All characters, including the Bale, participate in them. There are several instances of performance in the text they include singing, dancing, and acting. Even though Soyinka carries this out with a light touch and a great deal of witty repartee, the fact remains that there is a lot of lying and manipulation in the play. Sidi and Sadiku try to fool the Bale so they can feel a sense of triumph at his humbling, and the Bale fools Sadiku and Sidi so he can subdue Sidi and acquire her as one of his wives. This is perceived to be a much more effective method than being forthright, as the things characters want come at the expense of others' feelings and wishes. Most of the characters in this play decide to trick and manipulate others in order to achieve their ends. Women may seem like they have power in mid-20th century Nigeria, but they ultimately do not. Sadiku is also tricked, and sees her elation over the Bale's impotence and the power of women vanish as his plot is made clear.
Sidi does not want to marry either Lakunle or Baroka, but Baroka tricks her, rapes her, and then gets to marry her. On the other hand, both of them are ultimately pawns in the games of men. On the one hand, he creates two female characters that are sassy, opinionated, manipulative, and independent. It does not seem that Soyinka consciously tries to make a statement about gender, but he does so nonetheless. Soyinka thus suggests that progress is not bad, but that it must be done on African terms. He is preparing to use a stamp machine to make the village make money as they do in Lagos.
Similarly, Baroka says he does not hate progress but merely finds its sameness and stagnation boring. Lakunle espouses a variety of backwards views and seems to abandon his progressive principles when it is convenient to do so. However, as the play progresses Soyinka defies the audience's assumptions. It initially seems like Soyinka is setting a clear dichotomy between these two things, tradition embodied by Baroka and modernity embodied by Lakunle. This is perhaps the most conspicuous theme in the play.
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