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Though Soyinka insists in his introduction that Death and the King's Horseman isn't about colonialism, per se, the way that chains function throughout the play make it clear that Oyo and Nigeria as a whole is steeped in its colonial history, as well as its slave history. When Elesin is chained and kept in a cellar that once housed slaves before they were moved to the coast, it suggests that Elesin and his culture are still at the mercy of a system that seeks to dehumanize African people and deprive them of their traditions. As Elesin goes on to kill himself with his chains, it more broadly symbolizes the way in which the English colonizers are, at this time, literally killing native people and the culture by drawing on beliefs of European and white superiority developed through enslaving African people.
Chains Quotes in Death and the King’s Horseman
The Death and the King’s Horseman quotes below all refer to the symbol of Chains. 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 5 Quotes
Elesin: You did not save my life District Officer. You destroyed it.
Pilkings: Now come on...
Elesin: And not merely my life but the lives of many. The end of the night's work is not over. Neither this year nor the next will see it. If I wished you well, I would pray that you do not stay long enough on our land to see the disaster you have brought upon us.
Pilkings: Well, I did my duty as I saw fit. I have no regrets.
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Pilkings tries to talk to Elesin while he's in the cell, and Elesin explains that Pilkings did a horrendous thing by stopping his suicide, though Pilkings insists he just did his duty. The way that Elesin talks about the awful things to come is intended to show Pilkings that Elesin also had a duty to his people to die appropriately and at the right time. Through doing that, Elesin would've been able to guarantee his people's spiritual wellbeing, as well as their health in the land of the living. Because he was prevented, however, the world is now irrevocably off-kilter. 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
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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Chains Symbol Timeline in Death and the King’s Horseman
The timeline below shows where the symbol Chains appears in Death and the King’s Horseman. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Act 5
Elesin stands in his cell, his wrists chained. His bride sits outside the cell, looking at the ground, and there are two guards...
(full context)
...all of his powers 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...
(full context)
...off-course than they first thought. Elesin stares at Olunde for a moment before flinging the chain of his shackles around his neck and strangling himself. He dies before the guards can...
(full context)
