''Rebel'' is a

1969 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1969th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 969th year of the 2nd millennium, the 69th year of the 20th century, and the ...

novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

by Ghanaian writer Bediako Asare about the conflict between

tradition A tradition is a system of beliefs or behaviors (folk custom) passed down within a group of people or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common e ...

and modernity in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

. The novel was published as part of the influential

Heinemann African Writers Series The African Writers Series (AWS) is a collection of books written by African novelists, poets and politicians. Published by Heinemann, 359 books appeared in the series between 1962 and 2003. The series has provided an international audience fo ...

Plot

Set on an imaginary

island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

off the African coast, it tells the story of the remote

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

of Pachanga, still unknown to the rest of the island, and the inhabitants who still live a traditional lifestyle, untouched by modern innovations. According to Asare, their

existence Existence is the state of having being or reality in contrast to nonexistence and nonbeing. Existence is often contrasted with essence: the essence of an entity is its essential features or qualities, which can be understood even if one does ...

is far from idyllic. They are governed by a Mzee Matata, a fetish priest, who refuses to allow any innovations to undermine his

authority Authority is commonly understood as the legitimate power of a person or group of other people. In a civil state, ''authority'' may be practiced by legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government,''The New Fontana Dictionary of M ...

, but after many years of cultivating the same land and fishing the same stream, the

soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, water, and organisms that together support the life of plants and soil organisms. Some scientific definitions distinguish dirt from ''soil'' by re ...

is overworked, the

fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

are being rapidly depleted, and the villagers are facing starvation. Only one villager, Ngurumo, dares to challenge the fetish priest by suggesting that the villagers relocate to a fertile valley on the other side of the

jungle jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅgala'' ...

. Mzee Matata rejects this idea, arguing that the villagers are suffering because they have displeased the gods. He regards Ngurumo as a threat, and attempts to have him killed during a

hunting Hunting is the Human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products (fur/hide (sk ...

expedition. When this fails, Ngurumo realizes how dangerous it is for him to remain in the

, and together with his

wife A wife (: wives) is a woman in a marital relationship. A woman who has separated from her partner continues to be a wife until their marriage is legally dissolved with a divorce judgment; or until death, depending on the kind of marriage. On t ...

Seitu, he sneaks away at night and builds a new life for himself in the valley. To Mzee Matata, Mgurumo's disappearance and the possibility that he is living well while the rest of the people suffer is a serious challenge to his authority, especially as the people are starving. At a meeting of the entire village, he explains to them that the gods are angry with Pachanga because of Ngurumo and because the villagers have abandoned the ancient practice of

human sacrifice Human sacrifice is the act of killing one or more humans as part of a ritual, which is usually intended to please or appease deity, gods, a human ruler, public or jurisdictional demands for justice by capital punishment, an authoritative/prie ...

. That night, he sends a group of hunters led by Fundi to the valley to bring back Ngurumo and Seitu so that they can be sacrificed and the village spared. Ngurumo and Seitu are brought back to the village and prepared for sacrifice. As Mzee Matata raises his knife to plunge it into Seitu's belly, there is suddenly a loud pop, and he falls dead to the ground. He was shot by Shabani, a

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

surveyor, who happened upon the valley by chance just as the

ceremony A ceremony (, ) is a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion. The word may be of Etruscan language, Etruscan origin, via the Latin . Religious and civil ...

was about to take place. Shabani startles the villagers with his

magic Magic or magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces ** ''Magick'' (with ''-ck'') can specifically refer to ceremonial magic * Magic (illusion), also known as sta ...

stick (his rifle) which can kill a powerful fetish priest at a distance and the many other wonders he shows them. He befriends Ngurumo and begins to prepare him for a new

leadership Leadership, is defined as the ability of an individual, group, or organization to "", influence, or guide other individuals, teams, or organizations. "Leadership" is a contested term. Specialist literature debates various viewpoints on the co ...

role for the villagers. He is, however, insistent that the choice be made democratically, and that Ngurumo be elected. His chief rival is Fundi, who inherits the

role A role (also rôle or social role) is a set of connected behaviors, rights, obligations, beliefs, and norms as conceptualized by people in a social situation. It is an expected or free or continuously changing behavior and may have a given indi ...

of fetish

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

from Mzee Matata. Ngurumo wins the election and takes a group of

men A man is an adult male human. Before adulthood, a male child or adolescent is referred to as a boy. Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromosome from the fa ...

to the valley to build a new villager. Upon their return, they discover that Fundi has attempted a coup: Shabani was killed by a

python Python may refer to: Snakes * Pythonidae, a family of nonvenomous snakes found in Africa, Asia, and Australia ** ''Python'' (genus), a genus of Pythonidae found in Africa and Asia * Python (mythology), a mythical serpent Computing * Python (prog ...

in a trap set for him by Fundi, and Seitu has been kidnapped and will only be released, according to Fundi, if Ngurumo hands his

to him. Ngurumo leads another group of

to rescue Seitu just as she is about to be killed, then returns to the

and challenges Fundi to a fight to the

death Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sh ...

. After winning the struggle, he leads the

people The term "the people" refers to the public or Common people, common mass of people of a polity. As such it is a concept of human rights law, international law as well as constitutional law, particularly used for claims of popular sovereignty. I ...

to the new

, and plans on sending an expedition across the mountains to the modern

that Shabani described.

Analysis

The plot of ''Rebel'' is not sophisticated, and in many instances is reminiscent of colonial works by

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English journalist, novelist, poet, and short-story writer. He was born in British Raj, British India, which inspired much ...

H. Rider Haggard Sir Henry Rider Haggard (; 22 June 1856 – 14 May 1925) was an English writer of adventure fiction romances set in exotic locations, predominantly Africa, and a pioneer of the lost world literary genre. He was also involved in land reform t ...

, depicting the cruelty of a "primitive" society not yet rescued by the forces of civilization (though in this case, civilization is brought by an African, rather than a white imperialist). In this sense, Asare's book is unusual in

African literature African literature is literature from Africa, either Oral literature, oral ("orature") or written in African languages, African and Afro-Asiatic languages, Afro-Asiatic languages. Examples of Precolonialism, pre-colonial African literature can be ...

in the importance it places on Western civilization and ideas and its disparaging attitude toward traditional African customs. It often tends to preach, particularly when Shabani explains to Ngurumo the benefits of democracy. It is important as a reflection of Asare's and other African intellectuals' views on how to liberate their countries from colonialism—in fact, the book never mentions where Pachanga is located, and it could be a metaphor for any country in Africa during the post-colonial period. Through this book, Asare seems to say that the best possible future for entire continent lies, not in attempting to revive the ancient tribal past, but in looking to modern ideas and democratic principles, even if this means the complete rejection of long-established traditions.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rebel (Novel) 1969 novels Ghanaian novels Novels set in Africa Novels about rebels African Writers Series Novels set on islands