Turncoat Revolutionaries And Political Renegades: A Comparative Study of Armah’s The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born And Pepetelas The Return Of The Water Spirit

Abstract

A revolution is a radical change in the machinery of governance for efficiency. It is a fundamental change in power or organizational structure that takes place over a relatively short period of time. But more often than not, perhaps due to a complex interplay of many factors, revolutions miscarry throwing up turncoats and renegades. This paper is a comparative examination of this phenomenon in Armah’s The Beautiful Ones Are Not Yet Born and Pepetela’s The Return of the Water Spirit. Regarding the attainment of independence in African countries as a kind of revolution, it argues that the much expected gains has remained a mere dream courtesy of the turncoat revolutionaries and political renegades that took over the reins of governance from the colonial powers. Genuine revolution, the paper contends, must be of the people and by the people rather than for the people, to succeed. Even so, another revolution may lead nowhere except it is truly masses-oriented withA revolution is a radical change in the machinery of governance for efficiency. It is a fundamental change in power or organizational structure that takes place over a relatively short period of time. But more often than not, perhaps due to a complex interplay of many factors, revolutions miscarry throwing up turncoats and renegades. This paper is a comparative examination of this phenomenon in Armah’s The Beautiful Ones Are Not Yet Born and Pepetela’s The Return of the Water Spirit. Regarding the attainment of independence in African countries as a kind of revolution, it argues that the much expected gains has remained a mere dream courtesy of the turncoat revolutionaries and political renegades that took over the reins of governance from the colonial powers. Genuine revolution, the paper contends, must be of the people and by the people rather than for the people, to succeed. Even so, another revolution may lead nowhere except it is truly masses-oriented with