If you compare Rex Warner ’s Oedipus story (in Men and Gods ) to Ola Rotimi’s The Gods Are Not to Blame, it is very easy to see the differences (and familiarities) of the mythical story. Odewale’s character experiences different phases of confusion, almost painful in its helplessness, that the reader will become sympathetic to his plight, cursing fate for dealing him with such a heavy hand. Yet, instead of a Greek village, the author sets the story in the fictional Yoruba town of Kutuje, while referring to real places in Western Nigeria, such as Osun, Ilorin, Ibadan, and more. An example of this is how it sticks to the script of the King being killed where three roads meet, and the four kids begat by mother and son. While this book has certain similarities to the original Greek story, it finds its own originality by adding different elements and characters to the story. Focusing on the Yoruba tradition, Ola Rotimi spotlights Yoruba gods, giving Sango, Orunmila, Ifa, and Ogun prominent roles throughout the book – as King Odewale, King Adetusa (Odewale’s father), Queen Ojuola (Odewale’s mother), Aderopo (Odewale’s brother), the Chiefs and other characters in the book refer to them often.

In The Gods Are Not to Blame, Rotimi gives the ageless story a new spin, with a fresh perspective that makes his book a classic. So begins the tragic tale that leads to heartaches, deaths and sorrows, which will have readers asking “who’s to blame?” His parents tried to stop fate by decreeing his death at infancy. In Ola Rotimi’s version of the Greek mythology about cursed Oedipus, we see a relatable Yoruba man named Odewale – a strong willed man who becomes the very thing he ran away from.įor those who are unfamiliar with Oedipus’ story, it is a myth about a mortal who was cursed from birth to kill is father, marry his mother, and bear four children with her.

The god are not to blame by ola rotimi