Dramatic Elements in Sikhebo as an Acculturative Dramatic Narrative of Babukusu of Bungoma County, Kenya

Abstract

Like other literary genres, drama explores what it means to be human. With performance at its core, it is the creative actualisation of fictionalised human experience. In traditional Africa, drama is evident in ritual performances practiced during birth, naming, initiation, marriage and death ceremonies. Babukusu initiate boys into adulthood after every two years through a ceremony called sikhebo, a ritual that involves dramatic elements that transmits societal values and ideals to community members. The study adopted Literary Functionalism as a theoretical framework. This paper examines dramatic elements in sikhebo as an acculturative dramatic narrative, including preparation stage, ritual cut, through the seclusion period to the pass-out rite. Although sikhebo is a social-cultural ceremony, the whole process is also a ritual full of dramatic elements. The research design adopts an analytical design. The ritual was analyzed as a creative entity in which there exists a creative and fluid relationship between the performer and the audience, realized through the employment of various modes of expression. It also employed purposive sampling to select one dramatic performance comprising three initiates with their parents, one circumciser, one paternal aunt, paternal uncles as well as neighbours and other on lookers who formed the audience. The study engaged non-participant observation and Focus Group Discussions as the primary methods of data collection. The performers were video recorded. Secondary sources helped the researchers to formulate the background, theoretical framework, literature review, research design, data analysis and ethical considerations. The study concluded that sikhebo is replete with dramatic acculturative elements.