Sadiku Character Analysis in The Lion and the Jewel

Sadiku is Baroka's first wife. She is very loyal to her husband and spends her time acting as a matchmaker to find him new brides and concubines. Her devotion isn't blind and unwavering, however. When Baroka confides in Sadiku that his manhood is gone, she's thrilled to have "scotched" her husband and scored a victory for all women over men. Since Sadiku is Baroka’s first wife, traditional values give her a degree of power, and she fears progress and modernity.

Sadiku Quotes in The Lion and the Jewel

The The Lion and the Jewel quotes below are all either spoken by Sadiku or refer to Sadiku. 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:

My name is Sidi, and I am beautiful.
The stranger took my beauty
And placed it in my hands.

Related Characters: Sidi (speaker), The Stranger, Lakunle, Baroka, Sadiku

Related Symbols: The Magazine

Page Number and Citation: 20

Explanation and Analysis:

Sadiku has just asked Sidi if she'd agree to marry Baroka, and Lakunle angrily responded by referring to Sidi by Biblical names. In her reply, Sidi insists that Lakunle use her real name, which shows that the photograph has given her a sense of autonomy and the power to assert her personhood. Sidi places her beauty, as revealed to her by the stranger, above both Western ideals (the Bible) and traditional images of power (Baroka). While this is definitely an empowering moment for Sidi, it's important to note that Sidi has this reaction to the magazine and the photographs because 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 delect

They are lies, lies. You must not believe everything you hear. Sidi, would I deceive you? I swear to you...

Related Characters: Sadiku (speaker), Sidi, Baroka

Page Number and Citation: 23

Explanation and Analysis:

Sidi laughs and refuses Baroka's request (through Sadiku) that she join him for dinner, saying that all women who dine with him become wives or concubines the next day. Sadiku's response suggests her loyalty to Baroka, since she is defending his reputation and doing his bidding. Her loyalty is entirely understandable; his position as the Bale of Ilujinle is what gives Sadiku her power in the first place. This moment, however, foreshadows two tricks. First, when Sadiku asks Sidi if she would deceive her, Sadiku seems to rhetorically suggest that she is an honest person, but she quickly turns to 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 voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit

Like the foolish top you think the world revolves around you... fools! fools! it is you who run giddy while we stand still and watch, and draw your frail thread from you, slowly, till nothing is left but a runty old stick.

Related Characters: Sadiku (speaker), Baroka

Related Symbols: The Statue of Baroka

Page Number and Citation: 32

Explanation and Analysis:

Sadiku dances around a statue of Baroka as she privately celebrates that Baroka's manhood is gone and women, consequently, have won. This suggests that, while men might have the majority of the power, men's power is directly related to their ability to perform sexually and father children. This is something that diminishes with age in most cases, which adds an element of tenuousness to the idea of male power and gives an opening for women to gain power even within traditional structures. While Sadiku's monologue attempts to profess the rise of female power in the traditional patriarchal society, the staging 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 eni

For though you're nearly seventy,
Your mind is simple and unformed.
Have you no shame that at your age,
You neither read nor write nor think?

Related Characters: Lakunle (speaker), Sadiku

Page Number and Citation: 37

Explanation and Analysis:

Lakunle berates Sadiku for doing nothing with her life besides being Baroka's wife and chief matchmaker. Once again, Lakunle either refuses to see or is genuinely unable to understand that Sadiku enjoys a great deal of power in her position as head wife. She likely wouldn't possess that much power in the modern system that Lakunle advocates, mostly because the polygamous system enables her to act as a matchmaker and control whom Baroka weds, while a monogamous system would deny her that ability. Lakunle also continues to place a great deal of importance on Western modes of learning and education. 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

Did she not, perhaps... invent some tale?
For I know Sadiku loves to be
All-knowing.

Related Characters: Baroka (speaker), Sadiku, Sidi

Page Number and Citation: 48

Explanation and Analysis:

Baroka insists that Sidi has been talking to Sadiku, but Sidi denies this accusation. The audience sees here that Baroka is fully aware that Sadiku gets her power from the way she uses language to manipulate people. He knows that she's notorious for inventing stories, which hints at the fact that Sadiku’s story might not actually correlate with her increased power and that Sidi’s trick (which was inspired by Sadiku’s story) might not work as she intends. In this passage, Baroka proves himself to be as sly as his reputation suggests. Though he is calling Sadiku out on her tricks, 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 t

Dear Sidi, we shall forget the past.
This great misfortune touches not
The treasury of my love.
But you will agree, it is only fair
That we forget the bride-price totally
Since you no longer can be called a maid.

Related Characters: Lakunle (speaker), Sidi, Sadiku, Baroka

Page Number and Citation: 60

Explanation and Analysis:

Sidi has just revealed to Sadiku and Lakunle that Baroka raped her and she's no longer a virgin. Lakunle makes it very clear that he doesn't value Sidi for any of the reasons she values herself. For him, the fact that she's no longer a virgin simply makes his goals easier to accomplish, as that gets rid of the need for either the bride price or convincing Sidi to marry him without one. It shows that he views the fight for Sidi's hand in marriage as a purely logistical one. This also shows how self-centered Lakunle is. It never even 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 ali

Sadiku Character Timeline in The Lion and the Jewel

The timeline below shows where the character Sadiku appears in The Lion and the Jewel. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Pride, Vanity, and the Power of Images Theme Icon

...carrying firewood for her. Sidi is engrossed in the photographs of herself in the magazine. Sadiku, Baroka's first wife, is coming towards them on the road and she startles Sidi. The... (full context)

Language, Words, and Trickery Theme Icon

Sadiku asks Sidi if she'll agree to be Baroka's "jewel." Sidi tells Sadiku that she won't... (full context)

...that he wants little more than to be famous for possessing the "jewel of Ilujinle." Sadiku is bewildered and asks Sidi if she's sick. Sadiku turns suddenly to Lakunle and accuses... (full context)

Sidi instructs Sadiku to return to Baroka and tell him that she won't marry him. Sidi opens the... (full context)

Sadiku finally asks Sango (a Yoruba god) to help Sidi, saying that an angry god is... (full context)

...asserts himself again and says that Baroka is called "the Fox" for a reason. Though Sadiku tells him to be quiet, Lakunle says Baroka is known even in surrounding towns for... (full context)

...Lakunle remarks that Baroka does have quite a selective eye for women. As Sidi and Sadiku slip away, Lakunle muses on the life of luxury Baroka leads with all his beautiful... (full context)

Sadiku enters the bedroom and bows to Baroka. Baroka asks if she's brought balm for his... (full context)

...angrily jumps up, incensed that a young girl would say such a thing. He asks Sadiku if it's possible and lists his achievements of the last week: winning a log-tossing match,... (full context)

Sadiku sits down and begins to tickle Baroka's feet. Baroka grabs a magazine from under the... (full context)

Suddenly, Baroka sits up and tells Sadiku that she's the only one he's told about this since she's the oldest and most... (full context)

...many women's hands have caressed his feet, some clumsy, some too dainty. He says that Sadiku's hands, however, are the best and he calls her the queen of all his wives.... (full context)

Later that evening, Sidi stands by the schoolhouse and admires her photographs in the magazine. Sadiku furtively enters the village center with a bundle. She pulls out a carved figure of... (full context)

Still laughing, Sadiku starts a chant of "take warning, my masters/We'll scotch you in the end" and dances... (full context)

Sadiku makes Sidi swear silence and whispers in her ear. Sidi's eyes go wide and she... (full context)

Lakunle enters the village center, watches Sidi and Sadiku for a moment, and then declares that the women are going mad even when the... (full context)

Sidi suddenly tells Sadiku to stop. She says that she wants to accept Baroka's invitation to the feast so... (full context)

Lakunle calls Sidi foolish and reprimands Sadiku for not being able to keep a secret, insulting her age in the process. He... (full context)

Sadiku tells Lakunle that his betrothed is currently eating with Baroka. Lakunle seems pleased that Sadiku... (full context)

Lakunle again tells Sadiku to leave him alone. Sadiku laughs and says that it's true then that Lakunle means... (full context)

Sadiku, looking terrified, tries to walk away, but Lakunle follows her and continues his tirade. He... (full context)

...into Baroka's bedroom and is surprised to see Baroka and the wrestler. Baroka asks if Sadiku isn't home, and Sidi answers that nobody greeted her. Baroka sighs and remembers out loud... (full context)

...arm down on the table, he says that Sidi sounds like she's been listening to Sadiku, which Sidi denies. (full context)

...surprise her with his invitation for dinner and asks again if she's been talking with Sadiku. Sidi again denies that she spoke with Sadiku, and Baroka asks if Sadiku possibly made... (full context)

...accuses her of taunting her elders. He explains that she shouldn't listen to women like Sadiku, as they scheme and play matchmaker for him whether he asks them to or not.... (full context)

...the room twice to the sound of drumming and shouting. Later that evening, Lakunle and Sadiku stand in the market waiting for Sidi, watching vendors hawk their wares. Lakunle paces and... (full context)

As people pass, Lakunle continues to search the crowd for Sidi. When the wrestler passes, Sadiku greets him. After their exchange, she looks confused. Lakunle laments Sidi's fate in Baroka's dungeon... (full context)

Sadiku seems unconcerned and reaches her hand into Lakunle's pocket, asking if he has money. He... (full context)

...story of Baroka's downfall. Baroka is portrayed as comical and only tolerated by his wives. Sadiku watches the dance excitedly and joins in to dance the final "scotching" of Baroka. When... (full context)

...the market square, sobbing. She violently throws herself on the ground next to a tree. Sadiku kneels next to her and asks Sidi what's wrong, but Sidi pushes her away. Lakunle,... (full context)

Looking up, Sidi calls Sadiku and Lakunle fools and says that Baroka lied to Sadiku about his manhood. She says... (full context)

...that she's not a virgin. He offers Sidi his hand and shooting a glance at Sadiku, says that they'll all swear to keep this a secret. Sidi incredulously asks Lakunle if... (full context)

Sadiku wonders what Sidi's doing. Lakunle, looking after Sidi, says that she's going home and asks... (full context)

Sadiku returns to Lakunle and says that Sidi is packing her things and oiling herself like... (full context)

Sidi kneels before Sadiku and asks Sadiku to bless her fertility. Sadiku does and accepts Sidi's offered bundle. Sidi... (full context)

Sadiku Character Analysis

Sadiku Quotes in The Lion and the Jewel

Noon Quotes

Night Quotes

Sadiku Character Timeline in The Lion and the Jewel