How do the authors portray the role men play in So Long A Letter by Mariama Bâ and Blood Wedding by Federico García Lorca?

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Question: How do the authors portray the role men play in So Long A Letter by Mariama Bâ and Blood Wedding by Federico García Lorca?

Men are the dominant members of the family in both So Long A Letter and Blood Wedding. Mariama Bâ and Federico García Lorca use male characters to portray this so-called dominance in the Muslim-Senegalese and Rural-Spanish society.

In So Long A Letter, the character of Modou Fall is very noteworthy as his character traits signify the nature of a typical Senegalese man at that time. Firstly, Modou Fall, being the husband to Ramatoulaye, commits adultery after 25 years of marriage and 12 children. It is very unbelievable because their love seemed to be strong but Modou insisted in showing his feelings for Binetou, the age-mate of his daughter.

“Was it madness, weakness, irresistible love? What inner confusion led Modou Fall to marry Binetou?”

This rhetorical question confirms Ramatoulaye’s immense confusion and shock on hearing about the marriage between Modou and Binetou. Thus, Bâ here tries to imply that men are impetuous and are carried away by lust…they go committing polygamy even without the consent of their spouses – keeping them in the dark. Although, polygamy was an accepted ritual in the Senegalese society, Modou Fall violated the rules of the Koran. This is because he did not give his wives equitable love and treatment, which is emphasized in the holy book. Therefore, we see the infidelity of Modou to Ramatoulaye.

Moreover, Ramatoulaye describes her husband’s decision to take on a second wife as totally ridiculous. She perceives that her husband has been lured away by the wrong qualities and is moving into an even worse scenario.

“I think of all the blind people the world over, moving in darkness”

Furthermore, Modou, “a practical man”, was a busy individual who spent a lot of time at work rather than giving Ramatoulaye any attention.

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“He fulfilled himself outside as he wished in his trade union activities”

The above line tells us that Modou did not spare time for his wife as he was occupied with his work. Here, once again, the author tries to imply that men usually were the hard-workers and very committed to their jobs.

In addition to that, the fact that Modou hardly returned to Ramatoulaye’s home after the marriage with Binetou, the author insinuates that men, after committing adultery, forget their first wives and spend most of their time with their new partner.

“With Modou absent ...

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