The setting of the play is on a raft on the Niger River in Nigeria, in the area between the mouth of the river and the port city of Burutu. The play was written in the early 1960's, but the author does not define the time period, which means that the drama could occur at any time.

The plot line is a simple one, in that four men are left from a crew of seven hired to carry a shipment of logs down river to a port city. Three of the men were apparently lost, when the four men on the raft became separated from the ship. The activity in the play is not as important as the dialogue and interactions between the men, as the author wants to point out the universal human dynamic when confronted with extreme conflict.

Part of the conflict for...