CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Rituals are a feature of all known human societies. They include not only the worship rites and sacraments of organized religions and cults, but also rites of passage, atonement and purification rites, oaths of allegiance, dedication ceremonies, coronations and presidential inaugurations, marriages and funerals and many other ritualistic events. Ritual features are the bedrock of African culture and religion. Religion is an integral part of African traditional life which constitutes the bedrock of majority of the themes and storylines of the earlier film productions (Dipio, 2007). The ritual faith and religion in African traditional worship is thus deeply embedded in almost every socio-religious rituals. It enhances their identity as a people and offers clues to understanding their cosmological framework and thought patterns. Since Africans believe that God is a higher spiritual force that is involved in their affairs as a community and individuals, they reach out to him through other gods and minor deities like Sango the god of thunder; Ogun, the god of Iron; Ala the earth goddess; Ajoku, the yam god; Osun, the river goddess and several others. However, on the individual level, there is always a personal or family god who is considered to wade off evil and bring goodluck to individuals and families. This understanding frequently gets represented in majority of Nollywood films, especially in rituals and symbolically conveys the notion of faith in God and the gods, not only in the traditional setting, but also in modern day African society. African traditional religion encompasses beliefs in a supreme God, other gods, ancestors, communal rituals, personal rituals and recognizes the existence of witchcraft, magic and sorcery, sacred specialists and other spiritual forces (Alawode and Fatonji, 2013).
Adagbada (2014) stated that “ritual as a religious is a ceremony which involves communication with some external forces. It embodies a belief/beliefs and it is done with seriousness and solemnity”. Alawode and Fatonji (2013) described ritual as a place where people integrate short-term pragmatic goals and the longer-range mythic values of a culture, where they can replace personal alienation with an affirmation of personal identity.