A SAMPLE ESSAY ON GLORIA MWANIGA'S STORY 'BOYI'

Godwin Siundu (Ed), A Silent Song and other Stories

With illustrations from Gloria Mwaniga's "Boyi", write a composition on the effects of war.

In Gloria Mwaniga's story "Boyi", from the anthology 'A Silent Song and other Stories", war comes out as monstrous with agonizingly terrible results. It leads to loss of lives, displacement of persons, trauma, radicalisation and and child recruitment into the army.

Firstly, war leads to a spate of deaths and killings.  When Matwa Kei, the militia leader, demands that Boyi's father pays a land tax and betrayal tax, he offers boy to him after failing to raise the forty thousand shillings. He does this out of fear that the militia chipped off the heads of whole non-compliant families, carried off their heads and maybe ate them like Idi Amin. The torture is is inflicted with, first, the slow chopping off of the ears and feeding of worm-filled earth to the victims. The men who gather to exchange news talk of how the militia cut up people and throw their bloodied bodies in rivers, pit latrines and public wells. Simoni also brings the news of Boyi's death alongside other Ragtag Militia leaders. Boyi is hoisted on a flying aircraft and then shoved out without a parachute. These illustrations show that untimely and unwarranted deaths have a field day during the times of war.

Secondly, war impoverishes. When Matwa Kei comes to collect the land protection tax as well as the betrayal tax, Baba, unable to pay up the sum of forty thousand shillings, gives him everything he owned. These include the precious Sony transistor  radio, his hunting gun. He also promises to sell their bull, Mtambakaki, and give him all the cash. Matwa Kei refuses this offer saying that Baba did not wait the following day when he lent out a rope and a maonge to the government surveyor to subdivide the land. Finally, Baba offers his only son, Matwa Kei, to pacify his rage. These illustrations show that during war, people are likely to lose their belongings to anarchists. 

Thirdly, war leads to child recruitment into the army and later, radicalisation.  There is a talk that the militia go from house to house forcefully recruiting boys as young as ten. Boyi, who Baba offers to Matwa Kei, is merely fifteen. He sadly rises the ranks to be Matwa Kei's right hand man. The recruited children have to first go back home and kill a close relative to harden them into killing others. Upon exhausting all the boys,they now resort to recruiting girls to go and cook for them. A lady says she knows of a woman, who because she had sent away all her sons, was ordered by Matwa Kei to give him her daughter to go and cook for the militia. It is therefore evident that during war, there exists a desperate attempt at buffering the army, especially the militia, to mitigate inadequate manpower.

Fourthly, war leads to displacement of persons and forceful migration. At the height of the war, when the government  armed forces arrive to stem out the militia opposition, fear grips the villages of Kopsiro, Saromet, Chepyuk and Chelebei. This then leads to a mass exodus to Bungoma and Uganda in earnest. The family of the narrator's friend, Chemutai, moves away to Chwele. When the stories reach the narrator's house, Boyi's father gnaws at a possible escape despite the opposition from Boyi's Mama who says she would never run away and leave Boyi. It is, for these reasons, true that during war, life becomes unbearable leading to people running away from the places they have known to be home.

Fifthly,war also leads to famine. In December, which is probably the harvesting month, the farmers fail to clear their shamba for the second planting  of maize crop since the militia stole young crops from the fields and goats from the pens. Instead of working, the womenfolk stay at home while the men gathered in small groups under mtaragwa trees and only discussed about the atrocities of the militia. Famine then arises due to the destructive tendencies  by the militia who exploit the anarchy that accompanies war as well as the instability and uncertainty that renders the farmers and other food producers complacent.

Sixthly, at times of war, there appears to be a communication breakdown. Most of the pieces of information that reach the people come in the form of rumours, miscommunication and innuendos.When Matwa Kei and his men launch an onslaught on the government collaborators, it is Baba's friend -Chesober, a schoolteacher at Chepkurkur Primary who reveals to the family of the impending visit. Saulo also tells the family about the government's plans to bring in a troop of two hundred armed forces to fight the militia. Chesaina, an old friend of Boyi's father and who works in a grain depot in Chwele market, brings the news to the family that Boyi is now a marked man as he has ostensibly risen to be Matwa Kei's right hand man.He has also gotten this word from a colleague trader as well. Simoni ultimately brings the news of Boyi's death alongside that of other Ragtag militia leaders.

Seventhly, war causes trauma on the its victims as well as the victims' loved ones. Mama Boyi is psychologically disturbed when Boyi is taken away by Matwa Kei. She does not look up, replies to none, easily predisposed to ire, and always shrieks. She also becomes temperamental calling the narrator a stupid girl and commanding her not to finish Boyi's tea. She screams too over meals. At times, her intense desire and yearning for Boyi shows when she declares that she is seeing a vision of a dazzling white dove. God has been showing her that her son has escaped the militia  and is on his way home. When soldiers finally arrive to contain the militia army, Mama stops eating and only muttered to herself. Her ugali would remain untouched until a crusty brown film would  form and she had to throw it away to the chicken coop. Mama Boyi's edgy nature, failure to touch her food and hallucination all scream to assert the effects of war.

In conclusion, war is certainly something not to wish for as it dehumanises by causing unwarranted deaths, poverty, famine, displacement of persons as well as forceful migration, communication breakdown as well as child recruitment and radicalisation. 

Hello,

My name is Ezra Omollo, a teacher of English and Literature, an examiner English Paper three at Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education  (KCSE) level, as well as a motivation speaker. My passion is to see students achieve the desired learning outcomes in English. I also believe deeply that the consumerism of Literature should go beyond Literature students in high school, college and University. We must grasp one of our last chances to discover, rediscover and restore our human dignity through Literature. And this we must do together as the human family!

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