Femi Osofisan

Femi Osofisan. Courtesy NET.

Babafemi Adeyemi Osofisan (born June 1946) is a Nigerian poet and novelist.

Life

Osofisan was born in Erunwon, Ogun State. He attended primary school at Ife and secondary school at Government College, Ibadan. After secondary school, he attended the University of Senegal in Dakar and later the University of Ibadan. He continued post-graduate studies at the University of Ibadan and went on to hold faculty positions at the University.

Writing

Osofisan is known for his critique of societal problems and his use of African traditional performances and surrealism in some of his novels. A frequent theme his novels explore is the conflict between good and evil. He is in fact a didactic writer whose works seek to correct his decadent society.

Recognition

His poetry collection Minted Coins (Heinemann, 1987) won the Association of Nigerian Authors’ Poetry Prize.

Publications

Poetry

• Minted Coins. Ibadan: Heinemann, 1987.
• Cordelia. Lagos: Malthouse, 1989.
• Dream-Seeker on a Divining Chain: Poems. Ibadan: Kraft, 1993.

Plays

• Morountodun, and other plays. Ikeja, Nigeria: Longman, 1982.
• Midnight Hotel. Ibadan: Evans, 1986.
• Farewell to a Cannibal Rage. Ibadan: Evans, 1986.
• Another Raft: A play. Lagos: Malthouse, 1988.
• Once Upon Four Robbers: A play. Ibadan: Heinemann, 1991.
• Two one-act Plays: The oriki of a grasshopper, and Altine's wrath. Ibadan: New Horn Press, 1986.
• Recent Outings: Two plays, comprising Tẹ̀gọ̀nni, an African Antigone, and Many colours make the thunder-king. Ife, Nigeria: Department of English, University of Ife, 1986.
• Another Raft: A play. Lagos: Malthouse, 1988.
• Birthdays are Not for Dying, and other plays. Lagos: Malthouse Press, 1990.
• Aringindin and the Nightwatchmen: A play. Ibadan: Heinemann, 1991.
• Esu and the Vagabond Minstrels: A feritlity rite for the modern stage. Ibadan: New Horn Press, 1991.
• The Oriki of a Grasshopper, and other plays. Washington, DC: Howard University Press, 1995.
• Restless Breed: Four short plays. Ibadan: Opon Ifa, 2002.
• Seasons of Wrath: Five short plays. Ibadan: Centre-Stage Africa, 2002.
• Major Plays. Ibadan: Opon Ifa Readers, 2003.
• Women of Owu. Ibadan: University Press, 2006.
• Who's Afraid of Solarin? Ibadan: University Press, 2007.
• Richard Lander and the Travelling Polygamist: A play. Lagos: Concept Publications, 2009.

Novels

• Kolera Kolej: A novel. Ibadan: New Horn Press, 1975.
• The Chattering and the Song. Ibadan: Ibadan University Press, 1977.
• Twingle-Twangle A-Twynining Tayle. Ikeja, Nigeria: Longman, 1992.
• Yungba-Yungba and the Dance Contest: A parable for our times. Ibadan: Heinemann, 1993.
• The Album of the Midnight Blackout. Ibadan: Ibadan University Press, 1994.
• Wuraola Forever (as "Okinba Launko"). Lagos: Lantern Books, 2006.
• Pirates (as "Okinba Launko"). Lagos: Lantern Books, 2009.

Non-ficton

• Wonderland and Orality of Prose: A comparative study of Rabelais, Joyce and Tutuola. Ife, Nigeria: Dept. of Literature in English, University of Ife, 1986.
• Excursions in Drama and Literature: Interviews with Femi Osofisan (edited by Muyiwa P. Awodiya). Ibadan: Kraft Books, 1993.
• The Nostalgic Drum: Essays on literature, drama, and culture. Trenton, NJ, & Asmara, Eritrea: Africa World Press, 2001.
• The City as Muse: Ibadan and the efflorescence of Nigerian literature. Ibadan: Hope PUblications, 2007.
• Black Dionysos: Conversations with Femi Osofisan (edited by Olakunbi Olasope). Ibadan: Kraft Books, 2013.

Collected editions

• Literature and the Pressures of Freedom: Essays, Speeches, and songs. Ibadan: Opon Ifa Readers, 2001.

Edited

• African Theatre: In Development (edited with James Gibbs & Martin Banham). Oxford, UK: James Curry / Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1999.
• African Theatre: Playwrights and politics (edited with James Gibbs & Martin Banham). Oxford, UK: James Curry / Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2001.
• African Theatre: Women (edited with James Gibbs & Martin Banham). Oxford, UK: James Curry / Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2002.
• A Melody of Stones: PEN anthology of new Nigerian writing (edited with Remi Raji & Veronica Uzoigwe). Lagos, Nigeria: Concept Publications, 2003.
• African Theatre: Southern Africa (edited with James Gibbs & Martin Banham). Oxford, UK: James Curry / Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2004.
• African Theatre: Soyinka. blackout, blowout and beyond (edited with James Gibbs & Martin Banham). Oxford, UK: James Curry, 2005.
• African Theatre: Youth (edited with James Gibbs & Martin Banham). Oxford, UK: James Curry, 2006.
• African Theatre 7: Companies (edited with James Gibbs & Martin Banham). Oxford, UK: James Curry, 2008.
• African Theatre 8: Diasporas (edited with James Gibbs & Martin Banham). Oxford, UK: James Curry / Woodbridge, Suffolk, UK: Boydell & Brewer, 2009.
• African Theatre 9: Histories, 1850-1950 (edited with James Gibbs & Martin Banham). Oxford, UK: James Curry / Woodbridge, Suffolk, UK: Boydell & Brewer, 2009.
• African Theatre 10: Media and performance (edited with James Gibbs & Martin Banham). Oxford, UK: James Curry, 2011.
• African Theatre 11: Festivals (edited with James Gibbs & Martin Banham). Oxford, UK: James Curry / Woodbridge, Suffolk, UK: Boydell & Brewer, 2012; Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2013.
• African Theatre 12: Shakespeare in and out of Africa (edited with James Gibbs & Martin Banham). Oxford, UK: James Curry / Woodbridge, Suffolk, UK: Boydell & Brewer, 2013.
• African Theatre 13: Ngugi wa Thiong'o and Wole Soyinka (edited with James Gibbs & Martin Banham). Woodbridge, Suffolk, UK: Boydell & Brewer, 2014.

Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy WorldCat.

See also

• List of Nigerian poets
• List of English-language playwrights

References

• Contemporary Authors Online, Thomson Gale.

External links

Poems

• Femi Osofisan b. 1946 at the Poetry Foundation

About

• Africanizing Antigone: Postcolonial Discourse and Strategies of Indigenizing a Western Classic (Article on his works and post-colonial impacts).