The letter is also by way of reply to a letter she had received from her dear friend aissatou. Why do i need to be careful naming the pdf attachments for. Electronic systems can be a little finicky when presented with file names that include unexpected characters. Mariama ba, a longtime womens activist, set out to write a book that exposed the double standard between men and women in africa. For example, in mariama bas so long a letter, men are generally depicted as unfaithful husbands, irresponsible fathers, shameless womanizers or studshegoats, who go after any woman on skirt. T nhe semiautobiographical novella, so long a letter by mariama ba, focuses on the reminiscences of a muslim, frencheducated, middleaged senegalese schoolteacher, ramatoulaye, during her iddat, the mourning period of four months and 10 days prescribed for muslim widows. In keeping with muslim custom, ramatoulaye must observe a mirasse, a fortyday period of isolation and mourning. Award for the novella, so long a letter, in which she said. When a vowel is a long vowel, that means the vowel says its name.
Back to so long a letter, ramatoulayes friend aissatou was a gnegno, while her husband was a geer. Who are the characters in mariama bas so long a letter. Ramatoulaye, the narrator living in dakar, senegal, addresses her friend, aissatou, who lives far away, in. My students cant get enough of your charts and their results have gone through the roof. I am doing a report on wisdom versus knowledge and i have to relate it to this book, proving that wisdom is indeed more important than knowledge. Ramatoulaye expresses how her husband modou decided to marry a second wife, binetou, who was her daughters classmate. A discussion of so long a letter by the west african woman writer, mariama ba, is used as. One that stuck in my mind is the total disregard for women that these men are said to possess. She is the sole narrator in the novel as she writes down her experiences with these characters.
The letter is occasioned by the sudden death of modou, ramatoulayes estranged husband. This 33page guide for so long a letter by mariama ba includes detailed chapter summaries and analysis covering 27 chapters, as well as several more indepth sections of expertwritten literary analysis. So long a letter, mariama bas first novel, is literally written as a long letter. So long a letter summary and study guide supersummary. The book is basically a long series of mariama ba 19291982 was a senegalese novelist, teacher, activist and feminist. Teach your students to analyze literature like litcharts does. What are the setting and plot of so long a letter by. Ramatoulaye belongs to the generation that grew up under the read full character analysis aissatou is ramatoulaye s old childhood friend, and the addressee of her letter. Get the entire so long a letter litchart as a printable pdf. Analysis of mariama bas novel so long a letter free. So long a letter is a semiautobiographical epistolary novel originally written in french by the. So long a letter characters from litcharts the creators. Take care to follow the directions in the nih application guide to ensure smooth processing of your application. So long a letter major character analysis supersummary.
Amy see aminata fall aissatou ba ramatoulayes best friend is also an educated woman. Its theme is the condition of women in western african society. Of course, the motherinlaw couldnt take it, its a classic. My paper examines the contrast in the character of ramatoulaye, the main character in. So long a letter characters from litcharts the creators of.
So long a letter is a story about ramatoulaye, a school teacher who writes a letter to her friend aissatou. Download limit exceeded you have exceeded your daily download allowance. It means a man from the upper class decides to marry a woman from the lower class. So long a letter summary from litcharts the creators of. Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on litcharts. As the novel begins, ramatoulaye fall is beginning a.
Jordan peterson discusses whether men and women can ever be equal duration. So long a letter character descriptions for teachers. So long a letter study guide contains a biography of mariama ba, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full. In some literary works the principal characters are portrayed through their relations with other protagonists. It is written in the form of a long from one woman, ramatoulaye, to her. The letter is written while ramatoulaye is going through iddah, a four month and ten day. This novel recounts the stories of two women and their husbands, lifelong friends living in senegal during the postcolonial period of national reformulation. The character ramatoulayes insistence on being heard and providing inside. A griot woman which means according to the novels footnotes that she is partpoet, partmusician, part sorcerer this character acts as a gobetween for ramatoulaye and carries ramatoulayes letter rejecting daouda diends marriage proposal to the spurned suitor. So long a letter definitely, the best novel i have ever read, i felt like living this story over. In keeping with muslim custom, ramatoulaye must observe a mirasse, a fortyday period of isolation and. Featured content includes commentary on major characters, 25 important quotes, essay topics, and key themes like feminism and education.
As the novel begins, ramatoulaye fall is beginning a letter to her lifelong friend. Ramatoulaye mother, widow, aissatou best friend of ramatoulaye, divorcee, mawdo ba exhusband of aissatou, on account of his taking a second wife. The theme of education forms the connecting link between the three parts of so long a letter, which focuses on the emotional journey of ramatoulaye, a frencheducated school. Reliable information about the coronavirus covid19 is available from the world health organization current situation, international travel.
The fact that this novel takes the form of a long letter to a friend helps a great deal. Ben0 favorite favorite favorite favorite favorite march, 2019 subject. This book, so long a letter, originally written in french, won the first noma prize for publishing in africa in 1980 and is now considered as one of africas 100 best books of the 20th century. Numerous and frequentlyupdated resource results are available from this search. So long a letter is a landmark book a sensation in its own country and an education for outsiders. Oclcs webjunction has pulled together information and resources to assist library staff as they consider how to handle. Ramatoulaye relates the story and in doing so, reveals much about her. Abou this character, daba falls husband, believes in equality between spouses. It treats the reader as a sounding board with which the author can clarify her own thoughts to. Tales with animal characters, nostalgic songs kept young nabou breathless. The short narrative, written as a longer letter, is a chain of reminiscencessome wistful, a few bitterrecounted by way of lately widowed senegalese. So long a letter by mariama ba under the neem tree. He helps daba recover some of her fathers possessions after moudou falls death.
Who are the characters in so long a letter by mariama ba. Jeremy vine on 5 official channel recommended for you. The result, so long a letter, eventually won the first noma award for publishing in africa. When her husband took a second wife, this character refused to condone his actions and divorced him. The brief narrative, written as an extended letter, is a sequence of reminiscences some wistful, some bitterrecounted by recently widowed senegalese schoolteacher ramatoulaye fall. Interview of ngugi wa thiongo by granta magazine duration. Written by awardwinning african novelist mariama ba and translated from the original french, so long a letter has been recognized as one of africas 100 best books of the 20th century. Analysis of so long a letter by mariama ba so long a letter, is a novel written in french by mariama ba. Mariama ba was senegalese writer who wrote in french and she was a feminist. Pdf file names should be less than 50 characters, including punctuation and spaces. In the letter, she describes the suffering she has undergone in a largely patriarchal society. Direct characterization in so long a letter, we get to learn about all other characters thoughts, actions, ideas, strength and weaknesses from ramatoulaye. A description of key characters in so long a letter. Mariama ba and flora nwapa are examined through their works such as so long a letter and one is enough.
Instant downloads of all 1296 litchart pdfs including so long a letter. Written through awardwinning african novelist mariama ba and translated from the unique french, so lengthy a letter has been famous as one among africas a hundred most sensible books of the 20 th century. The character of binetou in so long a letter from litcharts the. Such a tool of expression is specifically utilized by mariama ba in her famous novel so long a letter. The brief narrative, written as an extended letter, is a sequence of reminiscencessome wistful, some bitterrecounted by recently widowed senegalese. Click below to download the full study guide for so long a letter. Page 1 begins so long a letter by mariama ba first published 1980. So long a letter 1989 so long a letter so long a letter page front.
The long letter from one female friend to another is a deeply moving account of a muslim womans innermost feelings and emotional survival following her husbands decision to take a second, and much younger. So long a letter, a work of fiction by mariama ba, is set in dakar, senegal, where the main character ramatoulaye writes a letter to her friend, aissatou, who lives in. Download so long a letter by mariama ba download free ebooks. This study guide consists of approximately 24 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of so long a letter. So, i can notice one of her work that is so long a letter, has presented those characters throughout this story. Analysis of so long a letter by mariama ba igcse ibdp exam. The brief narrative, written as an extended letter, is a sequence of reminiscencessome wistful, some bitterrecounted by recently widowed senegalese schoolteacher ramatoulaye fall. People must be instructed, cultured and educated, so that things can advance stringer 1996. I chose this story is because i have been married to a nigerian for the past fourteen years, and i can remember all the horrible stories i was told of why i should not marry him. Her first novel, so long a letter 1979, which revealed her clarity of vision and persuasive rhetoric, is written in an epistolary style. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools.
Tweet about the so long a letter lesson plans email the so long a letter lesson plans to a friend. Download so long a letter by mariama ba pdf lagranja. Mistac5461 favorite favorite favorite favorite favorite june 24. Comparing ramatoulaye with aissatou, binetou with nabou and modou with mawdo, this senegalese writer uncovers the identities of her characters, their personal. So long a letter begins when ramatoulaye, a senegalese woman living in dakar, the countrys capital, decides to write a letter to her old friend aissatou, who lives in america. Litcharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in so long a letter, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.