Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
What is the significance of government tearing up hisiscus when they come to talk to Papa?
They show they will have no change, the purple hibiscus shows change, but if the government
tear them up they show there will be no change and that they are coldblooded.
I think Father Amadi awakened a different side of her, delved into areas of herself she didn't
know about (such as physical awareness in the sense of sexual awakening - if that makes sense...
ie becoming aware of herself as an emerging woman), gave her confidence, and - perhaps most
importantly - gave her a really positive adult male role model. Until then her primary (well, only)
adult male figure had been her severely abusive father. Having someone treat her kindly, look at
her kindly, and have it be real genuine all-encompassing kindness that wasn't off-set by abuse.
11. Jaja questions why Jesus had to be sacrificed, "Why did He have to murder his own son
so we would be saved? Why didn't He just go ahead and save us?" [p. 289] And yet, Jaja
sacrifices himself to save his mother from prison. Why does he do this? Should this be
understood as a Christian sacrifice or a simple act of compassion and bravery?
Jaja breaks with his faith at this point. His questioning of the Bibles parables has resonance in
his own life. The treatment of the son by the father pertains to the abuse suffered at the hands of
Papa as well. Papa, and his faith, is literally and figuratively dead to Jaja at this point.
In the beginning of the story he wouldve never dared to question religion or god. He just is
supposed to believe with no questions asked. The author uses the rhetorical questions to grab the
readers attention so they can be aware of how drastic this statement
12. After Aunty Ifeoma moves her family to the United States, Amaka writes, "there has
never been a power outage and hot water runs from a tap, but we don't laugh anymore . . .
because we no longer have the time to laugh, because we don't even see one another" [p.
301]. What does this passage suggest about the essential difference between American
culture and African culture?
That there are material and lifestyle advantages of living in the US, but they come at the cost of
family closeness and happiness that was common in Africa.
13. What does the novel as a whole say about the nature of religion? About the relationship
between belief and behavior?
The nature of religion depends on each person's interpretation of it. It is meant to be a guiding
light in family life to keep people's moral compasses straight. However, some people say to act
in the name of religion, but act poorly. Religion can be twisted to become the motivating force
for something that is against the religion itself.