preview

Symbolism In A Long Way Gone By Ishmael Beah

Decent Essays

The Central theme of Oppression and Freedom
The Merriam Webster dictionary defines oppression as the “prolonged cruel or unjust treatment or control”. It also defines freedom as “the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint”. In his novel, A Long Way Gone, Ishmael Beah effectively uses symbols to emphasize the story’s central theme of oppression and freedom in order to portray how certain objects improved his state of emancipation. The plot is based on real events that Ishmael Beah endured during the Sierra Leone Civil War as a solider. A few of the symbols he uses to emphasize the central theme is Ishmael’s gun, cassettes and drugs.
The first major symbol is the gun given to Ishmael by the lieutenant …show more content…

Music helped him hold onto his purity and was evidence of his youthful memories before all was lost during the war. In addition, it saved his life when villagers misidentified Ishmael, and his fellow friends as rebels: “The chief turned his head from side to side as if trying to understand what I was saying. I watched him to see if his face was going to change for the worse, but a look of amusement flickered on his face” (Ishmael 87). This verifies that without them, there would have been no confirmation that they are young ordinary boys passing through villages. Furthermore, music allowed Ishmael to temporarily forget his uncertainties, as it helped him to relax, and reminded him of joyful memories of his childhood: “I didn’t care because the song had taken hold of me, and I listened closely to every word” (Ishmael 186). Likewise, on many occasions Ishmael would have troubles with falling asleep due to the nightmares that will haunt him. He would start to write down lyrics to keep himself occupied: “I had not slept well for months now, and so far I had been able to avoid my nightmares by busying myself day and night with listening to and writing the lyrics of Bob Marley’s songs” (Ishmael 198). Furthermore, this indicates how music enhanced his life as a

Get Access