A Professor of English at the Department of English and Literary Studies, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Zaria, Nigeria, Abdullahi Ahmad, will today Thursday, 4 September, 2025 present a new linguistic theory he propounded at ABU.
Named Gbobeism, Prof. Ahmad will present it under the topic, “Gbobeism: The Wave Theory of Speech Acts (GBOWATSA)”.
Below is a citation on Prof. Ahmad as well as an application of Gbobeism to the global classic of World Literature, Things Fall Apart, by the Chinua Achebe.
The public lecture shall hold at 10.am prompt today at the Abdullahi Smith Theatre, Faculty of Arts, ABU Main Campus, Samaru, Zaria.
Vice Chancellor, ABU, Prof. Adamu Ahmed, is the Chief Host of the day while Dean, Faculty of Arts, Prof. Sule Mohammed, is the Host.
A senior Professor in the Department of English and Literary Studies, ABU, Prof. T.A.N. Abubakar, will chair the public lecture.
A livestream of the public lecture will be broadcast on YouTube at: www.youtube.com/@ahmadubellouniversity . The Microsoft TEAMS Livestream link is https://tinyurl.com/2vprtnh9
Citation On Professor Abdullahi Ahmad
INTRODUCTION: BIRTH AND EDUCATION
Though of Gbobe, Bassa-Nge District, Bassa Local Government Area, Kogi State extraction, Abdullahi Ahmad was born at Idah on 5th September 1964. He attended the Native Authority (NA) Primary School, Idah (1972 – 1978). It was during the same period that he acquired the basic knowledge of Islam from the famous Alfa Usman Anaja Islamiyya School, Sabongari, Idah. He was one of the pioneer students of Government Secondary School, Okenya, Idah (1979 – 1984). He was at the Kogi State College of Education, Ankpa between 1986 and 1989. In addition to his NCE that was acquired from the Institute of Education, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, this blue–blooded product of the octopus-like and the largest University South of the Sahara proceeded to Zaria where he bagged, in succession, the Bachelor of Arts (Education) (BA[Ed.]), the Master of Arts (MA) and the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees all from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
EMPLOYMENT
Professor Abdullahi started his teaching career at Community Secondary School, Akakana, Bassa Local Government Area exactly on 30th May 1990. He left the services of the Kogi State Teaching Service Board, got employed by the Ahmadu Bello University and posted to teach English Language at the School of Basic and Remedial Studies (SBRS), Funtua on May 5, 2003. Upon completion of his terminal degree in April 2010, Professor Abdullahi was transferred from SBRS to the Department of English and Literary Studies where he assumed duty as Lecturer I on 4th April 2011. He rose to the rank of Professor of Applied Linguistics with a strong interest in Discourse Analysis, Pragmatics and Sociolingustics on 1st October 2020.
Professor Abdullahi has to his credit 62 papers that include conference and seminar presentations and journal publications. Propounding and presenting GBOBEISM: THE WAVE THEORY OF SPEECH ACTS (GBOWATSA) for public interrogation can, no doubt, be considered an epoch-making event in Professor Abdullahi’s intellectual pursuits.
ADMINISTRATIVE RESPONSIBILITIES
Beyond academics, Professor Abdullahi has also served in various administrative capacities that include the following:
- Head, English Language Unit, SBRS, Funtua
- Departmental Examination Officer, Department of English and
Literary Studies, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria
iii. Coordinator, Undergraduate Project Supervision,
Department of English and Literary Studies,
Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria
iv. Assistant Postgraduate Coordinator,
Department of English and Literary Studies,
Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria
v. Library Officer, Department of English and Literary Studies,
Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
MEMBERSHIP OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICE/HONOUR SOCIETIES
Professor Abdullahi belongs to the underlisted professional bodies:
i. Member, Reading Association of Nigeria (RAN)
ii. Member, English Scholars Association of Nigeria (ESAN)
iii. Member, English Language Teachers Association of Nigeria (ELTAN)
iv. Member, Linguistic Association of Nigeria (LAN)
v. Member, West African Languages Congress (WALC)
vi. Member, Pragmatics Association of Nigeria (PrAN)
vii. Member, African Pragmatics Association (AfPrA)
viii. Nigerian Folklore Society (NFS)
COMMUNITY SERVICES
Aspects of the community services so far rendered by the theorist are:
- Director, Islamic Foundation of Nigeria, Ankpa branch, Kogi State
- Member, Gbobe Development Association, Gbobe, Kogi State
- Member, Okenya Old Students Association
- Part-time Lecturer, English and Communication Skills, Institute of
Education, A.B.U., Zaria.
- Part-time Lecturer, Proficiency Certificate in English for Foreigners
(PCEF), Department of French, ABU, Zaria.
- External Moderator of English Language, Federal College of
Education, Pankshin, Plateau State.
- Chairman, Students Disciplinary and Examination Malpractices
Committee (SBRS, Funtua).
- Chairman, Students Registration Committee (SBRS, Funtua)
- Part-Time Lecturer, Department of Languages, Sule Lamido
University, Kafin-Hausa, Jigawa State.
- Sabbatical Leave, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua University (UMYU),
Katsina.
- Member, Editorial Board, The Journal of Communicative English,
University of Agriculture, Makurdi, Benue State.
- Member, Departmental Postgraduate Board, Department of English
and French, Umaru Musa Yar’adua University, Katsina.
- 200 Level Coordinator, Department of English and French,
Umaru Musa Yar’adua University, Katsina .
ix Visiting Lecturer, Alqalam University, Katsina.
MARRIAGE
Professor Abdullahi Ahmad is married to Maimunatu Isa and the relationship is blessed by five (5) children.
Distinguished colleagues, students, ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Professor Abdullahi Ahmad as he formally unveils or announces his new theory which, with your objective responses, could be fine-tuned and become a worthy contribution to our understanding of Linguistics, and especially Pragmatics, and human communication theory generally.
Thank you for gracing this occasion with the hope that you will give us your rapt attention as the event progresses.
Gbobeism: The Wave Theory of Speech Acts (GBOWATSA) as Applied to Things Fall Apart
- Abdullahi Ahmad, PhD
- Nenshi, Rebecca Shuni
- Zulfa’a Yushau Waziri
- Bariya Bako Iya
- Christiana Rakiya Andrew-Ogidi, PhD
- Asmau Abubakar Walah
Department of English and Literary Studies
Ahmadu Bello University,
Zaria.
Airforce Institute of Technology, Kaduna
Department of English,
Waziri Umaru Federal Polytechnic,
Birnin-Kebbi,
Kebbi State.
ABSTRACT
The researchers have, using Gbobeism: The Wave Theory of Speech Acts (GBOWATSA), a new analytical tool developed by the lead writer of this paper, looked at character–to–character interactions both at the public speaking and small group communication in Things Fall Apart (TFA subsequently). TFA is the primary source of data for the paper. We used GBOWATSA to analyse the address given by Ogbuefi Ezeugo at the popular Umuofia Market place when Ogbuefi Udo’s wife gets killed during one of her trading trips to the Mbaino market, on the one hand, and the homily that the District Commissioner (D.C), the white man overseeing the colonial administration in Umuofia, when he orders the forcible detention of six elders of the community in the guardroom in his headquarters. As the theoretical framework, GBOWATSA delineates the talks into:
- The feedforward messages that precede the addresses given by the two personages;
- Looking at the bodies of the two talks made up of the macropronouncements by the speakers
- Ripples generated by their pronouncement s, plus the microprouncements of other characters; and
- The effects of the pronouncements on both Mbaino and Umuofia communities.
The theory appears to be promising by way of opening new vistas in future analysis snd understanding of linguistics and other allied disciplines.
Keywords: Gbobeism: The Wave Theory of Speech Acts (GBOWATSA), Ogbuefi Ezeugo the District Commissioner, Mbaino, Umuofia.
Introduction
This paper will generate some level of interest and curiosity from the readers for two major reasons. For one, it broadcasts the birth of a new theory that is an adjunct to J. L. Austin’s Speech Act theory. As we will show shortly, the Wave theory attempts to elaborate on the perlocutionary part of Austin’s three-part typification of his theory. The other reason is that the nascent theory will be put to the test as it will serve as the theoretical framework for analyzing two interpersonal communication contexts taken from Achebe’s Things Fall Apart. This initial move will enable us to gauge not just the viability of the theory but to showcase the immense potentials that it holds in expanding the frontiers of scholarship, especially after receiving responses that are meant to make it better from colleagues out there.
Let us note that the theory owes its origin to a paper entitled “Power, Speech Acts, and Naturalisation in Things Fall Apart that the originator, Professor Abdullahi Ahmad, the lead author of this article, delivered at the Faculty of Arts, Federal University, Lokoja where he had his sabbatical leave between March 2024 and February 2025.
This paper is segmented into seven major parts. Before this part is the abstract. After this segment comes the objectives of this paper. Following that is the delineation of the scope of this study. The wave theory – the theoretical framework selected for the analysis of this piece – will follow. Thereafter, we have the presentation and analysis of data. The last part will be to tender our findings from the analysis done. All will be capped by some concluding remarks.
Objectives of the Paper
The main objectives of this study are:
1. To broadcast the arrival and debut of GBOWATSA as an analytical construct.
2. To use it to, for the first time, analyse two instances of interpersonal communication in TFA and thereby bring to the attention of colleagues out there of the analytical potentials that the new theory will offer to scholars in the affected or relevant disciplines.
3. To demonstrate the extent to which political power, more than the possession of oratorical skills, could determine the effects of ones, pronouncements on the audience and the echoes that will be generated there-of.
Scope of the Study
Two out of the many instances of interpersonal encounters in TFA that will be tendered for analysis and discussion are:
- Ogbuefi Ezeugo’s address to a mammoth crowd at the Umuofia market place (Public Communication).
- The District Commissioner’s Invitation of and meeting with six Umuofia elders (Small Group Communication).
Theoretical Framework: Gbobeism: The Wave Theory of Speech Acts
Gbobeism: Wave Theory of Speech Acts
Explication of Key Concepts
Competence and Power
Power is manifested in all aspects of human interpersonal relationships. It influences what we do, when, and with whom. Our interactions with colleagues at our places of work, friends and family relationships are characterized by power relations.
Interpersonal power enables one to control the behaviours of others. Communication skills and power are so integrally related that one with strong interpersonal skills is likely to have more power and influence in his interactions with others – socially, act school, at work, or just about any place that he runs into other interactants. One with poor interpersonal skills is likely to have and display less power and influence in his range of interactions with others. (DeVito 2011:14–15).
Interpersonal Communication Involves Power
We have noted above that no interpersonal relationship, and, by extension, interpersonal communication, takes place without some reference to power relationships. Research has identified six types of power relations as we interact with others. They include: legitimate, referent, reward, coercive, expert, and information or persuasion power (French and Raven, 1968; Raven, Centres, and Rodrigues, 1975).
One possesses legitimate power when others believe that one has the right, by virtue of one’s position or status, to influence or control the behaviours of others. Employers, judges, managers or police officers have this type of power on account of the roles they play in the lives of other members of society.
Those who have referent power are individuals that others would want to be like. Referent power holders are often seen to be attractive, have considerable prestige, and are well liked and respected. Your children would want to be like or surpass the position that you have attained in your community because you possess referent power.
People with reward power are individuals that have almost absolute control over the reward that they can offer to others. People who have money, promotion, love, friendship, respect have particular benchmarks to be met before anyone enjoys one of the items mentioned above. Teachers, for instance, have specific requirements to be met before their students are awarded certain classes of grades.
People with coercive power have the ability to administer punishments to or withhold rewards from those who fail to act in line with their wishes. Like reward power holders, individuals with coercive power have a redline which should not be crossed lest the violators be punished!
One with expert power is that individual who possesses expertise or knowledge about a particular area of human life. Just as lawyers or judges are seen as having expert knowledge in legal matters, doctors are also seen to be experts in medical practice.
Information or persuasive power resides in those who have the ability to communicate logically and persuasively. Scholars are seen to possess information power because they are perceived to be informed and critical thinkers by others.
Speech Acts
The idea of speech acts, or the use of words to enact actions, was first popularised by a British language philosopher known as J.L. Austin (1911–1960) as part of the William James Lectures that he gave in the 1950s. The talks were later compiled, entitled as How to do things with words, and published first in 1962. Reprinted copies of the book appeared in 1971, 1975, 1976 and 1978. Austin’s major thesis is that speakers can do many things by their pronouncements. In other words,
utterances are acts in themselves [that are] capable of producing enormous and far-reaching results or consequences. Utterances can affect our whole lives. They can deny us or restore our freedom, make us to be committed to a course of action, urge us to carry out an instruction, change an existing state of affairs, etc. (Ndimele 2007:133).
According to Austin’s typification, the speech act theory is divided into three: the locutionary act, the illocutionary act and the perlocutionary act.
The locutionary act is the act of saying a particular sentence (or word or phrase) with a particular meaning. This can further be divided into the act of making certain speech sounds (the phonic act), the act of saying certain sounds and phrases (the phatic act) and the act of expressing a certain meaning, perhaps including reference to certain entities (rhetic act).
The act that is performed in making utterances such as promising, requesting, stating, warning or betting is called an illocutionary act.
The perlocutionary act is the act of bringing about certain effects by means of one’s utterance. For example the following utterance could serve the dual illocutionary act of warning and the perlocutionary act of getting the hearer to move his car:
Did you know there’s a traffic warden coming down this side of the street?
(Allott 2010:178–79).
Our discussion of speech act in the context of this paper will go beyond mere pronouncements with the intention of causing a change in the behaviour of the listeners. It is for this reason that we decided to give Black’s definition of speech act when she says:
The term speech act does not refer simply to the act of speaking, but to the whole communicative situation, including the context of the utterance (that is, the situation in which the discourse occurs, the participants and any preceding verbal or physical interaction) and paralinguistic features which may contribute to the meaning of the interaction. (Black 2006:17).
Searle (1969) claims that there are five major types of action that human beings can perform by the use of language. These are: representative, declarative, directive, expressive, and Commissive. We shall examine them one by one.
- Representative: This is a speech act whose function is to describe the processes, states, or events in the world, and for which the speaker is committed to the truth of what he has just said. Examples include an assertion, a claim, a description, a hypothesis, a conclusion, a report, a suggestion, a prediction, etc.
This is my wife.
I did not commit the crime.
It will rain tomorrow.
Oxygen is lighter than water.
Frankly speaking, I’m ignorant of the offence.
- Declarative: This is a speech act which immediately changes the state of affairs in the world as soon as the utterance is made, e.g., baptizing, passing sentence, arresting, marrying, etc.
I hereby sentence you to three years imprisonment.
I hereby declare war against Liberia.
Your appointment is terminated with immediate effect.
- Directive: This is a speech act which has the function of urging or persuading the addressee to carry out an instruction which may be in the form of a verbal response or a physical action, e.g., questioning, commanding, requesting, pleading, inviting, etc.
What is your name?
Close the door!
You are all invited to our party.
Please, forgive me.
- Expressive: This is a speech act in which the speaker expresses a psychological state (i.e. his feelings and attitudes) towards some state of affairs, e.g., apologizing, congratulating, thanking, appreciating, complaining, condoling, greeting, scolding, etc.
I sincerely apologize for disturbing your sleep.
It is a great pity that you should suffer such a huge loss.
You must know I am angry with you.
I sincerely thank you for the assistance.
Please leave me alone; I don’t blame you.
- Commisive: This is a speech act which commits the speaker to some future course of action (i.e. to do something in the future), e.g., promising, threatening, offering, guaranteeing, vowing, warning, betting, challenging, etc.
I sincerely promise to assist you.
I can never leave you unpunished.
I shall stand as a witness against you.
Commissives are rendered primarily by the help of performative verbs, such as bet, promise, warn, swear, declare, advise, etc. A performative verb, therefore, is that which is used to indicate the act which is intended by the speaker. Austin (1962) identifies two types of performative sentences, namely primary and explicit performatives. Whereas an explicit performative always contains an overt performative verb, a primary performative does not.
I promise to be there at 12 noon.
I’ll be there at 12 noon.
The first sentence above is an example of an explicit performative because it contains an overt performative verb, which is promise, while the second one is a case of a primary performative because of the absence of a performative verb. An explicit performative is usually more specific than a primary one. (Ndimele 2007:133–136).
Naturalisation
Naturalisation is said to happen whenever what should be critically examined and resisted is taken as a natural matter, with the self-evidence of the common sensical world which “goes without saying because it comes without saying”, to vary Bourdieu’s elegant words (1977:167). For example, it is natural for the police to question a prospective detainee, even if the law says that the only information that we need to give out is our names and addresses, yet it is natural for somebody who is pulled over to answer, without protesting, all the police officer’s questions, even if such an encounter becomes an ordeal that will violate both the morally and legally permissible limits. (Mey 2001:318).
Naturalisation and normalisation, in the context of this discussion, “refer to the ways in which we come to think of certain conditions as unquestionably or naturally true, or ‘common sense’. (Webster 2001:60). If car drivers in Nigeria are asked to stop at any roadblock mounted by personnel of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) for checking vehicle papers, they are naturally expected to obey such order and cooperate accordingly. If one is moving around in the wee hours of the night and runs into a group of policemen on night patrol who asks the individual to stop for questioning, the natural thing is for the person to cooperate with these law enforcement agents, answer heir questions sincerely before one is permitted to move to one’s intended destination.
Gbobeism: Wave Theory of Speech Acts
Gbobe, with – ism suffix detached from it, refers to the theorist’s root – his home, a village situated directly opposite the Confluence Beach Hotel in Lokoja State, Nigeria. The phraseology after the colon indicates, this theory is an extension of or a derivation from J. L. Austins theory of speech act, especially the perlocutionary effects of people’s verbal, written, or nonverbal pronouncements on others, the environment – if you like – or the world generally.
We took our idea of ‘wave’ in the theory from the Wave Theory in sociolinguistics, especially in dialectology, that argues that changes in language spread outwards from centres of influence to the surrounding areas in much the same way that a wave spreads from the place where a stone is dropped into a pool (Hudson 2003:39–40). Our theory says something quite similar that our verbal pronouncements do have immediate effects on the listeners at the point or venue of the proclamation just as they could affect others in far-off places or even several years thereafter.
Goals of the Theory
The main goals of the theory are:
- To explain the notion of Wave propagation, that is to look at how speech acts or pronouncements spread and influence the immediate and latter audiences over time and space.
- On the issue of diffusion of information, the theory is interested in looking at how comments made by influential people percolate to the lowest level of society.
- As for the ripple effects of the pronouncements made by people, the theory looks at the short-term and long-term consequences of people’s pronouncements on individuals, groups, and society as a whole.
- As for individuals in political, religious, business, etc, leadership positions, the theory will look at how their pronouncements shape the perceptions, attitudes, and behaviours of their followership or listenership.
- When it is appropriate, the theory will explore the source(s) from which individuals derive the power that prompts their pronouncements.
- To remind us of the role of displacement, one of the design features of human language, in interpersonal communication.
- To highlight the three-tier relationship that exists between power, speech acts, and naturalization in interpersonal communication.
- To help us realize that words have power and we should be wary of our pronouncements as they can have unintended, far-reaching (negative) effects on unintended victims or individuals.
Principles of the Theory
This theory is built on the following principles:
- Words in their spoken, written or nonverbal for have the power to influence the behaviours of the audience.
- When our pronouncements are made with the intention to influence the behaviours of our listeners, the audience will probably act as such.
- Interpersonal communication at whatever level is made up of three major segments – the feedforward, the communication exchanges, and the feedback.
- Context or environment can determine the content and effectiveness of our pronouncements.
- Of the five major types of action that people can perform using language (Searle (1969), declaratives, directives, expressive, and commissives are more ripple or wave generating when compared to representatives.
- Pronouncements that can affect the audience immediately or on the long run can be categorized into three:
- Metastatements that are found in the scriptures of various religions around the world.
- Macrostatements are the pronouncements or views of messengers, prophets of God or other great leaders in society.
- Micropronouncements are the comments made by individuals who are mouthing the views or opinions got from items (a) and (b) above. When individuals in both (b) and (c) make reference to (a) as the basis of their pronouncements or actions, they are said to be empowered to utter micropronouncements to ensure naturalization (empprons) or compliance from their audience.
Effects of comment made by someone on others are called echoes, outcomes or ripples Most wave – generating pronouncements are made at special occasions or events; tey emanate from a nodal point (NP) or a venue (V). Such pronouncements are made to address existing exigencies in society. They are speeches that generate a lot of waves and, at times, with visible effects on the people. See the diagram below:
Figure 1: Diagram showing how a pronouncement made by someone at a particular point or venue creates clusters that spread beyond its original source.
Clusters of empprons, depending on the credibility, influence and power of the speaker, can be generated ad infinitum.
- Pronouncements of individuals who command large, loyal followership or of those in positions of leadership who control repressive state apparatuses – the police, the army, the intelligence service – are likely to generate more waves than those of speakers who do not enjoy the same privilege.
- Pronouncements of influential people can generate a lot of ripples in the form of indirect speech acts.
- Salient parts of pronouncements made by prominent individuals are spread to the grassroots level of society through:
– Public commentators or public affairs analysts;
- Opinion leaders who introduce and lead discussions on current affairs in circles that do converge during the early evening periods. Such discussion groups are called majalisa, or assembly, in Hausa;
- Grapevines or rumour mills;
- the conventional media outlets such as the radio, the television, the newspapers and, of late, the social media do help greatly to spread information from the top-level section of society to the common man on the street and people in remote villages.
- Ripples generated by the pronouncements of influential people can outlive the speakers.
Application of this Theory
This theory can be used in the analysis of interpersonal communication that include:
- Presidential inaugural speeches;
- One-on-one, one-to-many and public speeches in literary works such as novels, plays, etc.
Whereas feedback in principle number 3 of our theory – can be regarded as a commonplace lexical item with our readers, the same cannot be said about feedforward in interpersonal communication. We, therefore, decided to explain it below, particularly as it will feature prominently in our analysis of data thereafter.
Heun and Heun (1978:164) have defined feedforward as the planning that is done by a communicator in the form of setting goals, expectancies, and contingencies in order to be prepared to handle the various responses of the listeners to the message. Use of feedforward will enable the communicator to attain his communication goals.
It is made up of three major elements that include: goals, expectancies, and contingencies. A feedforward goals is what the communicator wants to accomplish by sending his message across to the hearers or audience. Feedforward expectancies are the responses that the communicator will get from the would-be audience or as the delivery of the message progresses. Feedforward contingencies are the alternative message segments that are planned prior to sending the message for adapting to the different possible expectancies. The contingencies that are put to use during message sending are determined by the reactions got at the important points. Responses from the audience can be both verbal and nonverbal at the expectancy points.
Whereas feedback refers to the reactions that we receive after sending a message, feedforward, according to DeVito (2005):7–8; 2011:11), refers to information that are sent by the speaker before the real message is delivered. Announcing the names of public speakers, venue, time and date of the speech are instances of feedforward messages. Programme of activities or events that are distributed to members of the audience, invitation of the speaker and other dignitaries to take their positions at the high table, introductory remarks by the Master of Ceremonies, introduction of the speaker and other relevant, sundry activities before the commencement of the talk are all feedforward messages. DeVito adds that beyond speech-making, feedforward messages also refer to information that are generally revealed about a book before the reader goes into the main contents of the book such as: the front backcover, the table of contents, the preface, the foreward, the date of publication, publisher(s), the index, and, at times, the beautiful comments that are made by others about the author and the book at the blurb.
Data Presentation and Analysis
Ogbuefi Ezeugo Addresses a Mammoth Crowd at the Umuofia Market Place
A woman of Umuofia extraction goes to Mbaino on her usual trading activities and gets killed there. Infuriated by the dastardly act, the elders of Umuofia decide to call a huge gathering of the community to decide how to respond to the unfortunate incident. The town-crier is directed to use his Ogene or gong to invite everyone to be present at the crucial meeting to be addressed by a respected individual, an orator and one of the elders of the community. Below, we present to you – verbatim from the narrator – how the speaker gives his address and the feedback from the audience.
In the morning the market-place was full. There must have been about ten thousand men there, all talking in low voices. At last OgbuefiEzeugo stood up in the midst of them and bellowed four times, ‘Umuofia kwenu’, on each occasion he face a different direction and seemed to push the air with a clenched fist. And ten thousand men answered ‘Yaa!’ each time. Then there was perfect silence. Ogbuefi Ezeugo was a powerful orator and was always chosen to speak on such occasions. He moved his hand over his white head and stroked his white beard. He then adjusted his cloth, which was passed under his right arm-pit and tied above his left shoulder.
‘Umuofia kwenu’, he bellowed a fifth time, and the crowd yelled in answer. And then suddenly like one possessed he shot out his left hand and pointed in the direction of Mbaino, and said through gleaming white teeth firmly clenched: ‘Those sons of wild animals have dared to murder a daughter of Umuofia’. He threw his head down and gnashed his teeth, and allowed a murmur of suppressed anger to sweep the crowd. When he began again, the anger on his face was gone and in its place a sort of smile hovered, more terrible and more sinister than the anger. And in a clear unemotional voice he told Umuofia how their daughter had gone to market at Mbaino and had been killed. That woman, said Ezeugo, was the wife of Ogbuefi Udo, and he pointed to a man who sat near him with a bowed head. The crowd then shouted with anger and thirst for blood.
Many other spoke, and at the end it was decided to follow the normal course of action. An ultimatum was immediately dispatched to Mbaino asking them to choose between war on the one hand, and on the other the offer of a young man and a virgin as compensation (TFA:9–10).
Ogbuefi Ezeugo’s speech is preceded by a lot of feedforward messages. One: The beating of the Ogene by the town-crier who delivers the elders’ message of invitation to the popular Umuofia Market place in a voice that indicates that a tragic event has befallen the community. Two: before he commences his talk proper, Ogbuefi Ezeugo uses the social deictic formular – Umuofia kwenu – four times, facing different directions, with a clenched fist: all in the attempt to establish a state of absolute silence in the audience. Three: he moves his hand over his white head, as he strokes his white beard. Four: he adjusts his cloth, which was passed under his right arm-pit and tied above his shoulder. Five: he bellows Umuofia kwenu for the fifth time accompanied by the Yaa! Response from the audience! Six: it is after pointing at Mbaino with his clenched left hand that he starts what we will call his short, powerful speech – mostly seasoned with the appropriate paralinguistic cues. The electrifying effect of his talk on the audience can be felt when the narrator tells us that ‘The crowd then shouted with anger and thirst for blood’. (TFA:9).
The ripples generated by Ogbuefi Ezeugo’s speech are:
- The issuing of an ultimatum by Umuofia to Mbaino to choose between war and the offer of a young man and a virgin as compensation.
- That Okonkwo is dispatched to Mbaino as a special envoy carrying the message of his community.
- He returns to Umuofia two days later with a fifteen year-old lad, Ikemefuna and a virgin who goes to Ogbuefi Udo’s house as the replacement for his murdered wife.
- After a three-year stay in Okonkwo’s household, the Oracle of the Hills and the Caves decrees that Ikemefuna must be murdered to appease the gods of the land. (TFA:46).
In short, the micropronouncments and the attendant naturalizations that result from Ogbuefi Ezeugo’s macropronouncements are:
- The ultimatum issued by the elders of Umuofia to the offending people of Mbaino.
- Comments made by Okonkwo as he relates his community’s message to elders at Mbaino.
- Proclamation of the Oracle on the fate that must befall Ikemefuna.
- Ogbuefi Ezeudu relates the message of the Oracle to Okonkwo in the latter’s house. (TFA:45).
- The paralinguistic clearing of the throat by one of the men taking Ikemefuna to the outskirts of Umuofia where he is eventually killed.
- Ikemefuna’s exclamation of ‘My father, they have killed me’! – a plea to save Ikemefuna which Okonkwo ignores as he cuts his adopted boy down in cold blood! (TFA:49). (Nonverbal aspect of the encounter).
The second data to be presented and analysed by us is the encounter between the District Commissioner and the six elders of Umuofia.
The District Commissioner Invites Six Umuofia Elders for a Meeting at his Headquarters.
Though the arrival of the church causes some level of psychological discomfort to the inhabitants of Umuofia, yet no major incident, by way of violent confrontation between the people and the Christian evangelists, takes place. In short, the church, under the leadership of Mr. Brown maintains a very peaceful relationship with the locals. That era does not last long as Mr. Smith, Brown’s replacement, openly condemns his predecessor’s ways of doing things. It is under his leadership that one Enoch, a fanatical convert to Christianity, unmasks an egwugwu in public. The remaining egwugwu and elders of the clan consider the action as the height of provocation which should be met with the appropriate response. On the following day, the egwugwu decide to destroy both Enoch’s house and the church in Umuofia.
The District Commissioner (D.C) goes on tour of areas under his jurisdiction when the destruction of the church at Umuofia by the egwugwu takes place. Three days after his return to his headquarters at Umuofia, he invites six elders of the community for a talk that is meant to forestall a recurrence of the ugly incidence and to ensure that a cordial relationship exists before the locals and the newly established Christian denomination. Two:…
I have asked you to come because of what happened during my absence. I have been told a few things but I cannot believe them until I have heard your own side about it. Let us talk about it like friends and find a way of ensuring that it does not happen again (TFA:154).
Three:… Commissioner interrupts the man and orders that twelve men be invited into the venue of the sitting. Acting on an initial arrangement, the individuals so ushered in arrest, handcuff and lead the six elders into the guardroom. Now, listen to his speech to the embattled Umuofia men of honour:
We shall not do you any harm if only you agree to co-operate with us. We have brought a peaceful administration to you and your people so that you may be happ… We have a court of law where we judge cases and administer justice just as it is done in my own country under a great queen. I have brought you here because you joined together to molest others, to burn people’s houses and their place of worship. That must not happen in the dominion of our queen, the most powerful ruler in the world. I have decided that you will pay a fine of two hundred bags of cowries. You will be released as soon as you agree to this and undertake to collect that fine from your people. What do you say to that?
(TFA:154–155).
The narrator reports that ‘The six men remained sullen and silent… as the District Commissioner (D.C henceforth) urges the messengers ‘to treat the men with respect because they were the leaders of Umuofia’. (TFA:155).
The D.C’s standing orders that the elders must pay the fine placed on their heads to regain their freedom and that the captives be treated with dignity generates a range of ripple effects as we see that other characters are empowered to undertake actions that are not in tune with the man’s directives or are meant to hasten the elders’ release from detention. One: contrary to the D.C’s directive that the Umuofia elders be treated well, the head messenger, who doubles as the prisoners’ barber, uses his razor and shaved off all the hairs on the men’s heads. Two: they are taunted (a form of psychological torture) by the court messengers who ask in jest: ‘Who is the chief among you?… We see that every pauper wears the anklet of title in Umuofia. Does it cause as much as ten cowries?’ Three: they are starved by the court messenger – no food, no water, they could not go out to either urinate or ‘go into the bush when they were pressed’. Four: at night, the messengers go to the guardroom to knock the elders ‘shaven heads’ against each other. Five: When Okonkwo says ‘We should have killed the White man if you had listened to me’, one of the messengers who hears the side comment, carries a strong stick and delivers some blows on the heads and backs of these respected elders of Umuofia. Six: the court messengers to to tell the people of Umuofia that their detained leaders will only be released after the payment of a fine of two hundred [and fifty] bags of cowries. They threatened that any delay in gathering and forwarding the sum to them could result in taking their leaders to Umuru where they will be hanged. Seven: frightened by the spectre of seeing their beloved leaders being held perpetually in the White man’s guardroom, the people of Umuofia instruct the village crier to go to the nook and cranny of the village appealing to the inhabitants to appear at the popular market place so as to collect, without delay, the sum of two hundred [and fifty] bags of cowries which will be forwarded to the White man for the release of their leaders.
… takes the following feedforward steps.
One: he directs one of his messengers to invite… Christian denomination. Two: he deceives the elders when he puts up a polite demeanour by saying: {Take the quotation verbation}.
Three: When Ogbuefi Ekwueme rises to state the community’s side of the unfortunate incident, the…
The ripples generated by the District Commissioner’s macrostatements or pronouncements include:
- Micropronouncements of the head of the messengers that are meant to ridicule the higher social status of the embattled elders of Umuofia.
- The expression of regret by Okonkwo that the community did not go for the execution of the Whiteman.
- The retort by one of the elders that taking such a line of action would have amounted to signing their own death warrant.
- The rhetorical question from one of the messengers: ‘Who wants to kill the White man? (TFA:`155).
- Public announcement by the court messengers telling the people of Umuofia that the release of their detained leaders is subject to the payment of a fine of two hundred and fifty bags of cowries.
- The people find the threat issued by the headman that ‘unless you pay the fine immediately, we will take your leaders to Umuru before the White man, and hang them’ (TFA:156) quite unsettling!
- The threat generates a disturbing level of rumour across the length and breadth of Umuofia.
- The village crier summons the inhabitants to a mammoth meeting at the market place to discuss the need to mobilize ‘two hundred and fifty bags of cowries to appease the White man’ and secure the release of their detained leaders.
Findings and Conclusion
The speeches given by Ogbuefi Ezeugo and the District Commissioner and the analysis done by us throw up two major issues – some differences and one commonality across the two addresses.
As for the differences, the talks are given at two different venues – Ogbuefi Ezeugo addresses a large crowd at the popular Umuofia Market place. The District Commissioner addresses the 6 elders at his headquarters.
The two speakers adopt two different modes of delivery. Ogbuefi Ezeugo employs Umuofia kwenu, the very popular vocative or greeting, call it phatic communion or phatic talk, for charging the audience among the Igbo, five times before he commenced his talk. The audience answers Yaa! – to say “we are all ears”, “we are with you. Go on” to urge the speaker on! We have noted that he employs a number of theatricals:
- facing different directions;
- pushing the air with his clenched fist;
- moving his hand over his white head and stroking his white beard;
- adjusting the cloth he is wearing;
- pointing at the direction of Mbaino;
- showing his gleaming white teeth;
- throwing his head down and gnashing his teeth
to drive home his message. At the end of the day, ‘The crowd then shouted with anger and thirst for blood’. (TFA:9).
The District commissioner, on his own part, talks to the elders in the tone of an imperialist:
- the new colonial government has a court of law modeled after the practices in Britain under a great queen;
- they are under arrest for molesting the nascent Christian Community in Umuofia;
- for them to regain their freedom and breathe some fresh air again, they will pay a fine of two hundred bags of cowries as fine. (TFA:154–155).
The number of ripples so generated by the talks given by the two speakers are unequal: (a) Ogbuefi Ezeugo’s speech are four. The ripples generated by the D.C.’s address to the Umuofia is eight. As we will see below, the amount of ripples that the speeches generate point to the influence of the addresses on society.
The two addresses given by the two personalities have different influences on Umuofia. While the effects of Ogbuefi Ezeugo’s address terminate with the murder of Ikemefuna, just three years after his stay in Okonkwo’s compound, the D.C.’s encounter with the elders shows that the colonial government has not only come to stay but that it will protect the young Christian Community from the hostile local community. Payment of the fine as the only condition that will secure the release of the elders from the White man’s guardroom visibly draws the ire of the Umuofia community. Attempts by the elders, after their release from detention, to contain the growing influence of the newly imposed government, fail as Okonkwo kills one of the messengers sent by the White man to disrupt the huge gathering convened to address the tension generated by the repressive policies of the D.C. That the elders allow the remaining four messengers to escape unhurt indicates that the community has finally capitulated to the colonial government. Knowing that he has no backing from his community after the killing of the messenger, Okonkwo decides to take his own life by hanging himself.
The major similarity which the two speeches share is that they are delivered to address two exigencies – (a) the unfortunate killing of Ogbuefi Udo’s wife at the market at Mbaino; and (b) to arrest the growing tension between the Christian Community and the host Umuofia community.
In conclusion, Gbobeism: The Wave Theory of Speech Acts used by us to analyse the two speeches clearly delineate the talks into:
- the feedforward messages that precede the addresses;
- the bodies of the two talks made up of the macropronouncements by the speakers;
- ripples generated by their pronouncements plus the micropronouncements made by other characters; and the
- effects of the pronouncements on both Mbaino and Umuofia communities.
Though subject to further improvements in the key principles, the theory appears to be promising in opening new vistas in our analysis and understanding of linguistics and other allied disciplines.
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