Best Approaches to Answering Literature-in-English Questions
Note: In answering Literature-in-English questions, candidates are expected to relate any question given to the theme of the texts or poems.
They are also expected to define any related literary terms to the questions. For example, if a question is on the plot, setting, or any poetic device, candidates are required to define the terms as part of the answers to the question.
The candidate will then develop at least three other points on the question.
Your points should not be less than five including relating the questions to the themes and other relevant information the questions require.
Literature-in-English 2
Section A
African Drama
John. K Kargbo: Let me Die Alone
Question 1. Comment on the character of Madam Yoko in the play Let me die Alone.
Note: Candidates are required to relate the question to the theme of the play, identify the character, “Madam Yoko” and then write comments on the character.
Solution:
There is a theme of conflict in the succession of rulership which Yoko takes an active part in. She faces stiff opposition from the male gender to deny her the rulership of Mende land. The opposition is led by her brother, Lamboi.
Madam Yoko is the favorite of the thirty-seven wives of Gbanya, the ruler of Mende land. She takes over the rulership of Mende after the death of her husband.
She is a sister to Lamboi who is opposed to her rulership of Mende because he is also interested in the stool.
She is very courageous, ambitious, and determined; she joins the Poro, the all-male secret society in her determination to rule over Mende land; hence remains childless till death. Yoko is beautiful and a good dancer.
She is submissive to her husband; this is seen in the way she addresses her husband. She calls him “my lord” and says “please” before talking to him.
She is courageous and ambitious, she asks her husband Gbanya to fulfill his promise to hand over the rulership of the land to her.
Yoko is a very kind woman; she takes care of Jeneba as her own daughter. She feels bad when the death of Jeneba is reported. Though she is wrongly accused of the death of the little girl, the truth is later revealed.
She succeeds her husband after his death. As the head of the Chiefdom, she delivers fair judgment in the adultery case involving Lansana and Jilo; Lansana is punished for his adulterous relationship with Jilo.
She empathizes with Jilo when Jeneba’s disappearance is announced and appoints Musa to head the search for the girl.
Madam Yoko is seen as a threat by Lamboi to his inordinate ambition of ruling over Mende. He plans with Musa and poison Gbanya.
She is grossly humiliated by her people when she was accused of killing Jeneba. The women call her “murderer, devil, witch, and wicked. Ndapi, the chief Warrior and Jeneba’s father slaps for alleged complicity in the murder of Jeneba.
She is also humiliated by the Colonial master by reducing her Chiefdom.
Madam Yoko ends up a tragic heroine; she remains childless and commits suicide by poisoning herself even when the truth is revealed that she doesn’t have a hand in the death of Jeneba.
She does this to protect her dignity, even when the Colonial master has decimated her power by reducing her Chiefdom.
Question 2. What challenges is Mende Chiefdom confronted with in the play?
Note: In answering this question, candidates are required to relate the question to the theme and identify Mende land as the setting.
Solution:
Succession dispute is a major theme and one of the challenges faced by Mende Chiefdom. Yoko is determined to succeed her husband and Lamboi in conjunction with Musa thinks Yoko is unworthy of ruling over Mende because she is a woman.
Gbanya, Yoko’s husband is poisoned by Lamboi and Musa and the struggle for the stool continues, even after Yoko succeeds her husband.
Mende Land is the Chiefdom ruled by Gbanya who is assassinated by Lamboi and Musa; they fear that Gbanya will hand over the Chiefdom to Yoko.
They seize the opportunity of the punishment meted out to Yoko to poison him. After he is beaten, he is so weak and helpless, they then poison him. Gbanya announces before his death that Yoko should succeed him.
Yoko is still faced with opposition from Lamboi, her brother, and Musa who plot her downfall. Jeneba is kidnapped and killed by Lamboi and Musa. Yoko is accused of being responsible for Jeneba’s death by the duo.
Yoko is faced with humiliation from her people including the women when she is implicated in the death of Jeneba. Ndapi also molests her for the death of her daughter.
Her soldiers revolted against her for her expansionist policy. She wages war on neighbouring Chiefdom to expand her territory. The people see her as greedy and power drunk hence, they feel frustrated.
Mende Chiefdom is also faced with external challenges. This comes from Governor Samuel Rowe who represents the Imperial Majesty.
The Governor humiliates the chiefs of Mende land at will; Gbanya is whipped into a stupor in front of his subjects for fighting on John Caulker’s side against his brother. He also imposes a tax on the Mende people.
Madam Yoko is further humiliated when Governor Rowe takes away some territories under her. He demarcated the border without consulting Yoko.
All these put together are responsible for the tragic end of Madam Yoko. She poisons herself to preserve her dignity and self-worth.
Wole Soyinka: The Lion and the Jewel
Question 3: Why does Lakunle lose Sidi to Baroka?
Note: Candidates are required to relate questions to the themes of the play and identify the three characters mentioned in the question.
Solution:
The major theme of the play is a conflict between traditional and western cultures. The payment of the bride price which is traditional is condemned by Lakunle hence, he loses Sidi to Baroka.
Lakunle is a twenty-three-year-old teacher in Ilujinle village. He represents the early class of educated Africans and cuts the picture of the half-baked educated fellow. He condemns the payment of the bride price. He puts western culture above traditional customs.
Sidi is the village Belle that represents African values. She insists on the payment of the bride price before marriage to maintain her dignity in the village. She falls into Baroka’s trap when the latter plays a trick on her.
She ends up as Baroka’s wife and symbolizes “the Jewel” in the play.
Baroka is a sixty-two years old traditional ruler of Ilujinle village. He values the culture of his people. He is very tricky and cunning, which he uses to lure Sidi and break her virginity, hence Lakunle loses her to Baroka. He symbolizes the lion in the play.
Lakunle sees Sidi as ignorant, uneducated, and uncultured, and criticizes her traditional background. He condemns the payment of bride-price as barbaric and primitive.
He promises Sidi the western way of life after marriage. Sidi insists on the payment of the bride price so that she would not be accused of selling her shame by the villagers.
Baroka the Baale also eyes Sidi and sends Sadiku, his oldest wife, to Sidi with his proposal. Sadiku promises Sidi wealth, honour, and prestige if she marries Baroka.
She praises Sidi’s beauty, condemns Lakunle, and invites her to have supper with Baroka in the palace. Sidi berates Baroka and rejects the invitation.
Baroka, a trickster character, plays a trick on Sidi. He lies to Sadiku that he is impotent. Meanwhile, he knows that Sadiku is a gossip that would never keep a secret. He knows that Sadiku would tell Sidi of the secret.
Sadiku breaks the secret to Sidi and the latter goes to the palace to mock Baroka. She is lured to bed by Baroka and realizes that Baroka is not impotent when she is deflowered. Baroka has the desired result of his plan.
Sidi is devastated and speechless, she breaks the news of the loss of her virginity to Lakunle and Sadiku. Despite this, Lakunle promises to marry Sidi without the payment of the bride price. She snobs Lakunle and prepares for her marriage to Baroka.
Lakunle relies on western ideas and values, jettisons the traditional custom payment of the bride price and lost Sidi; while Baroka uses traditional wit and skill with deception to win Sidi.
Question 4: Examine the theme of love and marriage in the play.
Note: Candidates are required to relate the question to the theme of the play, and discuss the traditional and western marriages. At least three other themes are to be developed on love and marriage.
Solution:
The major theme of the play is the conflict between tradition and modernity as expressed through Lakunle who represents modernity and Baroka that represents African tradition. These manifest in their approaches to Sidi, the village “Jewel.”
Baroka symbolizes traditional love and marriage which is polygamous and believes in the payment of the bride price. Lakunle on his part placed western values in high esteem and condemned the payment of the bride price. He compares it to “buying a heifer off a market stall.
Sidi, the” Jewel” insists on the payment of the bride. Lakunle condemns it with his bombastic vocabulary which Sidi describes as a mere persuasion. Sidi rebuffs Lakunle’s attempt to kiss her and considers it as untraditional.
Eventually, the traditional love and marriage triumphed with the payment of the bride price. Sidi is seduced by Baroka through a pretence of his impotence through Sadiku. Sidi is deflowered and Baroka marries her according to the traditional custom.
Lakunle loses Sidi to Baroka because of his non-compliant with the traditional marriage requirements. The success of the marriage between Baroka and Sidi places the African traditional marriage over the modern way of marriage which condemns the payment of the bride price.
Section B
Non-African Drama
John Osborne: Look Back in Anger
Question 5: Compare Jimmy and Cliff as friends.
Note: Relate the question to the theme of the play and identify the two characters before writing on the comparison.
Solution:
The play is on Post-World-War-ll 1950s Britain, how social life is affected and the negative effects on relationships. Jimmy is used in the play to bring these to the fore. He shows frustration in his relationship with anybody that comes his way including his wife Alison.
Jimmy Porter, about twenty-five years old is the protagonist of the play. He is tall and thin; married to Alison who is of the upper class. He is a friend of Cliff Lewis and they live together in his apartment with his wife.
Cliff Lewis is short and dark. He is the same age as Jimmy. He lives with Jimmy and assists him in running a sweet shop. Jimmy and Cliff are of middle-class background.
Both are unemployed, but Jimmy operates a sweet shop that is given to him by Hugh Tanner’s mother. The two experience boredom in their apartment and Cliff is always asked to make tea to kill the boredom.
They live monotonous lives, especially on Sundays, they engage in reading newspapers and Jimmy even complains that it is always the same ritual with nothing to offer. They quarrel over who is more current about the current issues.
The bone of contention between them is Alison, Jimmy Porter’s wife whom he maltreated. It is this ill-treatment of Alison that Cliff is opposed to and causes their disagreement.
Jimmy does not care when Cliff and Alison disagree to agree on certain issues. He does not welcome any appreciation of Alison by Cliff Lewis. He can be insolent at times insulting Cliff that he is ignorant.
Though the two friends understand one another, Cliff is not happy as he decides to leave since his presence does not bring succour to Jimmy and Alison’s relationship.
Question 6: Discuss Jimmy Porter’s sense of alienation in the play.
Note: Relate the question to the theme of the play and identify the character of Jimmy Porter, then discuss his sense of alienation.
Solution:
The play is on Post-World-War-ll 1950s Britain, how social life is affected and the negative effects on relationships. Jimmy is used in the play to bring these to the fore. He shows frustration in his relationship with anybody that comes his way including his wife Alison.
Jimmy Porter is the protagonist of the play and he is about twenty-five years old. He is tall and thin. He is the husband of Alison.
He smokes a pipe and plays the trumpet to ease his boredom. He is a friend of Cliff Lewis who stays with him in his flat. He is educated, and unemployed but operates a sweet stall.
Jimmy is educated, though the education is not obtained through the old respected institutions. This is gotten from his statement, “it’s not even red brick, but white tile.”
Jimmy feels frustrated as he remains unemployed as a result of his inability to link himself up with the people that will get him a high placement.
He becomes infuriated and vents his anger on anybody that comes his way. He lashes out at Cliff and his wife Alison at the least provocation.
He is not always happy with his in-laws as they are of the upper class of the society. He marries Alison in an unconventional and private manner in order to defy her parent’s preference.
After the marriage to Alison, he takes her along to gate crash at parties of well-known middle-class families in untidy clothing.
Jimmy is always annoyed that Alison, his wife, is not like him; the latter does not feel what he feels hence he nicknames her “Pusillanimous,” which means a coward.
He also feels embittered because he feels that Britain has lost its identity; Britons are “living in the American age.” This makes him more unstable.
Jimmy’s sense of alienation is attributed to his feelings that he is wronged by the society and wants to pay back. That is why he vents his anger on anybody that comes his way. His personal attitude to life also affects him.
He is always in conflict with his wife except while playing an animal game which they play when nobody watches.
Jimmy is the bear while Alison is the squirrel. Bear protects and scares at the same time; squirrel enjoys protection sometimes from bear and at times scared. He finally reconciles with Alison when they play the animal game when she returns suddenly.
August Wilson: Fences
Question 7: Consider Raynell’s contribution to the plot.
Note: Candidates are required to relate the question to the theme of the play, explain the meaning of the plot, and identify Raynell as a character before writing her contribution.
Solution:
The theme of racial discrimination and its effects on the lives of the Black Americans in the 1950s. The extra-marital affairs of Troy Maxson with Alberta that produces Raynell complicates the lives of his family.
Plot is the sequence of events in a narrative linked together through the principle of cause and effect. It is also the moment-by-moment narration of events in a story. It is otherwise referred to as a storyline in some discourse.
All the actions and the events take place in Troy Mason’s except those recalled through flashbacks.
Raynell’s is the product of extra-marital affairs that Troy has with Alberta who dies while giving birth at the hospital. She is step-sister to Cory and Lyons and niece to Gabriel. Baby Raynell is brought home by Troy wrapped in blankets from the hospital.
Things are under control in Mason’s family before Raynell comes into the family. The only issue is Troy’s not supporting Cory’s playing football. Raynell’s entry into the family changes the atmosphere of the house; the most significant crisis erupts.
Rose disowns Troy as her husband when he says, “From right now… this child got a mother but you are a womanless man.” Rose accepts Raynell as her daughter and disowns Troy as her husband.
The family is divided with Cory on his mother’s side. He looks his father in the face to the extent that Cory hits his father. The situation in the house continues to worsen until Troy’s death.
Raynell is the only source of joy for Rose after the death of Troy. When Cory comes back home after his father’s death, Rose introduces Raynell to him and Lyons.
Raynell reminds them of late Troy’s favourite song on Blue by singing it. Raynell explains that it is “Papa’s dog that he sings about all the time.” She then explains how the dog dies. Rose urges Raynell to get into her tight shoes to attend church service for Troy’s burial.
Question 8: Comment on the appropriateness of the title, Fences.
Note: Candidates are required to relate the question to the theme and then explain the meaning of fence generally before explaining the appropriateness of “Fences” as the title of the text.
Solution:
The main theme of the play is racial discrimination and its negative effects on a Black-American in the 1950s. The Black Americans had to fight the menace of segregation which fences them from certain opportunities and their self-inflicted fencing.
A fence is a structure or artificial barrier that separates two pieces of land or a house perimeter. The title of the text could be traced to the building of a fence in the backyard of the Maxsons.
Rose wants her family protected as she sings a song asking Jesus to protect her like a fence. Rose also believes that the conflict between Troy and Cory can be resolved if the duo works together on the fence.
The fence eventually separates Troy and his son Cory when Cory is kicked out of the house; it then stands as a barrier to them.
Fence is also used metaphorically and symbolically in the text. Troy and Cory are always in conflict, this is seen as an emotional fence between father and son.
Fence is also symbolized in the text by the various barriers confronted by Troy to his progress in life. A good example is that of his irresponsible and cruel father which results in a bloody confrontation between them.
Also, at his place of work at the sanitation department, a fence is built between the Whites and the Blacks; the blacks are not allowed to drive but are allowed to lift wastes into the truck only until Troy fights it and he is the first Black to drive the truck.
Troy is also fenced to become a baseball player because he is Black. Racism prevents him from becoming a professional baseball player.
Troy also builds a fence between Cory and his aspiration to go to College on a football scholarship on the grounds that he will be discriminated against by the Whites.
Troy says this because of his personal experience when he was fenced from becoming a professional baseball player.
Poverty builds a fence between Troy and living a dignified life. The father is poor and irresponsible and Troy later becomes homeless he involved in crime. This ends him up in prison.
A self-inflicted fence emanates from Troy’s extra-marital affair with Alberta as it results in Rose’s declaration that she is no longer Troy’s woman. This puts a barrier between the husband and the wife.
Section C
African Poetry
Question 9: Discuss the personification of rage in the poem, Raider of the Treasure Trove.
Note: Candidates are required to relate the question to the theme of the poem and then explain the meaning of Personification before explaining the personification of Rage from the poem.
Solution:
Rage as a theme runs through the poem. It brings out the effects of rage on human virtues like joy, compassion, and love.
Personification is giving human attributes or qualities to nonhuman things. Rage is personified in the poem as ruining one’s peace of mind and destroying one’s virtues if allowed to rule oneself.
The poem opens in the first stanza with a question;
“But what can be worthy of your life?”
The poet tries to explain what makes one’s life worthwhile, meaningful and significant. He advises us to,
“strive to fly flags of joy and sail up streams powered by the breeze of love…”
He says further that if this feat is achieved, we shall be living on earth as if in heaven. He then concludes that the only impediment to achieving this is Rage, which is referred to as a thief that steals away happiness, joy, and other virtues.
” Of things which would blot out that brief
Or, breach your sails with arrows unseen:
No! Rob you of your life, Rage is chief.
Rage drags rags after you. Of charity,
Laughter, sweetness and light, Rage is thief.
Enemy of Equanimity,
Rage spreads toxic fumes on every scene.
In essence, Rage spells calamity”
He explains further that Rage is the cause of the way we think, the way we react to things
“Its sole cause? Your perception of storms
Breaking around, not upon, your head
There are neither snakes, deviants nor norms
As you think, so you feel. Watch your mind
Rage sets sail. Can ruin lag far behind?”
Rage emanates from how people feel, it is capable of setting sails and unleashing” the perception of storms. “Rage is the companion of ruin.
The last stanza expresses the mind of the poet on the topic. He says that he would show love and extend hands of friendship wherever he is. That, by doing these, his destination is “heaven-on-earth.”
“I’ll fling roses wherever I berth.
My destination is Heaven-on-earth.”
We are admonished to think positively of love, compassion and joy. Restore laughter, charity, sweetness, and light. We should endeavor to spread love wherever we are so that we leave the life of heaven on earth.
Question 10: Show how Africans suffered and survived still in Agostinho Neto’s The Grieved lands.
Note: Candidates are required to relate the question to the theme of the poem, explain the extent of African’s sufferings, the psychological effects on Africa, Africans means of survival, and lastly the hope for the future.
Solution:
The main theme of the poem is on the suffering and survival of Africans during the era of the Colonial masters to the modern time. “The Grieved Lands” is making reference to Africa and how the people are able to weather the storm and overcome the problem.
The first stanza begins with the poet going into memory lane on the causes of African woes which is attributed to the ancient and modern slavery by the Europeans.
“The grieved lands of Africa
In the tearful woes of ancient and modern slave
In the degrading sweat of impure dance
Of other seas
Grieved”
The ancient slavery is the trans-Atlantic slave trade where Africans were forcefully taken away to Europe to work on their sugarcane plantation with their mouth padlocked. Africans were maltreated and dehumanized.
Modern slavery can be attributed to different anti-African policies, like the stiffer policies of the I.M.F. The different lottery programmes of the foreign countries can also be categorized as an example of modern slavery.
All these contribute to the woes and downfall of Africans.
In the second stanza, the poet refers to Africans as “flowers” and the European as “iron and fire.” He uses flowers for Africa to show how beautiful and glamorous Africa was before the Europeans came and dis-organized us.
They crushed the flower, removing the beauty and the perfume. This reflects how Africans were incapacitated as a result of the wickedness of “iron and fire,” the European colonial masters.
“The Grieved lands of Africa
In the infamous sensation of the stunning
Perfume of the
Flower
Crushed in the forest
By the wickedness of iron and fire
The grieved lands”
The third stanza discusses how the Africans’ dreams are shattered by the white colonial masters when Africans are arrested, dehumanized, and have their hands and mouths padlocked.
While the colonial masters are happy with their gruesome achievement for capturing Africans, the Africans are left to lament their woes as a result of maltreatment gotten from the white men.
They shattered the natural environment and the cultural gatherings of the people.
“The grieved lands of Africa
In the dream soon undone in jingling of
gaolers’ keys
And in the stifled laughter and victorious voice of laments
And in the unconscious brilliance of sensations
Of the grieved lands of Africa
Alive
In themselves and with us alive
They bubble up in dreams
Decked with dances by baobabs over balances
By the antelope
In the perpetual alliance of everything that lives”
The fourth stanza chronicles how Africans are inhumanely treated, punished and gruesomely punished, which leads to the death of many as life is ejected from them through severe punishment and starvation.
The dead bodies are then thrown into the ocean.
“They shout out the sound of life
Shout it
Even the corpses thrown up by the Atlantic
In putrid offering of incoherence
And death and in the clearness
Of rivers”
The next stanza and the concluding stanza x-rays the honest and strong determination of Africans in achieving their dreams no matter what happens, they desire to overcome all odds and these make Africans imperishable.
So far Africans are still living, they are also in Africa.
“They live
The grieved lands of Africa
Because we are living
And are imperishable particles
Of the grieved lands of Africa.”
Section D
Non-African Poetry
Question 11: Consider the use of alliteration, assonance and repetition in the poem, Binsey Poplars.
Note: Candidates are required to relate the question to the theme of the poem, and define the terms; Alliteration, Repetition and Assonance. Extract the usage of the terms from the poem and their significance.
SOLUTION:
The poem is a poem of nature. The poet condemns the destruction of nature through the felling of trees. He emphasizes the roles of nature in human life. He makes use of alliteration, repetition, and Assonance to illustrate these roles.
Alliteration is the repetition of a consonant sound at the beginning of two or more words in a line of a poem. Alliteration is used across the lines of the poem:
“K” and “l” sounds as we have in:”…whose airy cages/quelled or quenched in leaves the leaping sun.”
“s” “d” and “w” as we have in “That dandled a sandalled/shadow that swam or sank;/On meadow and river and wandering, weed-winding bank.”
“t” and “K” as we have in “Ten or twelve, only ten or twelve/strokes of havoc unselve…”
Repetition is when a word, phrase, or expressions are repeated in a poem. Repetition is used in a poem to lay emphasis or call attention. Alliteration is used in this poem in combination with alliteration as follows:
” All Felled, felled, felled “
… delve or hew”/”hew or delve”
“… quelled /quelled”
“Ten or twelve, only ten or twelve”
Some lines are repeated with little difference:
“The sweet espencial scene
Rural scene, a rural scene
Sweet espencial rural scene”
Assonance is the repetition of identical vowel sounds in a line of poems. It is used in this poem to heighten the feeling of loss and destruction. Examples are:
“e” in “quelled,” “quenched,” “mend,” “end,” “delve,” “selve.”
“i” in “leaves,” and “leaping sun.”
“a” in “… dandled a sandaled..” “swam” and “sank.”
Question 12: Comment on the poet’s attitude to death in Do not Go Gentle into that Good Night.
Note: Candidates are required to relate the question to the theme of the poem and state the general belief about death no matter what it is called in the poem. The poet’s attitude to death will then be discussed.
Solution:
It is a poem of nature about death which is feared by the people. The poet condemns the fear of death and urges the dying soul to give death a good fight when it comes calling.
Death is inevitable no matter the name we call it. The poet is trying to decimate the power or the fear attached to death by calling it several names in the poem.
Dylan Thomas wrote this poem in respect of his lovely and dying father who had a lot of influence in making him what he was. He doesn’t want to lose his father to the cold hands of death.
He thereby urges the father and the aged not to succumb to death easily. They should engage in battle with death. The father eventually died just before Christmas in 1952.
The first line of the poem forms the title of the poem, “Do not go gentle into that good night.” This means that the aged should fight the battle of their lives with death, and they should not give in to death just like that.
“Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.”
“Good night” is used metaphorically in the poem to mean death. He says that the aged should be more active and that death would find it difficult to snub life out of them easily.
The second stanza expresses the fear of the wise men about death that it will prevent them from displaying their wisdom to benefit humanity. He thereby urges them not to give in to death easily.
“Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.”
The poet also expresses the grief of the good men about death in the third stanza, that it would not allow them to continue doing good things to the people around them. He also urges the good men, because of this not to give in to death so easily.
“Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.”
He expresses the grief of the wild men in stanza four about death. Death deprives them from protecting their people. He also urges them to be bold and not give in to death so easily
“Wild men who caught sang the sun in flight
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.”
The aged dying men are called upon to be upright in stanza five, sharpen their vision and fight the battle with death, not to surrender to death when it comes calling easily.
“Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.”
The last stanza is purely dedicated to his dying father, begging him to bless him at that moment and at the same time urging him not to succumb to the wishes of death easily. That he should fight the battle with death.
“And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.”
Literature-in-English 3
Section A
African Prose
Buchi Emecheta: Second Class Citizen
Question 1: How are women portrayed in the novel?
Note: Candidates are required to relate the question to the theme, and identify the female characters and how they are treated in the novel.
The main theme of the novel is gender discrimination. Women in Nigerian society are discriminated against and relegated to the background. A male child is given more privileges than a female child.
In Second Class Citizen, female characters in the novel are not honorably treated. Adah, her mother, and Trudy are unfairly treated.
Adah is denied education at the expense of her younger brother, Boy. They believe that Western education is for males, her younger brother is enrolled in the school while Adah has to take him to the school.
Adah is determined to go to school, she has to hatch a plot before enrolling herself in the school and this doesn’t come to fruition without a penalty which her mother also shares from.
Adah has an interest in schooling. She sneaks out of the house one day to Methodist School, and the teacher, Mr. Cole allows her and encourages her to be coming.
This incident earns Adah’s mother detention for child neglect at the police station while looking for her. That’s how Adah starts schooling.
Adah, who works as a library assistant is overburdened; she is abused by her husband and at the same time the breadwinner of the extended family.
She takes care of her immediate family, including Francis’ education and the two sisters-in-law as well as Francis’ parents.
Adah is physically, emotionally, and psychologically abused by her husband in the UK. Francis burnt the manuscript of her novel, her marriage certificate, her passport, and the children’s birth certificate.
Trudy, a child minder who takes care of Adah’s children in the UK turns to a sex machine for Francis.
Question 2: Consider Adah’s growth in confidence and determination in pursuit of her dreams.
Note: The candidates are expected to identify the main theme of the novel and the character in question here before going to the mainstream of answering the question.
Solution:
The novel discusses the theme of gender discrimination and its negative effects on women. Adah is used as a case study; she is determined, hence struggles against various forms of discrimination against her.
Adah is an Ibo girl who is denied education because of her gender. She has to enroll herself in school. Her father dies when she is still young, this nearly hampers her determination to go to school.
She later gets help from her uncle, and she then continues. The death of her father creates a lot of problems for her, especially as regards her education as she is passionate about being educated.
This pushes her to get married early and she gets married to Francis because she needs a home.
Adah is interested and determined to travel abroad since the arrival of Lawyer Nweze from the UK and for her to live a better life.
When it is time to leave, Francis convinces her that he should travel first, while the children and she would join him later. Adah agreed with Francis on this.
She and her children later join Francis in the UK. She experiences very unfriendly weather that is totally different from the one in Nigeria. The true colour of Francis is revealed to her in the UK.
He is very lazy and becomes a burden on Adah. She becomes the breadwinner of the family; she finds a job and funds her husband’s education and the care of the children.
She experiences hostility and envy from fellow Nigerians who are of different ethnic backgrounds. Adah understands better the difference between being a citizen of a country and being a second-class citizen when they are searching for accommodation.
They are discriminated against because they are blacks; they are not ready to give out their houses to the blacks.
Adah faces Francis squarely and accuses him of having affairs with Trudy, the baby minder that takes care of her children. She experiences psychological trauma when Francis burns her manuscript but doesn’t give up.
After she already has four children, she decides to practice birth control and she goes to the clinic for family planning. This single step taken becomes a nightmare for her. Francis discovers that Adah equips herself with a cap.
He gives Adah the beating of her life and calls other tenants on her. Francis says that the cap is meant for the harlots and that Adah fixed it for her to be meeting other men behind his back.
Adah’s life is full of struggle and she is so determined to survive against all odds. She identifies Francis to be a clog in the wheel of her progress hence, she plans to do away with him. She separates from him and opts for divorce eventually.
Alex Agyei – Agyiri: Unexpected Joy at Dawn
Question 3: Discuss Nii’s encounter with I-Put-it-to-me in the novel.
Note: The candidates are expected to relate the question to the theme of the novel and identify the characters mentioned in the question.
Solution:
The theme of struggle for survival is a major theme in the novel. Curfew is imposed across the country by the soldiers at the helm of affairs in Ghana.
Movement is restricted at night. Nii Tackie and I-Put-it-to-me are caught in the web of the curfew, the duo has to find their way out of the problem.
Nii Tackie is the protagonist of the novel; he has a wife named Massa who has been sick for some time. Nii is always by her side whenever he is back from work. I-Put-it-to-me is a con man who is also known as Tally O.
He is a member of dreadful illegal miners known as the Daga group. He is suspected to have duped Mama Orojo, Nii’s sister by selling a fake ring for her. He was killed in the mine.
It is curfew time, Nii Tackie and I-Put-it-to-me are still in the town. Nii pays a visit to Linda, the secretary in his office who has been disturbing him with a relationship.
He stays late at Linda’s house. The security monitoring the curfew is already out. Nii beats the security by pretending as a mad man to evade being arrested.
Nii Tackie is able to get home. He notices that a man is sitting on the stump of a tree in front of his door. He just moves past the man and enters the house. He then narrates his ordeals to Massa when he enters.
I-Put-it-to-me sitting on the stump of a tree in front of Nii’s door has been apprehended by an army Lance corporal for breaking the curfew. The soldier drags him into Nii’s room.
He has lied to the officer that he was taking care of his sick sister. Nii is then asked whether he wanted to take his wife to the hospital but the curfew would not allow him. This confirmation saved I-Put-it-to-me from the hands of the security officer.
The meeting of the duo is ironic. They are able to maneuver their ways to avoid being arrested during the curfew. Nii has never met I-Put-it-to-me and knows nothing about him, but the latter knows the details of Nii’s life.
Question 4: Consider Mama Orojo’s relationship with her church members in Amen Kristi.
Note: This question requires the candidate to relate it to the theme of the novel in line with the question asked. Mama Orojo and her church should also be identified before discussing her relationship with the church.
Solution:
Mama Olú Orojo is a faithful and dedicated member of Amen Kristi, a religious sect at Ijase. The activities of the church are not affected by national politics. This is in contrast to the theme of the failures of the government of the day.
She is Nii Tackie’s blood sister. She travels with her parents from Ghana when the aliens were deported from Ghana. Nii Tackie is left in Ghana then, she has to come back to Ghana to search for Nii. Mama Orojo occupies a key position in the church.
Mama Orojo maintains a cordial relationship with the pastor, elders, and the members of the church. That is why she goes to the chairman of the church with the elders of the church to inform him about his marriage with the thought that they would be happy if they hear the good news.
She shows a high level of empathy when she hears the chairman’s report of the armed robbery case in Ijase. She condemns the challenges of the armed robbers.
Mama Orojo is conversant with the activities of the church, this shows in her approval of the church’s expenditure presented by the chairman.
She is generous to the church, she is one of the financiers of the church that the pastor relies on.
Her relationship with the church is not affected by the opposition of the elders of the church to her proposed husband because he is not a member of their church. Though she resists it but doesn’t react negatively.
Section B
Non-African Prose
Ralph Ellison: Invisible Man
Question 5: Comment on the character and role of Mary in the novel.
Note: The candidates are required to relate the question to the theme and identify the person who Mary is in the novel.
Solution:
The narrator is out to seek his identity because he is treated as a non-being. Self-identity is a major theme in the novel.
Mary is a black American like the narrator and a landlady in Harlem. She is the one that comes to the rescue of the narrator when he faints on the road after his discharge from the hospital as a result of the accident he has in the paint factory.
Characters:
Mary is kind, compassionate, and accommodating. She is the one that comes to the rescue of the narrator whom she does not know from Adam when the latter faints.
She is like a mother to the narrator. She is of great help to him. She tells the narrator that where he stays is not good for somebody in his condition. She also assures the narrator that he is in good hands. She is seen as being good to the people whether black or white.
Miss Mary is intuitive; when she meets the narrator, without being told that the narrator just left the hospital, she constantly watches over him in his sleep till he wakes and insists he takes soup.
Roles:
Mary plays the role of an angel that saves the narrator when he faints. Her presence and instruction to the crowd that mill around him do wonders. The narrator would have died of suffocation, Mary said.
“Why don’t y’all stand back and let the man breathe?”
The narrator is without much money by the time he leaves the hospital and very weak to engage in any job to get money. He cannot afford to pay for any accommodation.
It is Mary that comes to his rescue by giving him accommodation. Mary also makes sure that the narrator eats, she feeds him, and gives him security.
She is a black that understands the plight of the blacks; she admonishes the narrator to make something out of himself and be careful. She wishes the narrator success in the nearest future.
Question 6: Examine the narrator’s experiences at the eviction.
Note: In answering this question, the candidates are required to relate the question to the theme of the novel and identify the narrator as a character before writing on his experiences at the eviction.
Solution:
The narrator is out to seek his identity because he is treated as a non-being. Self-identity is a major theme in the novel.
The narrator is the protagonist of the novel. He is a nameless mis-educated black American (Negro). He leads the readers through the progression of the events in the novel.
He has little or no knowledge of the history of his origin. The people do not see him for what he believes in so he becomes “invisible” to the people hence, he retreats into an underground cellar.
It is the narrator’s first winter experience in the north. He is restless and decides to take a walk in the cold weather. He is then attracted to the scene of an old couple being evicted from their rented apartment.
The Marshal evicting them says he has the orders to evict them. The couple is greatly molested that they are not even allowed to pray. The narrator is worried and surprised that such a thing could be happening in that place.
The crowds around are surprised by the narrator’s ignorance of the situation in the area.
The crowd is already infuriated by the ways the couple is maltreated. They want to beat the people carrying out the eviction order.
The old woman is hit by the Marshal and she falls when she insists on going in and pray. The crowd then chases away the Marshal and gathers again.
It is the speech of the narrator that charges them into action after the crowd calms. He urges them to behave like “law-abiding people and slow-to-anger people and not result to violence.
This leads to a riotous situation that invites the police. A white girl shows the narrator an escape route when the police arrive.
Brother Jack, a leader of the Brotherhood, is inspired by the speech of the narrator. He sees him as an instrument that would be useful for the Brotherhood. Brother Jack runs after the narrator to catch up with him to engage him.
He catches up with the narrator and offers him coffee and cheesecake. The narrator declines the offer given to him in the Brotherhood by Brother Jack. He leaves the place contemplating the experience he just had.
Emily Bronte: Wuthering Heights
Question 7: Comment on the importance of setting in the novel.
Note: The candidates are required to relate the question to the theme of the novel and explain the meaning of setting.
Solution:
The themes of love and revenge are prominent in the novel. It reflects the relationship between the people in Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange.
This is the time and place in which the story or narrative takes place. It includes the weather and the social events that take place during the narrative. It can be categorized into two namely; Time setting and Place or Geographical setting.
The location of Wuthering Heights is very symbolic; the name describes the atmospheric disturbance it exposes to during stormy weather. The building is isolated; it is on top of a hill and surrounded by moorland.
Thrushcross Grange is the nearest house to it and it is four miles away. The route that links the two houses is dangerous because people get lost especially during the unfriendly weather.
Wuthering Heights has a lot of influence on the inhabitants. The people living in Wuthering Heights are emotional and violent in nature. They express strong and passionate feelings for one another be it in love or hate.
Hindley beats Heathcliff; he hits him with an iron weight. Heathcliff becomes violent as a result of Hindley’s maltreating him and determines revenge. Hindley later turns to a drunkard; he is drunk everyday and Heathcliff derives joy in seeing him drunk.
Thrushcross Grange is more habitable than Wuthering Heights. It is splendid and carpeted with cuisine. The building is well-lit, inviting and more pleasant than Wuthering Heights.
The occupants of Thrushcross Grange maintain decorum, even in the midst of disagreement.
The settings of Thrushcross Grange also have an influence on the residents of the building. The occupants are refined and maintain decorum. Edgar and Isabella are the children of the master of the house and grow up there. The children are quiet and behave well.
When Skulker, Linton’s dog bites Catherine that she has to stay in Thrushcross Grange, the serenity of the place models her and transforms her into a well-behaved person.
The novel is set in the middle of the Industrial Revolution in the nineteenth century. The events related to the revolution take place in distant places but the major characters are indirectly affected.
The Industrial Revolution of the period affects Liverpool and things are disorganized that people don’t care for each other. That is when Heathcliff is picked up by Earnshaw. The Revolution could also be responsible for Heathcliff’s nouveau riche.
The settings exemplify the novel as Gothic; they create a sense of horror. The winds that blow across the moor during the storms reflect the conflicts which occur regularly between the characters in Wuthering Heights.
The attitudes of the characters in the houses reflect the settings of the places. This enhances the understanding of the characters by the readers.
Contrast is established by using the two houses as settings, while the moor serves as a barrier separating Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange.
Question 8: Examine the relationship between Lockwood and Heathcliff in the novel.
Note; The candidates are required to relate the question to the theme of the novel followed by the identification of the characters with the other three points.
Solution:
The themes of love and revenge are prominent in the novel. It reflects the relationship between the people in Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange.
The relationship between Lockwood and Heathcliff reveals the mysteries behind the love deep-rooted in vengeance.
Lockwood is Heathcliff’s tenant living in Thrushcross Grange. His visit to Wuthering Heights to see his landlord leads to the narration of the story in this novel.
He narrates the novel up to chapter three when he desires Mrs. Nelly Dean for clarification and more information about his discoveries in Wuthering Heights.
He has come to Thrushcross Grange to hide himself from all “social intercourse” of the society, but in the end returns to the society.
Heathcliff is a very dark-skinned gypsy found on the street of Liverpool and brought to Wuthering Heights by Mr. Earnshaw. He is presumed to be an orphan by Mr. Earnshaw.
He is Lockwood’s landlord and owner of both Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange which he acquires to whet his appetite for revenging his maltreatment by the original owners of the two properties.
The relationship between Lockwood and Heathcliff is that of a landlord to a tenant; Heathcliff is the landlord and Lockwood is the tenant. Heathcliff and Lockwood never agree on a thing, they are strange bedfellows.
Lockwood is a foil on Heathcliff; through their relationship reveals the characters of Heathcliff. It also opens up the mysteries behind Heathcliff becoming the owner of Thrushcross Grange through Nelly Dean.
Lockwood then understands the reason for Heathcliff’s unhappiness and feels for him. He later learns of the circumstances surrounding the death of Heathcliff from Nelly Dean.