Duty in Death and the King's Horseman

« DATKH Coursework Essay In Death and the King’s Horseman, Soyinka explores the different facets of duty.

Duty is seen as an obligation, one that can cause irremediable loses if ignored.

Every character in Death and the King’s Horseman has a purpose; they were not created or integrated in the play by accident.

They all have flaws, but more importantly a duty, which is manifested through the character’s beliefs, actions and failures.

Characters such as Iyaloja, the Bride and Olunde are shown to have a very strong sense of duty whilst characters like Elesin and Pilkings who disregard their duty are later shown to face the consequences. Elesin’s glorious death was ruined due to him neglecting and undermining his duty.

Elesin is the King’s horseman, he was the King’s close friend and adviser, this position comes with great honor but also heavy responsibilities. Elesin’s task is an important one: thirty days after the King’s death, he must willingly kill himself in a suicidal ritual to escort the King safely to the world of the ancestors.

Elesin declares boldly that he is not afraid of death, ‘‘my soul is eager.

I shall not turn aside’’, he seems confident and tries to convince the doubtful Iyaloja and Praise-singer, or perhaps even himself, that the failure of the ritual is not a possibility.

Elesin’s duty is also a moral one, as the King’s Horseman, ‘’the juiciest fruit on every tree was [his]’’, meaning that he was always granted every single one of his demands no matter how ridiculous they were.

His sacrifice is a way to repay the community for the life of luxury he experienced.

Whether the reader believes or understands this tradition of ritual suicide doesn’t matter, the main point being that Elesin accepted a duty, which he later failed to accomplish due to his selfishness and will to marry this beautiful and young girl, thus postponing the hour of the ritual.

He tries to shift the blame of this failure on Pilkings and on the bride, proving again that he indeed has a ‘’weakened understanding’’ of his culture such as Iyaloja describes it, excuses are useless and vain now as what he has done is already irreparable.

Soyinka, through the character of Elesin, warns us of the dangers of deriving away from your duty as well of the dangers of corruption from the pleasures of earth. Pilkings, throughout the play, mirrors Elesin.

It is very ironic that although it is duty that forces Elesin to commit to the ritual, it is also duty that pushes Pilkings to stop him from doing so.

Pilkings is the district officer; his task and duty are maintaining peace and order in the colony.

However, throughout Li-Anh Cohen 2QC the entirety of the play, Pilkings seems more interested in the arrival of the Prince visiting the colonies, ‘‘the other provincials are going to be damn envious.’’ The word ‘’damn’’ emphasizes how much admiration from others mean to him, which ultimately seems to be what Pilkings prioritize over duty.

He delays personally taking care of the issue caused by the ritual suicide to party, and only does so when he is forced to, which is rendered useless since the ritual still takes place and Elesin ends up killing himself anyways.

He doesn’t take his duty seriously and ends up losing something: his credibility.

In that sense, Elesin and Pilkings, who seem like opposites at first, are quite similar.

The conversation between Jane and Olunde highlights the fact that the idea of duty is similar in both.... »