive. It is the Chief-Who-Is-Chief, through his messengers, reveals that “he accepts total responsibility for everything concerning the woman who had but one more step to take to enter his home. Therefore, from his hands… here are all requirements for her funeral…” (86) “Finally”, the messenger points out that, it is the desire of Chief-Who-Is- Chief “to do for Anansewa what a husband does for a wife. (87) Thus it is the Chief-Who-Is- Chief who is really sincere in his love for Anansewa even in her death. Ananse is so overwhelmed by the chief’s gesture of affection, concern, generosity and thoughtfulness, that he goes into a trance and invokes his Ancestors to bring back Anansewa to life:

See to it that she returns to life!

Wake her.

See to it that Anansewa awakes

And returns to become a bride!

At the invocation Anansewa wakes as if from a deep sleep and exclaims, “Father, I could hear Chief-Who-Is-Chief calling me” (91). The power of love ostensibly triumphs over death and the play ends on a happy note.

Characters

Ananse

Ananse the spider-trickster figure of the Akan oral narratives assumes the form of George Kweku Ananse in the play. He is the archetypal trickster. Ananse uses his wits to not only survive but also to gain material wealth. He is pretentious and condemns wealth, yet in order to prosper he does not hesitate to auction his human possession, his daughter. Resourceful, clever and cunning, he turns an established custom to his advantage. He encourages all the four chiefs to shower him with gifts for maintaining ‘their object of interest’. He is cunningly confident that he is not obliged to give his daughter’s hand in marriage until the head drink is sent for Anansewa. Yet he panics, revealing his father’s concern for the daughter, when all the four chiefs choose the same date for the head drink ceremony. However he successfully spins another web and resolves the issue to his advantage and secures the groom whom his daughter has fallen in love with.

Ananse’s success lies in his knowledge of society and human nature. He is very secretive and does not reveal his plans to anyone. He gets Anansewa to type letters for him but does not reveal the purpose of the letter to her. He uses his own mother and aunt for performing the ‘outdooring’ ceremony but hurries them away with a lie when he does not need them. He takes Christie into confidence only when he wants her to help him attend to the visitors. And Ananse confuses the whole community with his fake mourning. He is able to cheat even the “great” leaders of his society, who are “four prominent chiefs of the land”.

Though he considers his daughter a ‘priceless possession’ and the chiefs’ ‘object of interest’ he cares for his daughter enough to empower her through education and make her independent. While cashing in on the social custom of brideprice to acquire material comfort for himself, Ananse also wishes for his daughter the best husband who would respect and care for her.

Anansewa

Anansewa is Ananse’s only daughter. Unlike in the Akan folk tales where Ananse has no daughters, Ananse in the play has a female child. Anansewa is a twenty year beautiful, young and educated modern woman. She is an intelligent woman and expresses displeasure at being denied the freedom to choose her own husband. She objects to her being sold as a commodity to ‘some old chief with fifty wives’. However when her father speaks of the possibility of a handsome, strong, courageous and famous Chief-Who-Is-Chief, she decides to leave it all in her father’s hands and trust him. And she is rewarded for believing in her father because among all the four chiefs it is the Chief-Who-Is-Chief who reveals genuine love for her. She may be seen as submissive with no will of her own, however it is significant that she ‘submits’ to her father’s will and allows her to be manipulated only after she is sure about who she is going to marry. Though it is Ananse who spins the web around her, it is Anansewa who controls the thread of her father’s web.

Aya

Aya, Ananse’s mother is a loving mother and grandmother. Embodying traditional values, her gift for her grandchild is her prayer for Anansewa to marry a good ‘person with respect for fellow human beings’ (51). Respecting traditional culture she serves as a contrast to her son in whom the values are distorted by the Western materialism illustrated by his trickery and his desire to amass wealth by any means.

Christina Yamoah

A fashionable woman, Ananse describes her as worldly-wise and a helper and supporter. She comes to help Ananse and Anansewa. She takes care of Anansewa in the ‘outdooring’ ceremony and tries to win Ananse’s heart. She is out to impress Ananse’s mother in an effort to marry Ananse. And when Anansewa feigns death, it is Christie who takes the responsibility of receiving the chiefs’ messengers and their gifts while Ananse ‘mourns’ the loss of his only child. She also carefully guards Anansewa’s ‘body’ ensuring that no one goes too near.

Other Characters

Ekuwa, Ananse’s aunt and Aya’s sister, understands and accommodates the younger generation. The couple Akwasi and Akosua perform the Mboguo to emphasise the point that the suitor has no claim over the prospective bride until the head-drink ceremony is  performed. The Story teller is a genial and astute commentator. The carpenter, mason, painter and the postman are used to comment on the priorities of the society which values wealth. The Chiefs are not seen on stage but we hear about them through their messengers. They are all rich, generous and love flattery. The Property man is the stage manager and not necessarily a character in the play.

Themes

Brideprice, marriage and love

The play examines how the tradition of brideprice is used by Ananse to exploit suitors to gain material acquisitions. Marriage becomes a kind of ‘auction’ where the bride is ‘sold’ to the highest bidder. The play questions the idea of daughter as a human ‘possession’, an ‘object’ and a ‘commodity’ to be sold in the ‘market’ of matrimony. The play is also a father’s quest for securing the best husband for his daughter. The play’s meaning can be found in its climax where the four chiefs respond to Anansewa’s death. It is only Chief-Who- Is-Chief, who wins Anansewa’s heart, because his  love goes beyond customary rituals.  What is of significance is genuine love and total commitment even in the face of death. It is this love that ‘brings’ back Anansewa to life.

Role of women in contemporary society

The play also interrogates the role of women in contemporary society. Ananse is clearly in charge of all the women in the play: his daughter Anansewa, mother Aya, aunt Ekuwa and Christie, a fashionable woman. He manipulates all of them to suit his needs. However, Anansewa and Christie abet his plans as long as it suits their purpose. The play can be seen as a critique of a society which views women as being hailed largely due to their beauty and their ability to captivate marriageable men through their physical charm. The play also questions the tradition in which women are “marketed” around for the benefit of a family or community.

Survival, materialism and consumer culture in postcolonial times

The play also focuses on the survival strategies of the impoverished Ananse. He cannot afford the fees of Anansewa, so he plans to get the money through cunning and fraudulent means. He is also interested in acquiring wealth and comforts for himself. The materialistic motives of Ananse and the nouveau riche are mocked and ridiculed. The play satirises the hopes and aspirations of people to get rich by dishonest means. It is also a satire on the contemporary attitude of respecting the rich: the post man starts saluting Ananse only after he acquires wealth; and only the wealthy are invited to state functions.

SettingThere is no definite mention of locale, but it may be assumed to be set in a town in post-independent Ghana.

Dramatic techniques

Although the play is structured into four acts in the format of a modern African folk theatre, it comes out of the tradition of the oral narrative performance. It adopts many of the techniques of the oral tradition.

The Storyteller

The Story teller is central to the play, relates to the actors on the stage, the players and the audience. He prepares us for successive scenes, explains important events, comments on the behaviour of the actors and engages with both the actors and the audience. He condenses time by recalling the past events that influence the present situation. His story could be interrupted and he agrees in the traditional African story-telling sessions:

Song leader: Hold your story for a while.

Storyteller: It is held for you brother.

The Audience

The audience become deeply involved in the performance. Early in the play we see Ananse trying to involve the audience by asking if any of them could provide a “simple solution for living this life” asks: [To the audience:] Brother, could it be you? Mother, how about you? Nobody?

It is a collaborative activity from which both the performer and audience derive equal benefit and pleasure. The audience joins in singing and sometimes makes comments.

The Players

All the actors, except the key actors, appear on stage and do not wear costume as specific actors. They enter at the appropriate time to play their roles. They are used as actors when the time comes and go back to join the players. They are also the participating audience.

The Property man

The Property man is stationed on stage. Usually, he is hidden backstage handing over the props. Contrary to this practice, Sutherland brings him on stage to give the props to the actors in full view of the audience. There is no illusion of reality. In fact, he plays the role of a stage manager and when he is free he participates and responds to the players or the actors on stage.

Mboguo

The use of songs is another important aspect of the adaptation of the oral narrative for her dramatic art. The songs serve different purposes: to take the story forward or to provide transitions between situations. Sometimes, the key actors start the song and the players join in. The songs also provide opportunity to the audience to participate in the performance. Mboguo may take other forms too like a dance or mime or a commentary. It could even be a scene—a play within a play.

Mime

Mime is used extensively. Some of the songs are mimed and help to highlight the stories that the songs tell, for instance, the song on Odum’s child (30). Certain actions too are mimed like in the Post Office scene (17).

Play within a play

The Akwasi and Akosua episode is used to emphasize the fact that until the head- drink is placed by a suitor for his prospective wife, he has no claim over her legally. It is made very clear that Akosua is under no obligation to Akwasi despite accepting gifts from him. Similarly Anansewa is under no obligation to any of the chiefs. And, Ananse who is well aware of this, exploits it and profits from the custom.

 Critical acclaim

Sutherland’s plays received critical acclaim for her innovative experiments of adapting ancient sources and theatrical techniques to modern drama. She used Ghanaian oral tradition as a tool for evolving an authentic Ghanaian theatre. Sutherland formed a community theatre in Ekumfi-Atwian called Kodzidan (Story House) and a travelling performance group called Kusum Agoromba and travelled around Ghana with her performance groups. Sutherland is admired for her commitment to taking theatre to remote villages and known for the portrayal of women’s roles in promoting social and political change in Africa.

Summary

This module gave an introduction to Efua Sutherland and her works, themes and her contribution to Ghanaian drama and culture and the strong impact of her dramatic art on contemporary African theatre. Next it provided an overview of her play The Marriage of Anansewa, and the innovative dramatic techniques used by Sutherland.

References

• Anyidoho,    Kofi, James Gibbs, Eds. FonTomFrom: Contemporary Ghanaian Literature, Theatre and Film. Amsterdam and Atlanta: Rodopi, 2000.Web.
• Benson, Eugene, ed. Encyclopedia of Post-Colonial Literatures in English. Vol.2. London and NewYork: Routledge, 1994. Print.
• July, Robert W. An African Voice: The Role of the Humanities in African Independence.
• Durham: Duke UP, 1987. Web.
• Lokko, Sophia D. Theatre Space: A Historical Overview of the Theatre Movement in Ghana.
• Modern Drama. Vol 23, No 3, Fall 1980, pp. 309-319. Web.
• Sutherland, Efua T. Two Plays: The Marriage of Anansewa, Edufa. Harlow: Longman, 1987. Print.