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Elesin
The "mother of the market." She has a close and friendly relationship with Elesin and, along with the praise-singer, acts as Elesin's moral compass and a conscience of sorts. She wants to please him and is happy to do so by helping the other market women dress him in fine cloth, but she's also the only one to question him when he asks to take a young woman as his wife in the hours before his death. With this, Iyaloja shows that she has a vested interest in making sure that Elesin follows protocol and doesn't ruin things by changing the plan, as she warns him several times that he should make sure he doesn't leave a curse behind by having sex with his new bride. At this point, Iyaloja seems to not have much power, given that she feels she cannot deny Elesin his bride even though she thinks the marriage isn't a good idea. After Elesin fails to die, however, Iyaloja comes into her full power. She berates Elesin for knocking the world off its course and upending the cosmic order by failing to die. Iyaloja makes it very clear that women will have to bear the burden of Elesin's mistake by having the market women carry Olunde's body to Elesin's cell so he can see how the consequences of his actions. She speaks often in Yoruba proverbs, which allows her to force Elesin to connect with his culture and his religion by interpreting them. After Elesin dies, Iyaloja blames Pilkings for killing Elesin and creating an environment in which Elesin failed—and where a disaster like Olunde’s suicide could happen. However, Iyaloja also shows that she recognizes the importance of looking forward, not backward, when she tells the bride to think of her unborn child, not of the living or the dead.
Iyaloja Quotes in Death and the King’s Horseman
The Death and the King’s Horseman quotes below are all either spoken by Iyaloja or refer to Iyaloja. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Act 3 Quotes
Amusa: The chief who call himself Elesin Oba.
Woman: You ignorant man. It is not he who calls himself Elesin Oba, it is his blood that says it. As it called out to his father before him and will to his son after him. And that is in spite of everything your white man can do.
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When Amusa comes to the market to arrest Elesin, he makes the mistake of suggesting that Elesin calls himself by his name, rather than understanding that Elesin's name is passed down through generations of horsemen and is something that's innate to him. This shows how out of touch Amusa is with his home culture and specifically, how a lack of understanding makes it even more difficult for Amusa to negotiate with the market women and get any closer to getting his way. The woman who responds, though unnamed, shows that she and the other women in the market can tap Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus v
- One might even say, difficult?
- Indeed one might be tempted to say, difficult.
- But you do manage to cope?
- Yes indeed I do. I have a rather faithful ox called Amusa.
- He's loyal?
- Absolutely.
- Lay down his life for you what?
- Without a moment's thought.
- Had one like that once. Trust him with my life.
- Mostly of course they are liars.
- Never known a native to tell the truth.
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In this passage, two young girls affect posh English accents and make fun of the English colonizers and Amusa specifically. By stealing Amusa's hat and baton and then decimating him with their act, the girls show that they are a force to be reckoned with and are the Yoruba's best bet to fight the colonizers. They show here that they have a nuanced grasp of how the colonizers operate and how they think of the native Africans—referring to Amusa as a "faithful ox" indicates that they understand that the colonizers don't think of them as real people and instead, consider Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi
Then tell him to leave this market. This is the home of our mothers. We don't want the eater of white left-overs at the feast their hands have prepared.
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As Iyaloja tries to get the girls to leave Amusa alone, the girls tell Iyaloja to kick Amusa out of the market. The way that the girls speak about the market suggests that it's a realm devoted to women, where women are the ones in power. This tells the reader that at least in this specific setting within Yoruba society, women do have power, just not in the Western sense of the word. Further, by turning Amusa out of the market, they ensure that their world will be able to proceed like it's supposed to (that is, with Elesin's death). Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut al
Our marriage is not yet wholly fulfilled. When earth and passage wed, the consummation is complete only when there are grains of earth on the eyelids of passage. Stay by me till then. My faithful drummers, do me your last service. This is where I have chosen to do my leave-taking, in this heart of life, this hive which contains the swarm of the world in its small compass. This is where I have known love and laughter away from the palace.
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Following the marriage ceremonies, Elesin tells the bride that she's the one who will perform the final rites when he dies, and that he'd like to die here, in the market. Note how the Yoruba people think of the market: namely, that it's the center of society and can act as a metaphor for their conception of the world as a whole. Elesin wants to die in the center of the world, in a place where he's been happy and surrounded by women throughout his life. He also tells the bride that it's extremely important that she follow through with Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt.
Act 5 Quotes
It is when the alien hand pollutes the source of will, when a stranger force of violence shatters the mind's calm resolution, this is when a man is made to commit the awful treachery of relief, commit in his thought the unspeakable blasphemy of seeing the hand of the gods in this alien rupture of his world. I know it was this thought that killed me, sapped my powers and turned me into an infant in the hands of unnamable strangers.
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When Iyaloja arrives in the cellar to speak to Elesin, Elesin tries to explain to her why he couldn't follow through and kill himself. In front of Iyaloja, Elesin accepts full responsibility for what happened. While it's easy to read his mention of the "alien hand" as being a reference to Pilkings and colonialism more broadly, it can also be read as the "alien" thought that maybe, he doesn't want to die. Given his role as the king’s horseman, it is foreign for Elesin to consider that maybe he doesn't want to die and follow through with the ritual. When Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas au
Elesin: Go to the gates, ghostly one. Whatever you find there, bring it to me.
Iyaloja: Not yet. It drags behind me on the slow, weary feet of women. Slow as it is, Elesin, it has long overtaken you. It rides ahead of your laggard will.
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When Elesin asks Pilkings to bring in whatever is waiting at the gates for him, Iyaloja explains that the "burden" that's coming is coming on the backs of women and isn't here yet. The fact that this burden comes because of women firmly situates women as the keepers of tradition and culture. They are the ones who did, in this case, presumably make sure that someone (in this case, Olunde) followed through with the ritual suicide, and now, they're going to bring Olunde's body to Elesin so that he can perform the final rites over it. The women are the Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea su
No child, it is what you brought to be, you who play with strangers' lives, who even usurp the vestments of our dead, yet believe that the stain of death will not cling to you. The gods demanded only the old expired plantain but you cut down the sap-laden shoot to feed your pride. There is your board, filled to overflowing. Feast on it.
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In response to Pilkings asking if she wanted both Elesin and Olunde dead, Iyaloja explains that this is what happens when Pilkings, as a white colonist, messes with other people's lives and expects things to go smoothly. Here, she skewers his unwillingness to take the local culture seriously and blames his illiteracy in the Yoruba culture for the tragedy that took place. She also suggests that because Pilkings does things like this, he's asking for problems and trouble—it's a natural consequence of feeling that he's above the people he's attempting to colonize, and of thinking that his way is the Dolorem et quae. Exerci
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Iyaloja Character Timeline in Death and the King’s Horseman
The timeline below shows where the character Iyaloja appears in Death and the King’s Horseman. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Act 1
...are afraid of this bird. As Elesin performs, more women enter to watch him, including Iyaloja, the “mother of the market.” Iyaloja asks how Elesin feels about the Not-I bird, and...
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...The women worry that they offended Elesin, and Elesin confirms that he's extremely offended. Nervously, Iyaloja asks for Elesin to forgive them and tell them what they did wrong. Iyaloja and...
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...women so much, he has to forgive them for anything and everything. The women and Iyaloja dance and sing that they feared that they'd upset the balance of the universe by...
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...describes how beautiful the young woman’s body is and again asks who she is. Hesitantly, Iyaloja tries to speak. She agrees that Elesin is still alive and therefore able to notice...
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Iyaloja points out that Elesin, in his honor, doesn't ruin other people's happiness for his own...
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Elesin asks if the women have come to a decision, and Iyaloja answers that they have: Elesin can have the young woman. She points out, however, that...
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Act 3
...and in doing so, show that he's stronger than the laws of the white men. Iyaloja and Elesin’s new bride come out of the stall and join the group outside. Amusa...
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As Amusa implores Iyaloja to make the women stop insulting him, several girls push through the crowd to the...
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...converge on Amusa and his constables, one girl says that they'll take his pants off. Iyaloja again asks the girls to leave Amusa alone, and one girl says that they'll leave...
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...out of the stall, holding a white velvet cloth. He cries out in happiness and Iyaloja steps up to take the cloth from him. He says that the mark on the...
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...now, he's listening to strange voices that guide him. Elesin's trance seems to deepen as Iyaloja joins the praise-singer. She says that only Elesin can die "the unknowable death of death."
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Act 5
...Cursing, Pilkings laments that the prince is visiting now. He approaches Elesin and says that Iyaloja came with a note from Olunde and wants to see him, but he's not thrilled...
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Pilkings leaves to fetch Iyaloja while Jane encourages Elesin to understand that Pilkings is trying to help. Elesin gives her...
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...returns and asks Elesin to swear on his honor that he won't accept anything from Iyaloja. Elesin points out that Pilkings has certainly already searched Iyaloja and touched her in a...
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Iyaloja is derisive of Elesin and insults his cowardice. Elesin wearily asks for Iyaloja's message, even...
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...left when he tried to die, especially when he felt the chains on his wrists. Iyaloja says that he betrayed them and now will have to eat the "world's leftovers" and...
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Iyaloja reminds Elesin that she's here with a burden, which is at the gate where the...
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Pilkings says that it's time for Iyaloja to leave and explains that they're moving Elesin tomorrow. Iyaloja insists that she knows all...
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Iyaloja says that she's not here to explain things to Pilkings. She tells him that Elesin...
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...women, so Pilkings agrees that they can enter. As the aide-de-camp runs off, Pilkings warns Iyaloja that his men will shoot if the women cause trouble. Iyaloja scorns the logic of...
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...to chant with the drummer and the praise-singer. Pilkings asks what the object is, and Iyaloja says that it's the burden Pilkings made. Elesin wants to whisper words for the king...
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...him that he has to perform the rites over the person who took his place. Iyaloja then removes the outer covering, revealing Olunde's body.
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Iyaloja asks Pilkings why he's trying so hard to do something that nobody, not even Elesin,...
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When Pilkings moves to close Elesin's eyes, Iyaloja shouts at him to stop and nods to the bride. The bride steps into the...
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