So Long a Letter

So Long a Letter

infobox Book |
name = So Long a Letter
title_orig = Une si longue lettre
translator =


author = Mariama Bâ
cover_artist =
country = Senegal
language = French
series =
genre = Novel
publisher = Heinemann
release_date = 1981
media_type = Print (Hardback & Paperback)
pages = 90 pp (hardback edition)
isbn = ISBN 978-2266-02-7 (hardback edition)
preceded_by =
followed_by =

"So long a letter" (translated from "Une si longue lettre") is a novel originally written in French by the Senegalese writer Mariama Bâ. Its theme is the condition of women in African society.

Plot summary

"So Long a Letter" recounts the personal narrative of a recently widowed Senegalese woman, Ramatoulaye, in the form of a letter to her best friend from childhood, Aïssatou.Following the death of her husband, Moudo Fall, Ramatoulaye writes to her friend during the period of mourning mandated by her Islamic faith.

Ramatoulaye evokes happy memories of when the two were students who were impatient to change the world, and of the hope inspired by the independence of Senegal from France. While her step-family comes to take over the affairs of the deceased, Ramatoulaye sadly remembers the day when her husband (Modou) took another younger wife (Binetou), ruining 22 years of life together and of love. This betrayal becomes one of the central plot points and is the main area of confrontation between Ramatoulaye and her husband. Beyond this theme lies the issue of male domination and how it affects women in Africa and the social construction of culture which to the characters is not really justifiable.

On the other side lies her friend Aissatou who has had similar experiences of treachery in her marriage to Mawdo. She rises up above her position and proves that as a woman she can do things that were least expected of her. Aissatou and her friend Ramatoulaye therefore share experiences that are similar yet they react to them differently. The writer therefore leaves it for us to decide who is right in their actions and who is not.


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