Gender Roles

In my previous post I looked at the similarities and differences between God’s Bits of Wood and Une Si Long Lettre. In chapters three and four I noticed some gender roles and how they have changed through the strike.  On page thirty-three, it talks about how in the Senegalese culture most of the time men have multiple wives. “In this country, the men often had several wives, and it was perhaps because of this that, at the beginning, they were scarcely conscious of the help the woman gave them”. This is the same as Une Si Long Lettre, I enjoyed seeing how two books from a culture very different to my own has similar story lines. The quote continues to say, “… he would seek the arms of his wife, without thinking or caring, whether she was the first or the third. Burdened shoulders, the listless walk, the woman become conscious that change was coming for them as well” (33-34). The chapter finalizes with a clarifying statement about the change about to arise; “And the men began to understand that if the times were bring forth a new breed of men, they were also bringing forth a new breed of women” (34). This final statement foreshadows evens that will occur in the upcoming chapters, what of, I don’t know yet, but I am looking forward to seeing the gender roles change as the time shall change.