Book I Responses
Personification
1) Markham describes her plane with qualities that force the reader to recognize how connected she is with it. She notes that the "guttural voice of her exhausts" have a sound that is more living than mere wood, steel, wires, and sparks. Markham and her plane had a bit of a relationship in that Markham recognized the beauty, power, and strength of her plane in a way deeper than just feeling the resistance of petals and levers.
2) This quote does not have personification as deep as #1, but when "the engine sighs into silence", one can almost feel the scene of a glorious flight coming to an end - forced to bring the plane and the pilot back to the "mundane realities" of groundling-life.
3) Markham brings to life the wind to a point that makes it almost palpable to the reader. The sensual description of a "hot night wind" with the exotic smells brought with it makes for a very real scene. This description lends a vivid sense of the exoticness of the African wild-lands. The personification of the wind sneaking and "stalking" through the forest adds a sense of mystery and wonder.
4) The distressing scene of Markham searching for Woody and the Klemm is brought a glimmer of hope when the "pool of water" turned out to be the Klemm after all. The hope is quickly shot down by the depressing description of the plane "huddled to earth like a shot bird, not crushed, but lifeless and alone". By using personification in that description, the same feelings of being "lifeless and alone" are brought to the reader because the reader can relate to such feelings. The drama wouldn't have been the same had the description been merely a physical overview of the plane's position.
Imagery
1) The idea brought by this passage is a clever one. The description of the gold fleck growing in size is a tricky and impressing way to describe the dreams of the prospector growing in size to a point out of proportion. One can see easily how the prospector could become irrational - we all know the allure of money.
2) By hinting at the description of the landing lights, one gains a feel for the rustic and somewhat dangerous setting of the nighttime runway. The image of rags burning in "bent chunks of tin" makes the reader recognize at least one (albeit small) example of how run-down and crude life was in that area during the 1930's.
3) This "image" is more of a well-described concept… The idea that Africa has a soul of its own that surpasses the concept of "civilization" in its own simple, timeless beauty.
4) The image of darkness being "sliced" by "blades of light" makes the darkness feel thick and palpable. The feeling of the darkness looming over the camp, being shattered by the streaks of light, is a very strong image. It brings to light (no pun intended) the specifics of the camp which was so hidden from view when Markham was describing the night landings on page 4.
5) The grimness of this description again makes real the harshness and undeniable cruelty of the African wilderness. The trials and tribulations of Markhams day-to-day life are probably more gory than most would want to see once in a lifetime.
6) The image brought to mind of a dying man struggling for speech is one that is dramatic in just about any medium. The very detailed description of Burgham's efforts to make words come together shows how helpless he was - beginning to talk in "meaningless garbled words".
7) This passage brings into focus one of the major messages that I sense the reader is supposed to get come away from the book with: Nature has a beauty that breathes new life into those dominated by fast-paced society. The sight of such freedom, such untamed magic running rampant, concerned only with survival, is one that invokes in the reader a yearning to be wild as well.
Book II Responses
Metaphors:
1. Here, Markham compares Paddy's roar to a sound that could only be replicated by the roaring voices of hell erupting from when the doors of hell are one day opened. This gives the reader the sense that the sound had sound had a horrible, hellish quality to it, making for a truly terrifying representation of the roar of the massive attacker.
2. The image described by this metaphor lends a sense of the forest sadly and grimly consenting to the will of the ever-encroaching farmland. It gives the sense that the forest recedes gradually against its will.
3. This metaphor, in the reader's mind, turns the two warriors into superhuman fighting machines, bent on doing whatever was necessary to conquer the lion. The impression of raw power and courage that is conjured by this metaphor is great, giving the reader a palpable sense of brute force and adrenaline.
4. The gentle description of "the magical cloak of evening" creates a subtle image of a darkened shadow crawling over the panorama of the African landscape, slowly "whisking away" the taller objects as it passes. The image, although brief, is clear in the mind of the reader.
5. This passage turns the efforts of the missionaries into conquests of ancient knights battling the old gods of the Kavirondo people. Representing the missionary effort as an aggressive assault on the "intangible superstitions" of the natives creates a strong sense of unfairness. The idea that the missionaries seek to destroy a religion and replace it with their own, aided by the tangible Bible, seems much more menacing than it does when described in an everyday textbook.
Book III Responses
Narrator's Voice
"What does a fall of rain, a single
fall of rain, mean in anybody's life? What does it matter if
this month there is none, if the sky is as clear as the song
of a boy, and the sun shines and people walk in it and the
world is yellow with it? What does a week matter, and who is
so dour as to welcome a storm?… If the seed die, these
men will not, but they may not live as they always had. They
may be affected because the seed is dead; they may change,
they may put their faith in other things." (132) In this passage, Markham uses this
paragraph of philosophy to introduce the next story. She
attempts to bring into perspective for the reader the
concept of the world's grandeur. What seems an insignificant
fall of rain or a single seed holds the potential to affect
the future of many men. The trivial rainstorm or the seed
blown away by a forceful breath — neither seems
important on its own, but when multiplied times the millions
of times each is needed in one's life, they have a great
bearing on the success and livelihood of their
dependants. "He had been lavish with a
stranger. He had left me a word, tossed me a key to a door I
never knew was there, and had still to find. ‘All the pieces are put
together, and the whole is yours…’ A word grows to
a thought – a thought to an idea – an idea to an
act. The change is slow, and the Present is a sluggish
traveler loafing in the path Tomorrow wants to
take. Jumbled thoughts – restless
thoughts – absurd thoughts! Pull yourself together.
Whoever heard of Destiny with pliers in his hand?"
(154) In this part of the book, Markham
is completely overtaken by thoughts (jumbled, restless, and
absurd thoughts, no doubt) of flight. The concept of "owning
Africa" and transcending above the world of those below is
enchanting to Markham, and she demonstrates it in this
passage. Even when writing this book, these feelings are
most certainly present: Markham expresses in this passage
alone a passion for flying that did not die with age. There
would be obstacles, and she knew that ("…absurd
thoughts…"), but being the ambitious person she was,
she would conquer them. This is the seed that blossoms to
the love of flying that overtakes Markham’s
life. "More people had driven out from
the town, compelled by the new romance of a roaring
propeller – a sound that was, for me, like a white
light prying through closed eyes, disturbing slumber I did
not want disturbed. It was the slumber of contentment –
contentment with a rudimentary, a worn scheme of life –
slumber long nurtured by a broad and silent country,
effortless and fruitful in the sun, and whose own dreams
were the fabric of its history." (176) Here, Markham describes the
enchantment of an airplane passing overhead. Again, she is
enchanted by the sound that was, for her "like a white light
prying through closed eyes" … The sound brought to her
a palpable realization that what she needed to do was
fly. Markham knew , entranced by the roar of the propeller
slicing through the air above, that her life lay not ahead
on a road, but in the sky.
Personification
"The new sun falls across it in a
jumble of golden bars that lie on the earth or lean against
the trees that edge the forest." (136) To meaningfully convey the image of
the sun breaking over the horizon, Markham personifies its
golden rays as intelligent entities, moving neatly over the
plains in bars of light, "leaning against" the trees. By
describing it in this sense, I could see perfectly the scene
that she was describing. I saw the bars of light, shaped by
the silhouette of the horizon, trying to reach out over the
land. "The trees that guard the thatched
hut where I live stand in disorganized ranks, a regiment at
ease, and lay their shadows on the ground like lances
carried too long." (143) The image conjured in my mind of
the tall trees over a humble hut was perfectly conveyed by
this passage. I saw tall, somber trees – scattered, but
somehow orderly and overpowering – towering over the
hut. The trees are personified as if they stand by rank, but
very much at ease, with their "lances" laid on the ground.
The whole scene is very strong: ominous trees, built by
decades of effort and persistence, towering over the humble
man-made hut, tired from their efforts to endure, with their
lazy shadows cast upon the ground as testaments to their
toils.
Intransitive Statements
"I think. I scribble notes. I
wonder about the high price of feed, and chew my pencil. I
am a trainer of race-horses, I have already got my license.
Six weeks to the Race Meeting at Nairobi – the little
hotels filled, the streets humming, each day the grandstands
mottled with the costumes and the colour of a dozen tribes
and peoples. Winners. Losers. Money changing hands. Trainers
big-chested, trainers flat-chested, explaining how it might
have happened, ‘except just for this.’ All of them
men. All of them older than my eighteen years, full of being
men, confident, cocksure, perhaps offhand. The have a right
to be. They know what they know --- some if which I have
still to learn, but not much, I think. Not much, I hope. We
shall see, We shall see." (144) This very long passage of
intransitive statements, with a few somewhat organized
sentences thrown in. The ideas conveyed by these apparent
spats of rambling are probably intensely emotional to
Markham. I know that when I write in choppy sentences, it is
because the emotion behind my topic is so powerful that it
is terribly difficult to convey except by sporadic shouts of
thought. In this particular passage, Markham discusses the
turmoil of trying to make her way in the confusing,
overpowering world of the Nairobi raceways. Struggling to
prove herself among men, grappling with the challenge of
trying to maintain her ability to get food and lodging
before landing a strong job. "There are orders for tomorrow. The
girth gall on Collarcelle requires a different saddle –
item for her syce. Wrack, the chestnut colt, is coming along
– I’ll send him a mile and a quarter,
three-quarter speed; carries head too low for running
martingale – rings only – chain snaffle.
There’s Welsh Guard. He’ll do – he is the son
of Camciscan. Tendon boots? His legs are as sound as steel
hinges." (143) These jumbled thoughts are Markhams
recollection of managing the stable… She tries to put
in place the next day’s "orders", categorizing and
planning – anything to show that she’s capable of
what needs to be done. The confusion and enormous
responsibility make her life a constant challenge, while in
the meantime she has to prove herself – both in age and
in gender – to those in Molo with money: The Men. This
passage represents her inner monologue, reciting the toils
of yet another day. "Wrack is triumphant in advance of
victory. He is a beautiful colt, sleek as speed itself,
dancing like a boxer on quick, eager feet, flaunting his
bright body in front of the steady and demure Wise Child."
(166) Here, Markham attempts to combine
all of her thoughts of Wrack’s beauty into one flowing
thought. The image of Wrack’s speed, agility and
intelligence is probably one that carries much emotional
weight with Markham. When she finally lost him, she must
have had those feelings of missing his qualities, and
conveyed them in this description of him. I think she truly
admired Wrack for his arrogance – a quality that she
had not yet earned the right to possess.
Setting Described
"My trail is north. It is thin and
it curls against the slopes of the Mau like the thong of a
whip. The new sun falls across it in a jumble of golden bars
that lie on the earth or lean against the trees that edge
the forest. The trees are tall juniper and strong cedars
straining to the sky on straight shafts, thick, and rough
with graying bark. Grey lichen clings in clotted mops from
the high crests, defeating the day, and olive trees and
wayward vines and lesser things that grow huddle safe from
the hard hot light under the barrier of their stalwart
brothers." (136) The description of the African
scene in which she has to leave Njoro is intense. Markham
describes the extraordinary sights of the African landscape
as she passes it on Pegasus, probably with tears in her
eyes, taking note of every detail as she leaves the
familiarity of the land of Njoro. Although she will be
staying in Africa, her life at the farms has passed, and as
she states at the beginning of Book III, leaving slowly was
a great mistake. In this scene, as told many years later,
she had to face all of the parts of her childhood landscape,
and pass them by in a solitary journey towards a new
community -- and a new life. "A country laved with icy streams,
its valleys choked with bracken, its hills clothed in the
green heather that wandered Scotsmen sing about, seems
hardly Africa. Not a stone has a familiar cast; the sky and
the earth meet like strangers, and the touch of the sun is a
as dispassionate as the hand of a man who greets you with
his mind on other things." (141) The setting described five pages
later is that of the new Africa that Markham would have to
recognize as home. The scenery of Molo was Markham’s
new place, but she describes the disconcerting feel of the
unfamiliar area. "Not a stone has a familiar cast," says
Markham. I know from summers spent away that living in an
area for a long time makes one grow accustomed to certain
subtle details. Everything that one would not even care to
notice on an average day, even something so subtle as the
shape of shadows cast by familiar outcrops, becomes a
feeling of loss once those details are lacking. This passage
is the aftermath of the foreboding that Markham had when she
contemplated leaving the familiar scenery in the passage
above. "The dooryard of Nairobi falls into
the Athi Plains. One night I stood there and watched an
aeroplane invade the stronghold of the stars. It flew high;
it blotted some of them out; it trembled their flames like a
hand swept over a company of candles. The drumming of the engines was as
far away as the drumming of a tom-tom. Unlike a tom-tom, it
changed its sound; it came closer until it filled the sky
with a boastful song. There were pig-holes and it was
dark. There were a thousand animals strolling in the path of
an aeroplane searching for a haven." (175) This passage describes not a
setting of static plants and outcrops of rock. It brings to
life a dynamic scene of the vast African landscape, made
alive by the thunder of a plane passing overhead. Below the
plane lie pig-holes and animals strolling back and forth,
adding the action that makes Africa so great. Trees swaying
and shadows pivoting about their caster: such things do not
make Africa real. At the beginning of the chapter, in this
passage, Markham describes the things that make her
Africa real. Running animals, vast horizons, and the
sky… The sky of a million stars. Breaking each of these
realities – land and sky – is the sight/sound of
the next part of Markham’s Africa: airplanes. The sight
of an airplane, bringing an unaccustomed roar to the
serenity, is a sight that enchants Markham in this scene,
and is foreshadowing her love of flying.
Book IV Responses
Book IV Response: Quote #5
A map in the hands of a pilot is testimony of a man's faith in other men; it is a symbol of confidence and trust. It is not like a printed page that bears mere words, ambiguous and artful, and whose most believing reader — even whose author, perhaps — must allow in his mind a recess for doubt.
A map says to you, 'Read me carefully, follow me closely, doubt me not.' It says, 'I am the earth in the palm of your hand. Without me, you are alone and lost.'
And indeed you are. Were all the maps in this world destroyed and vanished under the direction of some malevolent hand, each man would be blind again, each city be made a stranger to the next, each landmark become a meaningless signpost pointing to nothing. (245)
This passage describes the immense value of something so (seemingly) trivial as a map. When in the hands of a pilot, Markham writes, a map is proof of the trust that a pilot must have in the flimsy piece of paper, and everyone responsible for it. The slightest error, whether it be by the photographer, surveyor, topographer, or the cartographer responsible for assembling the information, can be disastrous. Without a guide, the African wilderness is unforgiving. For a pilot, the map is his livelihood — success means being able to get where one is intended to be.
The corollary of this passage is that success in life is often dependent upon having a map. This does not necessarily mean having a map of the streets of New York so that you can find your way to a job interview… Life itself: plans for the future, critical decisions, not-so-critical decisions — all of them have an effect on what your route will be, but all must be made with some plan in mind. All of us need maps in life, and many times they won't be drawn perfectly for us…
The second part of the passage refers to the inherent doubt that must be always kept at hand whenever a pilot puts his faith in a map. Something is always wrong. Whether the landmark tree was felled a week earlier, or the river fork was dammed by beavers, something is different from the way it is expected. Trying to ignore such things, refusing to account for such errors, guarantees failure. There is a certain degree of instinct and criticism that must go along with reading any map. Sometimes it is important to make up your own routes.
The same concept applies to one's journeys through life. While the sage advice of a guidance counselor might foretell a future at this college for this major in this subject, one must always take things with a grain of salt. Perhaps you have an underlying doubt itching to get out. It is important to indulge such speculation and see where it leads you, or risk condemning yourself to the predetermined path. While advice is always to be treasured, one must always be weary of dependence on it.