Sample of literature essays

SAMPLE ESSAYS IN LITERATURE


LITERATURE REVISION PROGRAM
Samples of a well-written literature essays.

Qn. With reference to two plays that you have studied in this course compare and contrast two female characters one from each reading.

Characters are animate or inanimate beings that perform different roles in literary work. Female characters occupy different roles in different literary works which make two different characters from two different readings to have similarities or differences respectively. To verify the above statement references will be made to ‘Juliette’ of “Three Suitors One Husband’ by O. Mbia and ‘Wanjiro’ of “This Time Tomorrow” by N. Thiong’o. To start with their similarities;
            Both Juliette and Wanjiro are denied to marry men of their choices. Juliette on one side is denied to marry Oko the person she loves because he is still a schoolboy and has no money compared to other suitors like Mbia. Similarly, Wanjiro is denied by her mother to marry Asinjo because he is a man from another tribe and has no job.
            Both Juliette and Wanjiro show true love to their fiancés. Juliette on one side shows true love to Oko and does all it takes to ensure that they get married. She steals the money paid by other suitors and gives it to Oko who in turn pays it as a bride price and they get married. Likewise, Wanjiro decides to stand on the side of Asinjo despite her mother’s warnings that she cannot marry a man from another tribe and has no job, but she insists that she loves him.
            Both Juliette and Wanjiro finally get married to men of their choices. Juliette on one hand succeeds to marry Oko after playing a trick and stealing the money paid by other suitors. She presents Oko as the rich and greatest man than the civil servant. The family accepts Oko and the two get married. Also Wanjiro on her side, decides to escape with Asinjo and the two go together to the city leaving behind the poor Njango in a demolished homestead.
Both Juliette and Wanjiro leave their parents frustrated. Juliette on one side leaves her parents frustrated because of the stolen money. Though they are able to pay back the previous suitors, they remain as poor as before. Likewise, Wanjiro leaves her mother in full frustration as she wonders where she “will be this time tomorrow” because her slum is demolished by the city council and Wanjiro has eloped.
Both Juliette and Wanjiro come from poor families. Juliette on one side comes from a poor extended family that expects to get rich through her marriage to a rich man. They all prefer Mbia to other suitors since he is capable of making them rich. Juliette wonders whether she is a shop or some other source of income. The same applies to Wanjiro who comes from a poor family that earns a living by selling soup to slum dwellers.
Both Juliette and Wanjiro represent young generation that opposes outdated customs. Juliette refuses to conform to the wishes of her parents to marry a man they choose for her and claims her freedom of choice, expression and decision making and finally marries a man of her choice. Similarly, Wanjiro refuses the wishes of her mother to abstain from Asinjo whom she loves, just because of tribalism, finally she elopes with him.
Turning to their differences, the two characters differ in the following ways.
Juliette is educated while Wanjiro is not. Juliette studies at Libamba secondary school and because of the education she gets she is able to defend her rights unlike other women like Matalina, Makrita and Bella who have never gone to school that conform to everything men say. Wanjiro on the other side, is not educated but remains at home helping her mother with domestic chores. Only her bother attends school.
Juliette marries legally but Wanjiro elopes/escapes. Juliette plays a trick and steals the money paid by other suitors and handles it to Oko who in turn pays the dowry. The procedures are followed and the marriage is settled legally. They get all the blessings from her parents. Wanjiro on the other hand leaves her home while there is no agreement/consensus between her and her mother thus she decides to escape with Asinjo.
Juliette comes from an extended family while Wanjiro comes from a single parent family. Juliette on one side belongs to an extended family in which even the marriage decision is not a personal matter. It involves grandparents, parents, uncles, bothers, cousins and many others. Unlike Wanjiro who lives with only her mother after her father’s death and even her marriage is the issue between her and Njango her mother.
Juliette loves Oko for who he is, but Wanjiro loves Asinjo for what he has. Juliette marries Oko knowing that he is poor, and cannot even afford to pay the bride price and she helps him to get the money to pay the dowry. Wanjiro on the other hand, marries Asinjo because now he has a job as a taxi driver and a house in Old Jerusalem. Additionally, he promises her a better life in the city. So she hopes to get decent clothes, high-heels shoes and a handbag that she may look modern.
Lastly, Juliette does not run away from problems but Wanjiro runs away to avoid problems at home. Juliette comes back from school and finds problems at home especially those facing her directly. She is forced to marry the suitors she doesn’t love. She becomes stable and solves the problems and succeeds to get what she wants. Wanjiro on the other side, runs away as a solution to her poor situation at home, hoping to get a better life with Asinjo in the city.
Generally, it can be concluded that different characters from different readings may be alike or different depending on the experience they face in their societies. Most characters in African literature behave almost the same way; however education seems to be the main influence in the way different characters behave.











A QUESTION ON POETRY

Like other forms of art, poems reflect social realities. They try to make us see in a new light and by seeing we are inspired to change. Use four poems you have studied to verify the above statement.

A poem is a metrical composition in form of stanzas that uses imaginative language to portray social realities. It is true that like other forms of art like plays and novels poems also reflect social realities which make us inspired to change from bad lifestyle to a good one. To verify the above statement references will be made to the following poems; “Lost Beauty” by J. Mwaikusa, “Development” by K. Faraja, “Building the Nation” by H. Barlow and “A freedom Song” by O. Macgoye.
To start with “Lost Beauty” the poet portrays the following social realities which might inspire us to change.
The poet shows the effects of neo-colonialism. The poet shows that most Africans have been affected by European culture. They try as much as possible to look like white people but in the process they lose their identity altogether. He shows that his eyes “don’t see anything black” but he sees “white skins and masks”. In a way the poet tries to remind Africans to know who they are and be proud of their identity as he says “black is beautiful”. This shows that he wants us to change the white’s mentality and embrace our African identity.
Also, the poet portrays African natural beauty. Africans were created naturally beautiful. However, most Africans especially women have been struggling to change their skin colour using cosmetics, curl their hair or wear wigs to look like white women to the extent that it is hard nowadays to get a naturally beautiful African lady as he says “I want a black beauty queen”. This shows that we have lost our beauty. So the poet urges us to change this mentality and value our African natural beauty.
In the poem “Development” the poetess portrays the issue of selfishness. The poetess criticizes the hypocritical behavior of the leaders who think of themselves while the majorities are disregarded. She shows that they are more sensitive to selfishness (egoism) than to matters pertaining to national development. To be precise she asks whether they are incapable “to bring about development”. So the poetess urges the leaders to change their behavior or else the majority should take actions.
Additionally, there is an issue of corruption. Corruption is an obstacle to development. It is however sad to note that the people who are corrupt are the same leaders that we have given the power to rule us. She shows that it is difficult for a nation to develop when the leaders to whom we have entrusted power are corrupt. So here again the poet calls for actions so that we may change the system and put in power people who are not be corrupt if we need to get development.
Coming to “Building the Nation”, the poet discusses about hypocrisy. Many people in our society are hypocrites. They speak one thing and do quite the contrary. In the poem we see the PS going to take a heavy lunch and leaves his driver. On coming back he claims to have eaten nothing but that he had attended to matters of state. This is Hypocrisy and it is very bad in as much as national building is concerned. That’s why he says they were building the nation “different ways”. So the poet calls for the masses to take actions against hypocritical leaders.
Moreover, the poet shows the issue of classes. Classes are inevitable in any society however there should be no class that exploits the other. The poet shows that there are two classes in this society. High class represented by the PS who misuses the public funds by feasting and lower class who work on empty stomachs. So the poet is calling for the change in which the national resources will benefit not only the ruling class but also the masses or else the lower class may one day stage a revolution.
And in the poem “A freedom Song” the poetess shows the issue of exploitation. The poem shows that the young girl Atieno works for her uncle as a house help but she is not paid. The uncle gives a lame excuse that “since she is my sisters child” that why she “…needs no pay”. This is a high level of exploitation. Today there are a lot of people who live with their relatives’ children but they make them work all day long yet without pay. The poetess calls for change as this is a very bad habit.
Lastly, the poet discusses the issue of early pregnancy among children. This is a common problem today. The young girl Atieno gets early pregnancy and dies during delivery because of lacking proper guidance and care from parents who are busy with work and studies. Many young girls now get engaged in premarital sex which leads them to get early pregnancies and as a result some drop out of school or die during delivery or contact HIV. The poetess is calling for parents to change this behavior and take good care of their children.
In summary, it can be seen that poems do not develop in a vacuum. They address issues found in our societies and provide the way forward. If we need to achieve sustainable development and live harmoniously we must discourage and fight against the evils discussed in poems that are still prevalent in our societies.


Ø By using specific relevant examples, from your experience describe the unique features/characteristics that distinguish poetry from other genre.
Ø There is pleasure and enjoyment in reading poetry which makes it different from prose genre of literature. How do you differentiate poetry from prose?

Poetry is a work of art that uses creative and imaginative language which arouses emotions to portray social realities to the intended audience. Poetry as a literally genre differs from other genres in many ways. This essay disuses some of the features that differentiate poetry from other literary genres like; plays, novels or short stories.
Poetry is arranged in form of verses and stanzas. Unlike prose which is arranged in long sentences, paragraphs, and chapters, in form of a book, poetry is represented in the form of verses which are grouped together to form stanzas. Example the following is a stanza with three verses.         
Your pain
Yet more my pain
Shall suffocate oppression.
Poetry employs language economy. Unlike prose which uses long sentences that form paragraphs, chapters and a whole book, poetry on the other hand employs language economy. This is to say words are carefully chosen so that very few words present much information. For example in a short poem like “Building the nation” we can establish themes like; classes, hypocrisy, marginalization, misuse of public resources, poverty etc
Poetry is rich in figures of speech and sound devices. Unlike prose poetry makes frequent use of figures of speech such as hyperbole, personification, simile, metaphors and other but additionally poetry has sound devices like, alliteration, assonance, consonance, rhymes, refrain, anadiplosis etc. for example Alliteration “Highly delicate diplomatic duties…” in Building the Nation” or a Refrain “Atieno yo” in A Freedom Song”.
Poetry employs poetic license. Unlike, prose which mostly follows standard rules like punctuation, sentence structure etc. Poetry has the freedom/permission to break/violate certain grammatical rules to achieve a poetic effect. Look at the following verses, “Forward they go” instead of “They go forward” in “Sunrise”, “I too am America” instead of “I am an American too” in “I too sing America”, “away they go…” instead of “they go away” in “When I Say I Love You”
Poetry is rhythmical. Unlike prose which does not involve rhythm, poetry is arranged in form of regular beats that make it possible to be sung. There are regular beats that fall on stressed and unstressed syllables that make the poem ease to be sung.
In poetry the character is the persona and rarely bears a name. Unlike prose which has many characters with names performing different roles, poetry hardly has characters with names. With exception of few narrative poems like “A freedom song” most personas in many poems are named after their jobs or the class they belong. Example, in “Building the nation” the persona is the driver. He is named after his job.
Poetry is meant to be sung or recited. Unlike novels which are meant to be read, and plays which are meant to be performed, poetry is meant to be sung or recited. Poems are patterned in a way that they can be sung or recited that’s why they have sound devices like rhymes, alliteration, consonance, assonance, reiteration, and refrain which bring about music and add effect to the poem.
Poetry uses imaginative language. Poetry employs imagery and symbolism that makes the reader to dig deeper to uncover the underlying meaning. Poetry is not to be taken at face value because some poems contain two layers of meaning. Some words carry an extra meaning in poetry apart from their literal meaning. Consider for instance words like “little bird, and “honey bee”, in Mwaikusa’s “When I say I Love you” they might be representing girls/women also he used imagery like “sweetness” (image of taste), soft soil, standing hard (image of touch), hasty ploughs/climbing your tree, images of motion, and as I sing an image of sound. All these make the poem enjoyable.
Poetry arouses emotions and feelings. Unlike prose, poetry appeals to the five senses of touch, smell, taste, sight, and sound. The poem can move someone’s emotions and they cry or laugh. It can make you annoyed, angry, sad, embarrassed, sympathetic or amused, excited, and happy. For example the poem “If we Must Die” C. McKay and “Your Pain” by A Guebuza arouses the feeling of hatred against the white people.
Poetry has the first letter of each line capitalized (In Most poems). unlike prose in which capitalization occurs only at the beginning of a new sentence or proper nouns, in most poems the first letter of each line is capitalized. This happens even when the sentence is still in progress. Look at the following stanza from Okot’s “ The graceful giraffe cannot become a monkey”
Listen,
Ostrich plumes differ
From chicken feathers,
A monkey’s tail
Is different from that of a giraffe…
As a way of conclusion however it should be noted that the different features discussed above are not necessarily to be found in every poem. Some poems contain some features and lack others. But there are some features which are found in almost every poem.






With reference to two plays you have read, discuss how some traditions, customs and beliefs contribute to misunderstanding in the society.
Misunderstanding is a situation in which two sides fail to come into agreement on a particular decision or idea. This can happen due to some different views contributed by the existing traditions, customs and beliefs. This statement can be proved by using the play “Three suitors one husband by O. Mbia and “The Black Hermit by N. Thiong’o” to begin with Three Suitors One husband the following customs, traditions and beliefs have caused serious misunderstandings.
First, forced marriage causes a misunderstanding between Juliette and her family. Love is important in marriage. However in this society marriage is not defined by love but by money. The whole family forces Juliette to marry Mbia not because she loves him but because he has paid much money. So forced marriage is also one of the major sources of conflict between youngsters and elders. It should be discouraged.
Apart from Bride price causes misunderstanding between Juliette and her family. Just like many other African societies, bride price is important and has to be paid before the girl is married. However the issue of bride price is seen to be one of the major sources of conflict in African families as manifested in Juliette’s family. It is not a good custom thus it should be discarded.
Furthermore Superstition also is a cause of misunderstanding among the members of this traditional society. People of Mvoutessi believe in superstition and witchcraft just like many other societies in Africa. Consider the following cases; when Abessolo collapses they attack Ndi for bringing his witchcraft to kill people there. When the money is stolen they send for a witch doctor to recover the lost money. When he fails to recover the lost money they beat him up. This is not a good custom so it should be discouraged.
Moreover food taboos cause misunderstanding between the old generation and the youngsters.. These are customs that restrict certain group of people from especially Women and children from eating taboo animals like vipers, wild boars. Young men are not to eat vipers and if they do they must be permitted by elders. This causes a misunderstanding as we see Belinga and Owono went against this custom and the elders were angry. This is an outdated custom so it should be uprooted
Male dominance has also been a source of misunderstanding. In this society women have no freedom of choice, speech and decision making. They only need to say yes on every decision made by men on their behalf. When educated girls like Juliette begin to question these traditions, serious misunderstanding arises because they consider it as disobedience to parents.
Turning to the play “The Black hermit” there are customs, traditions and beliefs that caused misunderstanding as follows.
Spouse inheritance (Widow Inheritance) causes misunderstanding between Remi and his family.It is a common custom among African societies and Marua tribe is no exception. According to Marua tribe, it is possible to inherit the wife of a brother who is dead. Remi finds himself faced by this fact when his brother dies of a motor accident and his father and elders tell him to inherit the wife of his late brother according to the custom. This custom is dangerous especially in this era of HIV/AIDS because more often than not in some cases it is not possible to know whether the person who died was HIV positive or not. So it should be discouraged.
Superstition and witchcraft causes misunderstanding between people and communities. In this play it is shown that the Marua elders believe that the neighbouring communities are jealousy of them. They even attribute Remi’s disappearance to black magic that might have been used by their neighbours to turn his mind against the tribe. As the leader says; “who can doubt that Remi’s mind was spoilt by the evil eyes of our neighbours?” This custom is not good as it may lead to hatred and unnecessary conflicts among communities just because of false speculations. So it should be discarded.
Traditional religion has also caused misunderstanding between traditionalists and Christians..
In this society some people are still traditionalists who believe in traditional religion while others have followed Christianity. These two sides are not in agreement. That’s why they differ on the question of the return of the hermit. Traditionalists want him to be on their side and Christians want him to be on their side.
Tribalism is also the cause of misunderstanding in this play. Some African societies perpetuate the spirit of tribalism. This is very bad custom that has to be stopped. For example Remi hates this and is trying his level best to stop it. He says “even at college I hated many small political and social organizations based on tribe and race” pg 24. He also comes with Omange, a man from Njobe tribe and introduces him as his brother and theirs too. This causes a conflict between Remi and the elders since he tells them to stop it.
Racism is yet another source of misunderstanding. In this play racism is shown in two ways: Africans don’t want people from other races. For example the elders are because Remi married Thoni a daughter of the tribe, instead of going to a white-skinned woman. That’s the reason why Remi refuses to take Jane home because she is different and this causes a conflict between the two. Also Asians ostracize people who cooperate with Africans. Omange tells Remi of an Asian girl who has been ostracised by her community because she was seen going around with an African. This causes hatred between the two races.
It can generally be said that not all African traditions are good. Some of them are outdated and thus they have been the chief causes of misunderstanding and conflicts among people and communities. We have got to discard the outdated customs. Traditions and believes that divide us and embrace those which unite us.



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With reference to two novels you have read under this section, explain how the behaviour of some characters affect the welfare of the majority in the society. Give four points from each novel.

Characters are people or other inanimate beings that take part in a literary work. Some characters portray the behaviors that affect the welfare of others in the society. This statement can be explained by using the novels “Unanswered Cries by O. Conteh and “Passed like a shadow” by Bernard Mapalala. To start with “Unanswered cries” the author has shown the following.
The superstitious behavior of Ya Posseh and bondo women affects the welfare of the society. While other people are struggling to stop Female Genital Mutilation, Ya Posseh leads the bondo women to support it in the name of ancient superstation. They believe in bondo spirits to be able to harm anybody who challenges this practice. By so doing the lives of many young girls are put in danger.
The womanizing behavior of Ade Jones affects his family. Ade Jones is not faithful in marriage. He sleeps with many girls and women. He even impregnated Makalay and bears Olabis through premarital sex. This makes him irresponsible in taking care of Olabis who starts premarital sex as her father but Ade is not aware. This affects the welfare of the child for lacking Parental guidance and care.
The money mongering behavior of Salaam Sessay affects the welfare of the majority. People like Salaam are dangerous in the society because they support a cruel custom just to get money. He is a lawyer by profession and possibly informed of the potential dangers of FGM but in the court he supports the bondo women to force Olabisi to be circumcised. This behavior affects the welfare of the majority in the society.
The hypocritical behaviour of Makalay affects the welfare of the society –She believes that FGM helps to reduce sexual appetite to girls and makes them committed to their husbands, but fails to explain why FGM failed to make her committed to Ade as she conceived Bisi at the tender age of 16 years, and out of wedlock but she moved again to Dauda. Although she is educated, she uses her education in a negative way.
Turning to the novel “Passed Like A Shadow” the author has shown the following:
The drinking behavior of Adyeri affects his family. Adyeri becomes a hopeless heavy drunkard after losing the job. This makes him unable to provide for the family food bills and the family suffers. He also becomes so mean and hot tempered and beats both his children and his wife. This causes serious misunderstanding in the family and the welfare of the family is affected.
The Jealousy behavior of Amoti affects the welfare of Vicky. Vicky brings home a man called Akena who wants to marry her. But because of the jealousy of Amoti she declares that Vicky cannot marry a man from another tribe (Munyamahanga). This makes Vicky hopeless and forces her to run away from home to find another means for survival. She engages in prostitution and puts her life in dander.
The promiscuous behavior of David, his father, and Adyeri affects many people including Atwoki. David and his father use their money in a negative way. They use it to get women and sleep with them. They are HIV positive and spread it intentionally. Their behavior end up ruining Atwoki by affecting his future dreams completely. He ends up getting HIV instead of becoming a reputable footballer.
The womanizing behavior of Atwoki affects his family and his country in general. Atwoki becomes a womanizer influenced by David. This makes him neglect his family. His mother becomes sick but he doesn’t care. She dies and is buried but he doesn’t care. After getting HIV he comes back home, hopelessly. The country depended on him but now he has nothing for which to hope.
Superstitious behavior of Aliganyira affects Vicky. Vicky is married to Aliganyira but they fail to get a child. Aliganyira being superstitious forces Vicky to visit the witch doctor to help them get a child. This affects Vicky’s welfare because instead of getting the child she gets HIV and dies of the same. Superstition is one of the customs that affect the welfare of the majority as may get HIV through sharing sharp unsterilized instruments.
Therefore, it can be seen that when some people force their interests on others or use their power to do what they wish it may affect the welfare of the majority. People ought to asses everything they do by considering what affect it will have on others. Will it affect others positively or negatively? Unless otherwise there may arise unnecessary conflicts in the society.





With reference to two poems you have studied, discuss the main ideas you experienced in relation to your society. Four main ideas from each poem



Poems usually have main ideas or the themes they want to communicate to the society for the purpose of educating, criticizing, or correcting the societal ills. This statement can be proved by the main ides presented in, A Freedom Song by M, Macgoye and Development by K. Faraja. To start with A Freedom Song the poetess communicates the following main ideas.
            One of the main ideas discussed is the issue of child labour. This has become a burning issue that attracts the attention of most social activists. Atieno in the poem represents children who are working as house girls and are not taken to school. Atieno is working at the age of 8 and strangely enough without pay. In our country today we see many children in the streets selling things like plastic bags, washing cars and so on. This has to be stopped immediately.
The second main idea is Exploitation And Oppression. The young girl in the poem is not only exploited but also oppressed by her own uncle. Although she works and does all the domestic chores she is not paid nor given any good care. Here says the poetess.
Since she is my sister’s child/Atieno needs no pay
This is common in Tanzania today where many people are working but are not paid according to their labour.
Another main idea is the issue of Early pregnancy. This is another common problem among the teenagers today. Many girls today have failed to reach their educational goals because when they get pregnancy, they are kicked out of schools altogether. At the age of fourteen Atieno becomes pregnant. This is partly due to poor parental care. As the poetess says that her aunt has gone to study and uncle is busy with the work while poor Atieno has no one to teach her what is right..
The poet also discusses the issue of Poor parental care. It is evident from the poem that Atieno’s parents are irresponsible. They have no time to make regular follow-ups to check the kind of upbringing their child goes through. Atieno goes to work in her uncle’s home at the age of eight, and her parents are not making follow-ups. Atieno’s uncle is also portrayed as a bad parent since he mistreats his own niece. Today most parents are avoiding this most important responsibility claiming to be so busy.
Turning to the poem “Development” the following main ides are presented
The poetess talks about selfishness. We see the high class misuses the national resources at the expenses of the lower. Kundi Faraja criticizes the hypocritical behaviour of most African leaders who think of themselves (being the minority) while the majority whose efforts are wasted are disregarded. Their selfish tendencies are expressed by the poet in these terms.
I reckon the minority
More sensitive to egoism
Than to national development
This is common among many post-colonial African leaders are thinking in terms of me, myself and I.
Moreover the poetess has portrayed the issue of corruption. She shows that it’s not the common people who are at the forefront in giving and receiving corruption but the leaders. Critically speaking, the issue of development is even more complicated when we come to think of the fact that those to whom we have entrusted power are the same who are corrupt. Thus the poet come to a poet when he shows there is no way a country whose leaders have invested in corruption can develop. He says
When the people to whom
We have entrusted power
Are corrupt?
This is common in our country where we see ministers signing bogus treats that affect the country economy because of corruption.
Furthermore the issue of Classes and marginalization is also presented. Realistically speaking, classes in any society are inevitable. In most cases it has been evident that whenever these classes exist, the high class oppresses, exploits and marginalizes the lower. To show how detrimental class division can be in any society, the poet uses strong metaphorical comparisons to bring the message home. While the minority (whom he calls privileged few) enjoy the national cake, the majority have been marginalized and disregarded.
I plead the stomachs
Of the privileged few
Greater than the rift valley
They cannot be satisfied
With a normal share.

This is common in Tanzania where we see most government officials (the high class) enjoying life, buying luxury cars living in decent mansions while the majority can hardly afford the three basic meals of a day.
Generally it can be said that poems do not develop in a vacuum. They usually have something to communicate to the society that emanates from the society in which we live. They criticise bad behaviours so that we may reform and educate on the good morals





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By subject master Marwa S.M
BA-Ed Eng/Lit
samson mwita at 01:54
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