Exploring Religion and Religiousity in Selected plays of Otun Rasheed for Sustainable Development
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Date
2018
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Institut Universtaire Panafricain and University of Ilorin.
Abstract
This paper explores Otun Rasheed's use of drama and theatre to underscore the efficacy of religion and it's significant to the development of our society in three of his plays: The Third World war. The Garments and The Gods are still not to blame. It expounds on the religious culture in the Nigerian society, with particular attention paid to issues of functionalism, conflicts as well as religious interactions in the plays under examination. These religious issues are located within the context of the Emile Durkheim's functionalist theory of religion. The research method employed in this paper is the analysis, in which case the selected plays is analysed. It is with a view to unearthing some of the issues that are inherent in the play texts under review. In addition to this, we also interviewed the playwright who substantiated his ideological dispositions to issues of religion as he presents then in the plays being interrogated. The later method provides the synergetic tool that enables us to marry the religious issues in the plays and Otun Rasheed's religious ideology. Our findings reveal that the plays of Otun Rasheed are critical evaluation of functionalist issues on religion in Nigeria. He identifies roots of religious crisis in his plays, which is why the plays are filled with religion, culture and language His entical position on religion provides stands on the premise that religion would most likely generate social havocs that would certainly defy all basic remedies, especially if religious tenets and dogmas are swallowed without being critical of them. This study concluded that religion, in its general conception has both negative and positive impacts globally and the Nigerian society in particular; positive by instilling morality in people and negative, because it has been used to orchestrate crises in the country. Based on the above, we recommend that dramatists, playwrights, actions, directors, prodavan, and indeed all collaborators in the ans of the theatre should take turn to address religious issues in their unique ways, just as Otun Rasheed has done. Through this, drama and theatre would be used as an active medium for social re-engineering in preaching morals and social ideals.
Keywords: Religion, Religiousity, Functionalist, Sustainable Development