April: So Long a Letter
by Mariama Bâ

Review by Moon Mokgoro

The Art of Bâ

In this book so much is explored in very few words. Bâ writes about being a woman in Africa, polygamous marriage, grief, tradition, liberation, and gender roles. Ramatoulaye’s grief is particularly interesting to readers, especially those living by Western traditions because it unfolds and unravels itself within a deeply traditional and patriarchal society. When speaking about the book, Bâ said “It is first a cry from the heart of Senegalese women, because it talks from the heart of Senegalese women, women constrained by religion and other social constraints that wear them down. But it is also a cry that can symbolise the cry of women everywhere.”

What is the Book about?

So Long a Letter is an epistolary novel in the form of a letter from Ramatoulaye to her friend, Aissatou. She begins this letter by telling her friend that her husband, Modou, has passed – “My friend, my friend, my friend. I call on you three times. Yesterday you were divorced. Today I am a widow.” She continues by writing about her grief, her mourning period, her past life and her new life. She goes through having to endure and experience grief alongside the woman that her husband betrayed her with, being pursued by other men as soon as the opportunity arises for them – seen as an object devoid of her independence, and her new life as a widow.

Ramatoulaye writes about being a woman in society and in her world. She writes about her emancipation from this androcentric and suffocating world and her belief in the ability of women to free themselves from the constraints that have been forced upon them. The letter goes into Ramatoulaye’s experience of polygamous marriage; “What inner torment led Modou Fall to marry Binetou? And to think that I loved this man passionately, to think that I gave him thirty years of my life, to think that twelve times over I carried his child.” to her views on colonialism and the assimilation into Western culture; “the assimilationist dream of the colonist drew into its crucible our mode of thought and way of life.” And in her recollections about her friend Aissatou’s life, she writes of the stories that inspire her most. In one part, she writes of when Assiatou spoke of racism; “On the strictly physical plane, the white woman’s advantage over the black woman lies in the variety of her colour, the abundance, length and softness of her hair.” Ramatoulaye cherishes friendship; “friendship has splendours that love knows not. It grows stronger when crossed, whereas obstacles kill love. Friendship resists time, which wearies and severs couples. It has heights unknown to love.” She believes in the freedom and liberation of women through education, voting, and being given opportunities to lead; “Women are the nation’s primary, fundamental root, from which all else grows and blossoms.”

The Importance of the Book

The works and writings of African women are critical and essential because of the unique and underrepresented perspective they give. Mariama Bâ’s beliefs and experiences are unveiled and communicated through Ramatoulaye’s letters to Aissatou. She challenges dominant oppressive and traditional views. Stories, real and fictional, are told through her words. In Ramatoulaye's navigation through the world she lives in, the importance of resilience is evident and loud. So Long a Letter is a story and lesson about life. It is about women reclaiming their voices, and about women maintaining their agency. There are so many connections between race, gender, and colonialism and through this short piece of literature, Bâ takes the necessary journey of exploring these intersections.

About the Author

Mariama Bâ was a Senegalese author and is regarded as a feminist (she rejected being labelled a feminist as she felt it was too Western). Born in 1929 under French colonial rule in Senegal, Bâ grew up in a highly patriarchal, racist, and misogynistic society. She was a true "feminist". Her writing had significant undertones of feminism and was heavily influenced by womanhood, justice and gender roles in Africa. Outside of her writing, she founded Cercle Fémina, a feminist organisation. Bâ wrote about the plights of women – exploring and telling tales of their struggles and daily lives.