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Item CHILD MORTALITY IN ANCIENT ROME AND MODERN IBADAN(2013-05) ANENI, M.OHigh records of occurrences of child mortality were documented in ancient Rome and in modern Ibadan. Available studies on ancient Rome focused on the effect of female infanticide on the population, and those on modern Ibadan, concentrated on the effects of cerebral malaria on children below the age of 5. However, these studies ignored the comparative possibility of health situations in both societies despite their related experiences. This study, therefore, compared the causes of child mortality (ages 0-5) in both societies. The study employed historical and comparative methodologies to highlight the factors that caused child mortality in both societies. Sources utilised on ancient Rome were volume X of the Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum, from which gender distribution of mortality and chronological age of children were gleaned. Data were also extracted from classical and contemporary authors. For modern Ibadan, information was gathered from medical literature and newspaper reports. The data were subjected to content analysis. The factors which brought about child death in ancient Rome and modern Ibadan were similar, but they occurred in varying degrees of magnitude. Respiratory tract infections such as pneumonia, acute bronchitis, asthma, and tonsillitis caused child mortality in both societies. Air-borne and water-borne diseases such as tuberculosis, cholera, typhoid, measles and diarrhea killed children below age 6. These diseases were often aggravated by malaria. Dysentery and inflammatory bowel diseases such as entiritis also accounted for children’s death. Other diseases that included jaundice, malaria, convulsions, neo-natal tetanus, meningitis, severe malnutrition, severe birth syphxia, ulcers and gangrene also caused child mortality in both societies. Maternal illiteracy, superstitious beliefs, social deprivation, and poverty were the social and economic factors which permitted child mortality in the two civilisations. In both societies, children less than 3 were worst affected by these diseases due to their vulnerability. In ancient Rome, neo-natal death resulting from venereal diseases such as gonorrhea and syphilis were transferred from mother to child at birth, but this death was rare in modern Ibadan since people were informed of the disease in modern Ibadan than in antiquity. Lead poisoning, superstitious beliefs and social deprivation caused death in both societies. In ancient Rome, social deprivation ranked highest, followed by superstitious beliefs and lead poisoning because of government’s enthusiasm about the empire’s consolidation. In modern Ibadan, superstitious beliefs caused more death than lead poisoning and social deprivation due to the people’s belief system. While malaria and tuberculosis killed thousands of children than other diseases in ancient Rome, neonatal tetanus, prematurity and low birth weight, neonatal septicaemia and severe birth sphyxia ranked highest in modern Ibadan. They ranked highest in antiquity and Ibadan respectively due to weather conditions and people’s ignorance of the diseases. Child mortality in ancient Rome and modern Ibadan was caused by tropical diseases, sexually transmitted infections and respiratory tract infections. Thus, child mortality was a social challenge in both societies. Further studies could examine the divergence and convergence in the medical approaches applied to infant diseases in ancient Rome and modern Ibadan.Item Perception of women entrepreneurship in ancient Greek and traditional Yoruba societies(2021) Adebowale, B. A.Globally, economic growth and national development may be the result of the success registered by Small and Medium-Scale Enterprises (SMEs). In the societies or nations where the intervention by SMEs is a thriving practice, credit often is given mainly to the male entrepreneurs while the contributions of their female counterparts hardly receives much robust consideration in existing literature. Thus, this paper takes a diachronic approach in explicating the perceptions and contributions of women. The study is delimited to the antiquated Grecian society and the Yoruba society of Nigeria in the pre-colonial and colonial periods and adopts a comparative hermeneutical approach in the analysis of the historical findings and textual materials peculiar to both societies. Its findings reveal that significant dichotomies existed in both societies in relation to the entrepreneurial activities of women. In Greece, women were inhibited by their cultural value to engage in entrepreneurship. The entrepreneurial activities they were allowed to carry out were more passive than active. Nonetheless, they excelled and provided stability at the home front and the nation Overall albeit on a micro-managed scale. On the other hand, Yoruba women in Nigeria were privileged to engage in entrepreneurial activities with minimal restrictions. This afforded them the opportunity to translate their business enterprises into money spinning ventures. With such wealth in their hands, they could conveniently delve into politics and have a telling influence in the political affairs of their various communities. The study therefore underscores the historicity that women in different societies have found a way to counter patriarchy through diligence, dexterity, creativity and innovation to ensure domestic stability and sustainable development in every society. Thus, women should not be perceived as belonging strictly to the 'other room’. Such perception is tantamount to a subtle denial of their pivotal contributions to economic development and socio-political advancement whether in the past or present timesItem Paedophilia in modern society a mirror of pederasty of Ancient Greece?(2021) Adebowale, B. A.As never before, sexual abuse is rife in modern human society. Tracing the beginnings of sexual perversions to ancient Greece where pederasty was institutionalised, this paper attempts a conceptual distillation between paedophilia and pederasty. Given that pederasty in ancient Greece was an institutionalised part of aristocracy, existing between an adult male, erastes, and a pre-adolescent boy, the eromenos, some scholars have argued that paedophilia is an offshoot of this Greek practice. These scholars make references to canonical philosophical writings by Plato, Xenophon, and Aristophanes inter alia as authority to prop their arguments for indulging the modern phenomena of paedophilia as well as homosexuality by extension. The arguments presented, in this study, bifurcates pederasty from paedophilia by drawing copiously from the sociological and psychological perspectives in deconstructing those widely held views on both sexual Orientations. The study reveals that the former is a norm that left a multiplier effect as the pederast mentee developed to the extent of becoming a pederast mentor, thereby promoting sustainable development in ancient Greece. The study concludes that both concepts exist on different orientational pedestals with pederasty to be lauded for its gains and paedophilia to be condemned for its evils against the innocent child victimItem A re-evaluation of the theme of fate in Sophocles' Oedipus Rex and Ola Rotimi's the Gods are not to blame(Faculty of Arts, University of Ibadan, 2020) Adebowale, B. A.Intertextuality presupposes the linkage of subjects, ideas and themes between and among texts. Although numerous scholars have carried out intertextual readings into various texts, only a few have delved principally into cosmological connectives within texts from the cultural perspective of fatalism. The universality of the theme of fatalism and its rootedness in virtually every religion around the world necessitates this work. This study, therefore, investigates the textual hybridisation and thematisation of apparently contrasting worldviews (Greek and Yoruba) in order to improve the body of existing intertextual literature on fatalism. This study is anchored on the philosophical concept of determinism. Two texts were purposively selected- Sophocles' Oedipus Rex (OR), a classical play, and Ola Rotimi's The Gods are not to Blame (TGB), a contemporary play, for contextual and intertextual study. The study finds that TGB shares more than superficial semblance with OR though textual variations exist between both. TGB is considered a perfect hybrid that thematically draws parallels from OR, foregrounding the integral and unique religio-cultural affinity that exists between the Yoruba people of Western Nigeria and the Greek of the Classical era. Fatalism, being a fundamental aspect of the ancient Greek cosmology, was often thematised in Classical Greek writings as reflected in the text, OR. The study then concludes that the Yoruba people, like the ancient Greek, acknowledge the important role of fate as determinism in human life and as a reality beyond the control of the individualItem Conceptualising virtue in Sophocles’ Oedipus Tyrannus(Department of Theatre Arts, University of Ibadan, 2019) Adebowale, B. A.This essay focuses on Oedipus Tyrannus, a Classical archetypal tragedy. Its spatial and temporal settings and characterisation situate this tragedy as an archetype for appraising the tragic hero. Given this canonical status among tragedies, scholars, since the Classical era, have attempted to appraise the underlying causes of Oedipus ' tragic fall from various perspectives. The question of free will and moral responsibility in the face of predestination as represented by Oedipus ' and his parents ' lives, is the crux in some of those studies. This paper, therefore, takes a trajectory different from this generic approach, shedding light on the admirable qualities of virtue which Oedipus possesses, as typified by the tough choices and decisions he gallantly makes in order to resolve the internal and external conflicts of identity and regicide-cum- parricide that plague him and the Thebans. The analysis carried out from the hermeneutics perspective evaluates Oedipus’ rather familiar ‘vices’ as having the inherent properties of Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, and Temperance, which make up the Aristotelian conceptualisation of virtue. It finds that justice in Sophocles' tragedy is a bifurcated fusion of divine will and retribution that often plays out on an innocent life as it happened in the case of Oedipus, who, along with his parents, consistently sacrifices any position of gain by birth and circumstance; and proactively bears the weight of his father’s misdeed even when that means paying the ultimate price in order to avert or revert the ill-fated curse placed on him before his conception. The study concludes that Oedipus’ actions are virtuous and worthy of emulation—not castigation—and that he should be regarded as a national hero and selfless leader, a model for the contemporary leaders and individuals. “I learnt that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not one who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.” Nelson MandelaItem Quis erit, erit: fatalism and ayanmo in ancient Greek and traditional Yoruba philosophical thoughts(2018) Adebowale, B. A.Fatalism is a philosophical concept generally used to refer to the belief that man is powerless to do or change anything in the face of future events which are believed to be inevitable. The idea is that there is no point trying to control the future. Thus, the concept of fatalism often leads to the altitude of resignation in the conviction that man does not have control over the events in his life, hence ’what will be will be'. Many ancient Greek philosophers, especially the Stoics, used the term moirai for fatalism and argue in support of and against the concept. For instance, one of the famous arguments of the ancient Greek philosophers is that if an event is fated, it would be futile to make an concerted effort to avoid or bring it about. The Yorùbà, like the Greeks use words such as àyànmó (destiny). kadara(fate), àkosilè (predetermination) among others to describe the futility of trying to change or control what has been predetermined or predestined. Therefore, the concept of fatalism is greatly reflected in various traditional Yorùbà proverbs and songs. The question which this paper focuses on is: is man really helpless in the face of fatalism? This paper engages a comparative and critical analysis method of enquiry to react to this questionItem Perception of mental illness in ancient Greek and contemporary Yoruba religious beliefs(Faculty of Arts, University of Ibadan, 2018-06) Adekannbi, G. O.; Adebowale, B. A.; Ademiluwa, A.Mental illness is one of the most dreaded illnesses in human societies. Recent studies have investigated the phenomenon as neurosis with psychotic manifestations in individuals across societies. However, there are diverse opinions on the cause(s) of mental illness. Therefore, interrogating the subject from the worldviews of two traditional societies— Ancient Greece and Yoruba - the study classifies the causes of mental illness into three: natural, physical and supernatural. It further investigates attitudinal correlation between societies in the classical era and modem times in the perception of mental disorders. The aims to determine if prejudices or biases are proximal or distal in both societies and to highlight the social implications for interpersonal relationships, especially as bases for the acceptance and social instability of those who experience mental illness. The study, which is basically descriptive, adopts philosophical and cultural analytical methods to foreground textual explication, using the works of Plato, Hippocrates. Oluwole and Jegede. The paper shows that both in Ancient Greece and Yoruba societies, mental illness is attributed to retribution from the gods and accounts for the preponderance of Greek mythologies and tragedies. contextualising madness as inflicted by wrathful or envious gods or goddesses. It concludes that the stigmatisation of affected persons often emasculates them as they are deprived of proper healthcare during the period of illness, and denied social protection and recognition if they are fortunate enough to receive treatment. Invariably, the society is impoverished through this latent brain drainItem Language policy and governance: the Pontius Pilate example(Faculty of Arts, University of Ibadan, 2017-06) Oluwadoro, J. O.; Adebowale, B. A.; Berekiah, O. O.Pontius Pilate's trilingual inscription on the cross of Jesus Christ has received considerable scholarly attention from different perspectives. However, none of such studies has taken a sociolinguistic perspective in the analysis of the inscription. Adopting the Socio-linguistic theory of language planning as theoretical framework, this study employed the tools of linguistic criticism to analyse Pilate's inscription, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews”, in order to examine the probable reasons behind Pilate's use of three languages to write the inscription and the implication of the title 'King' within the socio- cultural setting and antecedent linguistic history of the Jews at that time. Primary data were drawn from the King James Version of the Bible; the text of the New Testament in Modem Hebrew, the New Testament in the original Greek, Byzantine Text Form, and the Latin Vulgate. Hebrew was the religious language of Judaism; Greek was the lingua franca and Latin was the language of Roman imperialism, especially in governance and jurisdiction at that time. The title 'King' was associated with the Jewish hope of a messianic conquering king. The Romans held the title in contempt since their last king before the Republic was deposed. The use of Hebrew, Greek and Latin by Pilate has sociolinguistic implications reflecting the status of the three languages. The study recommends that contemporary political leaders should promote Nigeria's indigenous languages in addition to the English language for effective communication in governanceItem Between the margins and the mainstream: the odyssey of women in Greek and Yorùbá thoughts(2017) Adebowale, B. A.; Akinboye., G. A.Scholars have generally appraised issues relating to women from the viewpoint of gender inequalities and claimed that the female folk are largely oppressed by their male counterparts. Without doubt, the twenty-first century has witnessed gender relations characterized by a lot of imbalances especially to the detriment of women. However, studies have shown that in many societies, women enjoy some undeniable rights, and that prior to slave trade, colonialism and the advent of the missionaries in Africa, Yoruba women of Southwest Nigeria enjoyed certain privileges as much as their male counterparts and such as demanded by Plato in his 'ideal state'. This paper investigates the ideal roles and status of women from historical, religious, philosophical and cultural perspectives of the Yoruba people and compares their phenomenon with those of the ancient Athens as projected by Plato. Examining the rights of women from these two socio-cultural milieus, the paper establishes when and how gender inequality became a subject of debate in the histories of the Greek and the Yoruba peopleItem Living with the past: ancient Greek philosophy in twenty-first century Nigeria(2017-12) Adebowale, B. A.Ancient Greek philosophy is important for an integral human development in the twenty-first century as it was in the ancient Greek world. For one, it helps in developing critical thinking ability, a virtue needed to survive in human society; it also helps in building and improving morals since philosophy teaches the psychological factors that help motivate people to be moral. The 20th and 21st centuries, which saw a paradigm shift in the areas of emphasis in Nigeria's higher education began to disregard the foregoing as not being of any serious importance. One of the major victims of this shift was humanistic studies that became regarded as a useless field. This was done in favour of the sciences. Classical Studies and Philosophy, therefore, suffered double jeopardy as they became victims of society's search for meaning and direction within the fold of the Social Sciences and other professional courses. Both disciplines, unfortunately, were misconstrued and erroneously conceived as majorly concerned with abstract realities lacking human contemporary touch. This seriously affected the fortunes of the discipline. This paper focuses on ways in which students in the present context address the questions of relevance and their future. Then, it evaluates pertinent questions such as: what role does philosophy play in contemporary Nigerian society? How can the instructors of the course (ancient Greek Philosophy) make it relevant to both the student and society at large? This paper also discusses the challenges encountered by both the teachers and students of the course in the global age.