BETRAYAL IN THE CITY - CHARACTER TYPES

In a literary work there are many characters that are used by an author in a written work or a director in a theatrical work to push the plot of the work forward. To make complete a literary work, one must employ the different types of characters to achieve harmony within the literary work and to play different roles to achieve completion of the work.

In the play “BETRAYAL IN THE CITY”, Francis Imbuga has used the following types of characters.

        I.            Major/primary characters

A major character is a character who plays a major role in the development of the plot in a literary work. The major character is employed in the exposition, the climax and the resolution of a literary work. He/she may be a protagonist or an antagonist. Major characters usually have many personality traits and so they can also be said to be round characters.

The major characters in the play “BETRAYAL IN THE CITY” are:

a.       Jusper wendo

b.      Mulili

c.       Mosese

d.      Tumbo

e.      Boss

f.        Jere

      II.            Minor/secondary characters

A minor character is a character who plays a minor role in the development of the plot in a literary work. The minor character can either be employed in the exposition, the climax or the resolution of the plot but not all of them. Minor characters usually have fewer character traits as compared to the major characters.

The minor characters in the play include:

a.       Doga

b.      Nina

c.       Askari

d.      Regina

e.      Kabito

f.        Nicodemo

g.       Mercedes

h.      Sub-chief

i.         Chagaga

j.        Mustafa

k.       Kaleka

l.         Soyinka

    III.            Dynamic characters

A dynamic character is a character who undergoes a drastic change in personality or attitude. The changes may be attributed to several factors such as religion, politics, traditions, social factors, life events etc.

In the play certain characters who are dynamic and undergo change in their lives include:

a.       Jusper – jusper wendo undergoes a transformational change after learning about the death of his brother adika. His father also acknowledges that jusper was never the same again after his brother’s death. During his late brother’s funeral service, he became wild and the authorities took him away because he had become dangerous to the peace loving people. His mental and behavioural change is viewed by other characters as madness but he disputes this notion saying that he was sane. After his arrest and release from prison where he had been rehabilitated, jusper’s madness subsides for some time but later on during the rehearsal of the play to the visiting head of state, his state of mind changes again.

b.      Mosese – During adika’s funeral service, Mosese’s attitude towards the authorities’ changes after a handful of politicians tried to change the funeral service into a political rally. After his arrest for being critical to the politicians who had attended adika’s funeral service, Mosese’s attitude about Kafira’s leadership remains the same. He becomes bitter towards Kafira’s leadership but Jere and askari soften him up and convinces him to take part in the play which at first he was so vehemently against.

c.       Jere – Jere’s attitude changes after he witnessed how Doga and Nina were being treated by Mulili. He tells Mulili that when he looked at Nina’s eyes he saw the futility of calling themselves citizens of Kafira. He asks Mulili to allow Doga and Nina to go on with their traditional ceremony even if it was against the law but Mulili refuses. Because of his refusal, Jere tries unsuccessfully to shoot Mulili.

d.      Boss – Boss’s attitude changes drastically during the rehearsal of the play that was to be performed to the visiting head of state. Boss is shocked when Mulili his cousin denies any association with him. Mulili’s betrayal makes him to beg to be killed by the play’s participants.

e.      Mulili – He is viewed as a cruel and opportunistic person who uses his position to harm others and to get favours from his cousin. He changes his attitude towards Boss when he learnt that Boss had been overthrown as the head of state of Kafira. He denies any relation to Boss and he reveals all the evils that Boss had committed as the head of Kafira.

    IV.            Static characters

A static character is a character who remains the same and does not change his personality or attitude throughout a literary work. In the play, characters who are static and do not evolve over time include:

a.       Doga – He is viewed as a bitter old man who suffers internally after the death of his son.

b.      Nina – Same as Doga, Nina is seen as a bitter woman who suffers internally after the death of her son adika.

c.       Askari – He adds satire to the play and his personality does not change over the course of the play.

d.      Tumbo – He has been revealed as a corrupt government official whose traits remain the same throughout the course of the play.

e.      Kabito – His personality remains the same throughout the play and his character is that of an opportunistic and corrupt government official.

f.        Nicodemo – Just like kabito his character and attitude remains the same throughout the play.

      V.            Round characters

A round character is a character who has many character traits both positive and negative. They tend to display both weaknesses and strength and often change their attitudes and traits over the course of a story. Most of them are used by the author of a literary work to help develop the themes, plot and conflicts in the work. In the play “BETRAYAL IN THE CITY”, round characters include:

a.       Jusper

b.      Mulili

c.       Mosese

d.      Tumbo

e.      Regina

f.        Doga

g.       Nina

    VI.            Flat characters

A flat character is a character who has less than two character traits. Most of them are viewed as minor characters who do not grow or change over the course of a literary work. Flat characters in the play include:

a.       Chagaga

b.      Kaleka

c.       Sub-chief

d.      Mercedes

e.      Adika

f.        Mustafa

  VII.            Antagonist

An antagonist is a character or characters in a literary work who represents opposition against the protagonist. The antagonist usually possesses negative traits which are not admirable. A literary work can have more than one antagonist whose goal is to oppose the protagonist or who acts differently in contrast to what the society expects from them.

The two main antagonists in the play are:

a)      Mulili

b)      Boss

Qualities of Mulili as an antagonist

         i.            He is highly motivated to act and to achieve his goals. In the opening of the play, mulili’s goal was to prevent the ceremony from taking place so that he could get what boss had promised him.

       ii.            He is opportunistic – He used his position as a soldier and boss’s cousin to enrich himself. He also strives hard to impress his cousin and to impose his will on other people.

      iii.            He has qualities that are not admirable to the readers and to the society of Kafira. Mulili is cruel, illiterate, disrespectful, domineering etc. these qualities are what make him to look more like the play’s antagonist.

     iv.            The main themes of the play revolve around him. Major themes such as death, corruption, injustice and sycophancy revolve around him.

       v.            He is one of the central characters.

     vi.            The plot of the play is built around him.  The exposition, rising action, climax and resolution of the play’s plot revolves around him. In act one of the play he has been used to explore the genesis of the conflict within the play. His argument and eventual killing of kabito is what makes the rising action of the play’s plot. The play’s climax is achieved during the rehearsal of the play that was to be acted for the visiting head of state. His presence and eventual killing forms the climax and resolution of the play bringing it to the end.

    vii.            He has secrets – Mulili had helped a prisoner called Mustafa to escape without the knowledge of the authorities. Though Jere knew about this he never told it to anyone. Mulili also knew secrets about boss which he used to his advantage to get rid of kabito and to try to save himself from death during the rehearsal of the play.

  viii.            He changes his attitude to suit himself – At the end of the play he tried to change his attitude towards his cousin so that he could be spared from imminent death.

     ix.            He is the cause of conflict – Mulili’s actions contribute to the main causes of conflict within the play. His refusal to allow Doga and Nina to carry on with their traditional ceremony sets him on a collision path with the old couple and also with Jere.  He also gets into conflict with jusper after killing his parents. Later in act two of the play he gets into conflict with kabito after taking away the milk supply tender from him and during the committee meeting the two of them gets into a heated argument concerning how the visiting head of state would be entertained.

       x.            His character traits are believable.

     xi.            He faces opposition from the society – Mulili’s actions and personality sets him apart from the rest of the society because he goes against the wishes of other characters. In act one of the play, he opposes Doga, Nina and Jere when they wanted the traditional ceremony to take place. In act two he was also opposed to suggestions given by the rest of the committee members on how the preparation for the visiting head of state should be conducted. Through his speech we learn that he has a lot of opposition towards the university students’ demonstrations.

    xii.            He dictates the mood and tone of the play – Mulili’s presence in the play scenes contributes to the change of atmosphere in the play. His presence in adika’s gravesite angers Nina, Doga and Jere. During the committee meetings the atmosphere and mood in the scene was casual until he made his presence which completely changed the mood of the characters and the tone of the play.

  xiii.            He acts towards personal desires and gains – Mulili’s actions towards other characters is geared towards material gains. In act one of the play he tells Jere that if he kept law and order boss had promised him that he would give him land and cattle’s. In act two of the play he uses the influence of his cousin to get the milk supply tender which had been earlier given to kabito.

  xiv.            He suffers tragedy – In the end of the play his misdeeds are repaid when he is shot and killed by jusper.

Qualities of boss as an antagonist

         i.            He is opportunistic – He used his position as the leader of Kafira to hide millions in foreign countries. Mulili confirms these allegations at the end of the play when he tells those present during the rehearsal of the play that boss had taken everything in his hand.

       ii.            He has qualities that are not admirable – Boss is dictatorial, short tempered, corrupt etc. these negative qualities make him look more like the play’s antagonist.

      iii.            He is one of the central characters.

     iv.            The main themes of the play revolve around him. Themes such as misuse of power, change, fall from grace and betrayal all revolve around him.

       v.            He has secrets – From his conversation with Mulili we learn that as the head of Kafira boss was surprised to know that kabito knew about his secret accounts in foreign countries.

     vi.            He is the cause of conflicts – Boss’s actions contribute to the main causes of conflict within the play. His development plans and dictatorial leadership leads to murder and civil disobedience in Kafira.

    vii.            He faces opposition from the society – Boss’s decision to bring expatriates to work in Kafira faced a lot of opposition mainly from the university students. His development plans especially that of changing names also faced a lot of opposition. We learn through Mosese that blows were exchanged in the planning committee over whether the changing of names was to be item number one or three in the development plan.

  viii.            He is acting on personal desires – Boss actions towards the citizens of Kafira are geared towards maintaining his leadership. For example he orders Mulili to take two guards with him so that they can kill kabito who allegedly knew about his secrets. He also uses his position to steal wealth from Kafira and stash them in foreign countries.

     ix.            He suffers tragedy – At the end of the play his misdeeds are repaid when he is overthrown by the actors who were to act for the visiting head of state.

VIII.            Protagonist

A protagonist is a main character in a literary work who is against the social ills of a society or qualities, actions and decisions of a villain. The protagonist may be faced by conflicts which must be resolved. Normally a protagonist tends to have positive character traits though he may also have negative traits which are not admirable. A literary work can have more than one protagonist whose objectives are to achieve or accomplish one goal. The principal opponent of the protagonist is the antagonist. The antagonist represents or creates obstacles that the protagonist must overcome. The protagonist and the antagonist help to build the plot of a literary work.

The main protagonists in the play are:

a.       Jusper

b.      Mosese

c.       Jere

Qualities of jusper as a protagonist

a.       He is a main character in the play since most of the actions in the play revolve around him.

b.      He has a complex personality. Though most of his character traits are likable as a protagonist he also has qualities which are not admirable. For example the killing of Chagaga shows how vengeful and dangerous jusper was.

c.       He takes risks – In act one of the play, we learn that jusper goes and takes revenge against Chagaga who had killed his brother and who was also a police officer and the brother to the sub chief. After killing Chagaga he goes out and confesses what he had done to a group of people who in turn stone him to near death. To the reader these are some of the risks that jusper had taken which makes him a more believable character.

d.      He is highly motivated to achieve his goals. After the killing of his parents, jusper’s goal was to get revenge against those people who had killed his family. His goal is revealed when he tells Regina that he will get revenge someday, even if it meant going it alone. In the last scene of the play he succeeds in achieving his goal when he shoots and kills Mulili during the play rehearsal.

e.      The central themes of the play revolve around him. Themes such as bitterness, revenge, murder etc. revolve around the protagonists of the play.

f.        The plot of the play is built around him. The exposition, the conflict, the climax and the resolution of the plot is built around the protagonist. In act one of the play; jusper has been used to explore the genesis of the conflict. His decision to take part in the play by writing the play which was to be acted in front of the visiting head of state forms the crisis which arises later in the play. His conflicts with other characters in the play also contribute to the build-up of the plot. His main opponent i.e. Mulili and boss are against his goals of seeking justice for his brother and good governance in Kafira. In the last scene of the play, he forms the cornerstone of the climax during the rehearsal of the play. His outbursts during the rehearsal form the climax of the play. The plot resolution is achieved after he kills Mulili as a revenge for the death of his parents.

g.       He faces opposition from the villains. Mulili and boss are the main villains in the play because they represent evil. Unknown to Mulili and boss, jusper is seen as a force of opposition against the two characters because he opposes some of the decisions made by the two.

h.      He goes through a tragedy – In the opening of the play we learn that jusper’s brother adika was killed in a students’ demonstration and later his parents also get killed.

i.         He dictates the tone and mood of the play – Jusper’s conversation with other characters and his state of mind determines the mood and tone of the play. His monologue in adika’s grave shows how sad he was when he learnt about his brother’s death. While in Regina’s house he gets into an argument with Regina and he ridicules tumbo which leads to a change in the mood of the characters and the tone of the play. In the last scene of the play, his excitement during the rehearsal of the play changes the tone of the play and that was what made boss realize that something was amiss.

j.        He faces opposition from the society – Jusper’s confession to killing Chagaga to a group of people sets him on a collision path with the group. His decision to confess was met with a lot of opposition after the group started stoning him. Later he goes against the wishes of his fellow university students after he agreed to take part in the play by writing the play. His decision faced opposition from the university students union who sack him as their union’s organising secretary.

k.       He is a source of conflict – He gets into conflict with his parents after he abandoned adika’s grave in the middle of the night. He also gets into conflict with the society after he confessed to killing Chagaga and when he agreed to take part in the play. He also gets into conflict with other characters e.g. he gets into conflict with Regina because of his insistence of getting revenge on those who killed his parents.

l.         He has believable characters traits – He possesses both good and bad character traits e.g. he was talented and murderous.

    IX.            Symbolic characters

A symbolic character is a character whose presence in a literary work represents an idea or aspect in a society. In the play certain characters are symbolic. These characters are:

a.       Boss – He represents dictatorship and oppression by those who are in leadership.

b.      Mulili – He represents violence, oppression, corruption and sycophancy.

c.       Nicodemo – He represents corrupt government officials.

d.      Doga and Nina – They represent the face of injustice in Kafira. They also represent hopelessness in the society of Kafira.

e.      Kabito – He represents corrupt government officials.

f.        Jere – he represents rationality in Kafira.

g.       Tumbo – He represents corrupt government officials.

      X.            Focal characters

A focal character is a character who captures the attention of the audience or the reader of a literary work. Most focal characters are always the characters who possess good qualities like the protagonist.

In the play the focal characters include:

a.       Mosese

b.      Jere

c.       Regina

    XI.            Supporting characters

A supporting character is a character who is not the focus on the story’s or play’s plot but have a story of their own. A supporting character usually supports the main characters to achieve their goals. Examples in the play include:

a.       Nina – She supported his son jusper by convincing him to go and confess his sins.

b.      Askari – He gave advice to jusper which led to his early release.

c.       Jere – He wanted to take part in the play so that their conspiracy would be successful.

d.      Mosese – He took part in the play which turned out to be a conspiracy to overthrow boss’s government.

e.      Regina – she wanted jusper not to take part in the demonstrations which led to the death of adika. She also wanted to help her brother Mosese so that he could be released from prison.

  XII.            Tritagonist

A tritagonist is a character who supports the antagonist in his or her quest to bring suffering to the protagonist. The tritagonist is also the least sympathetic character to the sufferings facing the protagonist.

In the play, the tritagonist is boss who assists Mulili to bring pain and suffering to jusper. He does this by ordering the killing of Doga and Nina which is carried out by Mulili.

XIII.            Sidekick

A sidekick is a character who looks up to another character as a role model. Examples in the play include:

a.       Jusper – He looked up to Mosese because they shared the same ideology and also because he thought that he was strong.

b.      Mulili – He looked up to boss because he knew that through him he could fulfil his ambitions.

XIV.            Unseen characters

An unseen character is a character who has been briefly mentioned in a literary work but is not seen or heard. The unseen character may direct the plot of a literary work through his influence on other characters.

In the play “BETRAYAL IN THE CITY”, the unseen characters include:

a.       Nicodemus – Through his actions, he led to the arrest of Mosese.

b.      Chagaga – By killing adika he brings about conflict that exists in the play.

c.       Adika – His death was the main cause of conflict and it brings about certain changes in the play’s plot.

d.      Mercedes – She was the wife of Boss.

e.      Sub – chief – He was the brother of Chagaga.

  XV.            Stock characters

A stock character is a character who frequently appears in the plot of a literary work. Examples in the play include:

a.       Jere

b.      Mosese

c.       Tumbo

d.      Nicodemo

XVI.            Antihero

An antihero is a protagonist who possesses qualities that are not admirable. In the play, jusper wendo who is the protagonist also takes up the role of an antihero since he has qualities which the reader and other characters consider bad. It is clear from his actions and speech that though he may be a good person he is also dangerous, wild, vengeful and murderous.