Gender Issues in the Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka: A Linguistics-Oriented Analysis from a Systemic Functional Grammar and Critical Discourse Analysis Perspective

Patrice C. Akogbeto; Albert O. Koukpossi

doi:doi:10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13

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Gender Issues in the Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka: A Linguistics-Oriented Analysis from a Systemic Functional Grammar and Critical Discourse Analysis Perspective

Patrice C. Akogbeto, Albert O. Koukpossi

Published in Communication and Linguistics Studies (Volume 1, Issue 2)

Received: 18 June 2015 Accepted: 25 June 2015 Published: 1 July 2015

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Abstract

The term gender is relatively new in such disciplines as Sociology, Anthropology, Political Science, Sociolinguistics, let alone with Literary Linguistics. As opposed to sex which refers to biological characteristics, gender is culture based. Nowadays, it is actively recommended to include aspects of gender in whatever project we undertake. The present article is an attempt at probing the language used by male and female characters in Soyinka’s The Lion and the Jewel to see how gender issues are grounded in the play to let it play its didactic role. The aim is to pinpoint the way female and male are represented through a lexicogramatical analysis with a special focus on its transitivity system as suggested by Halliday (1994) to enter Wole Soyinka’s characters’ inner and outer world as they use language to enable them ‘to build a mental picture of reality, to make sense of what goes on around them and inside them’ (1994:106). That Soyinka considers or does not consider women or just recounts the situation of women in Yoruba traditional societies is what is at stake in this study. The results of the investigation in the light of transitivity and Critical Discourse Analysis shows that Soyinka, consciously or unconsciously has represented male characters as strong, powerful and metaphorically as a lion, a symbol of irresistible power. They are also portrayed as initiator, doer of something, and commander in chief, the king while their female counterparts (Sidi, Sadikou) are represented as goals and/or beneficiaries of men’s actions and associated with processes of sensing and of emotion.

Published in	Communication and Linguistics Studies (Volume 1, Issue 2)
DOI	10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13
Page(s)	26-34
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2015. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Gender, Power, Transitivity, Systemic Functional Linguistic, Critical Discourse Analysis

References

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[3]	Coates, J. (2004) Women, Men and Language: A Sociolinguistics Account of Gender Differences in Language, 3rd edn. London: Pearson Education Limited.
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[5]	Gallardo, B. C. (2006) ‘Analysis of a literary work using Systemic-Functional Grammar’. Online document, available online at www.academia.edu. Retrieval date: 12/03/2013.
[6]	Haig, E. (2009) ‘Ideational aspects of meaning: A study of process type usage in a radio news bulletin about youth crime’, in Studies in Media and Society, pp.29-44.
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[17]	Koukpossi, O. A. (2009) ‘Media text analysis through the grammar of interpersonal meaning and textual meaning’, unpublished Maîtrise dissertation. University of Abomey-Calavi, Benin.
[18]	Koukpossi, O. A. (2012) ‘Lexico-grammatical analysis of The Imprisonment of Obatala by Obotunde Ijimere and The Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka: A systemic functional approach.Unpublished DEA dissertation. University of Abomey, Benin.
[19]	Koussouhon, L. and Koukpossi O. A. (2013) ‘Analyse lexico-grammaticale du discours d'investiture de François Hollande avec un accent spécial sur la transitivité’, in Revue Togolaise des Sciences. Vol. 7, n°1 : 314-331.
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[29]	Soyinka, W. (2001) The Lion and the Jewel. Ibadan: Mosuro Edition.
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Patrice C. Akogbeto, Albert O. Koukpossi. (2015). Gender Issues in the Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka: A Linguistics-Oriented Analysis from a Systemic Functional Grammar and Critical Discourse Analysis Perspective. Communication and Linguistics Studies, 1(2), 26-34. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13

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ACS Style

Patrice C. Akogbeto; Albert O. Koukpossi. Gender Issues in the Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka: A Linguistics-Oriented Analysis from a Systemic Functional Grammar and Critical Discourse Analysis Perspective. Commun. Linguist. Stud. 2015, 1(2), 26-34. doi: 10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13

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AMA Style

Patrice C. Akogbeto, Albert O. Koukpossi. Gender Issues in the Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka: A Linguistics-Oriented Analysis from a Systemic Functional Grammar and Critical Discourse Analysis Perspective. Commun Linguist Stud. 2015;1(2):26-34. doi: 10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13

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@article{10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13,
  author = {Patrice C. Akogbeto and Albert O. Koukpossi},
  title = {Gender Issues in the Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka: A Linguistics-Oriented Analysis from a Systemic Functional Grammar and Critical Discourse Analysis Perspective},
  journal = {Communication and Linguistics Studies},
  volume = {1},
  number = {2},
  pages = {26-34},
  doi = {10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.cls.20150102.13},
  abstract = {The term gender is relatively new in such disciplines as Sociology, Anthropology, Political Science, Sociolinguistics, let alone with Literary Linguistics. As opposed to sex which refers to biological characteristics, gender is culture based. Nowadays, it is actively recommended to include aspects of gender in whatever project we undertake. The present article is an attempt at probing the language used by male and female characters in Soyinka’s The Lion and the Jewel to see how gender issues are grounded in the play to let it play its didactic role. The aim is to pinpoint the way female and male are represented through a lexicogramatical analysis with a special focus on its transitivity system as suggested by Halliday (1994) to enter Wole Soyinka’s characters’ inner and outer world as they use language to enable them ‘to build a mental picture of reality, to make sense of what goes on around them and inside them’ (1994:106). That Soyinka considers or does not consider women or just recounts the situation of women in Yoruba traditional societies is what is at stake in this study. The results of the investigation in the light of transitivity and Critical Discourse Analysis shows that Soyinka, consciously or unconsciously has represented male characters as strong, powerful and metaphorically as a lion, a symbol of irresistible power. They are also portrayed as initiator, doer of something, and commander in chief, the king while their female counterparts (Sidi, Sadikou) are represented as goals and/or beneficiaries of men’s actions and associated with processes of sensing and of emotion.},
 year = {2015}
}

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T1  - Gender Issues in the Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka: A Linguistics-Oriented Analysis from a Systemic Functional Grammar and Critical Discourse Analysis Perspective
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AB  - The term gender is relatively new in such disciplines as Sociology, Anthropology, Political Science, Sociolinguistics, let alone with Literary Linguistics. As opposed to sex which refers to biological characteristics, gender is culture based. Nowadays, it is actively recommended to include aspects of gender in whatever project we undertake. The present article is an attempt at probing the language used by male and female characters in Soyinka’s The Lion and the Jewel to see how gender issues are grounded in the play to let it play its didactic role. The aim is to pinpoint the way female and male are represented through a lexicogramatical analysis with a special focus on its transitivity system as suggested by Halliday (1994) to enter Wole Soyinka’s characters’ inner and outer world as they use language to enable them ‘to build a mental picture of reality, to make sense of what goes on around them and inside them’ (1994:106). That Soyinka considers or does not consider women or just recounts the situation of women in Yoruba traditional societies is what is at stake in this study. The results of the investigation in the light of transitivity and Critical Discourse Analysis shows that Soyinka, consciously or unconsciously has represented male characters as strong, powerful and metaphorically as a lion, a symbol of irresistible power. They are also portrayed as initiator, doer of something, and commander in chief, the king while their female counterparts (Sidi, Sadikou) are represented as goals and/or beneficiaries of men’s actions and associated with processes of sensing and of emotion.
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Author Information

Patrice C. Akogbeto

Department of English Studies, Faculty of Arts and Humanities (FLASH)，Laboratory for Research in Linguistics and Literature (LabReLL)， University of Abomey-Calavi (UAC), Abomey-Calavi, Benin
Albert O. Koukpossi

Department of English Studies, Faculty of Arts and Humanities (FLASH)，Laboratory for Research in Linguistics and Literature (LabReLL)， University of Abomey-Calavi (UAC), Abomey-Calavi, Benin

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Patrice C. Akogbeto, Albert O. Koukpossi. (2015). Gender Issues in the Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka: A Linguistics-Oriented Analysis from a Systemic Functional Grammar and Critical Discourse Analysis Perspective. Communication and Linguistics Studies, 1(2), 26-34. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13

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Patrice C. Akogbeto; Albert O. Koukpossi. Gender Issues in the Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka: A Linguistics-Oriented Analysis from a Systemic Functional Grammar and Critical Discourse Analysis Perspective. Commun. Linguist. Stud. 2015, 1(2), 26-34. doi: 10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13

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AMA Style

Patrice C. Akogbeto, Albert O. Koukpossi. Gender Issues in the Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka: A Linguistics-Oriented Analysis from a Systemic Functional Grammar and Critical Discourse Analysis Perspective. Commun Linguist Stud. 2015;1(2):26-34. doi: 10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13

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@article{10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13,
  author = {Patrice C. Akogbeto and Albert O. Koukpossi},
  title = {Gender Issues in the Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka: A Linguistics-Oriented Analysis from a Systemic Functional Grammar and Critical Discourse Analysis Perspective},
  journal = {Communication and Linguistics Studies},
  volume = {1},
  number = {2},
  pages = {26-34},
  doi = {10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.cls.20150102.13},
  abstract = {The term gender is relatively new in such disciplines as Sociology, Anthropology, Political Science, Sociolinguistics, let alone with Literary Linguistics. As opposed to sex which refers to biological characteristics, gender is culture based. Nowadays, it is actively recommended to include aspects of gender in whatever project we undertake. The present article is an attempt at probing the language used by male and female characters in Soyinka’s The Lion and the Jewel to see how gender issues are grounded in the play to let it play its didactic role. The aim is to pinpoint the way female and male are represented through a lexicogramatical analysis with a special focus on its transitivity system as suggested by Halliday (1994) to enter Wole Soyinka’s characters’ inner and outer world as they use language to enable them ‘to build a mental picture of reality, to make sense of what goes on around them and inside them’ (1994:106). That Soyinka considers or does not consider women or just recounts the situation of women in Yoruba traditional societies is what is at stake in this study. The results of the investigation in the light of transitivity and Critical Discourse Analysis shows that Soyinka, consciously or unconsciously has represented male characters as strong, powerful and metaphorically as a lion, a symbol of irresistible power. They are also portrayed as initiator, doer of something, and commander in chief, the king while their female counterparts (Sidi, Sadikou) are represented as goals and/or beneficiaries of men’s actions and associated with processes of sensing and of emotion.},
 year = {2015}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Gender Issues in the Lion and the Jewel by Wole Soyinka: A Linguistics-Oriented Analysis from a Systemic Functional Grammar and Critical Discourse Analysis Perspective
AU  - Patrice C. Akogbeto
AU  - Albert O. Koukpossi
Y1  - 2015/07/01
PY  - 2015
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13
DO  - 10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13
T2  - Communication and Linguistics Studies
JF  - Communication and Linguistics Studies
JO  - Communication and Linguistics Studies
SP  - 26
EP  - 34
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2380-2529
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cls.20150102.13
AB  - The term gender is relatively new in such disciplines as Sociology, Anthropology, Political Science, Sociolinguistics, let alone with Literary Linguistics. As opposed to sex which refers to biological characteristics, gender is culture based. Nowadays, it is actively recommended to include aspects of gender in whatever project we undertake. The present article is an attempt at probing the language used by male and female characters in Soyinka’s The Lion and the Jewel to see how gender issues are grounded in the play to let it play its didactic role. The aim is to pinpoint the way female and male are represented through a lexicogramatical analysis with a special focus on its transitivity system as suggested by Halliday (1994) to enter Wole Soyinka’s characters’ inner and outer world as they use language to enable them ‘to build a mental picture of reality, to make sense of what goes on around them and inside them’ (1994:106). That Soyinka considers or does not consider women or just recounts the situation of women in Yoruba traditional societies is what is at stake in this study. The results of the investigation in the light of transitivity and Critical Discourse Analysis shows that Soyinka, consciously or unconsciously has represented male characters as strong, powerful and metaphorically as a lion, a symbol of irresistible power. They are also portrayed as initiator, doer of something, and commander in chief, the king while their female counterparts (Sidi, Sadikou) are represented as goals and/or beneficiaries of men’s actions and associated with processes of sensing and of emotion.
VL  - 1
IS  - 2
ER  -

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