In this Book
- What Mama Said: An Epic Drama
- Book
- 2003
- Published by: Wayne State University Press
- Series: African American Life Series
summary
Renowned playwright Osonye Tess Onwueme's powerful new drama illuminates the effect of national and global oil politics on the lives of impoverished rural Nigerians. What Mama Said is set in the metaphorical state of Sufferland, whose people are starving and routinely exploited and terrorized by corrupt government officials and multinational oil companies—that is, until a voice erupts and moves the wounded women and youths to rise up and demand justice.
Onwueme's powerful characters and vibrant, emotionally charged scenes bring to life a turbulent movement for change and challenge to tradition. Aggrieved youths and militant women—whose husbands and sons work in the refineries or have been slaughtered in the violent struggle—take center stage to "drum" their pain in this drama about revolution. Determined to finally confront the multinational forces that have long humiliated them, Sufferland villagers burn down pipelines and kidnap an oil company director. Tensions peak, and activist leaders are put on trial before a global jury that can no longer ignore the situation. What Mama Said is a moving portrayal of the battle for human rights, dignity, compensation, and the right of a nation's people to control the resources of their own land.
Table of Contents
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- Half_title
- pp. 2-3
- Dedication
- pp. 5-7
- INTRODUCTION
- pp. 7-14
- PRODUCTION HISTORY OF THE DRAMA
- pp. 15-16
- THE SETTING
- pp. 17-18
- CHARACTERS IN THE PLAY
- pp. 19-20
- MOVEMENT ONE
- pp. 23-32
- MOVEMENT TWO
- pp. 33-40
- MOVEMENT THREE
- pp. 41-58
- MOVEMENT FOUR
- pp. 59-74
- MOVEMENT FIVE
- pp. 75-92
- MOVEMENT SIX
- pp. 93-106
- MOVEMENT SEVEN
- pp. 107-124
- MOVEMENT EIGHT
- pp. 125-136
- MOVEMENT NINE
- pp. 137-154
- MOVEMENT TEN
- pp. 155-162
- MOVEMENT ELEVEN
- pp. 163-172
- MOVEMENT TWELVE
- pp. 173-180
- Epilogue: A Nation in Custody
- pp. 181-200
Additional Information
ISBN
9780814336786
Related ISBN(s)
9780814331415
MARC Record
OCLC
849944811
Pages
208
Launched on MUSE
2013-05-20
Language
English
Open Access
No