A wise woman does not want to be anyone’s enemy; a wise woman refuses to be a victim of anyone. -Maya Angelou
For all the years that I have developed a conscience like mine, I have been constantly buffeted by the incandescent standards of the universe and its smallest slice of what women should be like. A woman is always portrayed as a godsend, beautiful and elegant, or a struggling royalty saved by a hero who makes her swoon, or an evil witch behind every man’s failure. But a woman is not a gift, she is not a possession, she is not an asset. A woman is not someone to be saved, if she is to be protected, then from what? And yes, this paragraph is always present in my feminist articles. The most exhausting thing about being a woman is the fact that we should still fight for our image as individuals, which is a turning point from how I came to the idea that the purpose of humanity is to break the chains of stereotype. . Human beings try to discredit and destroy what exists, from beliefs to lifestyles and even the correct color of pants to match socks. This drive to be free is why Joseph was shot in a park, why Romeo and Juliet died, and why all revolutions and wars happened.
Grace Ogot or Grace Emily Akinyi, the Kenyan writer who happens to be the author of the story ‘The Rain Came’ and many other stories, introduced the moment of “Outburst” through the characters’ struggle against the binding chains of traditions and culture. . Many of her stories are set against the backdrop of Lake Victoria and the traditions of the Luo people. The Luo people are interesting, in fact very interesting, specifically because of their traditions. They do not practice the common ritual of male circumcision; instead, they grow 6 front teeth as a sign of initiation into adulthood. And these traditions are the common theme of Ogot stories, including folklore, mythologies, and sometimes oral traditions.
This theme is actually at the core of “The Rain Came,” a story about a chief’s daughter who was chosen by the gods to be sacrificed to make it rain. The story was originally titled “A Year of Sacrifice” but was changed to how it is now for reasons I didn’t really get into. Ogot’s inspirations for writing came primarily from the stories her grandmother told her when she was still young, and her perception of the conflicts of tradition in society was further fueled when she worked as a nurse and midwife in both Uganda and England. She also represented her people in UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization).
In the story “The Rain Came” a myriad of traditional beliefs and social rules were presented. The element of sacrifice, the suppression of women’s rights, gender inequality and the power of traditions were established. This statement will be explained through the following analyses.
Labong’o
The story depicts Labong’o as a chief who, throughout the course of his life, tried to accept the order of the Luo ancestors. He married five women so he could have a daughter, and there came Oganda, but the confusion began when the ancestors entered the medicine man, Ndithi’s dreams, that Oganda was chosen to be the lake monster’s sacrificial piece to end. drought and attract rain.
There are two implications of sacrifice in the character of Labong’o. First was when she had no choice but to marry and remarry until she finally had a daughter, which, as stated, was ironically taken from her, rendering his efforts irrelevant, if I may say so.
The second sacrifice is his daughter. As the head of the village, he is obliged to always choose the betterment of the village over anything or anyone, whether it be his family or himself. It was then that the conflict between his role as boss and father began.
“Never in his life had he been faced with such an impossible decision. Refusing to give in to the rainmaker’s request would mean sacrificing the entire tribe, putting the interests of the individual above those of society. More than that. It would mean disobeying the ancestors and most likely erasing the Luo people from the surface of the earth. On the other hand, letting Oganda die as a ransom for the people would permanently cripple Labong’o spiritually. He knew that he would never be the same boss again.”
He was torn between tradition and family, but as all the contradictions in the world end, one of the opposite aspects prevails, and that is his role as great chief. He chose to let Uganda go to the lake and die so that it rains, so that the people live, to remain the great chief who always puts the people first.
Uganda
“The ancestors have chosen her as a sacrifice to the lake monster so that we can have rain.”
That is the line that Labong’o said in front of the people as a declaration of Oganda’s destiny. Oganda is the daughter of the chief of the Luo people, and yet her status did not help change her destiny. She was chosen by her ancestors and there was nothing neither she nor her father could do against it.
Oganda is a name that literally means ‘beans’ due to his white skin, which is a rarity among the Luo, who are native to the Ebony people.
As her family sat inside the room with her outside, she thought maybe they were just planning her wedding, and that just means the inability of women in her society to take a stand on their own marriage. But the fact is that Oganda and all the other women in her society simply accept that as part of her life, and there was no trace of resistance from any female species. They just accept the things that society has to offer, no matter if they deserve it, what they dictate, and that’s just sacrifice.
She was scared at first, which is a natural reaction if you know your life has to end for the safety of the majority, but she still bravely walked alone to the lake and succumbed to her own death. Her bravery was already established, putting honor to the women’s team, but Ogot took a turn. The man that Oganda loves, and obviously loves her, came after her in the middle of her journey to the lake and saved her from her.
“We must quickly escape to the unknown land,” Osinda said urgently. “We must flee from the wrath of the ancestors and the retaliation of the monster.”
Just when the going gets tough, when she’s all dry with no water to drink, a man comes and saves her. Osinda, the great and wonderful, comes to her aid. She’s as clichéd on so many levels as Superman always saves Lois Lane, as Spider-Man saves Mary Jane. Men behind the hero masks, which reminds me of how female superhero characters present themselves with minimal costume and perfect hair in the midst of all the battles and stunts. The way the media portrays beauty makes me want to throw up.
What does it really mean to be a woman? In this story there are many mirrors that reflect women. Uganda is the woman who makes sacrifices. Even in Greek mythology, women make sacrifices, even gods. Hestia sacrificed her throne for Dionysus. The Ugandan mother is also a reflection. Her mother was sad, in fact mortified, because her only daughter has to die for others to live, but all she could do was cry. Women are sometimes powerless. They are always under husbands and under social rules, and I don’t mean that literally.
In the end, Oganda ran away with Osinda from the town and all its people. He gave in to Osinda’s offer to run away and live happily ever after, away from the lake monster, away from the eyes of the ancestors and away from his family. And just as they turned their backs, the sky darkened and drops of water fell. She rained. Everyone got happiness from him.
Rain
Rain is one of the most emotional symbols used in literature, and in this story, all the actions of the characters are connected to this rain. The townspeople were beginning to panic because it has been a long time since the last time it rained and their resources are running low, and the fear of death among them began to increase as the drought came. And as they say, desperate times call for desperate measures, so people made the decision to sacrifice a woman who hasn’t met a man yet, which means ‘virgin’, to make it rain, which is a very barbaric thing. . . All this about the sacrifice that happens in the story makes me think that in all the stories I’ve read, it’s a ‘must’ that the person to be sacrificed is always a virgin woman, even in the bible (the daughter of Jephthah). Why not a virgin man?
Anyway, at the end of the story, even if Oganda wasn’t actually offered up and eaten by the lake monster, the skies still pour down rain. It may mean that Oganda’s acceptance of her fate as a sacrificial lamb is enough to please her ancestors and give them the rain they desire.
This story is proof of how traditions influence human decisions and acts. What we are today as individuals and as the human race in general is the result of centuries and centuries of conditioning. Who can say that one’s tradition and beliefs are wrong? Who can say that we belong to a generation of idiots whose brains were replaced by a virtual world that we developed and coexist with, called the Internet? What does it really mean to be a woman? Who sets the rules? I don’t know the answers to my own questions, all I know is that we all have our own mind and it’s a responsibility to really use it.