A Play of Giants

Wole Soyinka · 1984 CE · Play · Nigerian · Contemporary

Four heads of state, a Ugandan field marshal chief among them, gather in a United Nations embassy lounge to sit for a group sculpture, comparing methods of rule while aides and a Western journalist stand by. The sculptor's flattery proves insufficiently flattering, and the exits from the building start to close. Soyinka's least forgiving comedy, aimed at Amin, Bokassa, Mobutu and Nguema by name in all but name.

Open A Play of Giants in the archive — filters, lineage graph and full facet browsing.

Attributes

Closest analogues

• Reasons of State
  Alejo Carpentier · 1974 CE · Novel

  68% · 15 shared
  SatirePoliticalPower & CorruptionAmbition & HubrisAppearance vs RealityContemporaryVillain / TyrantRuler / KingIronic ReversalThe CrownThe Maskvs Societyvs PersonSatiricalIronic
• The Government Inspector
  Nikolai Gogol · 1836 CE · Play

  62% · 14 shared
  PlaySatirePoliticalPower & CorruptionAppearance vs RealityVanity & BeautyVillain / TyrantTricksterIronic ReversalThe Maskvs Societyvs PersonSatiricalIronic
• The Emperor's New Clothes
  Hans Christian Andersen · c. 1837 CE · Folktale

  57% · 12 shared
  SatirePower & CorruptionAppearance vs RealityVanity & BeautyRuler / KingTricksterIronic ReversalThe Maskvs Societyvs PersonSatiricalIronic
• Jonathan Wild
  Henry Fielding · 1743 CE · Novel

  57% · 12 shared
  SatirePower & CorruptionAmbition & HubrisAppearance vs RealityVillain / TyrantTricksterIronic ReversalThe Maskvs Societyvs PersonSatiricalIronic
• Kongi's Harvest
  Wole Soyinka · 1965 CE · Play

  51% · 14 shared
  PlaySatirePoliticalPower & CorruptionContemporaryVillain / TyrantRuler / KingIronic ReversalThe Crownvs Societyvs PersonSatiricalIronicNigerian
• The Beatification of Area Boy
  Wole Soyinka · 1995 CE · Play

  51% · 14 shared
  PlaySatirePoliticalTragicomedyPower & CorruptionContemporaryTricksterIronic ReversalThe Maskvs Societyvs PersonSatiricalIronicNigerian