Efua Sutherland's Play: The Marriage of Anansewa

Efua Theodora Sutherland's Work

• Efua Theodora Sutherland's primary interest was in exploring Ghanaian traditional values and cultural identity through her plays.

The Marriage of Anansewa

• The play was published in 1975.
• The main aim of The Marriage of Anansewa is to satirize modern vices and social ills in Ghanaian society.
• The play belongs to the genre of satirical comedy.
• Sutherland asserts Ghanaian traditional values in The Marriage of Anansewa by incorporating African theatre principles, such as the use of folk tales, music, and dance.
• The play depicts modern vices in Ghanaian society, particularly the obsession with wealth and materialism.
• The comic mode in The Marriage of Anansewa is significant as it allows Sutherland to critique societal ills in a satirical and humorous manner.
• The play attempts to hold to scorn the excesses of modernity and the erosion of traditional values.

The Plot of The Marriage of Anansewa

• Ananse's primary motivation behind his scheme is to improve his financial circumstances.
• Ananse uses a public crier to advertise his daughter, Anansewa, as a bride to attract wealthy suitors.
• Ananse manages to improve his financial circumstances by pretending that his daughter has died and receiving funeral donations from sympathizers.
• Ananse's scheme has a devastating effect on Anansewa's life, as she is forced to play dead and pretend to be a ghost.
• The initial state of Ananse's household at the beginning of the play is one of poverty.
• Ananse devises a scheme to make Anansewa play dead in order to attract wealthy suitors and improve his financial circumstances.
• Ananse lies to his mother and aunt about his cocoa farm in the village being set ablaze in order to gain sympathy and attention.
• Ananse pretends to make traditional chants and incantations to wake Anansewa up in order to deceive the villagers.
• Anansewa had extracted her father's promise to let her marry Chief-Who-Is-Chief, a man of her choice.
• The main outcome of Ananse's plan is that it backfires, and he is left with a reputation as a liar and a trickster.

Sutherland's Other Works

• Sutherland's other plays include works that explore Ghanaian traditional values and cultural identity.

Test your knowledge about Efua Sutherland, the Ghanaian playwright, and her play 'The Marriage of Anansewa'. Learn more about Sutherland's contribution to African culture and children's rights.