What is the theme of So Long a Letter by Mariama Ba?
What is the theme of So Long a Letter by Mariama Ba?
So Long a Letter (French: Une si longue lettre) is a semi-autobiographical epistolary novel originally written in French by the Senegalese writer Mariama Bâ. Its theme is the condition of women in Western African society.
Why does Ramatoulaye stay with her husband?
Ramatoulaye is going through many pragmatic challenges such as raising children and supporting them financially. These challenges are overwhelming her liberal feminist attitude which is why she chooses to stay with her husband.
Where was the Fon girl from in so long a letter?
Dakar
So Long a Letter begins when Ramatoulaye, a Senegalese woman living in Dakar, the country’s capital, decides to write a letter to her old friend Aissatou, who lives in America.
What is the narrative technique used in so long a letter?
So Long a Letter is a novel written in the first person point of view. Through the device of a letter, Ramatoulaye narrates her story to her friend as a diary, offering a first-hand account of Ramatoulaye’s life and emotions, distilled in the telling by the isolation of her mourning period.
What is the style in So Long a Letter?
Who is Binetou in so long a letter?
Modou’s second wife, and a friend of Daba. She is only 17 when she reluctantly marries Modou. She does so at the urgings of her family, who are after Modou’s money.
Who discusses the mysteries of birth and death with the narrator so long a letter?
Ramatoulaye is the narrator of So Long a Letter; the book is both her diary and a long letter to her friend Aissatou.
Who is Aissatou in so long a letter?
Aissatou is Ramatoulaye’s old childhood friend, and the addressee of her letter. She comes from a rather poor family; her father is a goldsmith.
How many children does Ramatoulaye have?
twelve children
Her faith and her patience are tested when her husband, Modou, decides to take a young second wife (perfectly acceptable in Senegalese-Muslim culture) and proceeds to abandon Ramatoulaye and her twelve children.
What is the difference between Mariama Bâ and Ramatoulaye’s marriage?
One of those is the fact that Bâ divorced after twenty five years of marriage while Ramatoulaye holds on to her marriage of thirty years. Also Ramatoulaye have twelve children while Bâ only had nine. Mariama Bâ has revealed in her book So Long a Letter, her thoughts, her perceptions on life and emotions in various ways.
How is Mariama Ba’s life reflected in the book?
It is a record of Ramatoulaye’s emotional struggle for survival after her husband’s abrupt decision to take a second wife. Mariama Ba’s life is reflected in the book first with the similar setting and with major figures Ramatoulaye and Aissatou. The presence of similarity and references to Ba’s life is present throughout the book.
Who is Mariamma Bâ?
Mariama Bâ (April 17, 1929–August 17, 1981) was a Senegalese author and feminist, who wrote in French. Born in Dakar, she was raised a Muslim, but at an early age started to criticise the inequalities between the sexes resulting from African traditions.
What is the summary of so long a letter?
So Long a Letter Summary. So Long a Letter begins when Ramatoulaye, a Senegalese woman living in Dakar, the country’s capital, decides to write a letter to her old friend Aissatou, who lives in America. The letter is occasioned by the sudden death of Modou, Ramatoulaye’s estranged husband.
