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The magazines that the stranger brings to Ilujinle feature photographs of the village and its residents, including three full pages showing images of Sidi. While Sidi was the village belle long before the magazine arrived, the magazine becomes the literal source of her power over the course of the play, particularly since it depicts her beauty prominently while insulting Baroka by including only a small picture of him next to a latrine. However, even though the magazine seems to suggest that Sidi is more powerful than Baroka (the village leader), the magazine also turns Sidi into a literal object that can be consumed, used, and distributed by others. The magazine, then, is symbolic of women's existence in Ilujinle; even when women believe they are gaining power, they are still seen as objects to be consumed and controlled by others.
The Magazine Quotes in The Lion and the Jewel
The The Lion and the Jewel quotes below all refer to the symbol of The Magazine. 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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Noon Quotes
My name is Sidi, and I am beautiful.
The stranger took my beauty
And placed it in my hands.
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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
Baroka merely seeks to raise his manhood
Above my beauty
He seeks new fame
As the one man who has possessed
The jewel of Ilujinle!
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Sidi tells Sadiku and Lakunle that Baroka only wants to marry her because her worth has appreciated with the photos taken by the stranger. Though Sidi is entirely correct that Baroka wants to possess and control her, and the photographs likely played a role in this decision, what's most telling about Sidi's words here is how she conceptualizes herself. Though the photographs allow Sidi to act as an independent person in charge of her life (something that the play would likely characterize as a masculine practice), she also talks about herself like she's an object. By referring to herself as 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. Volup
Night Quotes
I do not hate progress, only its nature
Which makes all roofs and faces look the same.
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Baroka tells Sidi of his plans to create a postal system for the village with stamps featuring Sidi's photograph on them. This refutes Lakunle's insistence that Baroka is directly against modernity, and suggests that he only hates progress when it happens simply for the sake of progress. Baroka suggests here that modernity is a good thing when it directly benefits him or the village, though that doesn't stop him from lamenting the fact that modernity inevitably entails things progressively becoming more the same. This shows, too, that Baroka takes great pride in the day-to-day activities and customs of the village. 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 eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum volupta
A present from Sidi.
I tried to tear it up
But my fingers were too frail.
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When Sidi returns to the village square after preparing herself for her wedding, she offers Lakunle a copy of the magazine as a gift. Sidi indicates that she wasn't physically strong enough to destroy the magazine and the photographs of herself in it. The fact that Sidi couldn't tear it up is a metaphor for the fact that Sidi ended up being unable to control her image—in fact, others were able to use it to control her. Even though the photographs made Sidi feel beautiful and powerful when she first saw them, they ultimately took her power away by opening 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 necessitat
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The Magazine Symbol Timeline in The Lion and the Jewel
The timeline below shows where the symbol The Magazine appears in The Lion and the Jewel. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Morning
...if he brought the images, and one of the girls says that he brought a book that shows pictures of the entire village. Sidi excitedly asks if the girls saw the...
(full context)
One of the girls says that the book surely makes Sidi look beautiful, and that Baroka is still looking at the images. The...
(full context)
Sidi asks if Baroka's photo is in the magazine as well, and one of the girls says with contempt that while his image is...
(full context)
...more famous than Baroka thanks to the images. She asks how many "leaves" of the magazine her own image occupies and forces Lakunle to count them. When he does, she leaps...
(full context)
...all run away. Baroka, now alone, sits down and takes out his copy of the magazine. He admires the photos of Sidi and says to himself that he hasn't taken a...
(full context)
Noon
...is 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....
(full context)
...to return to Baroka and tell him that she won't marry him. Sidi opens the magazine and points at the photographs, saying that she never realized before how old Baroka is....
(full context)
Sadiku sits down and begins to tickle Baroka's feet. Baroka grabs a magazine from under the bed and opens it to look at the photos of Sidi. With...
(full context)
Night
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...
(full context)
...silly. He says he thinks she's quite mature and wise as he pulls out the magazine and an addressed envelope.
(full context)
...them. Sidi loses herself in the daydream and sits down on Baroka's bed, holding the magazine but not looking at it.
(full context)
Sidi enters the square, dressed beautifully and carrying a bundle and the magazine. The crowd goes silent in awe of her beauty as she approaches Lakunle and hands...
(full context)
