Cyprian Ekwensi: Echoes of the city, whispers of the soul

15 quotes that still speak to our chaos, our courage, and our becoming

Lately, I have returned to the African authors of my youth. As a secondary school boy, I read them for marks, for the exam, for the pass. Their stories left an imprint, yet I have always felt I was not faithful to them—that I had missed the point. As an adult, I have read literature for every reason: for fun, for lessons, for escape. But a question began to haunt me: what if the authors who wrote from this very soil, from this air, do I have something urgent to say about the life I am living now? My return has not been a mistake. It has been a rediscovery—a reckoning.

I share these gleanings not as a scholar, but as a seeker. Not to analyse, but to absorb. Not to teach, but to testify.

Ekwensi’s work is not just literature—it is lived experience, etched in prose. He wrote Nigeria not as a polished dream but as a pulsing, bleeding reality. His characters are not saints; they are survivors. In their restless contradictions, I have found my own.

These 15 quotes are more than literary gems; they are emotional excavations. They speak to the Nigeria I know: the hustle, the heartbreak, the hunger for meaning in the noise. They talk to a world that is fractured, fast-paced, and full of people pretending not to bleed. I write these reflections not to admire Ekwensi from a distance, but to wrestle with him. To let his words interrogate my life. To learn to live more intentionally — not perfectly, but truthfully.

1. “IN THE CITY, A MAN COULD B E ANYTHING HE CHOSE TO BE, IF ONLY HE HAD THE COURAGE.” (People Of The City)

This quote is the scent of possibility that hits you the moment you step into Lagos. I arrived with a suitcase of dreams and a heart full of fear. The city was indifferent to my past; it only asked who I dared to become. Ekwensi’s city is both a mirror and a maze, offering transformation but never guaranteeing safety. I have reinvented myself countless times, not out of vanity but out of necessity. This quote is a reminder that becoming demands a bravery far greater than merely surviving.

2. “MONEY WAS THE LANGUAGE THEY ALL UNDERSTOOD, THE ONLY MASTER TO WHOM ALL BOWED.” (People Of The City)

This line holds a painful truth. I have watched integrity dissolve in the face of desperation. I have seen good people bend, break, and barter their souls. And I, too, have bowed. I have compromised and rationalised. In Nigeria, money is not just currency; it is identity, access, and power. Ekwensi does not judge; he observes with a clear, unflinching eye. And in that reflection, I see my own compromises. This quote challenges me to choose values that outlast any currency, especially when the bills are due.

3. “HE FELT ALONE IN THE CROWD—A STRANGER AMONG STRANGERS.” (People of the City)

I have stood in rooms buzzing with conversation and felt utterly invisible. I have laughed at jokes I did not find funny, all for the fleeting warmth of belonging. Ekwensi captures the profound alienation of urban life with painful precision. In our hyperconnected world, loneliness has become a deafening silence. This quote reminds me that genuine connection is not about proximity, but about presence. It is an intentional act of seeking real kinship in a world that encourages us 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 my soul ache. I have walked past people whose eyes held stories too heavy to tell. I have buried my own grief beneath a mountain of deadlines and distractions. Ekwensi’s city does not stop for sorrow; it swallows it whole. This quote is a call to resistance. To live intentionally is to slow down, to ask, to listen. Sometimes, the most radical act is to 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, and relentlessly in motion. They navigate patriarchy and pressure with impossible grace and grit. Ekwensi does not romanticise them; he reveres their power. This quote reminds me that femininity is not fragility; it is a force of nature. It shifts, it shapes, it survives. To live intentionally is to honour that untameable complexity.

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6. “TO SURVIVE IN THE CITY, YOU MUST LEARN TO WEAR A MASK.” (People of the City)

I have worn masks to interviews, to celebrations, even to places of worship—smiling when I wanted to scream, performing competence while crumbling inside. Ekwensi does not condemn the mask; he acknowledges its grim necessity. This quote reminds me that intentional living means knowing when the mask protects you, and recognising the moment it begins to suffocate you. It is about finding spaces where you can be bare-faced and still be safe.

7. “MUSIC WAS HIS REFUGE, THE ONE PLACE WHERE HE COULD BE HIMSELF.” (People of the City)

I have found sanctuary in music—in lyrics that understood me better than friends, in rhythms that held me when words failed. Ekwensi knew that art is not a luxury; it is a lifeline. This quote is a reminder to cherish our refuges and return to them often. In a world that demands constant performance, we need sacred spaces that allow for pure presence.

8. “THE CITY’S LIGHTS NEVER WENT OUT, NOT EVEN FOR THE WEARY HEARTS THAT WALKED ITS STREETS.” (People of the City)

I have felt exhaustion so deep it felt like a second skin, yet the world expected me to shine. Ekwensi’s city is a relentless pulse that does not pause for human frailty. This quote is a permission slip to honour our fatigue. Intentional living means carving out pauses in a world that never stops and admitting that even the strongest hearts need moments of darkness to rest.

9. “THE SILENCE BETWEEN THEM WAS NOT EMPTY—IT WAS FULL OF THINGS THEY COULD NOT SAY.” (An African Night’s Entertainment)

Some of the most profound conversations of my life have been held in silence. The weight of unspoken truths, regrets, and loves is too vast for vocabulary. Ekwensi masterfully portrays the density of what remains unsaid. This quote reminds me that communication is more than words; it is the courage to sit in the quiet and acknowledge the universe of feeling that exists there.

10. “NOTHIN’ IS IMPOSSIBLE, FREDDIE! YOU MUS’ HAVE HOPE.” (Jagua Nana)

I have clung to hope by my fingernails when everything else was falling apart. Ekwensi’s characters do not have perfect lives; they have a persistent, dogged hope. This quote is a battle cry. Intentional living is the active, gritty choice to believe in possibility, even when the evidence mocks you. It is dreaming with your eyes wide open.

11. “I TOO YOUNG TO SELL MY LIFE LIKE DAT.” (Jagua Nana)

I have felt the seductive pull of trading my essence for acceptance, stability, or a moment of peace. Yet, Ekwensi’s character draws a line in the sand, choosing dignity over desperation. This quote is a powerful declaration of self-worth. Intentional living means protecting the core of who you are, even when survival tempts you to surrender it.

12. “IF A PERSON HAVE SOMEBODY HE LOVE, I MEAN – REALLY LOVE – EVERYTHIN’ MUS’ COME RIGHT IN DE WORL’.” (Jagua Nana)

I have experienced the healing power of love that observes your chaos and remains steady. The kind that doesn’t fix everything but makes the brokenness tolerable. Ekwensi does not idealise love; he recognises its grounding significance. This quote reminds me that intentional living involves loving wholeheartedly—not just romantically, but with presence, patience, and honesty. True love doesn’t eliminate chaos; it gives you the courage to face it, hand in hand.

13. “YOU KNOW, JAGUA, I DON’T THINK I’M THE SAME MAN I WAS WHEN I CAME TO THIS CITY.” (Jagua Nana)

This confession is a mirror. Cities change us. Lagos sandblasted me smooth and rough in equal measure. I have lost parts of myself in the noise, but I have also discovered strengths I never knew I possessed. This quote reminds me that intentional living is about being an active participant in your own transformation—choosing who you are becoming rather than merely enduring the change.

14. “THE CITY WAS A PLACE OF MIRACLES, BUT ALSO OF MANY DECEPTIONS.” (People of the City)

I have chased dreams that turned to mirages and trusted people whose kindness was a carefully laid trap. Ekwensi’s city is both a golden opportunity and a gilded cage. This quote is a lesson in discernment. To live intentionally is to walk with your eyes open—to celebrate the miracles, but to question the glitter. It is known that not every open door leads to freedom.

15. “THE CITY HAD TAUGHT HIM THAT LIFE WAS A GAME, AND ONLY THOSE WHO KNEW THE RULES SURVIVED.” (People of the City)

This is a sobering education. I have learned the social rules—the codes of speech, dress, and demeanour that grant access. But I have also questioned them. Who made these rules? Who do they truly serve? Ekwensi’s city is not fair; it is strategic. This quote challenges me to know the game well enough to navigate it, but to refuse to let my soul be the price of admission. It is about playing wisely while living truthfully.

Cyprian Ekwensi is a foundational pillar of African literature, often celebrated as a pioneering chronicler of the modern African city.

The Ekwensi Autograph

A selection of his seminal works:
• People of the City (1954)
• The Drummer Boy (1960)
• Jagua Nana (1961)
• Burning Grass (1961)
• Beautiful Feathers (1963)
• Rainmaker (1965)
• Lokotown and Other Stories (1966)
• Divided We Stand (1980)
• Jagua Nana’s Daughter (1986)

Key Themes in His Work

Several powerful, interconnected themes define Ekwensi’s writing:

1. The Urban Experience: He was the first primary Nigerian writer to make the city the true protagonist of his stories. His novels explore Lagos as a place of both opportunity and moral decay, where old tribal ties break down and new identities are forged.

2. Moral Ambiguity: His characters are rarely heroes or villains. They are survivors—corrupt politicians, cunning market women, ambitious hustlers, and disillusioned idealists. He portrayed the grey areas of human nature with unflinching honesty.

3. The Role of Women: Ekwensi created some of the most memorable and complex female characters in African literature. Jagua Nana—a vibrant, ageing, and cunning “high-life” woman—is arguably his most famous creation. His women are often powerful, independent, and use their wit and sexuality to navigate a patriarchal world.

4. Social Change and Conflict: His work documents the tension between traditional rural values and the fast-paced, often impersonal, urban lifestyle. He also explored themes of political corruption, generational conflict, and the quest for wealth in a rapidly changing society.

Rereading Ekwensi has been like returning to a city I once fled—familiar, overwhelming, and utterly necessary. His words are a testament to the fact that literature is not an escape from life, but a deeper engagement with it. It is not merely about what we read, but how we allow it to reshape our lives.

Agbeze Ireke Kalu Onuma (AI-KO) is a Nigerian writer, public affairs analyst, and cultural advocate of the Abiriba heritage. Trained in Russian history and political thought, he writes on the intersections of identity, governance, and civic responsibility, with his essays featured across Nigeria’s leading media platforms.