Lonely Days is a womanish prose as it expresses the belief in the independence, abilities, and talents of women folk. Bayo Adebowale in this typical African Prose makes use of a character, Yaremi to fight the cause of women in the text.
Characters in Lonely Days
Yaremi – A widow and the heroine of the novel.
Ajumobi -Husband of Yaremi.
Segi and Wura -Daughters of Yaremi.
Alani-The only son of Yaremi-
Wande -Son-in-law to Yaremi, husband to Segi, palm -wine-tapper.
Sokoti -Husband to Wura and a blacksmith.
Ayanwale -A suitor to Yaremi and a traditional drummer.
Olonade -Another suitor, the village wood carver.
Lanwa -The third suitor, a farmer.
Woye -Grandson of Yaremi.
Dedewe, Fayoyin and Radeke- Ex-widows-
Uncle Deyo -Bosom friend of Ajumobi.
Okanlawon – A neighbour to Ajumobi.
Plot
The geographical setting of the novel is Ibadan, south-west Nigeria and some villages in the ancient city. The prose is about widowhood in Yoruba land and what women pass through in the course of widowhood
In the early part of the prose, Ajumobi, husband to Yaremi is dead and as tradition demands; she is expected to marry another man in Kufi village. Yaremi is not the first woman to experience this in the village; Dedewe, Fayoyin and Radeke have also experienced it earlier.
Three suitors approach her for her hand in marriage; they are Ayanwale a popular drummer, Olonade a successful wood-carver and Lanwa a renowned farmer. Yaremi is expected to pick from the three men but she turns down the offer of the suitors.
Yaremi is a hardworking woman in Kufi village; she has three grown up children who are on their own. Segi and Wura are married and Alani is a successful furniture maker in Ibadan. With these, she thinks that she does not need to stay under any man for any reason she on her own is a famous taffeta seller and an accomplished farmer in the village.
She rejects the advice of the three ex- widows. They dance to the tune of the village by re-marrying. In the course of this, they face a lot of persecution before they are forced to re-marry.
Yaremi refuses to pick any of the caps eventually when the ceremony comes up and she is faced with strong opposition and hatred from the villagers but with strong determination, she is undeterred and maintains her stand with the support of her children.
Chapter by Chapter Analysis
Chapter One
The book opens with a flashback narrating the death of Ajumobi nine moons ago, what the people say about his death, their experiences and how Yaremi the wife takes it.
Yaremi does not know whether to be happy or sad, but she has all the reasons to be grateful to God because her husband did not die a shameful death. He did not fall from palm tree nor struck by thunder like some people in the village. Tears later roll down her face when she remembers that she will not see her husband again.
Yaremi is now lonely after the death of her husband that the mourners that stay with her leave for their various houses. Her two daughters, Segi and Wura, who used to stay with her, are married to their various husbands.
Alani her son stays in Ibadan doing his furniture work. Yaremi, being a hardworking woman accepts her fate and faces her work without looking back.
Woye, her grandchild is with her to keep her company and the little boy joins her in arranging her cloth for sale and they also go to the farm together.
Chapter Two
After the death of Ajumobi, Yaremi’s husband, to cushion the effect of loneliness, Yaremi busies herself with works in the house and on the farm. She has daily routines at home, especially in her kitchen where she carries out different house chores. The kitchen has been put in good order by Ajumobi for Yaremi’s conveniences.
Also, on the farm, being an energetic woman, she works tirelessly on the farm to have good harvest at the end of the year. Yaremi, like other women in Kufi always engage in one song or the other while busy at home or on the farm.
Chapter Three
This opens with the literary description of the experiences of widows during widowhood. The author makes use of a road to explain these. The road is a narrow road and it is called widow’s road. While passing through the road, one needs to be very careful because it is slippery. Many pots have been broken on the road as a result of the nature of the road.
The three widows, Radeke, Dedewe and Fayoyin also share their experiences in the village, how they are rejected and what people say about them and various bad experiences they had in the village. This portrays the lives of widows in Africa as that of rejection and dejection.
Chapter Four
It never crosses Yaremi’s mind that she would sooner join the league of widows as she always looks at the three widows, Dedewe, Radeke and Fayoyin in the village from a far distance and she always imagines what they are passing through and never thought of experiencing it.
Yaremi has to put herself together now, what happened has happened and life must continue. She engages in different task at the same time and this gives her a lot of joy.
At her leisure, she interacts with the villagers and also engages Woye, her grandson in happy reminiscences, narrating different stories of her own childhood days to teach him lessons and entertain him.
Chapter Five
Woye engages himself in different activities at once. These range from kicking orange football, riding his bicycle to other childhood plays.
Flashback is also used here to make reference to Ajumobi while alive, the activities he engaged in while alive. This chapter narrates how he died; how he returned from farm very tired and refuses to take his favourite food and becomes strangely a talkative.
His mind is filled with hallucination and the village herbalist is later invited and he consults the oracle who eventually tells them that all is over and that they should go and prepare Ajumobi’s grave.
Before Ajumobi falls sick, Yaremi’s name has been linked with human beings that transform from human beings to birds. Their suspicion is confirmed on the day Ajumobi died when the people see a big hawk that perch on Ajumobi’s roof.
Majority of the villagers believe that Yaremi knows about the death of her husband as they did to the three widows, Radeke, Dedewe and Fayoyin.
Chapter Six
Yaremi has a sleepless night and several thoughts come to her mind in the middle of the night she even counts the wooden rafter on the roof. She is now the beginning and the end of decision making in her affairs since she has nobody to take order from any longer, she sleeps when she likes and wakes up when she likes. Nobody to enforce obedience on her any longer.
Yaremi does not like her present condition as she believes that there should be a man in a woman’s life that take absolute control of the matrimonial home. All these make Yaremi keeps on remembering her husband.
Ajumobi is always cautious while loading his gun when alive that he would not even wants Yaremi to move near him. Ajumobi is a good and experienced hunter and he always relates this to his wife that he rules the animal world.
Many things in the house make Yaremi remembers her husband; the amulet dangling on the ceiling, Ajumobi’s grinding stone, rats running around the house with nobody to kill them.
Chapter Seven
Yaremi is in front of the house under the bright moon-light watching passers-bye. During this period in Kufi, many activities take place. It is the time bats fly low, storytelling goes on as well as young village maiden’s dance and other activities.
Yaremi keeps on remembering her husband, as a result of the experiences they share together. She tries to put all these off because, life must continue.
The following morning, she retires into her dyeing yard because; market day was three days away. She then prepares for the production of her cloth to be sold in the market. As she does this, tears roll down her cheeks when she remembers Ajumobi and she now asks herself why she must be crying all the time.
Yaremi later goes on memory lane remembering her days with Ajumobi and the experiences they had together.
Chapter Eight
Yaremi packs her cloths in wooden tray in preparation for the market where her customers are already waiting for her to buy the cloths. From her. Yaremi always have quality taffeta to sell, hence she always has already waiting customers.
Yaremi always calculate her profit ahead on each market day. She sells on credit to the people because of the economic situation everywhere, but this time around, she resolves not to sell her cloths on credit to anybody because she has a lot of outstanding amounts of money to collect from her customers.
Woye, Yaremi’s grandson falls sick and she doubts whether he would be able to follow her to the market. The boy has high fever to the extent that he has been having nightmares. Yaremi takes care of him for him to get well.
Chapter Nine
A new day in Kufi breaks with the activities of the women who engage in various activities from dawn to dusk. The women are hardworking and energetic. They go to the stream, they husk rice and winnow grains at home and engage in other activities. They thereafter take their bath awaiting their husbands.
The women would first satisfy their husbands and then serve their children before they take the remnants. They are also responsible to their husbands on the bed and this cause a lot of controversies in a polygamous house.
Yaremi is known in the village to be a straightforward woman in Kufi as she tells the men in Kufi the truth without fear or favour and the men feel bitter at her for this.
The three suitors to Yaremi, Ayanwale, Olonade and Lanwa engage her at different time to woo her for her to accept their proposal to marry them. They come to her with the stories of their wonderful earthly achievements in traditional drumming, carving and farming respectively.
Chapter Ten
Yaremi worries about her gradually becoming a man; her voice is authoritative and walks like a man. Her hand is strong like that of a man; she also eats like a man.
Lately, Yaremi has been swearing on the three suitors; Ayanwale, Olonade Lanwa for disturbing her on daily basis, telling them to keep away from her and go to other women and condemning their achievements to their faces.
In conclusion, she pledges her faithfulness to her late husband. Ajumobi speaks to Yaremi in her dreams on several occasions, telling her that he is not sleeping in heaven that he is always with her.
Yaremi also believes that Ajumobi is always with her and this is why the family members keep on saying that Yaremi needs purification for her to forget her late husband and many other things, she needs to be taken to the shrine for purification.
The elders then conclude that it is imperative for Yaremi to pick a new husband now and that the purification would come later.
Chapter Eleven
Rogba, the village flute player alerts the people, both living and dead of the programme of the day; cap- picking ceremony. The last one took place ten years ago where Fayoyin, Dedewe and Radeke chose new husbands.
Today’s ceremony is different as it carries with it a noticeable pomp; the crowd, the Rara chanters, the flute man. All are on ground to add colour to the historical ceremony.
Today, Yaremi is expected to pick a new man among the three suitors; Ayanwale, a popular traditional drummer, Olonade, a renowned wood carver and Lanwa, a successful farmer.
The three ex-widows are also among the crowd to witness the programme. The trio visited Yaremi in her house the previous night to counsel her and pledge their support.
A long wooden bench is placed under the tree shade with three traditional caps on it. There are also alligator pepper, bitter kola, table salt, a bottle of honey and a locally made gin to ensure the success of the occasion. The three caps are for the three suitors and Yaremi is expected to pick one of the caps.
Yaremi, in the midst of the crowd is confused on what to do. She has rejected the three suitors to their faces and there is no going back. Yaremi only moves towards the bench. She moves from one cap to the other and later turns and bows to the elders, looks at the three widows among the crowd and picks her way back to the house, leaving everybody under the Odan tree and the angry murmur of the crowd follow her.
Chapter Twelve
Yaremi is unhappy with herself as she sheds tears. Everybody now avoids her because of her refusal to dance to the tune of the society. Her enemies increase daily that she conceives the notion of parking out of Kufi to a friend’s house in Lamuyan village. She also thinks of parking to her children’s place.
Yaremi believes that she will overcome her enemies eventually with prayers. She thereby involves herself in fervent prayers against the enemies She also sought the support of her husband as she visits the grave twice a day She also remembers how much Ajumobi loved her when he was alive.
When the situation is reaching the climax, Yaremi also thinks of going back to Adeyipo village, her parent’s village.
Chapter Thirteen
Yaremi worries of her present situation and thinks of how long she will continue living like that. She considers whether she is right or wrong or whether there is a precedence to cite.
A week after the cap-picking incident, Segi, Yaremi’s first born and the most daring of her children come to Kufi to pledge her support for her mother. The two are just like sisters in their relationship as they share confidential moments together.
When Segi arrives in Kufi, Yaremi opens her heart to her daughter that she is an upright woman and doesn’t indulge in useless expedition. Segi and her mother consider the issues for several hours and conclude that there is no need for Yaremi to re-marry.
Woye is happy seeing his mother in Kufi. He narrates his experiences to her mother; how the grandma takes care of him, narration of stories and some other things. He is not touched by the problem on ground.
The following morning, Segi is ready to return to Olode, her husband’s village and Woye is prepared to follow her so as to be enrolled in school as the little boy is optimistic of becoming a student.
Woye’s determination to leave Kufi, to Yaremi is just like robbing salt into injury because it is Woye that has been keeping Yaremi’s company since all the villagers have deserted her.
Chapter Fourteen
Yaremi is ready to move out of Kufi village, even with the sudden exit of Woye, who has been accompanying her in the house, but the arrival of Alani her son to the village changes her mind.
Alani refuses to come to the village for ten years now; he is glued to the city and has been carried away by city life that he almost lost to the city. His physique annoys uncle Deyo, his father’s friend. Uncle Deyo scolds him for his carefree attitude and for keeping away from his father’s property as well as his inability to be closer with his mother in her present predicaments.
The following day, uncle Deyo takes Alani to his father’s farm and conducts him round the farm with uncle Deyo leading the way. He also tells Alani of the boundary dispute that was once settled with Okanlawon where Okanlawon was wrong.
Alani later sits her mother down and tells her about his achievement in the city, his plan to get married to his city girl, to complete his house in the city and relocate his mother to the city. He also plans to lease out his father’s land since he is not ready to stay in the village.
Yaremi takes her present predicament as a great challenge and vows that it is only her dead body that can be taken out of Kufi village as the villagers plan to send her out of the village and she also understands that her days in Kufi is going to be a life-long lonely day.
Themes of Lonely Days
Loneliness: This is experienced by the widows; Radeke, Fayoyin, Dedewe and Yaremi after the death of their husbands. They are expected to stay in door for some months and should not put on flamboyant dresses during these periods. The tradition demands that they live lonely lives during the period.
Hardworking: We see this in Yaremi. She is a diligent and hardworking woman. She engages herself in various things at the same time. When at home, she busies herself with house chores and other assignments; she is also a good farmer. These give her effrontery to reject the overtures of the suitors that approach her for marriage because she is capable of taking care of herself without any man. Yaremi also trains Woye her grandson how to be hardworking as she sees him as a lazy boy.
Death: This is brought about by the death of Ajumobi and the husbands of other widows which lead them into widowhood. When a woman’s husband is dead, she is expected to go into widowhood as tradition demands.
Persecution: The widows are greatly persecuted in the text. For instance, Dedewe is sat down beside her husband’s corpse by her husband’s relatives to confess her sins. Fayoyin is given libation to purge her of all her sins and she has her hair scraped to the skin. Radeke also has her own ugly experiences. Yaremi on her own is isolated for her refusal to remarry.
Respect: We see this in Yaremi who is full of respect for the elders and the people around her. Though Yaremi disrespect the tradition of the land by her refusal to remarry but, she rejects it with due regards and respect for the elders.
Resilience: Yaremi, despite the persecution, oppression and suppression she suffers from the family, the villagers, she is able to weather the storm; she decides in her mind to remain resolute and not allow the threat from the villagers to dissuade her. She prepares herself for a life- long lonely days.
The Narrative Techniques in Lonely Days
Narrative styles are the methods a writer uses in presenting his narratives. In Lonely Days, Bayo Adebowale uses different methods in narrating the story.
Flashbacks: He makes use of flashback in the novel severally. Flashback is the sudden recall of past events in a narrative. The readers are informed of Ajumobi’s death through flashback. Yaremi’s remembrance of her days with her husband is a flashback. She also narrates her experiences while she was young to Woye through the use of flashback.
Third-person Narrative: The author makes use of third-person narrative techniques most in the text. He also uses first person and omniscient narrative technique in some parts of the novel.
Allusion: Allusion is also used by the author. This is evidenced in the various folktales narrated by Yaremi to teach Woye one lesson or the other.
Bayo Adebowale also makes use of vernacular extensively as well as incantation in the novel.
We also have the use of humour. The scene where Yaremi takes the three suitors to the cleaners is humorous. Olonade, Lanwa and Ayanwale are molested and ridiculed to show her stance on their proposal. Another humorous scene is when Woye prepares to follow his mother to Olode to start schooling that he brings out his load that cockroach flies out of the bag.
The author also employs dialogue in the novel. Examples are the ones between Yaremi and Woye, Yaremi and Ajumobi, Yaremi and the three suitors.