So Long a Letter

So Long a Letter Questions to consider                                              March 9, 2016

How is the narrator life shaped by both modern and traditional factors? What did she dream when she was young? What happened to those dreams?

How is she affected by her husband’s death—short-term and long-term?

What is expected of her as a widow?

What is her view of religion? Of marriage and families?

How are she and her correspondent alike and different?

CHARACTERS:

Ramatoulaye Fall: The narrator.

Aissatou Ba: Her friend to whom she writes her letter.

Modou Fall: The narrator’s husband.

Mawdo Ba: A doctor and the huband of Aissatou.

Tamsir: Modou’s brother.

Binetou Fall: Second wife of Modou.

Daouda Dieng: The narrator’s suitor.

Farmata: The narrator’s neighbor and hanger-on.

The children of Ramatoulaye and Modou Fall:

Daba

Aissatou

Awa

Amy

Dieynaba

Arame

Yacine

Mawdo

Malick

Alioune

Oumar

Ousmane

Border Passage Questions to consider

How does Ahmed’s view of Islam differ from that of Ba?

How is Ahmed affected by British rule and later by Arab Nationalism? What was her life like in Great Britain? Why was she drawn into feminism?