A review of Osofisan, Femi Médàáyé: An African Re-reading of Euripides's Medea

Abstract

This review examines Emeritus Professor Femi Osofisan‘s 2022 play, Médàáyé: An African Re-reading of Euripides' Medea, 1 published by Mosuro Publishers, Ibadan. It explores how Osofisan transposes Euripides‘ classical tragedy onto the historical backdrop of the 19th-century Ibadan-Ijaye war in Yorubaland. The analysis highlights the play‘s use of Yoruba onomastics, its non-linear narrative structure and its thematic preoccupations with love, betrayal and the repercussions of political conflict. Situating the work within Osofisan‘s broader corpus of adapting Greek classics, this review argues that Médàáyé is not a mere adaptation but a re-reading that revitalises a universal tragic theme for a specific African socio-historical context, offering a statement on the destructive potential of skewed love and the brutalising effects of war.