BLOSSOMS OF THE SAVANNAH ANALYSIS KCSE 2021

KCSE PAST PAPERS REVISION – Review of KCSE 2021- Blossoms of the Savannah -Henry Ole Kulet
 

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Misunderstandings in families can cause serious conflicts in relationships. Referring closely to the relationship between Ole Kaelo and his daughters in Blossoms of the Savannah, write an essay in support of this statement.

 

How to answer KCSE essay questions based on Blossoms of the Savannah

1. Read the question carefully so that you comprehend its demands
2. Identify the keywords which will aid in your correct interpretation of the question
3. Identify the MISUNDERSTANDING between Ole Kaelo and his daughters and link it to the resultant CONFLICT
4. Come up with the points of interpretation. What is the misunderstanding? What is the conflict?
5. Answer the question. Keep glancing at the question and keywords in the course of your writing to avoid digressions, irrelevance or narration.

The KEYWORDS in the question are MISUNDERSTANDING and CONFLICT

Show how Ole Kaelo has different values and opinions from those of his daughter Resian and Taiyo and how this different opinions (MISUNDERSTANDING)  lead altercations, squabbles, wrangles or arguments between them (CONFLICT)

The argument can be confrontational like in the case of Resian or simply about how the daughters feel after disagreeing with the father.

In each point, link the difference in opinion to the falling-out.

 

Why students lost marks in this question

• Some students failed to interpret the question correctly and ended up highlighting only one part of the question at the expense of the other (Either, misunderstanding or conflict)
• The examiner expected the candidate to give details of the CONFLICT that arises as a result of the MISUNDERSTANDING between Ole Kaelo and his daughter.

For example;

What is Taiyo's opinion about FGM? What does his father want instead? (MISUNDERSTANDING)

How does this result in CONFLICT? How does Taiyo feel after undergoing FGM?

Taiyo is opposed to FGM. She says, “I also don’t care whether I am counted among intoiye nemengalana … my body belongs to myself … only when I am dead would anyone mutilate my body. “ (Pg33).

Her father plans for her forcible circumcision. She is utterly displeased with him.

“They both find fault with their father for wanting to please Oloisudori to the detriment of his own children’s lives.” (Pg276)

These textual details show how misunderstanding in families can cause conflicts.

Use EPISODIC approach to master and internalize the events in each episode

Students who gave sufficient textual details scored full marks.

 

TASKS

1. Identify episodes where the father's and daughters' expectations are not in line. (MISUNDERSTANDING). What does the father want? What do the daughters want instead?
2. Bring out the CONFLICT that ensues from the misunderstanding. Give specific textual details on how Resian and Taiyo feel or behave following the misunderstanding.

 

Blossoms of the Savanah essays Analysis – how to write the introduction

1. Give your understanding of the question. Show how disagreement in the families causes wrangles.
2. Paraphrase: use your own words to unveil your interpretation of the question. Avoid repeating the question word for word.
3. Include the keywords in your introduction. Link the “misunderstanding” to the “conflict”.
4. Contextualize: mention some of the issues that result in misunderstanding e.g. FGM, early marriage, education etc.

Developing the body: Blossoms of the Savannah essay question KCSE 2021

1. Give at least four fully developed points.
2. Each point occupies a separate paragraph. Do NOT split a point into more than one paragraph.
3. Give adequate textual illustrations on the misunderstanding between Ole Kaelo and his daughters. Points on Mama Milanoi are invalid since the question limits the argument to Ole Kaelo. Cite enough details on the evidence of the conflict between Ole Kaelo, Resian or Taiyo.

 

The paragraph you write should have the following:

 

Line 1: answer the question (mention the misunderstanding)

Ole Kaelo disagrees  with Taiyo concerning the music extravaganza leading to a bitter fall out between them.

Ole Kaelo disagrees  (keyword 1: misunderstanding) with Taiyo concerning the music extravaganza (bone of contention) leading to a bitter fall out (keyword 2: conflict)

 

Illustration:

·       Details of what Taiyo wants

·       Details of her father’s conflicting opinion

·       Details of the resultant CONFLICT

 

Last line: sum up the paragraph with a clincher statement

e.g. Indeed Ole Kaelo’s disagreement with Taiyo leaves her embittered.  (capture the intent of the question)

 

Points of interpretation

1. Music extravaganza
2. University education
3. Baby boy
4. FGM
5. Marriage to Oloisudori

 

Paragraph Development

Let us learn how to identify relevant episodes to answer the question and specific textual details required to score a full mark in the paragraph.

 

Topic sentence: music extravaganza

Ole Kaelo disagrees with his daughter Taiyo over the music extravaganza leading to a bitter fallout.

 

Illustration: (Pg1-2, 4-5, 44-45)

·       Taiyo had a battle with her father when he denied her permission to travel to Mombasa with other young men and women who had been selected by an F.M. radio station to attend an extravaganza.

·       She had stubbornly put up a spirited fight but she lost the battle.

·       That left a wound in her heart that was still too raw to probe.

·       Her rage was still seething in her.

·       The simple faith and certainty of childhood had failed her.

·       Her trust that her father would give her whatever she requested had been badly shaken

·       When Resian asked her to talk to their father about joining university, she recalled with bitterness how her father's refusal to allow her to go to Mombasa and participate in the musical extravaganza nearly damaged the father-daughter relationship that had always been remarkably close.

·       In her house school days, on several occasions she excelled in music festivals and she was awarded and garlanded.

·       Broadcasting stations recognized her talent and encouraged her to take music as a career.

·       On several occasions her parents applauded her when she won trophies on account of her performance … would not have any objection if she pursued the desire of her heart as a future career.

·       An FM radio station offered to sponsor her to attend a music extravaganza in Mombasa and thereafter attend a short course to gauge her abilities.

·       She thought the news would delight her parents but her father was furious. He curtly refused to grant her permission and angrily disallowed any further discussion on the matter, effectively crushing Taiyo's hope.

·       No daughter of Ole Kaelo would demean herself and her family as to perform in public in exchange for monetary gain.

·       It was OK to perform in school festivals, but to perform to a public gallery was one short step to harlotry

·       No amount of persuasion would change her father's mind

 

SAMPLE SET BOOK ESSAY QUESTION BASED ON BLOSSOMS OF THE SAVANNAH

Misunderstandings in families can cause serious conflicts in relationships. Referring closely to the relationship between Ole Kaelo and his daughters in Blossoms of the Savannah, write an essay in support of this statement.

Conflicts in families should be avoided by all means. We can achieve this when we communicate and show deliberate effort to understand one another’s feelings. In H.R. Ole Kulet's Blossoms of the Savannah, Ole Kaelo, as a father, fails to initiate effective communication with his daughters and fails to understand them. As a result, the relationship between a father and his daughters is ostensibly strained.  

First, Ole Kaelo fails to understand Taiyo's deep passion for music, denying her an opportunity to attend an extravaganza, resulting in a bitter fallout between them. The battle between them ensues when he denies her permission to go to Mombasa with other young men and women to attend an extravaganza. Since she is passionate about music, she puts up a spirited fight but loses the battle. Taiyo has always excelled in music festivals and been awarded. Owing to her talent, broadcasting stations encourage her to pursue music, the desire of her heart, as a career. She did not imagine that her parents could object this, since they have always applauded her whenever she wins trophies. An FM radio station offers to sponsor her to attend the music extravaganza. She thinks her parents would be delighted but there is a misunderstanding since her father is furious instead. He curtly denies her permission and disallows further discussion. Taiyo's fervid persuasions fall on deaf ears. Ole Kaelo opines that performing in public is demeaning oneself and her family. He has no qualms about performing in music festivals but feels that performing to a public gallery for monetary gain is one short step to harlotry. This results in a serious conflict since it leaves a raw wound in Taiyo's heart. She seethes with rage. She loses the simple faith and certainty she had in her father. Her trust in her father is badly shaken. The father-daughter relationship was remarkably close but the misunderstanding nearly damages it. This is sufficient proof that misunderstanding in families can cause conflict in relationships.

Secondly, there is a misunderstanding between Ole Kaelo and Resian concerning Resian's ambition of joining university. She wants to pursue veterinary medicine and become a veterinary doctor. She wishes to don the graduation regalia and flaunt the name Dr. Resian Kaelo. Thus, she nags Taiyo to persuade their father to allow them to join university (Pg4). She pleads persuasively since Ole Kaelo always listens to Taiyo (Pg5). Little does she know that he does not share the same opinion . He wants them to be circumcised and married. There is a clear misunderstanding between them.  Resian is not interested in peripheral things like a husband and children in the foreseeable future. They may come after she obtains her degree (Pg18). She knows that if they go back to Nakuru they would escape the archaic practice of FGM. She badgers Taiyo to talk to her father soonest (Pg33). The disagreement is imminent since Ole Kaelo on the other hand wants his daughters to be taught cultural paths since they have enough formal education. Resian is only interested in university education which is beneficial to all humankind. She waits impatiently for their mother or Taiyo to speak to Ole Kaelo but none of them does (Pg181). When her father calls her to speak to her about her future, she mistakenly thinks one of them had convinced him to allow them to join university. What a misunderstanding! The father was plotting to have her cut and married off (Pg 182-184). At his shop, she tries to beseech him to allow her to pursue her dream but he declines. She shouts, hollers and shrieks in outrage. She feels hated and betrayed(Pg 208). In the heat of confrontation, her father slaps her twice (Pg209). She swears that even if she is eighty she will go to university. The conflict between father and daughter arises from the misunderstanding.

Strangely, another misunderstanding stems from the fact that Ole Kaelo wants a boy but a girl, Resian, is born instead. He had prayed for a boy as the second born to carry the Kaelo’s name to the next generation. He is utterly disappointed when nature gives him another baby girl. Resian grows up to be sullen, bewildered and resentful because she feels the absence of her father's love from  the onset. She is awkward and difficult to deal with and her father hates her even more. He wants to dispose of her as soon as possible since her body develops early. Ole Kaelo is harshly impatient towards her and in the face of frequent tongue lashing from the father, Taiyo is her shoulder to cry on. Her tempestuousness is as a result of this. She faces constant provocation and intimidation from Ole Kaelo(Pg34). Her father regards her contemptuously as an awkward, overblown, stupid child and wonders where they fetched her. He compares her to Taiyo who he considers exemplary.  His irrational hatred is evident when Oloisudori visits. Her excitement makes him wonder if she has run amok. He remarks that her behaviour borders on imbecility. This unfair treatment stems from a disagreement and results in conflict. Resian is unhappy because her father despises and hates her so much. She does not understand that the constant rebuke and ridicule results from her father's ludicrous desire to sire a son (Pg174). He sells her to Oloisudori because he does not respect her feelings. She screams bitterly accusing her father of betrayal and hatred. This leads to a serious disagreement between them. Such conflicts can be avoided if parents and children maintain meaningful conversations and avoid misunderstandings.

Also, Ole Kaelo fails to understand that the daughters do not want to undergo the loathsome culture of FGM when he plans to have them circumcised. This results in a disagreement. The strained communication between father and daughters results in misunderstanding and conflict. The girls don’t mind being counted among “intoiye nemengalana”. Taiyo remarks that her body belongs to her and can only be mutilated over her dead body. Unlike her father, she detests FGM. Resian wants them to return to Nakuru in order to escape FGM. Resian is disturbed because the threat of circumcision is becoming real after Ole Musanka’s speech. The sight of “olmurunya” is traumatising and Resian is scared of Enkamuratani. She declares that her claw-like hands would never touch her. Their father wants Joseph Parmuat to talk to the girls about their cultural norms. The girls on the other hand hold extremely divergent views. This is misunderstanding is a breeding ground for the dispute between them. In Parmuat's tale, FGM was initiated by women to prevent them from being lured to the “Ilarinkon's” immoral demands. Resian thus feels that FGM is useless to today’s woman. It a tool used by men to oppress women.  On the other hand, her other plans to circumcise her and marry her off, thus the misunderstanding. Taiyo is unlucky since she is forcibly circumcised. She is traumatised. Her mother and three women from Esoit trick her into circumcision, claiming Resian was on hunger strike and they needed her help. She is instead drenched in 20 litres of cold water, dragged from the hut, wrestled to the ground and circumcised. She faints after the heart wrenching operation. It is difficult to come to terms with the mutilation. Resian and she find fault with their father for forcibly circumcising her in order to please Oloisudori. This misunderstanding creates a wall of conflict between father and daughters.

Lastly, Ole Kaelo plans to marry off Resian to Oloisudori but Resian is against it and is resolute about joining Egerton university. Resian is resolute about what she wants. A husband and children are peripheral issues that may only come after she obtains her degree. According to Ole Kaelo, however, there is nothing better for parents than seeing their children settle in their own homes. The daughter on the other hand holds extremely divergent views on the issue. Whereas Ole Kaelo wants Parmuat to give them cultural lessons, Resian dismisses this as worthless. Ole Kaelo is determined to marry off Resian no matter what happens. He is part of the scheme to have her abducted in the event that he turns down Oloisudori's proposal. He totally misunderstands Resian when he equates her to a goat's kid that refuses to suckle after it is born. He mistakenly believes that Resian would be ensnared by Oloisudori's opulence and grandeur lifestyle. Resian does not want to get married. A confrontation emerges at her father’s shop following this misunderstanding . Resian hollers and shrieks in anger protesting her father's selfish idea. She feels hated and betrayed. Her father slaps her. Resian would rather die that get married to his father's reckless friend – ol-ushuushi. This bitter dispute develops because of lack of understanding.

In conclusion, failure to listen to one another with a view of understanding each other’s views, opinions and values may result in wrangles in a family. Family members ought to communicate freely to avoid such wrangles.

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