Analysis of Once Upon an Elephant by Bosede Ademilua Afolayan

Introduction

Up next is the Analysis of Once Upon an Elephant by Bosede Ademilua Afolayan. I will examine the plot, setting, characters, characterisation, themes, etc.

About the Drama

Once Upon an Elephant by Bosede Ademilua Afolayan is a 14 chapter tragic drama about greed, betrayal, and hunger for power.  It revealed Serubawon's tricky bribery and fetish manipulation to enthrone Olaniyonu who ruled badly and corruptly until karma caught up with both of them in a very short period of time.

Themes of Once Upon an Elephant

Hunger  for Power; Ajanaku was very hungry to become king and Serubawon was willing to make (Ajanaku) his bastard son the king. Serubawon had to motivate Olaniyonu aka Ajanaku to do everything in his power to push for the throne ahead of his elder brothers. Serubawon had his eyes on the throne even while Akinjoba was still alive which made him impregnate the king's wife while slowly killing the king in pretence of curing his ailment.

Olaniyonu aka Ajanaku was bribing the likes of Serubawon, Odejimi and Ogundele to enhance his ticket to the throne of Akinjoba. He even paid Serubawon (the village medicine man) to empower him with charms and voodoo that would make him fierce and untouchable.

Love: the show of love between characters contributed to the progress of the plot; Delani and Omoyeni were so in love to the extent that she carried Delani's pregnancy even after Ajanaku powerfully snatched her from Delani. Delani had to serve as an apprentice to prove his love to Omoyeni's father.

Odekunle and Desola were lovers; they always rendezvous in the bush, path to the streams and under farm trees. Whenever they meet, they chat romantically while discussing their wedding plans and their marriage. Unfortunately, Ajanaku truncated their plan with the r@pe he carried out on Desola while his bodyguards held Odekunle to tearfully watch the act of molestation given to his lover.

Betrayal: Serubawon betrayed his friend Akinjobi by impregnating Adebisi (king Akinjobi's second wife) and slowly killed him instead of curing him. When Serubawon discovered that Iya-Agba was aware of his lustful relationship with Adebisi, he convinced King Akinjobi and the entire village to escommunicate Iya-Agba for suffering mental derailment.

He betrayed the entire village by manipulating the king’s throne. He made sure Olaniyonu was named the new king even when the oracle wasn't in support of Olaniyonu because he wasn't the biological son of Akinjobi, the dead king.

Other themes are bride-price (Odekunle and Desola had to maintain the status quo regarding marriage process in a Yoruba traditional system; which involved a compulsory payment of bride-price among many other things), greed (there was so many evidence of greed in the drama "Once Upon an Elephant" by Bosede Ademilua Afolayan_ the likes of Olaniyonu, Serubawon, Odejimi, Ogundele were all greedy characters in the drama), bribery, corrupt leadership (Olaniyonu aka Ajanaku was a symbol of corrupt leadership in the drama), etc.

Characters of Once Upon an Elephant

Olaniyonu (aka Ajanaku), the wrongfully enthroned king.

Serubawon: the village medicine man, one of the kingmakers, and  the father of Ajanaku.

Odekunle; the guy dating Desola and friend of Dele, Lere, Yele, and Delani.

Desola; the lady dating Odekunle, friend of Yosola and the daughter of Serubawon.

Omoyeni; the wife of Ajanaku but secret lover of Delani.

Delani; the guy in love with Omoyeni.

Iya-Agba; the first wife of king Akinjobi.

Ogundele; the father of Odekunle and also a kingmaker.

Demoke; the wife of Serubawon.

Odejimi; the husband of Iyale and also a kingmaker.

Iyale; friend of Iya-Agba.

Adebisi; the second wife of king Akinjobi and the mother of Ajanaku the bastard son.

Video Analysis of Once Upon an Elephant

Author of Once Upon an Elephant

Bosede Ademilua Afolayan is a Nigerian writer and language teacher.  An Associate Professor in the Department of English, University of Lagos, Nigeria.

Finally, I have to draw the curtain close on the analysis of Once Upon an Elephant by Bosede Ademilua Afolayan. Kindly drop your comments below and also share this post to social media platforms by using the social media share buttons.

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Analysis of The Fate of Ophelia by Taylor Swift

 Introduction

This post is intended to examine the analysis of The Fate of Ophelia by Taylor Swift; looking at what the lyric is all about, the structure of the lyric, the biography of the writers, background of the lyric, etc. 

The Background of the Lyric

The lyric "the fate of Ophelia" alludes to a certain feminine character called Ophelia in the tragic drama titled Hamlet by William Shakespeare_ who is often seen as a symbol of tragic love and madness. The speaker in the lyric seemed to be drawing parallels between their own experience and Ophelia's, suggesting a deep emotional resonance.   

About The Fate of Ophelia by Taylor Swift

The Fate of Ophelia by Taylor Swift is a 3minutes 46seconds music released under the label called Republic Records on October 3rd, 2025. It's  is one of the songs in the music album titled "the Life of a Showgirl". 

Based on the fact that every music is born out of a lyrical poem. The lyric of "the Fate of Ophelia by Taylor Swift" revealed that it's about a complex, tumultuous relationship where the speaker has undergone a significant transformation. 

Overall, the lyric paints a picture of a relationship that has been both intense and transformative, with the speaker undergoing a journey of self-discovery and rediscovery.

About Taylor Swift

Taylor Alison Swift is a 14 times Grammy Award winner born 13-12-1989 in Pennsylvania, United States of America. She grew up to be known globally as an American pop singer and songwriter. Her 2025 music studio album has "The Fate of Ophelia" which happened to be written and produced with Max Martin and Shellback in the MXM studio. 

 About Max Martin

Karl Martin Sandberg who co-produced "the Fate of Ophephelia" with Swift and Shellback was born 26-02-1971 to a Swedish family. He has so many awards to prove his height of success as a producer and songwriter.

Structure of the Lyric

The lyrical composition is a 12 stanza arrangement with two simultaneous stanzas are repeated three times to serve as the refrain of the lyrical composition.  

Figuratives in lyrics are allusion, refrain, imagery, irony, etc.  

Besides the titIe serving as a literary classic allusion to on of the William Shakespeare's work of art_ the fifth stanza of the Lyric is also an instance of allusion:

"The eldest daughter of a nobleman Ophelia lived in fantasy But love was a cold bed full of scorpions The venom stole her sanity"

Looking further at the figuratives in the lyric, there is the employment of the following refrain to build a more melodic flow in the lyric:

"All that time

I sat alone in my tower You were just honing your powers Now I can see it all (see it all) Late one night You dug me out of my grave and Saved my heart from the fate of Ophelia Keep it one hundred On the land, the sea, the sky Pledge allegiance to your hands Your team, your vibes Don't care where the hell you been 'Cause now you're mine It's 'bout to be the sleepless night You've been dreaming of The fate of Ophelia"

Other figuratives are metaphor (love was a cold bed full of scorpions), consonance (match to watch), assonance (all alone), synecdoche (You saved my heart from the fate of Ophephelia), symbolism (grave symbolised loneliness), irony (fire was a place of peace and safety in "pulling me into the fire"), etc.

About Hamlet

It is a vengeful tragic drama written by William Shakespeare. The resolved around Prince of Denmark (Hamlet) and his plot recovery the throne or power stolen from his father.

About William Shakespeare 

He was and still considered the greatest English playwright that had ever lived. Shakespeare was famous for being a poet, an actor, and a playwright who lived from 1564 to 1616.

The Themes of the Lyric

The theme of Discovery

Discovery is present in the lyrics of "the Fate of Ophelia". ,  The speaker reflects on their past experiences and how they've been shaped by this relationship.

The lyrics mention "All that time I sat alone in my tower / You were just honing your powers," which suggests that the speaker was unaware of the other person's intentions or growth. The line "Now I can see it all" implies a new found understanding or perspective.

The theme of Rescue or Redemption

The repetition of "You saved my heart from the fate of Ophelia" could be seen as a theme of rescue or redemption, where the speaker feels they've been saved from a potentially destructive path by this person.

Other themes are love, death, loneliness, etc. 

The lyric was motivated by the feeling of true sincere love, after a lengthy dungeon of loneliness which might have even ended in suicidal death by the speaker.

The Song Rating

Fans and listeners review is quite positive. The song got 100 million streams of Spotify within three days of release. A certain website named AOTY noted that the song scored 73% of the entire album "the Life of a Showgirl".

If you're interested in listening to "the Fate of Ophelia", you can check Spotify and the official Taylor Swift YouTube channel. 

Other places for further insights are other music streaming websites, audiomack, SoundCloud website, naijaloaded website, etc.

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Analysis of Play Dirty 2025

 ntroduction

It is time to give you the analysis of play dirty 2025; in order to examine the key elements needed to be known such as the background, the plot, the director, the cast, the rating, etc. 

Play Dirty (2025)

Play Dirty is a 2hr 5min movie released on Amazon Prime Video on October 1st, 2025. An American heist action thriller co-written and directed by Shane Black. The language is English and the movie setting are in Australia and United States of America; under the genres of action, crime, drama, etc.

Shane Black

 Black was given birth to on December 16, 1961. As a film director, he had directed a lot of movies such as Iron Man 3 (2013), The Nice Guys (2016), The Predator (2018), etc.

The Background

The movie is based on the "Parker" book series by Donald E. Westlake, under the pen name 'Richard Stark'. It stars Mark Wahlberg as Parker, a professional thief, and LaKeith Stanfield as Grofield. 

Donald Edwin Westlake 

He was an American writer who lived on earth between 1933 and 2008. He was known for writing a lot of action fictional stories_ and also fond of using a character called Parker in most of his action-driven stories.

The Plot

The movie star cast is Mark Wahlberg as Parker, a professional thief, and LaKeith Stanfield as Grofield. The plot revolves around Parker and his crew planning a massive heist, but things get complicated when they stumble upon a bigger opportunity that puts their loyalties to the test.

Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg

Marky Mark is an American actor, producer, and former rapper born on the 5th of June, 1971. As a reward for his excellence as an actor, he was given BAFTA Award and also got nominated for many Academy Awards, Golden Golden Awards, Primetime Emmy Awards, etc.

The Cast

Besides Mark Wahlberg and LaKeith Stanfield, other notable features are Rosa Salazar, Keegan-Michael Key, Chukwudi Iwuji, Nat Wolff, Gretchen Mol, Thomas Jane, and Tony Shalhoub.

The Movie Rating

Fans and viewers review can be considered   mixed, with some praising the film's action sequences and witty dialogue, while others found it lacking in spark. Not excluding the fact that the movie holds a 45% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Conclusion

If you're interested in watching "Play Dirty", you can officially find it on Amazon Prime Video and the trailer is available at Prime Video YouTube channel. 

Other places for further insights are imdb website, rottentomatoes website, 9jarocks website, etc.

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Examines Wara's Role in the Development of the Plot

Examines Wara's role in the development of the plot. (WAEC MAY/JUNE 2017 QUESTION AND ANSWER)

In every tragic drama, there are rivalry, revenge or avenge, greed and tragic flaw. One of the ways Dele Charley successfully knitted events to a well designed ending, is via the roles played by Wara.

Dele Charley is a Sierra Leonean author who lived between 1948 and 1993. His book, The Blood of a Stranger, is an African drama about cultural abuse and corrupt acts of the colonialists.



With well arranged plot, the message of Dele Charley in the drama was delivered to the readers. "No plot, no drama" even a layman knows that the general course of a story not excluding significant events is referred to as a plot.

Everyday for the thief, one red letter day for the owner; the author realized that the only way Whitehead and his corrupt team in Mandoland could meet their dead-end was to play into the wrath of Kindo who happened to be their major enemy by tampering with what he cherished the most, Wara.

Wara is one of the very relevant characters in the drama. She is the sole lover of Kindo, the head warrior and prince of Mando. She is modest and has regards for the custom and culture of Mando and her escape from Whitehead began the downfall of Whitehead and his evil cohorts.

Samuel C. Enunwa aka samueldpoetry
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A Raisin In The Sun By Lorraine Hansberry (Difference Between Mama AndWalter)

It is the story of a poor black American family that suddenly got the opportunity to transform its state of living with a $10,000 insurance cheque issued the family as their deceased father's life insurance policy. Different ideas surfaced towards the use of the money which almost led to huge disagreement in the family.

In a tabular form, let's examine the difference between Mama and Walter.

Mama	Walter
(1) Mama is Walter's mother	(1) Walter is a son to Mama
(2) Mama is moral and ambitious	(2) Walter is desperate and ambitious
(3) Mama's strong belief in Christianity belief is revealed in the play	(3) Walter's religious belief is not noted
(4) Mama is a very compassionate woman even when Walter lost part of the insurance money to his doomed investment, Mama treated him like a prodigal son	(4) Walter is a character so adamant and sticks to his own believe alone
(5) Mama's passion is to give her family a better life by providing them a conducive place to live	(5) Walter's passion is to give his family a better life by investing the insurance money

Mama and Walter
are so passionate about differed dreams of making their family better because of the eagerness to escape the racial inequality and poverty haunting them. Walter's intended liquor investment became unsuccessful but Mama's dream of new home became a success.

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Samuel C. Enunwa aka samueldpoetry
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Harvest Of Corruption By Frank Ogbeche (2 Themes)

This post is to discuss two of the most vital themes in Harvest Of Corruption by Frank Ogodo Ogbeche. This is a drama set in Jacassa to show how greed leads to the abuse of privileges and power. There are two factions; the evildoers versus the evil-fighters.

Getting to the themes, we have:
(1) Corrupt Practices and the end results:-
In the drama, Chief Haladu Ade-Amaka took the privilege of being the Minister for External Relations as a reason to get greedy. With false promises and illicit enticements, the chief gathered people to be his "pawns"; the likes of Aloho, Ochuole, Madam Hoha, Justice Odili, the Police Commissioner, etc.

By the time the drama will draw to close, every corrupt entities have got their own shares of rewards. Chief Haladu Ade-Amaka was brought to book with the faithful assistant of ACP Yakubu, Prosecution Counsel and the rightful court of law. Chief Ade-Amaka was sentenced to twenty-five years in jail confinement with hard labour. Aloho lost her life and unwanted pregnancy. Akpara Hotel was closed and Madam Hoha was given ten years in imprisonment the same as Ochuole, etc.

(2) Morality exults in all situations:-
A moral heart never gives in to greed as seen in the drama, while Aloho was highly carried away by all that Ochuole (their ex-schoolmate) had acquired, it didn't move Ogeyi at all.

Ogeyi wasn't the only one unsatisfied with the corrupt acts going on in Jacassa, the drama showed Inspector Inaku, ACP Yakubu, even Showboy (the madman) as other characters against the injustices happening. It shouldn't be a thing of surprise that Ogeyi, ACP Yakubu, and Inspector Inaku began to work hand-in-hand to make sure the evildoers suffer their deeds.

In the labour to give birth, Aloho lost her life and since that moment Ogeyi had promised to avenge Aloho's death. In the end, with the help of ACP Yakubu and other anti-corruption teams; Chief Haladu Ade-Amaka and all those associated with him faced their appropriate jail times.

Conclusively, as it has been that many characters in the drama met their tragic flaws, it is no doubt that Harvest of Corruption by Frank Ogodo Ogbeche is truly a tragedy.

Samuel C. Enunwa aka samueldpoetry
(the Leo with wings flying)

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