AFRICAN DRAMA
FEMI OSOFISAN: Women of Owu
Discuss the significance of the meeting between Lawumi and Anlugbua.
Explanation
Lawumi and Anlugbua are ancestral deities. Lawumi is Anlugbua's grandmother while the latter is the son of Oba Asunkungbade, the ancestral founder of Owu.
The two deities meet to discuss the tragedy that has befallen the city. Anlugbua claims ignorance and accuses Lawumi of colluding with the Allied Forces to destroy Owu, which Lawumi admits. She explains that Owu's tragedy arose from her arrogance towards her and the violation of the agreement concerning not selling fellow Yorubas as slaves to foreigners.
Lawumi explains her role, revealing that she is the one that encourages the Owu to attack the Ife and to take the Apomu market back, which consequently leads to the retaliation of the Allied Forces. However, Lawumi insists that the Allied Forces must be punished for the desecration and destruction of her shrine. To execute this, she solicits Anlugbua's support.
The meeting also reveals that Lawumi has consulted Esu, who has promised to throw the Allied Forces into confusion, while Orisa Oko, the hunters' god, is to turn the forest against them, thus making their return Journey more agonizing. Anlugbua's role, however, is to send lightning upon the Allied Forces destroy them.
The Anlugbua and Lawumi interaction exposes the human nature of the gods: they are vindictive, unreliable and susceptible to human frailties after all. It also provides an insight into the cause of the destruction of Owu, namely, their selling fellow Yoruba kinsmen into slavery and their display of arrogance.
The meeting also highlights the fact that human beings are mere playthings in the hands of the gods; they deal with them as they like. For instance, in spite of Anlugbua's initial reluctance, he agrees to join forces with Lawumi to punish the Allied Forces. When Lawumi tells Anlugbua that Ogun has agreed to join them in the destruction, Anlugbua says, "Then it shall be done as you wish."