I chose to design a webpage for a fictional company that could reflect Simon Pilkings’ doings from Soyinka’s Death and the King’s Horsemen ”Pilkings property Management”, in a modern context. I drew my format and inspiration from the Better Business Bureau in which many different companies are reviewed and graded based on a number of factors: business complaint history, business type, length of time in which said business has been operating, etc. By making company page, I hoped to compare colonialism to a business (which it is, in a sense). Colonialism exists for the benefit of a mother country (in this case, England). Under colonial rule, a “colony” might be exhausted for its natural resources. It [the colony] may also be subject to religious conversion and assimilation, which we see in Jospeh, Simon’s servant. I think it is worth mentioning that Simon is skeptical of this conversion and may not take the work of missionaries seriously, he asks Jospeh if ”all that holy water nonsense also wiped out” his ”tribal memory”.
I incorporated different lines and sayings from the text respective to the character it was taken from. For example, in Elesin’s review, he states that ”you did not save my life…you ruined it.” The passage from which the quote was taken was a conversation between Elesin and Pilkings. Pilkings stopped Elesin from committing ritual suicide by arresting him and imprisoning him until the next day. I wanted the reviews to seem somewhat authentic and demonstrate the different backgrounds of the characters in this play as well as what they might say or write in contemporary society.
I also took into account character defining traits. For example, Iyaloja is a strong woman, which can be seen throughout the entirety of the play. I wanted that to be visible in her review. Joseph is kind of meek and allows Simon to speak over him and disrespect him (though ”allow’ implies that he has a choice, which he might not). I felt that keeping his review as anonymous shows his oppression within the context of the play. Although, Simon and Jane may believe that Olunde’s success should be credited to them, Olunde excelled on his own and does not allow it to leave a chip on his shoulder. His review was something I feel he may have said, especially because he did actually say a portion of it. Amusa’s review and rating shows that Amusa does respect and fear Piklings, but he probably also feels taken advantage of (like Joseph might). Finally, Elesin’s review was meant to show his dislike for Pilkings but also his similarities to him (he may not have really wanted to commit ritual suicide, but there were predetermined societal and cultural expectations that prompted him to do so—even though he did not/could not go through with it). Overall, this review page serves as a satyrical commentary of Pilkings and his organization as well as the effects they’ve had on the territory they occupy.
I think this review page addresses and prompts the following questions: How might colonialism exist today? What might people’s reactions to it be during the age of technology? Often, when we do not like something or the way something is done, we are quick to write a review about it. Furthermore, we also look at the reviews of different companies before we make an impactful decision or even small decisions or decisions that take money out of our pockets and put it into the hands of others. With this unessay, I wanted to give the characters a space in which they might voice their opinions about what affects them—the occupation of the country and native land by foreigners. Even Jane is affected by this occupation because she now lives in a new territory with people who do not share the same religion as her or the same language as her. This is not to say that she has it as bad as the native people because Jane exists within a patriarchal system in which she has power over what happens to her, to a certain extent. However, she will never have the same power as heterosexual, cisgendered, middle-class white men, which is also important to point out. Her role is still crucial to the play and exemplifies the role of white women in colonialism as well as other systems of oppression.
References:
“Average Rating Calculator (Star Rating).” Calculator Academy, Calculator Academy, 31 Oct. 2021, calculator.academy/average-rating-calculator-star-rating/.
“Inside Real Estate: Better Business Bureau® Profile.” BBB, Better Business Bureau , http://www.bbb.org/us/ut/draper/profile/marketing-software/inside-real-estate-1166-22233272.
“Overview of BBB Ratings: Better Business Bureau®.” BBB, Better Business Bureau , http://www.bbb.org/overview-of-bbb-ratings.
“Peabody & Smith Realty Inc: Better Business Bureau® Profile.” BBB, Better Business Bureau , http://www.bbb.org/us/nh/franconia/profile/real-estate/peabody-smith-realty-inc-0051-5007574.
Soyinka, Wole. Death and the King’s Horseman. Norton, 2002.
Sprockets and Springes 