Blogs for 1-30-2008

The Green Leaves was written by Grace Ogot. This short story gives me problems. Thieves run rampant in the beginning, and in the process a man gets killed. A hearing is held but no one is convicted because the entire town wishes the thieves this same harsh exit. At one point white man and democracy is spat on as. "We have ancestors, the white man has none," was written on page 45 and in my opinion sums up this garbage of a story.

Bossy was written by Abdulrazak Gurnah. The narrator of this short story is Karim, a young hard working man. He gets tied up with the wrong person in Bossy, an enthusiastic sailor. Bossy's sail goes limp as he dies in a boating accident. Karim is left behind to guide the boat back to civilization, but on returning is beaten for his arabic backround. This type of story makes me happy to know that I will never have to speak or come in contact with the ignorance that is east Africa.

The Spider's Web was written by Leonard Kibera is about a cook in an English household in East Africa. Ngotho has been a cook in the house for several owners and has a poitical and social awareness about the village and life in a colony. His intelligence is portrayed with his complex dreams and a comparison to his simple-minded roommate Kago. However I find it ironic that while he has complex thoughts about social segregation, elder regard and the balancing of his role in the household, he resorts to base violence when he is overwhelmed with his staion in life. So, despite his lofty thoughts and analysisof those around him he is not much better than his current position in life.


Minutes of Glory is written by Ngugi wa Thiong'o and centers around Beatrice. She is a refugee from a small village who has come to Nairobi to escape the boredom of an uneducated lifestyle in her home village. Once there she floats through various small towns as a bar maid. She laments her upopular status, but gauges the other girls likability based on their attempts to lure men. She is not so much jealous as trying to find meaning and depth in an interpersonal relationship. She finally exposes her inner-most feelings and desires to a man only to be ignored. This act of blatant rejection causes a rage and she uses it to feel empowered. The author does a nice job of casting her in a meek and subserviant light, but does not illustrate the inner emotions of the empowered Beatrice as well. I would have liked to know if the feelings this act of theft gave her will last and help her change, or if she will return to the previous attitudes about life.

An Incident in the Ghobashi Household written by Alifa Rifaat is describes the difficult decisions made by 2 women in a Northen African village. While the man on the house is off working far away the mother is left in charge of the children and the household. When she discovers their eldest daughter is pregnant she must make decisions that go beyond shopping or tending. The daughter must deal with the enormity of the decisions her mother made in a split second for the rest of her life. It is hard to imagine that the mother would choose to bear the burden of that kind of deceit to save her daughter and her family from shame.

A Handful of Dates by Tayeb Salih is told by the grandson who recalls the time when his grandfather, his hero, is shown to be human. He struggles with these first negative feelings toward his role model and despite his strong affection for his elder, cannot agree with his actions. I was impressed with his act of rebellin when he left the harvest. For a child who recalled his obedience to his grandfather so fondly, it must have been hard to continue to walk away. It is also evident that the grandfather enjoyed being controlling and the grandson was coming to terms with understanding the true nature of their relationship was not as pure and endearing as he thought.