Final answer:
Soyinka identifies prejudice, poverty, and powerlessness as key components contributing to a feeling of despair and impotence among African populations, exacerbated by historical oppression and societal devaluation.
Step-by-step explanation:
According to Soyinka, the "social reality across African populations" that generates a feeling of "hopelessness and impotence" includes entrenched prejudices, persistent poverty, and systemic powerlessness. These factors lead to social unrest and disenfranchisement among African populations.
In Soyinka's view, the despair felt is not only due to material disadvantages but is compounded by broad societal disrespect, mockery, and the distortion of black identity and capabilities. Furthermore, the historical context of slavery and colonialism has left an enduring legacy of inequality and segregation, adding to the deep-seated sentiment of disenfranchisement.
The critique also encompasses attitudes that insist on seeing African developments in terms of a defensive posture against barbarism, rather than recognizing their inherent worth and contributions to humanity. Such viewpoints have created a cultural and political environment where the full potential of African people and their societies remain stifled, resulting in a continuing struggle against an imposed sense of inferiority and alienation from the global community.