The Lion and the Jewel

The magazine that features pictures of Sidi is symbolic of the outside world encroaching on traditional/native culture. Furthermore, as a symbol of the outside world it represents a vanity and naïveté that can ultimately harm those who are consumed by it. Sidi gives in to vanity when she sees herself in the magazine. She rebuffs Lakunle and Baroka, thinking herself a jewel because of her beauty. The magazine stirs the flames of lust in Baroka, for it is after viewing the magazine that Baroka determines to make Sidi his wife. The magazine itself attempts to show the outside world what village life is like, prompting the play’s viewer or reader to consider what sort of gaze the outside world turns upon what it does not already know. The magazine may also be culpable of misrepresenting Ilujinle, since instead of showing matters of heart or true aspects of the culture, such as everyday life, the magazine captures only Sidi, in staged poses.

The lion represents an animal who is king of its domain. It is fierce and virile, and forever lording over other animals. As the Bale, Baroka is given the epithet “the lion,” and by all accounts, lives up to the nickname.