Answer to Question #208673 in English for Maletsatsi Sipambo

Question

Question

In Man Lands on the moon the different beliefs of three generation of women create the main tension in the story.

1. Discuss the narration used to the story, explain why do you think the narrative style is effective in emphasizing the story's meaning.(10)

2. The different set of beliefs of Makhulu Mamkwayi and her mother is central to the main conflict in the story. Write a paragraph in which you discuss the conflict and how it is resolved. (10)

Answer 1

"Man Lands on the Moon" uses uses the first person mode of narration. Makhulu tells the narrative of a guy who walks on the moon from her own perspective.

The first person point of view narrative style is effective because it confines the story to the narrator's experiences and awareness of the true condition of affairs thus emphasising the story's sarcasm. The story is sarcastic because Makhulu, the narrator, does not believe a man has walked on the moon, despite the fact that it is true.

The different set of beliefs of Makhulu Mamkwayi and her mother sparks the main conflict in the book. Makhulu believed villages existed beneath the waters after witnessing some of the underworld's wonders. Her opinions were culturally based, and she didn't believe the white man's story. By the river, she saw and spoke with her deceased cousin, Yolisa, and believed she could save her from the spiritual rite that would transform her into a zombie. She thought it was false that a man had walked on the moon. Her mother, on the other hand, believed the white man's accounts and became a convert. Her niece was dead to her, so she didn't trust her daughter when she told her about the Yolisa incident. Makhulu subsequently expresses guilt for not being able to rescue Yolisa from becoming a zombie and absurdly blames it on her mother.