Yoruba Worldview on Family Institution Encapsulated in D.O. Fagunwa’s Novels

A distinctive characteristic of D.O Fagunwa’s novels is the manner in which they invoke the framework of ideas and beliefs through which the Yoruba interpret the world. Previous works on D.O. Fagunwa’s novels dealt with themes, styles, characterization and the use of symbols and language with little reference to the Yorùba worldview about man, nature and the society. The paper, therefore, examined Yoruba worldview on the family institution as encapsulated in D.O Fagunwa’s novels in order to expose the influence of Yoruba philosophy on his work, which has not been much discussed in literature. Explorations were made into a wide scope of general philosophy as a guide to unveiling the relationship between the philosophical impressions in the novels and the conventional philosophical concepts. The paper established the interrelationship between literature and philosophy. It revealed the Yoruba worldview as regards the family institution portrayed in Fagunwa’s presentations of family settings, kinship, and co-wife rivalry. The paper concludes that the Yoruba worldview which Fagunwa revealed in his novels is desirable and relevant to all human races, irrespective of the epochs, countries or cultures. Also, the literary presentation in the novels revealed Fagunwa’s knowledge of the Yoruba culture, philosophy and tradition which should be distilled and projected in the modern day civic education.