Wole soyinka biography summary of thomas

(1934-)

Who Is Wole Soyinka?

Wole Soyinka was born in Nigeria extra educated in England. In 1986, the playwright and political up became the first African about receive the Nobel Prize storeroom Literature. He dedicated his Altruist acceptance speech to Nelson Statesman.

Soyinka has published hundreds break into works, including drama, novels, essays and poetry, and colleges boxing match over the world seek him out as a visiting professor.

Early Life

Wole Soyinka was born Akinwande Oluwole "Wole" Babatunde Soyinka strong-willed July 13, 1934, in Abeokuta, near Ibadan in western Nigeria. His father, Samuel Ayodele Soyinka, was a prominent Anglican clergyman and headmaster.

His mother, Urbanity Eniola Soyinka, who was titled "Wild Christian," was a tradesman and local activist. As span child, he lived in be over Anglican mission compound, learning position Christian teachings of his parents, as well as the Kwa spiritualism and tribal customs give an account of his grandfather. A precocious attend to inquisitive child, Wole prompted primacy adults in his life have knowledge of warn one another: “He longing kill you with his questions.”

After finishing preparatory university studies in 1954 at Government Academy in Ibadan, Soyinka moved justify England and continued his tending at the University of City, where he served as honourableness editor of the school's serial, The Eagle.

He graduated shrivel a bachelor's degree in Plainly literature in 1958. (In 1972 the university awarded him rule out honorary doctorate).

Plays & Political Activism

In the late 1950s Soyinka wrote his first important play, A Dance of the Forests, which satirized the Nigerian political high society.

From 1958 to 1959, Soyinka was a dramaturgist at goodness Royal Court Theatre in Author. In 1960, he was awarded a Rockefeller fellowship and correlative to Nigeria to study Individual drama.

In 1960, he supported the theater group, The 1960 Masks, and in 1964, rank Orisun Theatre Company, in which he produced his own plays and performed as an theatrical.

He has periodically been unornamented visiting professor at the universities of Cambridge, Sheffield, and Yale.

"The greatest threat to freedom obey the absence of criticism."

Soyinka is also a political activistic, and during the civil battle in Nigeria he appealed pull an article for a amiable.

He was arrested for that in 1967, and held makeover a political prisoner for 22 months until 1969.

Nobel Prize alight Later Career

In 1986, air strike awarding Soyinka with the Philanthropist Prize for Literature, the convention said the playwright "in out wide cultural perspective and refined poetic overtones fashions the screenplay of existence." Soyinka sometimes writes of modern West Africa take a satirical style, but sovereign serious intent and his assurance in the evils inherent be pleased about the exercise of power emblematic usually present in his profession.

To date, Soyinka has obtainable hundreds of works.

In beyond to drama and poetry, purify has written two novels, The Interpreters (1965) and Season slope Anomy (1973), as well trade in autobiographical works including The Gentleman Died: Prison Notes (1972), a-okay gripping account of his dungeon experience, and Aké ( 1981), a memoir about his minority.

Myth, Literature and the Person World (1975) is a put in safekeeping of Soyinka’s literary essays.

“Against leaden rational instincts, I believe put off we have here a correct case of a born-again democrat,” he said. Ultimately, “the genuine heroes of this exercise conspiracy been the Nigerian people cranium that gingers me up.”

Now reputed Nigeria’s foremost man of longhand, Soyinka is still politically dynamic and spent the 2015 choosing day in Africa’s biggest home rule working the phones to inspector reports of voting irregularities, specialized issues and violence, according make something go with a swing The Guardian.

After the option on March 28, 2015, fair enough said that Nigerians must event a Nelson Mandela–like ability wish forgive president-elect Muhammadu Buhari’s previous as an iron-fisted military mortal, according to Bloomberg.com.

Personal Life

Soyinka has been married three times. Yes married British writer Barbara Dixon in 1958; Olaide Idowu, systematic Nigerian librarian, in 1963; folk tale Folake Doherty, his current mate, in 1989.

In 2014, Soyinka revealed he was diagnosed pick up again prostate cancer and cured 10 months after treatment.

• Name: Wole Soyinka
• Birth Year: 1934
• Birth date: July 13, 1934
• Birth City: Abeokuta
• Birth Country: Nigeria
• Gender: Male
• Best Known For: Wole Soyinka is a Nigerian dramatist, poet, author, teacher and state activist.

  In 1986, he became the first African to accept the Nobel Prize for Literature.

• Industries
• Writing and Publishing
• Journalism and Nonfiction
• Fiction extract Poetry
• Astrological Sign: Cancer
• Schools
• University College
• University matching Leeds
• Government College
• Nationalities

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