Reading 1001 discussion

Review thread: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

1. How does the novel portray the strength of Ramatoulaye and Aissatou’s friendship in contrast to their marital relationships? 


2. How does Ramattoulaye’s role as a wife and mother change throughout her life, and how does she navigate the societal pressures placed upon her? 


3. What is the role of men, such as Modou and Mawdo, in the lives of the women, and what does their taking of multiple wives reveal about the society? 


4. How does the novel explore the impact of polygamous societies on women, and what critique of this practice does it offer? 


5. How do the characters grapple with the influence of both Western culture and traditional Senegalese practices, particularly regarding women's roles and education? 


6. What does the novel suggest about the significance of education for women's emancipation and their ability to find independence? 


7. How do religious and traditional practices, such as Islamic faith and widowhood rituals, shape the characters' experiences and choices? 


8. What is the significance of the novel being written as a letter, and how does this choice create intimacy and enable the reader to experience Ramatoulaye's internal world? 


9. Are there any recurring symbols or images that provide deeper insight into the characters' experiences or the novel's themes? 

10. What do the lives of Ramatoulaye's children reveal about the future of Senegalese society? 


11. What does the novel tell us about the societal position of women in Senegal in the 1970s, and how does Bâ subvert expectations about African literature by focusing on female subjectivity

oh my gosh, is no one else going to read this? It is quick and gorgeous and heart breaking, I hope others will!!

This novel is a remarkable view of the pressures of change in a society through the contrasts and parallels between the two women's lives, the differences between their husband's behaviors as young idealistic men at university swayed by the west and then later pulled back to traditional paternalistic views of polygamy for different reasons (vanity for Modou, family pressure for Mawdo). And way R tried to stay in her more traditional role despite being personally insulted while A rejects the whole structure - maybe because it is less personal it is easier to leave?

And then the crises in the next generation again rubbing western and traditional values against each other. Women in these societies cannot gain much power without disrupting the traditional structures, and there is a matriarch usually at the top (the paternal aunt) that has power, but so many others dont, so its hard to see how the traditional values are integrated at the same time. Yet the disruption of the west does not replace always with equivalent stability and morals. Its a hard line to walk.

Jenna wrote: "oh my gosh, is no one else going to read this? It is quick and gorgeous and heart breaking, I hope others will!!

This novel is a remarkable view of the pressures of change in a society through the..."

Yes I am going to read it. I am waiting for the book to come from the library. I am on a waiting list.

1. How does the novel portray the strength of Ramatoulaye and Aissatou’s friendship in contrast to their marital relationships? 

Their friendship is based on their childhood experiences and the closeness of their families, they have grown up together. “We walked the same path from adolescence to maturity, where the past begets the present.” Ramatoulaye was furious with Mawdo’s behaviour and had no time for his excuses.

2. How does Ramattoulaye’s role as a wife and mother change throughout her life, and how does she navigate the societal pressures placed upon her? 

Ramatoulaye chose Modou despite her mother’s reservations and committed fully to him. She was fulfilled by her life as a wife and mother, she is hardworking and takes good care of the twelve children. When Modou betrays her, she conceals her anguish except at night and builds a new life focused on her family.

3. What is the role of men, such as Modou and Mawdo, in the lives of the women, and what does their taking of multiple wives reveal about the society? 

Modou becomes infatuated with a younger woman and abandons his wife. The impact of his behaviour is ignored, he doesn’t even tell her what he has done. When he dies, the co-wife and her family have rights over Ramatoulaye. Mawdo is influenced by his mother rather than his wife, but he suffers when Assiatou leaves. The desires of the man are paramount and women are supposed to accept this.

5. How do the characters grapple with the influence of both Western culture and traditional Senegalese practices, particularly regarding women's roles and education? 

This was a really interesting aspect of the book. The white people are the educators who try to encourage independence in Ramatoulaye and Assiatou. Education is key to women’s independence, even though the older generation continue to fight against it. The teachers believe all doors are open but this isn’t true, even though Ramatoulaye and Assiatou achieve good jobs. However colonialism does allow the opportunity for the characters to go to France to study, and when Assiatou does this she has the opportunity to move abroad for work. Feminism is a theory that has to be accommodated alongside the traditional ways.

7. How do religious and traditional practices, such as Islamic faith and widowhood rituals, shape the characters' experiences and choices? 

The imam plays a key role in determining how the men and women behave. Ramatoulaye accepts the traditional practices because she feels she will be more able to get the changes she needs in her life by earning respect and avoiding confrontation. She accepts Binetou’s presence. However, she is in no rush to remarry except on her own terms.

8. What is the significance of the novel being written as a letter, and how does this choice create intimacy and enable the reader to experience Ramatoulaye's internal world? 

Writing it as a letter emphasises the shared experiences and memories of Ramatoulaye and Assiatou, it suggests truthfulness because Ramatoulaye cannot lie to someone who knows her so well. The reader is taken right into Ramatoulaye’s thoughts and feelings and understands them fully.

10. What do the lives of Ramatoulaye's children reveal about the future of Senegalese society? 

The children have more agency and independence than their parents. Daba has a more equal and supportive relationship with her husband than her mother had, and this gives her the confidence to manage her affairs. She is a positive view of Senegal’s future. Yet modernity and freedom also brings more negative behaviours - the three daughters drinking and smoking for example. Ramatoulaye sees that the future is not all positive and efforts must be made to get the best outcomes. The colonial attitudes have not yet been eliminated - the teacher who favours a white child over Ramatoulaye’s son is an indication that there is still work to be done.

1. How does the novel portray the strength of Ramatoulaye and Aissatou’s friendship in contrast to their marital relationships? 


The strength of their friendship is demonstrated by it's longevity and resilience - even though each woman makes a very different choice when faced with their husbands polygamy they still respect and support one another. Their husbands on the other hand don't treat either woman with respect and don't seem to value the long relationships they had.

2. How does Ramattoulaye’s role as a wife and mother change throughout her life, and how does she navigate the societal pressures placed upon her? 


At first, when she is a young wife and mother she seems to acquiesce with societal expectations and tries to be happy within that framework. When her husband leaves her she is forced to take on duties that would have been handled by her husband. After her husband dies, she finds her own voice again and is able to resist cultural expectations that she finds repellent.

3. What is the role of men, such as Modou and Mawdo, in the lives of the women, and what does their taking of multiple wives reveal about the society? 


It is very patriarchal. Women have no power or voice. It is hard to comment about polygamy since I personally find it abhorrent and I am not part of a culture that normalized that. Obviously, this is a practice that is completely for the benefit of the men.

4. How does the novel explore the impact of polygamous societies on women, and what critique of this practice does it offer? 


I thought this was one of the most interesting parts of the novel, and I wonder if this novel shocked people when it was first published. Here the point of view of women is put forth, and they aren't happy!

5. How do the characters grapple with the influence of both Western culture and traditional Senegalese practices, particularly regarding women's roles and education? 

6. What does the novel suggest about the significance of education for women's emancipation and their ability to find independence? 


5+6 - Education is key. Even the narrator revels in the opportunity to go to the cinema to broaden her horizons, yet she still maintains her religious practice. The two women we get to know most intimately are some of the more fortunate women who get to attend teacher's college. They can support their families better as a result. As well, they know there are a range of options for women rather than just accepting polygamy.

8. What is the significance of the novel being written as a letter, and how does this choice create intimacy and enable the reader to experience Ramatoulaye's internal world? 


Because it is a letter the tone can be more confiding and she can move through time (although it is essentially linear, non-linear would have worked in this format) and add her later observations of various incidents.

10. What do the lives of Ramatoulaye's children reveal about the future of Senegalese society? 


Interestingly, the 1970s in Senegal seems to be a time of change as it was elsewhere in the world.

1. How does the novel portray the strength of Ramatoulaye and Aissatou’s friendship in contrast to their marital relationships?
Both husbands find it easy to replace their wives with other women. On the other hand, Ramatoulaye and Aissatou remain faithful to each over years and across distance. Aissatou, far from wealthy, even buys her friend a car while the husbands spend their money on expensive cars and clothing for their new wives and families. As Bâ writes in chapter 16: “Friendship has splendors that love knows not. It grows stronger when crossed, whereas obstacles kill love. Friendship resists time, which wearies and severs couples. It has heights unknown to love.”

2. How does Ramatoulaye’s role as a wife and mother change throughout her life, and how does she navigate the societal pressures placed upon her?
When her children are little, she works outside of the home and does all the household work. And after her husband abandons them, she continues to do all these tasks as well as the few he did (e.g., bill paying). As a mother, her role changes as her children enter adolescence and adulthood. She has 12 children, so dealing with the little ones is old hat for her. But her teenagers present new challenges, and she must carefully consider how to handle them. The clearest example of this is with Aissatou’s namesake, who becomes pregnant out of wedlock. Ramatoulaye could deal with this in many ways, but she chooses (wisely, I think) to simply love and support her child. As she says, “One is a mother so as to face the flood.”

3. What is the role of men, such as Modou and Mawdo, in the lives of the women, and what does their taking of multiple wives reveal about the society?
The men work outside the home and support their families financially. However, they also abandon their families. Despite being part of a significant political movement – the independence of Senegal – they are in many ways as traditional as their ancestors, assuming their wives will take care of the home and children as well as work outside the home (because, don’t forget, they are modern men). They are also more than willing to practice polygamy if it suits them, which it does for a variety of reasons. Mawdo initially marries Young Nabou under pressure from his mother. But let’s not kid ourselves – he is also tempted by the idea of a young wife and quickly forgets about Aissatou and their sons. Mawdo justifies his actions by saying that men must fulfill their “bestial” desire; they can’t be satisfied by just one woman. He likens his new wife to a different plate of food. Modou takes a second wife out of pride and stubbornness; he wants to show that he is still vital and can attract a young, beautiful woman. This young girl is described as a lamb “sacrificed on the altar of affluence” because her mother gives the girl to Modou to ensure a better life for herself.

One would assume that multiple wives is a status symbol – showing that the man is so successful he can support multiple homes. But in reality, the first wife often suffers neglect both personally and financially. Under pressure from his in-laws, Modou stops seeing Ramatoulaye and her children. He also takes out a huge mortgage on his first house to pay for expensive apartment, trips, cars, etc. for his new wife and her family. Ramatoulaye is left to take a bus and figure out how to make ends meet without his financial support.

4. How does the novel explore the impact of polygamous societies on women, and what critique of this practice does it offer?
See above. According to the precepts of Islam, polygamic life is supposed to be about equal sharing. But this doesn’t happen in reality. As Bâ writes chapter 21, the problem of polygamy is not simple; there are constraints, lies, injustices.

5. How do the characters grapple with the influence of both Western culture and traditional Senegalese practices, particularly regarding women's roles and education?
Her generation is the link between colonialism and freedom, between the past and the future. In chapter 8 she discusses the impact of education and western influence (“the white man’s school”) on men of her generation. This pulls the boys away from traditional crafts and skills, such as goldsmithing and shoemaking. Then, if the boys fail to succeed in school or in their careers, they scorn the traditional crafts, leaving them very few opportunities.

Even though she values education and equal opportunity for women in work and politics, she also values the traditional tasks of cooking, cleaning, decorating, and caring for husband and children (“Man’s success depends on feminine support.”) Still, she will not be “an object passed from hand to hand.”

6. What does the novel suggest about the significance of education for women's emancipation and their ability to find independence?
Ramatoulaye argues that education should be based on talent, not gender. Women should have the opportunity to pursue their education as far as their talent allows. Aissatou’s education is what allows her to find independence after rejecting her husband’s decision to take a second wife.

7. How do religious and traditional practices, such as Islamic faith and widowhood rituals, shape the characters' experiences and choices?
It shapes everything, including the fact that she must make nice to the other wife and her family after the death of her husband… who ABANDONED her for these people!!! She also must stay in seclusion for forty days, during which time she writes the letter to her friend.

10. What do the lives of Ramatoulaye's children reveal about the future of Senegalese society?
See question #2 above.

11. What does the novel tell us about the societal position of women in Senegal in the 1970s, and how does Bâ subvert expectations about African literature by focusing on female subjectivity?
As I say in my review, it provides a great deal of insight into the experiences of a woman living in a changing time in her country. On the other hand, it is also fascinating for its insight into female experience in general – being a friend, a wife, a mother, a teacher, a citizen of the country and the world.

1. How does the novel portray the strength of Ramatoulaye and Aissatou’s friendship in contrast to their marital relationships? 


Through letter writing we are prevued to their personal thoughts, feelings and struggles.

2. How does Ramattoulaye’s role as a wife and mother change throughout her life, and how does she navigate the societal pressures placed upon her? 


After 25 years of marriage and 12 children her husband takes a second wife much younger than she. He abandons her and she has to learn how to run the house by herself. She learns to make the payments for electricity, buying necessary items like lightbulbs, and driving herself. But through this she gains her independence and gets accustomed to being alone.

3. What is the role of men, such as Modou and Mawdo, in the lives of the women, and what does their taking of multiple wives reveal about the society? 


Chapter 5, “And to think I loved this man passionately, to think that I gave him 30 years of my life, to think that 12 times over I carried his child. The addition of a rival to my life was not enough for him. In loving someone else, he burned his past both morally and materially. He dared to commit such an act of disavowal.”

5. How do the characters grapple with the influence of both Western culture and traditional Senegalese practices, particularly regarding women's roles and education? 


Chapter 6, “Because, being the first pioneers of the promotion of African women, there were very few of us. Men would call us scatter-brained. Others labeled us devils.”

Chapter 8, “School turns our girls into devils who lure our men away from the right path.”

11. What does the novel tell us about the societal position of women in Senegal in the 1970s, and how does Bâ subvert expectations about African literature by focusing on female subjectivity

I liked this quote from chapter 14, “A woman is like a ball; once a ball is thrown, no one can predict where it will bounce. You have no control over where it rolls, and even less over who gets it. Often it is grabbed by an unexpected hand …”