Cyprian Odiatu Duaka (COD) Ekwensi (September 26 1921 to November 4 2007)
Between stints as a teacher, forester, pharmacist, broadcaster and film-maker, the west African novelist Cyprian Ekwensi published more than 40 books as well as radio and television scripts. His first novel, “People of the City” (1954), appearing four years before Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart”, was the second Nigerian novel to be published in Britain to international acclaim following Amos Tutuola’s “Pamwine Drinkard”. “Jagua Nana” (1961) won Ekwensi the 1968 Dag Hammarskjöld prize in literature.
“People of the City” tells the story of a young crime reporter who doubles as a bandleader in a large west African city. As one British critic wrote, the novel said more about west Africa than 50 government reports. However, Ireland banned the novel on the grounds of indecency. Controversy was to dog Ekwensi’s literary career.
Though of Igbo extraction, Ekwensi was born in Minna, in Northern Nigeria. His father, David Anadumaka, a famed storyteller and elephant hunter, inspired him towards creative writing. Ekwensi was a brilliant, gregarious pupil at boarding school – Government college, Ibadan (1936-41) – and became engrossed in Yoruba culture.
His school life and multi-ethnic upbringing were to be reflected in his work. After stints at various Nigerian and Ghanaian colleges, he worked as a forestry officer (1945-47).
In that wild and lonely environment, he began writing short adventure stories, some of which were published in 1947 as “Ikolo the Wrestler and Other Ibo Tales”. The same year, five of his works were published in England by Lutterworth Press as part of its African new writing series. Another collection of light romance stories came out in 1948 from an Onitsha publisher in Nigeria.
In 1949, Ekwensi began to read his stories on the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation while also writing for several Lagos newspapers.
Courtesy: Ruth WorldBest posted on Facebook by Maik Ortserga on Monday, 17th June, 2024
