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Cramblit | 1 Bianka Cramblit 10/30/13 Professor Erin James English 485 The Disempowerment of Rotten English In his novel, Sozaboy, Ken Saro-Wiwa writes in an invention of his own called 'Rotten English', a "mixture of Nigerian pidgin English, broken English, and... idiomatic English" (Saro-Wiwa, Authors Note). This gives the reader a unique perspective on Nigerian life during the Biafran War, narrated in first person by a young solider named Mene. Scholars such as Michael North argue that Rotten English empowers and unites minorities in a multilingual country where communication is difficult between ethnic groups because it is an "alternative model of self- representation" (North 99). Harry Garuba also argues for the power of this language to show the true reality of minority life that standard English could never capture, stating that Rotten English was "an attempt to give appropriate form to the minority experience in a postcolonial state" (Garuba 233). However, both of these scholars overlook the confusion and bewilderment that Mene and the people of Dukana face due to their lack of standard

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Bianka Cramblit10/30/13Professor Erin JamesEnglish 485

The Disempowerment of Rotten EnglishIn his novel, Sozaboy, Ken Saro-Wiwa writes in an invention of his own called 'Rotten English', a "mixture of Nigerian pidgin English, broken English, and... idiomatic English" (Saro-Wiwa, Authors Note). This gives the reader a unique perspective on Nigerian life during the Biafran War, narrated in first person by a young solider named Mene. Scholars such as Michael North argue that Rotten English empowers and unites minorities in a multilingual country where communication is difficult between ethnic groups because it is an "alternative model of self-representation" (North 99). Harry Garuba also argues for the power of this language to show the true reality of minority life that standard English could never capture, stating that Rotten English was "an attempt to give appropriate form to the minority experience in a postcolonial state" (Garuba 233). However, both of these scholars overlook the confusion and bewilderment that Mene and the people of Dukana face due to their lack of standard English language skills. By glossing over the harmful effects that come from a lack of access to education and instead only focusing on the unification of minorities that might come from their marginalization, we ignore the huge problem of miscommunication and its disastrous effects in the novel. Saro-Wiwa's portrayal of the confusion and bewilderment that Mene and the people of Dukana experience every time they are confronted with standard English and the violence and neglect they face because of this demonstrates the disempowerment that comes from the use of Rotten English.The immense confusion that Mene experiences throughout the novel is a direct result of his lack of education. Saro-Wiwa uses Mene and the people of Dukana to show the inability to fight and gain power when one is not offered an education. Without the skill of language, the minority groups are stuck in a lower social class and have no way to fight back against the violence and oppression brought on by the war. Mene is aware of the link between power and language and attempts to learn standard English but is not able to continue, saying "I wanted to go to secondary school but my mama told me that she cannot pay the fees. The thing pained me bad bad because I wanted to be big man like lawyer or doctor riding car and talking big big English" (Saro-Wiwa 11). Mene directly associates "big big English" with money and power because those who cannot speak a high level of English will never attain a high paying job. Saro-Wiwa employs the use of obvious speech differences between communities as a straightforward way of showing the reader the large discrepancy of wealth between Nigerian classes. The first example of the overwhelming authority that properly spoken English gives the speaker is when the first convoy of sozas arrive in town. In greeting these men of war, Chief Birabee first begins "to smile like idiot fool" (Saro-Wiwa 38). This expression of weakness is his only viable response to these men because he has no access to another form of communication. He is asked questions and gives unintelligible answers until the soza tires of him, asking in proper English, "Look, do you speak English at all?" (Saro-Wiwa 39) Birabee is only able to shake his head and then dictates orders to Mene in Kana. Since he is unable to speak the language, any discussion was made impossible. Birabee is the leader of their town but he has no way to fight for the rights of Dukana. Due to this, his townspeople will pushed aside easily with no chance for debate or wagering and they are eventually forced to abandon their destroyed town. Without the ability to communicate, Birabee had already lost the power struggle. Directly after speaking with the sozas, however, when he speaks his native Kana, Birabee is described as "giving me [Mene]order in big strong voice" (Saro-Wiwa 39). Power is restored to him when he is able to converse as he wishes. He can say exactly what he wants to when he is speaking in his native language without the fear of saying something incorrectly and this confidence is what gives him his authority. Saro-Wiwa once again shows the disempowerment of Rotten English in a dream sequence. In this dream, a man with fine clothes gathers everyone in town and speaks to them with "Fine fine English. Big big words. Grammar" (Saro-Wiwa 46). Every member of Dukana is silent when he speaks because his diction demands respect. Although they cannot fully understand the speech and need the words translated after, they still listen intently because it is obvious from his form of speech that he is a man of authority. The use of English becomes synonymous with important men.When Mene joins the army, orders are yelled at him often but, once again, there is a language barrier. When the Chief Commander arrives, Mene dutifully follows orders but admits he is "using big big words that I cannot understand" (Saro-Wiwa 78). Although, he does not fully understand his orders, he is forced to follow them without question. There is no other option since he has no means to argue or question. He becomes obedient to these powerful, well-spoken men and says "You must do as everybody is doing" (Saro-Wiwa 79). Without language, he has lost his unique identity and becomes a symbol of the standard, obedient sozaboy. Menes befriends a fellow soza, Bullet, who quickly becomes the leader of his company and is given three ropes, a symbol of power. (Saro-Wiwa 87). Mene describes Bullet as "hav[ing] gone to school plenty and he can type letter and he have read plenty book" (Saro-Wiwa 91). A soza characterized by superior language skills, such as Bullet, is able to advance in rank and obtain more power while having a unique point of view. Mene is often confused by Bullet's higher level of English and describes how Bullet has the ability to move between ranks and classes with "Either he will be laughing small small and he will not talk plenty or if he wants to talk, he will make big big grammar and he will be confusing me" (Saro-Wiwa 92). Bullet is able to earn the support of the sozas without power and also interest the captains because he is able to switch between these two levels of English easily. When he wants those in power to take his ideas seriously and earn more power for himself, he is able to use his "big big grammar". When he needs to converse with the sozas with no power he is able to revert back to something that Mene and the others are usually able to understand. Due to this, both sides view him as very clever and he becomes a connection for Mene to those in power. Mene is able to comprehend situations around him because of explanations that Bullet, with his education, gives to him. Bullet is the example Saro-Wiwa gives of the possibilities a person in Nigeria has when they have the knowledge of standard English.Mene does not have the words to describe his position and this leaves him lost in a violent situation. He never says the word "Nigeria" or any word to specify what kind of war this is. This lack of knowledge leaves him fighting a war that is not his own but with no way to express or realize that. The word "enemy" is used interchangeably for both sides and Mene even calls the enemy "Hitla" frequently. Mene describes the Chief Commander General by saying, "Sometimes he is better than Hitla sef" (Saro-Wiwa 76). Mene does not realize that Hitla is exclusively an enemy from an old European war and this shows how lacking he is in words to describe his own unique situation. He can never understand his enemy if he is not even able to name him and this means he will never understand the war. Garuba claims that "standard English is incapable of representing the landscape and reality that he seeks to portray" (Garuba 232). However, Garuba is not sensitive to the inability of Mene to realize his own situation in terms of Rotten English. His reality is instead confused and unidentified because of the ambiguity of the language.North argues that Rotten English is powerful because it has the ability to unite the minorities of Nigeria while standard English is only a force used "to convince by sheer size" (North 103). North thus argues that Rotten English then gives people like Mene their own identity and the language itself can "embody virtues" (North 101) of the people that standard English is unable to do. English separates and takes power from the Nigerians. North supports this by claiming that Mene loses his identity when he attempts to learn English but this overlooks characters like Birabee who speak most confidently in Kana, a language that is not Rotten English and that almost all minorities from other Nigerian regions would be unable to understand. Additionally, it ignores characters like Bullet who are able to speak in "big English" without becoming oppressive or lost. Bullet instead uses his language skills to help sozas like Mene understand their surroundings and the orders given to them. A Nigerian such as Bullet having the means to advance in rank will help the minorities and make their act of unification more powerful. This understanding could aid in the unification of the minorities because they would better understand their situation and how to fight back against their oppressors. These minorities may be able to achieve the same amount of power if they learn and then use the language of the oppressors for their own freedom.Mene is disempowered throughout the novel by the use of Rotten English and is unable to understand those in power, his situation, or fight for himself or his people's freedom due to this. This makes a clear case for the oppressed minority to learn and use the language of the oppressors against them. Education is a tool that can and should be used to gain freedoms for marginalized groups. Overlooking this and insisting that standard English is a symbol of oppression can aid in their marginalization instead of uniting them. Instead, education and language should be seen as a way in which one can lead other to rebellion and freedom. Then, the power of the language could be on their side as well.

Works CitedGaruba, Harry."Ken Saro-Wiwa's Sozaboy and the Logic of Minority Discourse."Ogoni's Agonies: Ken Saro-Wiwa and the Crisis in Nigeria. Naallah, Abdul Rasheed. Trenton, NJ: Africa World, 1998. 229-39. Print.North, M. "Ken Saro-Wiwa's Sozaboy: The Politics of "Rotten English""Public Culture13.1 (2001): 97-112. Print.Saro-Wiwa, Ken.Sozaboy. Essex, England: Longman, 1994. Print.