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19 May 2018

BETRAYAL IN THE CITY - CONFLICTS


                    i.            Man vs. man – A man vs. man conflict can be described as disagreement or argument arising between two or more characters.  In the play “Betrayal in the city,” several characters get into conflict with each other and some of the conflicts have been resolved through killings.
a.       Tumbo vs. Boss – Conflict between Tumbo and Boss started after Regina’s visit to Boss’s palace. While she was there, Boss tried to take Regina by force but she escaped by jumping out of a ten foot high window. The incident did not go down well with Tumbo since he was the one who had recommended Regina to go and plead with Boss for her brother’s release. In the same act, Tumbo tells Jusper that Boss was in an unpredictable mood and that he was very cross with him when he told him that they did not have all the props.
b.      Regina vs. Tumbo – Tumbo felt that Regina will not forgive him after the incident that happened in Boss’s palace where Boss had tried to take her by force.
c.       Boss vs. Doga and Nina – In act two of the play we learn that Boss gave the order for the killing of Doga and Nina. This is revealed to us through Mulili who wanted to get rid of Kabito just the way he did with Doga and Nina. Boss’s decision to kill Doga and Nina might be because he was in conflict with them.
d.      Mulili vs. Doga and Nina – In act one, conflict arises when Jere and Mulili arrive at adika’s grave and inform Nina and Doga that there will be no ceremony. Mulili shows no sympathy to Doga and Nina and calls them murderers. When he tells Doga and Nina that Adika’s grave no longer belonged to them, Nina threatens to curse him and Jere by stripping naked. Mulili’s lack of respect towards the two old couple also angers Doga who tells him that he would die the same way his son Adika died.
e.      Regina vs. Jusper – Regina was at crossroads with Jusper because he lacked manners. This is shown by Jusper when he enters Regina’s house without knocking on the door. Regina was also opposed to Jusper’s choice of attire. She tells Jusper that the red gown that he had worn made him look more dangerous than he really was. Regina was also opposed to see Jusper wearing the red gown because when he puts it on and move up and down the streets, she thought of nothing but trouble. She also says that every time Jusper wears the red gown, people start to think that it was right for Mosese to be locked in. Regina was also in conflict with jusper when she reminded him the promise he made to his brother Mosese and which Regina felt that he was not going to honour it.
f.        Mosese and Regina – Conflict between Mosese and Regina began when Regina went to visit Mosese in prison. While there she told him that she wanted to go and plead for his release. Mosese viewed Regina’s decision as the ultimate betrayal and he nearly slapped her for being too soft for a prisoner’s sister.
g.       Doga vs. Sub-chief – Doga was in conflict with the sub-chief because it was his brother Chagaga who had shot and killed his son Adika.
h.      Boss vs. Regina – Conflict between these two happened after Regina had gone to Boss’s palace to plead with him to release her brother. While at the palace Boss tried to take her by force but she escaped by jumping a ten feet high window.
i.         Doga vs. Chagaga – Doga was full of bitterness because Chagaga had killed one of his sons and he was never jailed because he had told the authorities that he killed Adika in self-defence. When talking to the ghosts of his late son, he gets vengeful and tells his son to follow those who killed him to the bitter end. This revenge mission can be attributed to Chagaga who had killed Adika.
j.        Jusper vs. Chagaga – After the death of Adika, Jusper got into conflict with Chagaga because he was the one who had killed his brother Adika. During Adika’s funeral service, Jusper became wild and he started singing songs of vengeance. Several days later Jusper gets arrested by the authorities after confessing that he had killed Chagaga.
k.       Nicodemo vs. Tumbo – At the committee meeting that was planning the entertainment for the visiting head of state, Nicodemo tells Tumbo to drop the formality because they were not friends.
l.         Kabito vs. Tumbo – At the committee meeting that was planning the entertainment for the vising head of state; Kabito agrees with Nicodemo that Tumbo should drop the formality because he was not their friend. Kabito goes ahead and tells Tumbo that he joined them recently and the way things are done there has escaped his eyes.
m.    Doga vs. Nina – In the opening of the play Doga gets into conflict with his wife Nina because she feared to set her eyes on her own son grave. Doga also opposed Nina’s suggestion of sending word to the sub-chief to delay the shaving ceremony. Doga opposed it because he did not want to involve the sub-chief whose brother was the cause of their son’s death.
n.      Mercedes vs. Boss – Conflict between these two arose after Boss locked up Mercedes for complaining about the incident that happened between him and Regina where he had tried to take Regina by force.
o.      Boss vs. Mulili – Conflict between these two arises after Mulili betrays Boss. During the rehearsal of the play in the palace, Mulili denies that Boss was his cousin but a distant cousin. When Jere asks Mulili to give him one good reason why Boss should not be killed, he says that he has no reason and that they could go ahead and kills him. Boss is shocked to hear Mulili betraying him and he tells Jere to go ahead and shoot him so that he could be spared from Mulili’s betrayal.
p.      Nicodemo vs. Mosese – Nicodemo was against Mosese being pardoned because he says that it would be a personal tragedy for him if he was released.
q.      Mosese vs. Nicodemus – Mosese had dropped his first name Nicodemus because the man who had planted a kilogramme of opium in his car leading to his arrest was also called Nicodemus.
r.        Boss vs. Kabito – Conflict between these two arises after Mulili goes to the palace and tells boss that Kabito was slandering his name. He tells Boss that Kabito had gone to the meeting while drunk and shouting to everyone how Boss had ruined the economy of Kafira by hiding millions in foreign countries and how he had tried to take Regina by force. Mulili’s lies infuriate Boss who accuses Kabito of poisoning Mercedes mind. The conflict between these two is resolved after Boss orders Mulili to take two guards and silence Kabito. Later in the play we learn about the death of Kabito through a fatal accident and during the rehearsal of the play at the palace, Mulili confesses that Boss killed Kabito.
s.       Jusper vs. Doga and Nina – Conflict between Jusper and his parents began at the grave of Adika. When Doga and Nina arrived at the gravesite early in the morning they found the grave deserted and desecrated. Doga and Nina blame Jusper for deserting his brother’s grave and therefore allowing it to be tampered with. Nina fails to understand why Jusper did not shout for help when he saw them tampering with his brother’s remains. Jusper is also in conflict with his parents because they thought that he was out of his mind.
t.        Tumbo vs. Mulili – Tumbo was opposed to Mulili sitting in the committee meeting that was tasked with the entertainment of the visiting head of state because of his temperamental nature. He also did not like Mulili because he knew that he was responsible for Kabito’s death.
u.      Jusper vs. Mosese – During the climax of the play, Jusper and Mosese had different opinions on what should be done to Boss and Mulili. Jusper wanted revenge while Jere and Mosese were against it since they did not want to swim in human blood.
v.       Mulili vs. Jere – Conflict between these two started when both of them were sent to Adika’s grave to prevent the ceremony from taking place. While at the grave, Jere becomes sympathetic towards the plight Doga and Nina but Mulili was the complete opposite. Mulili started abusing Jere because he was being too soft with the two old couple. Jere then tries to plead with Mulili to allow Doga and Nina to carry own with their ceremony but Mulili was opposed to Jere’s suggestions. Mulili tells Jere that his future depended on him keeping law and order since Boss had promised him many acres of farmland and grade cattle. Since Jere sees no hope in trying to convince Mulili to allow Doga and Nina to carry on with their traditional ceremony, he tries to shoot him but Mulili manages to dive off stage. At the end of the play it is evident that Jere was satisfied with the death of Mulili.
w.     Jere vs. Askari – When Jere was arrested and taken to prison; his interaction with the prison warder was not friendly. Jere uses sarcasm as a way of belittling the prison warder. Because of these Askari constantly threatened Jere with dire consequences and this becomes a reality when he refuses to give him tea but gives Mosese.
x.       Kabito vs. Mulili – The conflict between these two started when Kabito learnt that the milk supply tender to the university has been given to Mulili. Kabito had spent the whole night canvassing with the university officials so that he could be awarded the tender. After he got the tender, Mulili uses his connection with his cousin who calls the university catering manager and tells him to cancel Kabito’s tender and to give it to Mulili. Kabito was not happy that his milk supply tender had been cancelled and given to Mulili. During the committee meeting, Mulili tells the other committee members that the man who was at first given the contract will regret the day he was born without knowing that the person who he was talking about was Kabito. Kabito and Mulili also get into another conflict when it came to discussing about what was to be included in the entertainment program. Mulili wanted every adult and child to line the road when welcoming the visitor while Kabito was against the idea because the children were in their final term and most of them were sitting for their exams. Mulili also wanted the drama department of their national university to be given the responsibility of producing the play but Kabito was against it because according to him it was not necessary to force grown-ups to do a thing that they did not believe in. Due to Mulili’s illiteracy he misquotes what Kabito was telling him and he felt that Kabito was belittling him. Mulili then demands an apology from Kabito but Kabito refuses to apologise setting the stage for Mulili’s plan to eliminate Kabito. During the one hour break from the committee meeting, Mulili goes to boss’s palace and spreads propaganda against Kabito to boss who orders for his killing.
y.       Jusper vs. Mulili – Jusper might have known that it was Mulili who had killed his parents and that was why he told Regina that he would get revenge against those who killed his parents even if it meant going it alone. During the rehearsal of the play, Jusper spares the life of Boss but he kills Mulili.

                   ii.            Man Vs. Technology – This is the type of conflict where man tries to adjust to the technological advances that are taking place.
a.       Jusper vs. Jaguar – When Tumbo asked Jusper whether he could drive a Jaguar, Jusper replied that he has never dreamt of driving a car. Tumbo then tells jusper that the jaguar was the simplest car to drive but Jusper did not even know what gears were.

                 iii.            Man Vs. Supernatural – This is the type of conflict where a character is in disagreement or argument with unseen beings such as ghosts, gods, aliens, spirits etc.
a.       Jusper vs. ghosts – Jusper was in conflict with his brother’s ghost. In act one he tells Regina how his late brother’s ghost won’t give him a night’s peace. He also tells her how his late brother’s ghost kept appearing on him and how it nearly hit him with an enormous slide rule for shaking hands with their local chief.
b.      Doga vs. ghosts – In act one it was clear that Doga wanted his late son ceremony to go on because he did not want the spirits of the dead to turn wild with anger on account of a ceremony unperformed.  In the same act, Jere tells Mulili that the ceremony Doga wanted to perform was to get rid himself of his late son’s ghost.

                 iv.            Man vs. Society – This is a type of conflict where a character goes against the wishes of a society.
a.       Jusper vs. society – The conflict between Jusper and the society of Kafira began during the funeral service of his brother Adika. At the funeral he became wild and started singing songs of vengeance. His actions led to him being taken away since he had become dangerous to peace loving people and had to be cooled down. After confessing that he had killed Chagaga, Jusper gets stoned by the people who were in a rally after they realized that what he was telling them was the truth. In act two of the play he faced another conflict after he decided to write a play that was to be acted for the visiting head of state. His fellow university students viewed him as a betrayer of their cause and they sacked him as the organising secretary of the university students union.
b.      Mulili vs. Society – As one of Boss’s right hand man, Mulili was against change in Kafira that would give the masses voice. Mulili was also against the university students who were rioting in the streets opposing Boss’s development plans.
c.       Boss vs. University students – The university students were against Boss because of his development policies. They were against his decision of bringing expatriates to the country and the injustices that the people of Kafira were going through under his leadership. Because of his leadership style, a plot is hatched to overthrow his government so that change can finally be felt in Kafira.
d.      Tumbo vs. University students – As a government official and part of the status quo, Tumbo was opposed to the views and activities of the university students. He nicknames the rioting university students “red guards.”
e.      Jere vs. Authority – When Jere was sent to his sub location to restore peace and order; he rebelled against the authorities and took sides with his own people. That decision led to his arrest and he was sent to prison.
f.        Mosese vs. Politicians – When Mosese spoke his mind during the funeral service which had been hijacked by politicians. He was set-up by the politicians who used a man by the name Nicodemus to plant a kilogramme of opium in his car. When the opium was found by the authorities, he got arrested and sent to prison.

                  v.            Man vs. Self – It is a type of conflict where a character struggles with him/herself.
a.       Mosese vs. Self – Though Mosese appeared sane; it was obvious that there were some form of inner conflict that he was struggling against. While he was in prison with Jere, he gets a terrible nightmare and during h the nightmare he utters a terrible war cry. His speech during the nightmare reveals how he was struggling with a job offer, his honesty and his marital status. At the end of the scene, Jere concludes that Mosese was mad. Mosese also suffered internal conflict when he had to choose whether to take part in the play that was to be acted for the visiting head of state.
b.      Jusper vs. Self – After the death of his brother, jusper faced conflict within himself and these leads to periods of madness and sanity. Because of this he is taken away from the society and gets admitted to a mental facility where he is rehabilitated and released after getting better. At the end of the play, it is evident that he had not gotten better because after killing Mulili he goes back to his state of madness.
c.       Doga vs. self – After his son’s death, Doga suffered internally because the killer of his son was still roaming free and lived among them. He was also distressed because his other son suffered a nervous breakdown during the funeral service of his dead brother.

                vi.            Role Of Conflicts
a.       To set the tone and mood of the play – The conflicts in the play have helped to create tension in the play therefore helping to set the mood and tone of the play. For example the argument between Kabito and Mulili has helped to shape the mood of the two characters and the tone of the play.
b.      To reveal themes – Themes such as betrayal, murder, oppression, dictatorship etc. have been revealed through the conflicts that are taking place in the play. For example the conflict between Mosese and Regina happens because Mosese felt betrayed by his sister. On the other hand Boss is in conflict with the university students because they were opposed to the development plans that he undertook to perform.
c.       To reveal the character traits of other characters – Kabito and Mulili’s conflict reveal how argumentative both characters were. It also reveals how commanding and confrontational Mulili was towards those he felt that were below him.
d.      To reveal secrets – Conflict between Jere and Mulili reveal the secret about Mustafa who was a prisoner and who Mulili had helped to escape from prison.
e.      To create suspense – Suspense is created when the reader anticipate to know what will happen after a conflict is solved. The conflict between Mulili and Kabito creates suspense within the play with the reader anticipating to know how the conflict between the two characters would be solved.
f.        To reveal the setting of the play – Conflict between Jere and Mulili has helped to reveal the physical setting on which the play is based upon. P13-14
g.       To enhance literary devices – Literary devices such as suspense, poetic justice, satire, etc. are enhanced and understood clearly through the conflicts that are taking place in the play. For example the conflict between Mulili and Kabito helps to enhance suspense and satire within the play.
h.      To reveal characters in the play – Characters such as Chagaga and the sub-chief are revealed through the conflict between Doga and Nina.
i.         To reveal culture and traditions practiced by a section of the society in Kafira – The conflict between Doga and Nina has helped to reveal some of the traditions practiced by a section of the people living in Kafira. Both Nina and Doga got into conflict after Nina was opposed to the idea of holding their son’s shaving ceremony without the sub-chief’s knowledge.
j.        To foreshadow events taking place in the play. The conflict between Kabito and Mulili foreshadows the demise of one of the characters.

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