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A former political prisoner and Nobel Prize-winning author criticized popular entertainment from across the globe Thursday.
Wole Soyinka, who received one of the world's greatest honors in the 1980s after spending part of the late 1960s in political imprisonment, shared his thoughts on culture in today's society to hundreds in a packed ballroom Thursday night. The Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, Black American Studies Program, Department of Theater and several other campus organizations sponsored the event as part of Black History Month.
Soyinka became a political prisoner in his native Nigeria in 1967. He was jailed for two years following an article he wrote that sought a cease-fire to his homeland's civil war.
Upon his release, he was exiled until 1999, during which he lived in the United States and wrote plays.
He received a Nobel Prize for literature in 1986 for his work since he began writing plays in the 1950s.
Soyinka came down hard on the entertainment of his home continent primarily, using the television show "Big Brother Africa" as a reference point.
Much of Africa's population, including Nelson Mandela, became totally immersed in the show, Soyinka said.
Soyinka said the promotional pieces for the show suggested its message would create cultural dialogue and peace. However, he said he believed the show did not come close to achieving its goal and people desperately needed more open communication between cultures.
Soyinka spoke for more than an hour, beginning with comments about Nigeria's budding film industry, known as "Nollywood."
He said that some critics believe Nollywood is the sum of cinematic possibilities from Africa.
However, Soyinka, feels differently about the films of his homeland. He referred to Nollywood as the "N-word," earning laughs from the crowd.
"The nation is in a deluge of imitative and unimaginative films," Soyinka said.
Soyinka used events from his life to convey a message that true cultural dialogue has to come from oneself.
The Rev. Joseph Brown, director of Black American Studies, agreed, saying culture is too deep or too complicated to get from popular entertainment.
"If you want dialogue that is cultured, you cannot buy it off of TV or a discount shelf," Brown said. "You must immerse yourself in (culture) and be changed by it."
Alex Singleton, a junior from Mascoutah studying mechanical engineering, said he thought the key point of Soyinka's speech was that artists should maintain origi nality.
"Do your own thing and don't care about what other people are thinking about you," Singleton said.
Luke McCormick can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 254 or lmccorm2@siu.edu.
