Thursday, March 4, 2010
precocious youth
Thus far in the novel, we have met Wole, who is young and precocious in a way that is both endearing and aggravating to his immediate family. To me, what is so refreshing about is that Wole, unlike the characters we have read about thus far, seems to have found a “balance” between his native culture and the culture brought by colonization. But then again, he is living under different circumstances than the characters previously studied. As was already mention, Soyinka’s position in life (economically and educations, as mentioned in class) was markedly better than most in the community, which may have contributed to his adjustment. But nonetheless, he is still able to believe that St. Peter is both saint and egungun, without falling into this place of misery and melancholy. It’s interesting to see what he “thinks” as a three year old, and I’m sure it will be interesting to watch his progression throughout the book.It seems like it would be hard to write a book that is anti-colonization, but still maintain a light, fun storyline. But perhaps writing from a child's perspective helps. But I think also that everything in the book needs to be taken “with a grain of salt” also. It’s tempting, because of the defamiliarization effect, to “write off” what Soyinka says. While the articulation may not be the same as it was when Soyinka was three years old, it is still interesting to see glimpses of what he remembers feeling as a young child.
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I like that you bring in to account the child's perspective in the same paragraph as talking about the ability for these two cultures to coexist. You say he is able to believe St. Peter is both a saint and egungun, and I think that this is important. Would an adult be able to believe this? It seems like it is part of our natures to call ourselves one thing : democrat, environmentalist, traditional. But can we be two things like we were so willing to be when we were children? I've never heard of a Muslim Christian. Perhaps Wole is not associating himself to both religions, but he DOES let them coexist in his life.
ReplyDeleteNow I am appreciating more and more that this is a childhood autobiography. I think the most important things we can learn happen in our childhood, and our memories mark us forever. I think that a child is the only one who could hold both of these cultures as Wole does. He seems to have an innate wisdom that keeps him from going along with what everyone else says. The fact that the adults treat him as a knowledgeable person, rather than a kid, certainly plays a part. Wole is allowed to question.