Culture

Hitting Budapest by NoViolet Bulawayo:

The culture I envisioned, as I read this story, was very violent and something that I would not have liked growing up in. Just in one day, the kids in the story had seen a suicide, one of their friends had gotten raped, and they suffered from starvation. This story had me envisioning the cruel things that many innocent people have to live through in Africa. It made me think that Africa was a place where people lived horrible lives and had to suffer due to the careless acts conducted by others.

About the Author:

NoViolet was born and raised in Zimbabwe. This story that she wrote, had received the 2011 Caine Prize.

More than one story can tell:

I believe that Abani is correct that, there is more to African culture than one story can tell. One story cannot tell everything that the African people believe and do. One story maybe can tell one or two aspects of African culture, but it takes many stories to learn all about the African culture. People who base their belief on African culture on one single story are very narrow-minded and really are missing out on the rest of the African culture that can be learned.

Things Fall Apart: 

All of this is important before we read "Things Fall Apart," because it tells us that when we read the book, we should not just base our thinking on African culture, based on just this one book. A person can form his/her opinion of the African culture after reading many books that reflect the culture of Africa.