Critical Discourse Analysis of Racial Ideology in Wole Soyinka’s Telephone Conversation

Abstract

This study analyzes Wole Soyinka’s poem Telephone Conversation (1963) to examine how language reveals racial prejudice and power relations in society. The main argument is that the poem exposes racial ideology through a simple conversation between a Black African tenant and a white landlady. The objective of the study is to explore how Soyinka uses language to show discrimination and challenge racial attitudes. The study uses a qualitative textual analysis method and applies Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) as the theoretical framework, particularly focusing on how discourse reflects social power and ideology. The analytical tools include the study of lexical choices, syntactic patterns, pragmatics, and conversational structure in the poem. The findings show that Soyinka uses irony, semantic deviation, and narrative framing to criticize racism and reveal the dominance of racial prejudice in everyday communication. This research contributes to literary and linguistic studies by showing how poetic discourse can uncover hidden ideologies in society. The novelty of the study lies in applying CDA to a short poem to explain how language exposes and challenges racial discrimination. Racial discrimination has long been a central theme in postcolonial literature, reflecting the historical and social hierarchies created during colonialism. Wole Soyinka, a Nigerian poet, playwright, and essayist, often critiques these inequalities through his poetry (Soyinka, 1963). Telephone Conversation portrays a short yet highly symbolic interaction between an African tenant and a white landlady, highlighting implicit racial prejudices in ordinary situations. Critics such as van Dijk (2008) argue that language is never neutral; it carries ideology and reflects social power. Soyinka’s poem exemplifies how everyday communication can reveal deep-seated racial hierarchies. Through humor, irony, and lexical manipulation, the poem exposes how societal racism is normalized and naturalized in seemingly mundane interactions. Lisa Anteby-Yemini and William Berthomiere (2005) discuss the broader context of diasporic and racial discourse, noting that such interactions often reflect systemic inequalities. Similarly, Chih-Yun Chiang (2010) emphasizes that language can perpetuate stereotypes and reinforce social hierarchies, especially in postcolonial contexts. Soyinka’s poem provides a microcosm of these dynamics, making it an ideal text for CDA.