A RECONSTRUCTIONIST APPROACH TO MYTHOLOGICAL AESTHETICS IN OSOFISAN'S ANOTHER RAFT

Abstract

The commitment of Osofisan’s Another Raft, focuses on
emancipation of the masses in a society where unbalanced class
structure exists through cultural retrieval and revival particularly
myths. The paper employs a textual reconstructionist approach to
mythological aesthetics in Femi Osofisan’s play Another Raft and
delves into the intricate interplay between myth and aesthetics;
examines Osofisan’s innovative interpretation of traditional myths.
It investigates how the playwright reconstructs mythological
elements to create a unique aesthetic experience, shedding light on
the socio-cultural implication of the transformative context of
Another Raft. The myth theory was used as analytical instrument to
expose the relationship between revolution and myth and the
process of history. The paper discovered that Osofisan deplores
myths in Another Raft for the purpose of achieving cultural retrieval
and revival; social transformation using counter text approach. The
paper concludes that Osofisan’s Another Raft brings to fore
mythological elements on one hand to embellish his dramaturgy;
and on the other hand, to step towards the promotion and
modernization of oral performance as indices of identity for African
literary plays through which society can be transformed