Violence and memory in John Ruganda's The Burdens and The Floods.
Date
2009-02-16T11:30:38Z
Authors
Sambai, Carolyn Sultan Chebet
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Abstract
ABSTRACT
This research report is an investigation of the theme of violence and the use of
memory in John Ruganda’s two plays: The Floods and The Burdens. This study
examines the representation of a historic period in Uganda’s history as represented in
Ruganda’s two plays. The study focuses on the reign of Idi Amin, Uganda’s former
dictator. It gives a detailed examination of the use of violence by the state as a tool for
achieving and maintaining power. I argue that the totalitarian state uses violence to
assert its power and to eliminate its enemies. I also examine how Ruganda represents
Idi Amin’s regime in The Floods, focusing on various forms of violence and how he
uses the setting of the play, characterization and dialogue to highlight the extent of
violence in the regime. The first chapter gives the background of the study focusing
on the social and political contexts in which the plays were set. The second chapter
deals with violence both by the state and violence in the private space in The Burdens
which deploys the space of the family to critique violence by the state. In this chapter,
I also discuss the politics of dead bodies. Here I argue that the desire of the state to
stay in power does not end at controlling the people while they are alive but that it
includes how dead bodies are (mis) treated. In the final chapter I discuss the role of
memory in the two plays. I argue that in The Burdens, memory is an escape zone
where characters hide from their unpleasant present. In The Floods, I try to show how
memory forms part of the narrative of the play in that characters retell their
experiences for purposes of unfolding ‘facts’ about the regime.