SUMMARY OF THE BLINKARDS
The Blinkards is a satirical drama written by Kobina Sekyi in 1915. The play is written in English, with Fanti translations provided on the left-hand side of the page or the even-numbered pages. The text explores the repercussions of mindlessly imitating European culture.
The comic drama revolves around Mrs. Borɔfosεm who is characterized by an excessive adoption of European customs, and only consumes European cuisine, while occasionally longing for locally produced dishes like roasted plantain. Accustomed to the European ways, she wears a dress, and boots, and carries an umbrella and a lorgnette wherever she goes. Despite her poor command of the English language, she deliberately adopts an artificial English accent to cover up her ways. As the spouse of Mr. Borɔfosεm, compels him to adopt the behaviors of a Europeanized individual, such as smoking cigars and abstaining from local cuisine and traditional attire.
With this growing Westernization of the characters, Mr. Tsiba, a cocoa farmer, sends his daughter to Mrs. Borɔfosεm for training to mold her into a replica of the latter. Mrs. Borɔfosεm eagerly embraces her assignment, imparting Miss Tsiba with “proper” English mannerisms. Subsequently, Miss Tsiba encounters a young guy who catches her interest and begins working with Mr. Onyimdze – a lawyer who deliberately disgusts European culture unless they are directly relevant to his job, such as donning black robes and white curled wigs.
As the drama unfolds, Okadu and Miss Tsiba get fond of each other and make plans to get engaged, without the presence of any family members which is against the African tradition which sees marriage as a family union and not just between two individuals. It turns out that the decision is orchestrated by Mrs. Borɔfosεm who hosted a garden party that eventually served as a grounds for the couples to meet. With the decision to marry in haste and the absence of any family members, the inspiration came from a popular English novel they had encountered in which the characters or the couple married without relatives present. Tension begins to boil as Mrs. Borɔfosεm unravels to Mr. Tsiba that his daughter is on the verge of being married and that he, Mr. Tsiba, will be responsible for purchasing the attire for the upcoming wedding. He becomes enraged, but his anger subsides when he is informed that it is customary for the father of the groom in European culture to buy the attire for the bride and groom. Upon hearing the news, Na Sompa, the wife of Mr. Tsiba, becomes incensed and proceeds to verbally berate Okadu. As tempers begin to rise, with these intense verbal attacks, she suffers a heart attack and passes on. Following this event, Nana Katawerwa (mother of the deceased), upon learning of her daughter’s demise and her granddaughter’s non-compliance with customary practices in her marriage, forcefully ambushes the chapel where the wedding is held and causes a disturbance that disrupts the entire ceremony and takes her granddaughter away.
Surprisingly, Nana Katawerwa marries Miss. Tsiba to another man by customary practices. However, Mr. Okadu feels wronged and resorts to the police and legal authorities to reclaim his wife. The outcome of the verdict reveals that Mr.Okadu is unsuccessful in the court of law as Mr. Ony assisted Miss. Tsiba and her family, resulting in their victory in the case. This latest development leaves the Parson who officiated their wedding upset, and it serves as a revelation for both Mr. and Mrs. Borofo that not everything in Christendom or Europe is unquestionably correct. Following this defeat, the Borofos’ attire and behavior undergo a remarkable transformation, leaving the other residents of Fantis astonished.
The setting
The drama is set in Fanti land, Cape Coast, located in Ghana. The primary locations described in the drama include Mr. Borofo’s residence, Mr. Ony’s office and residence, Mr. Tsiba’s residence, Dr. Onw’s hospital, Victoria Park, Cosmopolitan Club, Hamilton home, and a street adjacent to Nana Katawerwa ‘s residence. The identified sites serve as the settings where the events of the story occurred or developed. The location accurately depicts the appearance of Ghanaian society during that specific period.
THE LANGUAGE AND STYLE
An exceptional characteristic of Kobina Sekyi’s writing in The Blinkards is his adept use of language diversity. Kobina Sekyi demonstrates frequent code-switching as he carefully transitions between his native language and English during the course of events. The author’s incorporation of different linguistic varieties, such as pidgin, vernacular, and English, among the characters, serves to delineate the distinct socioeconomic strata or classes present in the play. These linguistic variations are seen in the pidgin language spoken by Half Crown and Mr. Tsiba, the local dialect spoken by Nana and Miss. Tsiba, and the Standard English spoken by Mrs. Borofo and members of the Cosmopolitan Club, among others.
Sekyi’s unique approach to language management imbues the play with a distinctiveness and authenticity that it rightfully merits.