Wednesday, April 9, 2008

CB-DQ ~ Part Two

8. More questions for the author, please, before Friday.

9. Who is the Hundred-Legged-One?

10. What's Scar Boy's real name, and why is it so important to him?

11. What is Mr. Abasi's point in telling Fiona this story?
"Let me tell you a story," Mr. Abasi said, sitting again, "about another settlement not too far from Mididima. The people there fetched water from a well that was a four-hour walk away. A few years ago, a Christian mission raised money and started to build a well that would be only fifteen minutes away. Before they could finish, it was destroyed. They began to build again, and again it was destroyed. Finally, they asked the people of the settlement if enemy tribes were wrecking the well. No, the people said. They were destroying it themselves. The women had always walked those four hours, once a week, and it didn't seem too long to them. It allowed them a break from daily chores and a chance to visit their neighbors. Also, it had become a rite of passage from girlhood to womanhood, a part of their culture. They didn't want a well fifteen minutes away." He rubbed the back of his neck. "These people have connections to the land and their traditions that outsiders might not understand" (p. 113).
12. Mr. Abasi said, "Have you heard ... that many of our people believe if you know five colloquial expressions in their tribal language, they must always provide you with nourishment and shelter? ... But if you know fewer than five, they owe you not even a sip of water" (p. 114). How would you explain what this story means?

13. "He would have emerged a different man if he'd been born someone else's son. A hunter. A warrior, perhaps. It wasn't predestined, his current life as Mididima's teacher" (p. 115). Have you ever wondered who you might have been, if you had been born to someone else?

14. When Abayomi brought his mangled child to Matani's father, Matani had bolted, "cowering like a child" (p. 129). How did this affect his life?

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