By Agbeze Ireke Kalu Onuma, AI-KO
Of late I have started rereading and reflecting afresh on some of the African authors I encountered as a secondary school boy. Then, I read for the marks and to pass the exam. Though most of them left something in me, I kept feeling I hadn’t been faithful enough to them. As an adult, I’ve read so much literature – for fun, for lessons, for escape. But I began to wonder: what if the African authors who wrote and posted their stories from here, from this soil, have something urgent to say about the very encounters I face daily?
Going back to them hasn’t been a mistake. It’s been a rediscovery. A reckoning. This series, which began with Chinua Achebe, continues now with Cyprian Ekwensi. And I intend to share my gleanings in these installments – not as a scholar, but as a seeker. Not to analyze, but to absorb. Not to teach, but to testify.
Ekwensi’s work is not just literature – it’s lived experience. He wrote Nigeria not as a polished dream but as a pulsing, bleeding reality. His characters are flawed, his cities seductive and cruel, and his prose unapologetically raw. He didn’t write saints – he wrote survivors. And in their contradictions, I…
These quotes are not just literary gems – they are emotional excavations. They speak to the Nigeria I know: the hustle, the heartbreak, the hunger for meaning. They speak to the world I see: fractured, fast-paced, and full of people pretending not to bleed. I write these reflections not to admire Ekwensi, but to wrestle with him. To let his words interrogate me. To live more intentionally – not perfectly, but truthfully.
1. “IN THE CITY, A MAN COULD BE ANYTHING HE CHOSE TO BE, IF ONLY HE HAD THE COURAGE.” (People of the City)
This quote reminds me of the first time I stepped into Lagos with a suitcase full of dreams and a heart full of fear. The city didn’t care who I was – it asked who I was willing to become. Ekwensi’s city is a mirror and a maze. It offers possibility, but never promises safety. I’ve reinvented myself more times than I can count, not out of vanity but out of necessity. This quote tells me that transformation is possible – but it demands bravery. And sometimes, the courage to become is harder than the courage to survive.
2. “MONEY WAS THE LANGUAGE THEY ALL UNDERSTOOD, THE ONLY MASTER TO WHOM ALL BOWED.” (People of the City)
This line stings. I’ve watched integrity dissolve in the face of desperation. I’ve seen good people bend, break, and barter their souls for survival. And I’ve bowed too. I’ve compromised, rationalized, and regretted. In Nigeria today, money is not just currency – it’s identity, access, power. Ekwensi doesn’t judge – he observes. And in that observation, I see myself. This quote reminds me that intentional living means choosing values that outlast currency, even when the bills are due.
3. “HE FELT ALONE IN THE CROWD – A STRANGER AMONG STRANGERS.” (People of the City)
I’ve stood in rooms full of people and felt invisible. I’ve laughed at jokes I didn’t find funny just to belong. Ekwensi captures urban alienation with painful precision. In today’s hyperconnected world, loneliness is louder than ever. This quote reminds me that connection is not about proximity – it’s about presence. And I must seek it intentionally, even when it feels safer to hide.
4. “EVERY MAN CARRIED HIS OWN SORROWS, AND IN THE CITY, NO ONE PAUSED TO SHARE THEM.” (People of the City)
This line makes me ache. I’ve walked past people whose eyes screamed stories they couldn’t tell. I’ve buried my own grief under deadlines and distractions. Ekwensi’s city doesn’t stop for sorrow – it swallows it. This quote reminds me that empathy is resistance. That to live intentionally is to slow down, to ask, to listen. Because sometimes, the most radical thing we can do is care.
5. “WOMEN IN THE CITY WERE LIKE THE RIVERS – BEAUTIFUL, DANGEROUS, AND ALWAYS MOVING.” (People of the City)
I think of the women I know – resilient, radiant, restless. Navigating patriarchy, poverty, and performance with grace and grit. Ekwensi doesn’t romanticize them – he reveres them. This quote reminds me that femininity is not weakness – it’s weather. It shifts, it shapes, it survives. And to live intentionally is to honor that complexity, not reduce it.
6. “TO SURVIVE IN THE CITY, YOU MUST LEARN TO WEAR A MASK.” (People of the City)
I’ve worn masks to interviews, to weddings, to church. Smiling when I wanted to scream. Performing competence when I felt like crumbling. Ekwensi doesn’t condemn the mask – he understands it. This quote reminds me that intentional living means knowing when the mask protects you – and when it suffocates you. It means finding spaces where you can take it off and still be safe.
7. “MUSIC WAS HIS REFUGE, THE ONE PLACE WHERE HE COULD BE HIMSELF.” (People of the City)
I’ve found refuge in music – in lyrics that understood me better than friends, in rhythms that held me when words failed. Ekwensi knew that art is not luxury – it’s lifeline. This quote reminds me that intentional living means finding your refuge – and returning to it often. Because in a world that demands performance, we need places that allow presence.
8. “THE CITY’S LIGHTS NEVER WENT OUT, NOT EVEN FOR THE WEARY HEARTS THAT WALKED ITS STREETS.” (People of the City)
I’ve felt exhausted, unseen, and still expected to shine. Ekwensi’s city doesn’t pause – it pulses. This quote reminds me that intentional living means creating pauses in a world that never stops. It means honoring your fatigue, not hiding it.
9. “HE LOOKED AT THE SKY ABOVE THE CITY AND WONDERED IF THE STARS SHONE AS BRIGHTLY IN THE VILLAGES.” (People of the City)
I think of my village – quiet, slow, sacred. And I wonder what I traded for ambition. Ekwensi doesn’t romanticize the village – he remembers it. This quote reminds me that intentional living means remembering where you came from – and what you left behind. It means asking: was the trade worth it?
10. “THE SILENCE BETWEEN THEM WAS NOT EMPTY – IT WAS FULL OF THINGS THEY COULD NOT SAY.” (African Nights)
I’ve sat in silences that screamed. I’ve loved people I couldn’t reach. Ekwensi captures emotional tension with elegance. In today’s world of loud opinions and shallow talk, this line reminds me that some truths live in silence. Intentional living means listening to what’s unsaid – and honoring it.
11. “NOTHIN’ IS IMPOSSIBLE, FREDDIE! YOU MUS’ HAVE HOPE.” (Jagua Nana)
I’ve clung to hope when everything else collapsed. Ekwensi’s characters don’t have perfect lives – they have persistent hope. This quote reminds me that intentional living means believing in possibility, even when the odds mock you. It means dreaming with grit.
12. “YOU DIE, YOU’RE DEAD, JAGUA THOUGHT. IT’S OVER. YOU’VE LEFT NOTHING, NOT A MARK.” (Jagua Nana)
I’ve feared obscurity more than death. Ekwensi reminds me that impact is not about fame – it’s about fingerprints. This quote pushes me to live intentionally, to carve meaning into moments, to leave marks that matter.
13. “YOU GOT YOU OWN LIFE, NANCY.” (Jagua Nana)
I’ve struggled to claim my life – to stop living for approval, for tradition, for fear. Ekwensi gives Nancy her own name, her own path. This quote reminds me that intentional living means claiming your story, even when it’s messy.
14. “I TOO YOUNG TO SELL MY LIFE LIKE DAT.” (Jagua Nana)
I’ve been tempted to trade my essence for acceptance. Ekwensi’s character chooses dignity over desperation. This quote reminds me that intentional living means protecting your soul, even when survival tempts surrender.
15. “TIMES HAVE INDEED CHANGED … YESTERDAY, THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL WAS COMPOSED ENTIRELY OF WHITE MEN.” (Jagua Nana)
I’ve seen progress and prejudice coexist. Ekwensi doesn’t let us forget history – he asks us to build on it. Intentional living means continuing the push, not just celebrating the past.
16. “IF A PERSON HAVE SOMEBODY HE LOVE, I MEAN – REALLY LOVE – EVERYTHIN’ MUS’ COME RIGHT IN DE WORL’.” (Jagua Nana)
I’ve felt the healing power of love – the kind that sees you, holds you, believes in you even when you’re falling apart. The kind that doesn’t fix everything, but makes the brokenness bearable. Ekwensi doesn’t idealize love – he understands its weight. This quote reminds me that intentional living means loving deeply, not just romantically, but with presence, with patience, with truth. Because when love is real, it doesn’t erase the chaos – it gives you the courage to walk through it.
17. “YOU KNOW, JAGUA, I DON’T THINK I’M THE SAME MAN I WAS WHEN I CAME TO THIS CITY.” (Jagua Nana)
This quote hits close. Cities change us. Lagos changed me. Abuja changed me. Even Aba, in its own way, reshaped me. Ekwensi’s characters evolve not because they want to, but because the city demands it. I’ve lost parts of myself in the noise, but I’ve also found new ones. This quote reminds me that intentional living means being aware of who you’re becoming – and choosing that transformation, not just enduring it.
18. “THE CITY WAS A PLACE OF MIRACLES, BUT ALSO OF MANY DECEPTIONS.” (People of the City)
I’ve chased dreams that turned into mirages. I’ve trusted people who wore charm like armor. Ekwensi’s city is both gift and trap. This quote reminds me that intentional living means walking with discernment – celebrating the miracles, but questioning the masks. It means knowing that not everything that glitters is gold, and not every opportunity is freedom.
19. “HE HAD LEARNED THAT IN THE CITY, YOU MUST NEVER SHOW YOUR WEAKNESS.” (People of the City)
This quote aches. I’ve hidden my tears, swallowed my fears, and smiled through storms. Vulnerability feels dangerous in a place that rewards strength. But Ekwensi doesn’t glorify this survival tactic – he exposes its cost. This quote reminds me that intentional living means finding spaces where you can be soft, where you can be seen, where you don’t have to pretend. Because strength without softness is just armor – and armor gets heavy.
20. “THE CITY HAD TAUGHT HIM THAT LIFE WAS A GAME, AND ONLY THOSE WHO KNEW THE RULES SURVIVED.” (People of the City)
This quote is sobering. I’ve learned the rules – how to speak, how to dress, how to move. But I’ve also questioned them. Who made these rules? Who benefits from them? Ekwensi’s city is not fair – it’s strategic. This quote reminds me that intentional living means knowing the game, but refusing to lose your soul in it. It means playing wisely, but living truthfully. – –
Cyprian Ekwensi didn’t write to impress – he wrote to expose. He didn’t offer answers – he offered mirrors. And in those mirrors, I’ve seen my own contradictions, my own longings, my own survival. His stories are not polished – they are pulsing. They are full of people who stumble, who hustle, who love fiercely and lose painfully. And in their mess, I find meaning.
Rereading Ekwensi has been like returning to a city I once fled – familiar, overwhelming, necessary. His words remind me that literature is not escape – it’s engagement. It’s not just about what we read, but how we live. And if I’ve learned anything from this journey, it’s that intentional living is not about perfection – it’s about presence. It’s about choosing truth over performance, depth over distraction, and courage over comfort.
So I continue this series not just to honor Ekwensi, but to honor the parts of myself his words have awakened. And I hope, in sharing these reflections, someone else might pause, listen, and begin their own reckoning. Because the city is still speaking. And so is Ekwensi.
