Lauren Sustar Microtheme: The Dark Child and Keita After reading The Dark Child and viewing

Keita, I noticed much similarity and repetition within the two stories. Each tells of a young boy growing up in Africa and reaching manhood, an extremely significant event in that culture. There is a battle raging in both boys hearts. They are stuck having to choose between their heritage and tradition and the modernization and change going on in the world around them. Globalization is quite evidently taking place in both stories and for that matter all over the world today as well. Is the change it brings for the better? Will tradition be lost to modernization? These are the questions that came to my mind after reading The Dark Child and viewing Keita. The Dark Child and Keita are very similar in the stories they tell. However, the background and the characters contrast with one another. The Dark Child is rich with tradition and rituals that take place to signify important stages in Layes life. It starts out when he is only a little child and describes the lifestyle of his people. There are many festivals and ceremonies that must take place in order for the African boys to become men. Even though they undergo unimaginable fear in many cases, they overcome it and emerge feeling strong and courageous. I think after reading this book I better understand why the people of some cultures go through frightening rituals. Many times we see or hear of the practices of other countries and shake our heads in disgust. But for them, the pride and courage that come at the end of such rituals far outweigh the anguish they have to endure. Rite of passage into adulthood is much more emphasized and who is to say that is a bad thing? As Laye grows older, he struggles with the decision to further his education. Everyone knows he is very knowledgeable and that he should go as far as he can with his education, but

nevertheless there is a battle for Layes heart. His mother wants him to stay and live the life his father had lived and his father before him and so on. She knows he is torn by the world outside his mud hut and she even tries to make it look more Western and modern so he will not want to leave. I cannot imagine having to make such a weighty decision. I do not think I could bear to leave my family as he did. I think it is interesting that although this same tug-of-war between tradition and modern education occurs in both stories, in Keita the end result is the opposite. Keita is also torn in two directions but by different people. When we first see Keita he is in school clothes and carrying a book bag. In contrast to Layes mother, Keitas mother puts greater value on education and becomes angry when he becomes more caught up in the story of his heritage than his schooling. Keita wants nothing more than to sit with the griot and hear the story of his ancestors. The fathers in both stories are hesitant at first, but end the end I think they support their sons. In Keitas case, his father allows the griot to stay and finish his story instead of forcing Keita to go back to school. In the same way, Layes father knows he must go away to study because it is for the best, and he helps him confront his mother. Although Laye chooses education and modernization, Keita becomes captivated by stories and tradition of the past. So the boys are torn in opposite directions and each ends up taking a different path. I find it hard to state my opinion on globalizations hold in countries such as those described in The Dark Child and Keita. On the one hand, I think it is sad that so many cultures are losing their heritage and tradition as Westernization forces itself upon them. I do not think it is right to force a people to conform to the rest of the world. However, if they do not become more modernized, they will be left behind in a developing world that is constantly changing and becoming more efficient and fast-paced. I do not know if an equal balance will ever be found. I

guess we all have to make our own decision just like Laye and Keita made theirs. They followed their hearts and that led them to their destinies.