What is the narrative technique used in so long a letter?
The novel is told in the epistolary style—that is, it is structured as a very long letter, written by Ramatoulaye to her friend, recounting the latest events in her life and reminiscing about their shared childhood and adolescence.
What is the central theme of so long a letter?
Feminism and Islam
The central drama of the novel is the disintegration of Ramatoulaye’s marriage to Modou after the latter takes on a second wife—his daughter’s young friend, no less.
What is the main conflict in so long a letter?
Ramatoulaye constantly faces the conflict between tradition versus modernism as she transforms into an independent mother, and disregards others’ thoughts. Despite the idea that common practices like polygamy and gender inequality prosper in Senegal, Ramatoulaye expresses that she detests these practices.
Who is the author of the book so long letter?
Mariama BâSo Long a Letter / AuthorMariama Bâ was a Senegalese author and feminist, whose two French-language novels were both translated into more than a dozen languages. Born in Dakar, she was raised a Muslim.
Her frustration with the fate of African women is expressed in her first novel, Une si longue lettre. Wikipedia
How is Ramatoulaye a feminist?
Ramatoulaye lives at an intersection likely unfamiliar to most Western readers: she is African, she is Muslim, and she is a feminist. Rather than reject any one of those identities, she seems to value and embody each equally. This refusal to choose is itself an expression of empowerment.
How did Modou Fall acquire the Sicap?
Modou acquired the house and its contents by a bank loan on the mortgage of “Villa Fallene” where Ramatoulaye lives. Ramatoulaye feels hurt and betrayed because although the house is in his name, the property was acquired through their joint savings. He continued the monthly payments to the SICAP villa.
How is patriarchy reflected in the novel So Long a Letter?
In the novel. So Long a Letter, the female characters are conveyed as victims of Senegalese societal patriarchy. The main character, Ramatoulaye Fall, is portrayed as a stereotypical Senegalese woman, who is silenced and oppressed by her community and society’s accepted norms.
Who is Jacqueline in So Long a Letter?
By way of illustrating her own distress, Ramatoulaye tells the story of her acquaintance, Jacqueline. Jacqueline, a protestant from Coite d’Ivoire, marries Samba Diack, a friend of Mawdo’s. Jacqueline is not used to Senegalese customs.
What is patriarchy in So Long a Letter?
So Long a Letter, the female characters are conveyed as victims of Senegalese societal patriarchy. The main character, Ramatoulaye Fall, is portrayed as a stereotypical Senegalese woman, who is silenced and oppressed by her community and society’s accepted norms.
What type of feminist is Ramatoulaye?
After establishing the grounds of feminism, the reader can distinguish Ramatoulaye as a moderate feminist. Following Modou’s disloyalty, she cooperates with her co-wife and sympathises with the young Binetou forced into marriage by her mother in the battle of materialism versus maternalism.
Who is Ramatoulaye in So Long a Letter?
Ramatoula…BinetouAïssatouMawdoModouDaouda Dieng
So Long a Letter/Characters
Why did Aissatou leave her husband?
After his marriage with Nabou, Aïssatou (his first wife) divorces him. He is Modou’s long-time friend and a doctor. Aïssatou: Ramatoulaye’s best friend, to whom the letters are addressed. She divorced Mawdo because she did not believe in polygamy; she left him a letter explaining her actions and never returned.
What is the role of Ramatoulaye in 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. Ramatoulaye belongs to the generation that grew up under the French colonial regime and came of age just as Senegal was achieving its independence.
How does Ramatoulaye and Daba handle differently?
Ramatoulaye represents a more conservative, pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps view of self-reliance. Daba, who is younger and more fiery, seems to favor confrontation and protest in the face of injustice.
What is the role of 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.
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.
What are the relationship between Ramatoulaye and Aissatou?
Aïssatou: Ramatoulaye’s best friend, to whom the letters are addressed. She divorced Mawdo because she did not believe in polygamy; she left him a letter explaining her actions and never returned. She takes care of herself well and bought Ramatoulaye a car, which made life much easier for Ramatoulaye.
Why did Aissatou divorce her husband?
Aissatou felt that Mwado betrayed their marriage and all that they had together, so she decided to divorce her husband. Unlike Ramatoulaye, who forgave her husband and stayed with him, Aissatou breaks societal norms and turns her back on her husband and her Islamic faith.