NINEMA ANALYSIS PDF
A Silent Song and other Stories
Focus
- How outstanding traits attract respect, praise and admiration
Ninema Summary
Ninema is a poor girl from a low caste. However, her
disposition is simply admirable. South African author Vrenika Pather tells a
tale of a poor girl with big dreams, in the story Ninema.
We admire Ninema for various reasons:
Ninema is diligent. She rises at 4:00 a.m. to reap herbs from
her garden. Her crops are healthy since she has the knack for growing crops. To
earn a living, she sells fresh produce at the Indian market.
Although life is tough, Ninema is as tough as old boots. She
accepts but does not resign to her situation. This earns her much deserved
respect.
Ninema is a poor girl who lives a modest lifestyle. She has
never had hot running water. She washes her face and feet with cold water from
an outside tap. This does not deter her from dreaming big dreams. She works
tirelessly and saves money hoping to buy a small house of her own. After work,
she lounges for half an hour envisioning her dream. She envisages a home with
hot water with the kitchen inside. The industrious woman also plans to have a
large garden where she can plant fruits.
She does not expect this on a silver platter. She works her
fingers to the bone. Everyday, she takes a long walk to the market where she
sells her produce. Since she learned her trade from her parents, she believes
in the grace and power of the generational wisdom of family trading. She is
also good in accounting.
Ninema’s business
flourishes because of her organized nature and her cordial treatment of her
customers. She arranges her herbs appetizingly. She always ensures her stall is
ready before she sits to sip her tea. She
has a steady flow of customers who are attracted by the neat look and smell of
her stall. Ninema knows that she needs to sow more seeds since the demand for
her produce is so high. Her business makes good profit. No wonder her hanky
bulges with notes and coins.
The success of her business can also be attributed to the genial reception she accords her customers. Ninema believes that the first and the
last customer bring luck so she takes care of them extra carefully. She treats
all her loyal customers with courtesy and gratitude. Ninema is always busy but
still takes genuine personal interest in each customer. She knows whose son is
studying medicine in India, whose daughter was married and who moved to a new
house and where they bought it.
On this particular day when the last customer is a new
customer, she gives her a free bunch of mints. The elated customer is besides
herself with joy and promises to always buy Ninema's herbs.
Ninema has some rich clients who are loyal to her. These
include Mr. Chinran and Mrs. Singh. Mr. Chinran is always the first to support her.
Other market women joke that he is in love with her. The infatuation is futile since he is a rich
lawyer from Brahmin caste and the family cannot possibly allow him to marry a
poor girl.
Mrs. Singh is her other loyal customer. Although she is rich,
she haggles for lower prices just to enjoy spending more time with Ninema and away
from the boredom of her big lonely
house. As much as Mrs. Singh is obstinate , Ninema handles her masterfully and
even refers to her respectfully as auntie. Another prominent customer of
hers is Dr. Seedart. Other customers wait patiently while Ninema speaks to him.
Ninema has earned the admiration of her peers at the market.
She stands out because she is different. She is plucky, undeterred, focused and
uncompromising. She is
respected because she faces challenges bravely and wins.
Men and women alike
admire Ninema for she is physically attractive. Ninema is a beautiful woman
with long black hair. While walking to the market, her hips sway from side to
side while she balances her baskets on the head. Her beauty turns heads. Men
stop and stare at her perfect body – long, toned arms and cinched waist. Women
admire her high cheekbones. Ninema does not pay heed to the trifles. She is
focused on making a living. She does not waste time chatting at the market like
other women.
Ninema is also
confident and uncompromising. She does not budge no matter how hard Mrs. Singh haggles
for lower prices. She is an independent thinking woman who runs her business
with an iron fist. She does not give in to what others expect of her. She acts
independently with confidence. Some people are thrilled by a gritty
personality. Other women in the stands are fond of Ninema and wish to know her
secret. They always compromise themselves at home and at work and this makes them angry with themselves. But they admire Ninema
since she is different.
Ninema is strong and
unyielding. When an amorous man accosts her on the way home, she defends
herself. She fights back ferociously leaving the shameful man astonished.
She attracts hearty laughs and cheers of approval from the
other women.
And when men stare at her, she faces them with her black
piercing eyes.
Surely, admirable traits make us stand out from the crowd
and help us to earn respect and admiration among peers and beyond.
New words in Ninema
Bun – hair tied in a tight coil at the end of the head
Nape – the back of a person's neck
Chiffon – light transparent fabric made of nylon/silk
Cinched waist – a feature in a garment that tapers
narrowly at the mid-section, accentuating the curves of the body
Unthinkable – unimaginable
Prying – too inquisitive
Hot under the collar – angry or resentful
Haggled – bargained
Ploy – trick
Sage – a culinary herb
Sashays – walks in an ostentatious yet casual manner,
with exaggerated movements of the hips and shoulders.
Lasciviously – lewdly, indecently
Nestled – lain comfortably comfortably within or against something.
Next: A Silent Song analysis
Read A Silent Song and Other Stories Essays and Answers PDF here
A very good review of the story.
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