Backgroundoft hePl ay

Thedramat ictext“LetmeDi eAl one”waswr i

tteni nSi err
aLeoneand
i
nit
iall
y,itwaswr i
t t
eninoneoft hesierr
aLeone’ sv er nacular,Kri
o.It
sati
ri
zest heil
l
soft hecountry’
scol oni
zedsoci etysi nceitcr i
ti
cizesthe
corr
uption,i
neptitudeandext remequestf orpowerwhi chiscommoni n
si
erraLeoneanr ulingclass.Alltheseatti
tudespr ov okedKar gbo’sspir
itt
o
wri
tethisdramaandhewasl aterforcedtogot oexi l
ei nNi geri
awher ehe
conti
nuedhi seducat i
onandwr otemor esat i
ri
cpl ays.

Backgr oundoft hePlaywri

ght
JohnKol osaKargboisoneoft heexci
ti
ngandcr eat
iveSi
erraLeone
dramat ists.Mostofhisplaysarewri
tt
eninvernacul
ar.Hi
spl ay
stotal
l
y
addressandcondemnt hefundamentali
ll
sthatseem tobeendemicin
Sier
raLeone’ ssoci
ety.Hewasoncei nexi
lei
nNi ger
iabecausethe
governmentofcount rycoul
dnotbrokerhi
sstrongcondemnat i
onofthei
r
i
neptitude.

Setti
ng
Theplay“LetmeDi
eAlone”i
ssetinMendetribeofSierr
aLeoneinthepr
e-
coloni
aler
a.Thepl
aycent
resonfemini
ststr
ugglesthatarecommon
themesinAfri
canl
i
ter
atur
etoday
, andt
hispermeatestheenti
repl
ay.

PlotSummar y
JohnK.Kar gbo, inhi splay,LetMeDi eAlone,sumsupt heprev alenceof
bet r
ay alinat ypical Afri
cant r
adi t
ional soci
ety.ItssettinginSenehunand
Moy ambav il
l
agesoft heMendeKi ngdom, t
hepl aybringst opromi nence
theev i
lsanddi sast erst hedesper ationforpowerandt heinfi
del i
tyofone’s
trustedper sonscani nfli
ctont hesoci ety.Therei saref l
ecti
onofwhatev i
l
excessi vedesi ref orpowerpor tends.
TheduoofMusaandLamboi ,
bl i
ndedbyt heirinordi
nat ecravef orpower
(i
.et het hroneoft hechi ef)
,betrayt wosuccessi vechiefs.Theyar ealso
directlyinvol vedi nt hemur dersofbot hGbany aandJenebaandby
extensi on,t hesui cidal deathofYoko.
Thepl ayopenswi ththel ovemaki ngscenebet weenGbany a,thechi efof
SenehunandYoko, hisfavouri
teamonghi sthirty-
sevenwi ves.Aguar d
i
nt erruptst heirromancewi t
hamessaget hattheCol onialGov ernori son
hiswayt oSenehun.
Gbany aissaddenedbyt heint
endedv isi
toftheGov er
norandpr eoccupied
bythedr eamshehashadbef orenowabouthi sf athercall
i
nghim home.I n
Afri
ca,whent hepredecessorofakingorchi efcallshim,whatthismeans
i
st hattheincumbentwi l
lwil
lsoonjoinhisancest ors.
I
nt helightofthi
s,Gbanyahast hepremoniti
ont hatsomet hingbadwi l
l
happent ohim soon.Theknowl edgethathesidedJohnCaul keragainsthi
s
brother,GeorgeCaulkeri
nanal l
-whit
ewarf urtherconfir
mshi sfearsand
unseatshisheart.

Atf i
rst,Yokot ri
est odissuadehi mf r
om engagi nghi mselfwithsuch
negat i
vet hought s.Lat erwhent helatt
erisuny iel
dingt oheradv ice,she
remi ndshi m ofhi spr omi set obequeat hthet hronet oherathi sdemi se.
Gbany aobj ectsv ehement lytosuchar r
angement .Hel ayscl
ai mt othef act
thatMendeLandi si nast ateofchaosanddi sor der.Itneedsamant or i
ght
thewr ongs.
Weencount erMusaandLamboi next.Thoset woar epresumabl ymember s
ofGbany a’sadmi nist
ration.Lamboi ,whowant stobecomet hechi ef,seeks
forthecooper ationofMusai nki l
li
ngGbany a.Atf i
rst,Musar efusesto
obliget oLamboi ’
sev i
lagenda.Hel ateraccept stohel pwhenLamboi
threatenst orev eal hi
ssecr etofhumansacr i
fices.
Theant i
cipatedCol onialGov ernor,DrRowe, comest oSenehunandas
expect ed,heoutr ightlyhumi li
atesGbany aforsuppor ti
ngawhi tebrother
againstt heot her.Lamboi andMusacapi t
ali
zeont hi sandpoi sonGbany a
aftertheGov ernorhasl eft.

Whi leinhi sdeat hthroes, Gbany ai squicktorecognizehehasbeen

poisonedandt hereasonhei spoi soned.Heat temptst ohandov erpower
toYokobef orehedi es.Hedi eswhi l
edoingso.
Tri
umphant ly,Lamboi proclaimshi mselfthenewchi ef.Howev er,
suspi ciousYoko, whoi sconv incedt hatGbany ahasbeenki l
l
edbyt heduo,
object stot hepr onouncement .Sheassumest hemant leofleadershi
p
i
nst ead.
Inthef ollowingscenes, thereisar apidgrowthinYoko’ spower swithher
servitudet ot heGov ernorandt heexpansi onofherchi efdom.Wewi tnessa
shi
f tinhergov ernment ’
sseatf rom Senehunt oMoy amba.
Weal sowi tnesst heinfideli
tyofJi lotoNdapi .Jil
oisinvolvedinextra
mar italaffair
swi thLansana.Ndapi ,thechiefwar r
ior
,isportray
edas
awoman- beat er,onewhomal treatshiswi f
e.Jilowouldlaterseeksol acein
heraf fairwithLansana.Thei ronl ydaught er,
Jenebabyname, averyshar p
younggi rl
,visitsthepalacef requent ly.
Yokowhohashadenoughpower sal r
eadywi shesshecanswi tchplaces
wit
honeofherat t
endant s.BeingaPor owoman, Yokocannotconcei ve.
Shewi shessheisamot herinsteadofaqueen.
Whilethisi
son, MusaandLamboi donotr elentinthei
rploytoeli
mi nate
Yokoandt akethekingdom f orthemsel ves.Theymar v
el athowYokohas
successful
lymanagedt heaf fair
soft hechi efdom andherdext er
it
yin
maintaini
ngagooddi plomat icrel
at i
onshipwi ththeGov ernor
.Theydecide
tokil
lJenebaandi nci
tet hepeopl eagainsther( Yoko).

Ndapi ,ontheot herhand, catchesanunsuspect i

ngJilodur i
ngoneofher
numer ousescapadeswi t
hLansana.Hedr agshert othepal ace.Yoko
placatesNdapi ,promisingt odeal severelywithJi l
o.Yokot hereaft
er
embar ksonast atel
yv i
sittot heGov ernor’splace.
Beforeherj ourney,Jenebai ski dnappedbyMusaandLamboi asast ar
tto
theirnefari
ouspl an.Yokoor der sforamountofasear chteam t ounravel
thedisappear anceofJeneba.
Whi l
eshei saway ,t
heirplans( MusaandLamboi ’s)sooncomei nt
omot i
on.
Theyki ll
Jenebaandi mpr esst hepeopl eintobelievi
ngt hatYokoi sthe
guil
tyev il
doerher e.Theypoi sont hemi ndoft hepeopl e,thev i
ll
age’sSande
women, Jil
oandmostespeci ally,t
hef atherofthechi l
d, Ndapi.

THEMES
Theplayexpl oresthetopicali
ssuesofcoloni
ali
sm,genderdiscri
mination,
betrayal,excessivedesireforpower,sui
ci
de,homici
de,humansacr i
fice,
andal istofot hers.Theseissuesfur
theraccent
uatetheart
isti
cquali
tyand
socialrelevanceoft heplay.
Discussedbel owar ethethemesinLetMeDi eAlone.

THEMEOFBETRAYAL: Thisi
spr obablythemostpr eval
entthemei nt he
play.Itplaysasignif
icantimpacti nt heplotdev elopmentoft heplay.Bot h
Lamboi andMusabet raythecommuni t
yandsomepr omi nentcharacter s.
Lustingf orpower,Lamboi r
ecruit
st heserv i
cesofMusa, thechiefpriestt o
helpwi thhisplantounseatGbany apermanent l
yf r
om histhrone,i
nor der
toprev enthimf r
om appoi nti
ngYokoashi snextsuccessor .
Musacoul dhav echosennott ocompl ybuthehadskel et
onsi nthe
cupboar d;thi
ngshewoul dnotwantt hepubl ictogetwi ndof.Hehas
offeredhumansacr i
ficessev eral
lyinexchangef orprosperit
yandl ongev i
ty.
Hehasl ongbet r
ayedhi sgoodof ficewithhi sindulgenceinhumanr i
tual s
alli
nt henameofseeki ngt hegoodi esoflife.
Whent heoppor tunitypr
esentsitself,t
heduobet ray sGbany abyappear i
ng
torelievehim oft helowlyhumi l
iat
ionDrRowesubj ectedhi mt o.They
poisonhi m, andLamboi at
tempt stousur phist hrone.Thus, theybet rayan
unsuspect ingGbany awhohadt rustedt hem withhi slife,andt akent hem
asal li
es.
Agai n,theybetrayYoko, Gbanya’ssuccessor .Rat herthanper formt heir
adv i
soryandpr i
estlyduti
es,Lamboi andMusachooset omi sleadt he
vil
l
ager saboutYoko.Theyki llJeneba, mutil
ateherandbur yherbody .
Howev er,t
heycaj olethevi
ll
ager stobel i
evethatYokohasbur i
edt hepoor
gir
l’sbodyal ivesoshecoul dreceivef avoursfrom t hecol onial gover nor.
Thisbet rayalandt hehumili
ati
ont hatf oll
owslar gelyinfluenceYoko’ s
suicide.
Inanut shell,MusaandLamboi betrayGbany a,Yokoandt heirpublic
offi
cesi ntheirlustforpower.

THEMEOFCOLONI ALISM:Thepr esenceoft hecol oni algov ernor ,t

he
messenger ,t
hef ighti
ngwhi temenandt hedeni gratingt r
eat mentofl ocal
traditi
onalr ul
er ssuggestt hecolonialatmospher ethatsur roundst he
entireplay .DrRowe’ streatmentofGbany ai shighlysuggest iveoft heaur a
ofimpudenceandsel f-
prof essedsuperiori
tycolonialadmi nistrators
exuded.Bydeci dingt ostripYokoofhernewl y-
acqui redterritori
es, Dr
Rowef urtherdemonst r
ateshowt hesecol onialadmi nistratorst ook
Af r
icansf orgrant ed.Itwi l
lber ecoll
ectedthatYokopai nstakingl yconsults
thegov ernorbef oresheembar ksonherconquestofnewt er ri
tories.She
doesnotgoof fli
mi tbutt hegov ernorstri
psheroft het erri
toriesal lthe
same.
Consi derably,thepower lessnessandpuppet r
yofAf ri
cant raditionalr ul
ers
i
sbr oughtt onot i
ce.

THEMEOFGENDERDI SCRIMINATI ON: I

nSenehunandMendel andatl arge,
womenar enott r
eatedasequal sofmen.Womenar econsider edf ragi
le,
vulnerableandincapableofmanagi ngcrises.Atthebeginningoft heplay
whenGbany adragsYokoi ntothei nnerchamber ,heclai
mst hatheneeds
Yokomor ethanherSandegi rl
s.Tohi m,womenhav enor esponsi bili
tythan
tosatisfymen’ssexual ur
ge.
Ini
tial
l
y ,Gbanyahaspr omisedYokoshewoul dbehi ssuccessor .Howev er,
withtroublesaround,hefeelsreluctanttohandov erthethronet oher
becausehebel ieveswomencannothandl ealandatwar.Thi sist hesame
stanceofLamboi .Theexcusehegi vesforwant i
ngtokil
l Gbany ais
becausehedoesnotwantt hel attertoappointYokoashi ssuccessor.
Obviousl
y,ifnotforYoko’sdoggednessandi nsist
ence,awomanwoul dnot
havebecomet hechiefofMendel and;tal
kmor eofexpandingt
hechiefdom.
InMendel and,womenusual lyar enotal l
owedi ntothePorocul
t.Yokois
theonlyexception.I
nthev il
lage, thereisacer t
ainprejudi
cehel
dagainst
women.Theyar econsideredi nferiorandexceptf orYokowhoforges
ahead,womenar enotassignedr ulingposit
ions.

THEMEOFEXCESSI VEDESI REFORPOWER:Lamboicr av

esforthethrone
ofthechiefandwoulddoany thingtobecomet hechiefofMendeland.He
recrui
tsMusawi tht
heexcuset hatawomanshoul dnotrulet
hem.Inhi s
desperati
ontobecomet hechief,hekil
l
sachi efandinspir
esthedeathof
another.
Kill
i
ngGbany aisnottheori
ginalplanbuttherei
snowayt obecomet he
kingwithoutt
akingawaytheincumbentchi efandanyoppositi
on.

THEMEOFHOMI CI
DE:Bot
hMusaandLamboipoi
sonChi
efGbany
ato
deat
h.Theyar
eal
sotheki
l
ler
sofJeneba.

THEMEOFHUMANSACRI FI
CE:Musa, t
hechiefpri
est
,indulgesinhuman
sacri
fi
ce.Heoft
ensacr i
fi
ceschildr
eninordertogainprosper i
ty,good
healt
handlongevi
ty.Lamboithreatenshim wi
ththi
sshamef ulsecretof
hisandgetshi
mi nt
ohi spl
ant okil
lGbanya.Thecrueldeathand
mutil
ati
onofJenebaconsiderablyspell
southumansacr if
iceint hetext
.

THEMEOFSUI CIDE:Humil
i
atedandf r
ustratedbyhersubj
ects,Yoko
becomesov er
comebydepr essi
on,“adiseaseofthemind”.Themessage
fr
om DrRoweaddssal tfur
thert
oherinjury.Shedeci
destocommi t
sui
cide.Shepoisonsher
selfamidstpl
easf r
om hertr
ustedattendant
s.

STYLE
LanguageandSt yleofLetMeDi eAlone
LanguageKar gbomakessuper buseoftheEngli
shLanguageinLetMeDie
Alone.Theplayisparti
cul
arl
ywel l
craft
edandthelanguagei
sembedded
withcult
ural
nuancest hatadequatel
ycont
ext
uali
zet hepl
ay,
especial
l
ythe
ri
chuseofpr overbs.

Songsanddance
Kargbocar efullyi
nterspersesthedifferentactswithsonganddanceand
payspar t
icularattenti
ont osoundef fects.TheSandedancer sareof
parti
cul
ari nteresthere.Ast heyhavet hewher ewit
hal t
oent ert
ain,sothey
alsohavet hepowert ocheckandbal ancet heauthori
ties.
Comi cr
elief
Moment sofcomi creli
efalsoheightent heoverallt
ragicnatureoft heplay.
ThewayGbany adragYokot obedstimul at
essomepl easurableinter
est.
Theencount erbetweent heguar dsandMessengeral sounder scoressome
comi cr
elief.TheMessengerhasbeenmanhandl edbef oretheguar ds
real
izethathei samemberoft heverypower fulPoroSociety(pp.131- 134)
.

Symbol s
Inthepl aythunderr umbl es.Jeneba, poi
sonar ekeysy mbolsdepl oyedto
advancei tsplotstruct ureAtsomesi gni
ficantpointsintheplay ,t
hunder
rumbl estoar r
estourat tentiont oconsciousnessJenebai nt hepl ay
representsshat t
eredhopeandanewor derdeni edf r
om sprouting.Poison
becomesapot enttool ofendi ngther ei
gnofeachl eaderi
nt hepl ay.
Gbany adi edfrom poi sonbyhi st r
ustedaidswhi leYoko'sdeat hisbysel f
-
consumedpoi son.ForGbany a,poisontookhi m outinadi sgraceful
mannerbutYokousedpoi sont oleavethescenewi thherroyal esteem and
i
ntegrityintact
.Poisoni nthi sinstancehasadual i
mageofnegat iveand
positi
v eends.ButwhydoesKar gbomaket hetwochi efst
odi ebypoi son?
Probabl yfordramat icconv enience.

Foreshadowi ng
Foreshadowi ngisal iterarydev icei nwhi chawr it
ergivesanadv ancehi nt
ofwhati st ocomel at erinthest ory.Foreshadowi ngof t
enappear satt he
beginningofast ory, orachapt er,andhel psther eaderdev el
op
expectationsaboutt hecomi ngev entsinast or y
.Wehav esomei nst ances
ofthisliterarydevicei nLetMeDi eAl one.WhenJenebai ssentt ocal l
Lamboi andMusaf orameet i
ngi nthepal ace, Lamboi admi r
esherand
remarkst hat"Gir
lsofhert ypest andt odj einthehandsoft heenemi esof
Senehun"( p.94).Thi sstatementf oreshadowsJeneba' sabductionand
gruesomedeat hint hehandsofLamboi andMusawhoar eindeedt he
enemi esofSenehun.Si mi l
arly,Yokohasapr emoni ti
ont hat"agr eati l
lwil
l
befallthi
shousehol dt oday "(p.96) ;t
heGov ernorlatercomest of l
ogher
husband, Gbanya,andhei sev ent uallypoisonedt odeat h.Asr oyalty,
Gbany adoesnotwantahumi liatingdeat hbuthei ronical
lyforeshadowsan
unpleasantend-" whyshoul dwhosentsomanyt oenemi esnont heirquest
forsuchpeacebeafrai
dtodie?No,Iam not
.Myfearrest
si nt
hemannerof
dying"(
p.87).Gbany
adiesofpoisonwi
thhisski
nturnedblackaschar
coal
.

ANALYSI SOFCHARACTERSI NLETMEDI EALONE

CHARACTERANALYSI SOFMADAM YOKO
RoleofMadam Yoko
RulerofMendeChi efdom whoi sdescr ibedt ohav eabr ainmadef r
om
musi c(p.86) .Shewant stoinher itthechi efdom ofSenehunaf terher
husbandandshepl ay edthepol it
icsofsuccessi onwel l(pp.88- 89) .
Becausei tiswart ime, herhusbandpr ef er
sNdapi hischiefwar rior.She
woul dratherdi ethanshar eabedwi t
hNdapi (
p.89) .Shei sgr eedyand
i
nsol ent..
.(pp.108, 119) .Yokoi spor tr
ay edasabeaut i
ful
, ambi tious, and
courageouswomanwhoj oi
nsanal l-mal esecr etsoci ety(thef ear edPor o
society)andconsequent l
ylosesherr i
ghtt omot herhood, thoughnott oher
sexual i
ty.Sheknowsnotev ery oneisl happyt hatshei sthechi efofKpa-
Mende, especiallyherbr otherLamboi .Inbecomi ngamal e-f
emal e,Yokoi s
muchf earedbyhermal econt empor ari
es, enviedbywomeni nher
const i
tuency ,anddoubl ypli
abl eint hehandsoft heBr i
ti
shr uler s.The
Gov ernordescr ibesherasashi ningexampl enotonl yofAf r
icanf emi nine
pulchrit
udebutofonewhobl endsgr ace, magnani mi ty,braver y,audaci ty,
tr
anqui li
ty,andmaj esty.Shef eel ssodi sgracedbyt heGov ernor 'sboundar y
demar cat i
onst or educehert er rit
orialcont roli
nspi teofhery ear sofloy alt
y
tohim.
CHARACTERANALYSI SOFGBANYAI NLETMEDI EALONE
RoleofGbany a
Gbanyai sYoko'shusband, r
ulerofMendeChi efdom.Hehas37wi vesbut
cheri
shesYokot hemostbecauseofherpr agmat icnatureand
contri
butionstot heaffair
soft heSenehunChi efdom (p.87).Gbanya
bel
ievesthatawomani sonlygoodf ortheloinsofamanandnotf orthe
i
mpor tantaffair
sofgov er
nance.Hecommandst hefi
nestandmost
courageousbandoff ightersinMendel andbuthasdi plomat icdi
spositi
on;
hechoosescar eful
lythewart ofightandt hebonest oignore.Hesuf f
ers
i
ntensehumi liati
onint hehandsofGov ernorRowewhof l
oggedhim
publi
clyandequal l
yfi
nedhi mi nhisowndomai n.Gbany a'
sf eari
snottodie
butthemannerofdy i
ng.Hedi edt hr
oughpoi soni nthehandsofhi str
usted
men.Hesawt hrought hei
rtreacheryandmanagest ohandov erpowerto
Yoko,
hiswi
fe,
bef
orehi
sfi
nal
breat
h.

CHARACTERANALYSI SOFNDAPII NLETMEDI EALONE

RoleofNdapi
Ndapi i
st hechiefwar r
iorofSenehun; thebestwar riorinMendel andunder
ChiefGbany a.Hei sJi lo'shusbandbuti nsensit
ivet owomen' sf eel i
ngs;
beat sJi loatt hesli
ght estoppor tunity.Hei sdescr ibedasahear tlessman
(p.89)andhot -
temper edt oo( p.109) ;"hehaspepperspr i
nkledal l ov erhis
temper "(p.119) .Att hedemi seofGbany a,Ndapi want st oresignast he
chiefwar riortogiveal lowancef ort henewchi eft oappoi ntherownchi ef
war ri
or, butYokost opshi mf rom layi
ngdownhi sspear .Event houghNdapi
i
sat oughwar ri
or,hedoesnotbel ievei nsensel esswar s.Heencour ages
Lav al
ie, thespeaker ,
t oper suadeYokof rom embar kingonwar s.Hewi l
l
ratherf ightt oprotecthi speopl ethanengagei nabat t
let omeett hegr eedy
endsofMadam.Ndapi doesnotj okewi thhisfoodandhat esawomant o
grumbl e.Forhi m,agr umbl ingwomani ssuscept iblet opoi soningone' s
food.Hedoesnott akei tkindlywhenhef i
ndsoutt hatLansanahasbeen
fl
irti
ngwi thhi swife.Hedr agshi swi f
ebef oreYokot omakear epor t,mad
withr age- Lansanahasputf i
reont her oofofhi slifeandshat t
er edi t.
Jeneba' sdeat hunset tleshi m most .Heput sthebl ameonhi swi feandl at
er
Yokof orbel ievi
ngt hest or
yofLamboi andMusa.Hei nsultsYokoandcal ls
heral lsor tsofnames.Ndapi andhi swi fehowev err etur ntoYokot oseek
forgivenesswhent het ruthcameoutt hatYokoi snott heact ual cul prit.
CHARACTERANALYSI SOFLAMBOII NLETMEDI EALONE
RoleofLamboi
Lamboi i
sYoko' sbrot herwhoi shell-bentonascendi ngthet hroneof
Senehun.Hedepl oy sblackmai landi ntr
iguest oachievehispur pose.Heis
deadly,v
ici
ousandwi l
lstopatnot hingt ogetgoi ng.Lamboi solicit
sand
gotthecooperationofMusa, t
hemedi cineman, ashisaccompl ice.Fir
st,
heplotsthedeat hofGbany a;poisonedhi m wi t
ht hehelpofMusaathi s
mostv ul
nerablemoment .ButYokost epsi naheadofhi m andhei snot
happy.Hest r
ategizest ounseatYokof r
om t hethroneofSenehun.He
sacri
fi
cesthelifeofi nnocentJenebai nor dertopainthissister.Yoko,
black-accusesherofsacr if
ici
ngl i
ttl
echi ldrenforhercharm off ameand
l
ongev i
tyonthet hroneandt obei nthegoodbooksoft heGov ernor.The
powerofPoroexposeshim andhisaccompli
ceastheevi
lmenbehindt
he
majorat
roci
ti
esintheland.Theyescapeandrunawayfr
om t
heland.

CHARACTERANALYSI SOFMUSAI NLETMEDI EALONE

RoleofMusa
Musai saseerandmedi cinemanwhoi ssupposedtogivedivi
negui dance
tothechiefandt heent i
resociety.Yokodescr i
beshim asachamel eonwho
i
snott rustwort
hy ;
shet hinksheki l
ledherhusband( p.111).Gbanya'sskin
wasasbl ackaschar coal butMusacoul dnotofferanexplanati
onforsuch
tr
ansformat i
onbeingt hemedi cinemanandt hepersoninwhosepr esence
Gbanyadi ed.Heconni veswi t
hLamboi t
opoisonandki l
lGbanya;abducts
andkil
lsJenebai nordert osettheent i
recommuni t
yagainstYoko.Musa,
eventhoughwi cked,isav i
cti
m ofbl ackmaili
nthehandsofLamboi .He
j
oinshandswi t
hLamboi tohangaf alseclai
m onYoko; makeshera
l
aughingst ockbeforehersubj ects.
CHARACTERANALYSI SOFJI LOI NLETMEDI EALONE
Rol eofJi lo
Jil
oi sNdapi '
swi febutshef l
ir
tswi thLansana, herhusband' sfri
end.Ndapi
i
sof t
eni mpat ientwi t
hherbecauseofherdomest i
ci nef
fectiv
eness-del ays
cooki ngf orherhusband.Ndapi alway saccusesherofadul teryandof ten
beat ssomesensei nt
oher .Jil
owasact uallycaughtmaki nglovewi th
Lansanai nthebush.Shei sfrust r
at edforgi vingherbodyt oamanwho
doesnotgi veheraki ndwor dinr eturn,nor eassuranceoradmi rat
ion.For
this,shei ncurst hewr athofYokowhoal sopuni shesher .Sheisdr awnv ery
closet oYokobecauseofherdaught er,Jeneba, whoYokoi sv eryfondof .
Asar esultoft hisclosenesst or oy alt
y,shei spriv
yt osomev i
tal
i
nf ormat i
on.She, forinstance,rev ealstoherhusbandYoko' splantomov e
Mende' scapi t
al fr
om Senehunt oMoy amba.I tishercarelessnesst hat
exposesJenebat odangerasshewasabduct edbyLamboi andMusa.The
deat hofJenebashat tersherandal sohol dsYokoi ncont emptbecauseof
thef alser umourt hatshei sresponsi blef orherdeat hasaf or
tif
icati
onof
herchar mst ost aylongeronhert hrone.
CHARACTERANALYSI SOFGOVERNOR(DRSAMUELROWE)I NLETME
DIEALONE
RoleofGovernor–Dr
.Samuel
Rowe
GovernorDr
.SamuelRowei
stheBr
it
ishCol
oni
alRepr
esent
ati
vei
nMende
l
and.Hei sof tendr essedi nwhi te,plumedhel met ,badgesandmonocl e,
gl
ov edhandswi thsmoki ngpi peandshor tbaton.Rowei smov edar oundin
ahammockwi t
hhumanbear er
s.Hisst y
leofgov ernanceisautocratic
wit
houtr espectf ortradit
ional i
nst
itutions.Thi sisdemonst r
atedwhenhe
comest oGbany a'spalaceandr ef
useshi sembr ace;call
shim savagewi th
paws.Gov ernorRowet hreatenst ocutoutGbany a'
sl y
ingtongue;heor der
s
hi
ssol dierst odraghi mf rom hi sthrone, stret
chhi m onthegr oundand
beathim wi thawhi p.Whendone, hesay s"Nowy oudog, getup!Youwi ll
payaf ineoff ift
ypoundsi nt heequiv alentofcat tl
eandr ice.Andthenext
ti
mey oudi sobeymyor ders, youwi l
lbear restedandl ockedupi njailinthe
colony"(p.98) .Hehasnor egar df
orhi shost '
scul t
ure;tr
eatstheSande
dancerswi thdisdain.Het hinkshehasdoneMendeaf avourforbringing
ci
vili
zation.
CHARACTERANALYSI SOFLANSANAI NLETMEDI EALONE
RoleofLansana
Lansanai sawarcapt i
vewhoYokosav edf rom thej awsofdeat hwhenhe
wasbr oughtbackasasl avefr
om oneoft hewar sGbany awaged.Hehas
threewivesbutst i
llgoestomakel ovetoJilo,anot herman'swi f
e,and
wor sesti
ll
,hi
sfriendNdapi '
swife.WhenNdapi findst hem outheruns
awayt oTaiamaknowi ngthegravityofhisof f
ence.Whenhei sfoundand
broughtbeforetheQueen, hedeni esbutt heQueenknowsbet ter.She
commandst heguar dtoputhimi nt hestocksandst arv
ehimt i
llshe
returnsf
rom hert r
iptoTaiama.Ji l
of i
ndshi m abet t
ermant hanher
husbandbecauseLansanaadmi resandr eassur esher ,andmakesherf eel
proudasawoman.
CHARACTERANALYSI SOFJENEBAI NLETMEDI EALONE
RoleofJeneba
Jenebai sNdapi andJi l
o'sdaught er.Shei slovedbyal l
.Yokopar t
icul
arl
y
seemst oadoptherast hedaught ershedoesnothav e.Bei ngtheonlychil
d
ofherpar ents,sheiscar edaboutsomuch.Shef al
lsvi
ctimt oLamboi and
Musa' sev i
lplantodiscreditYokoasamur derer.Sheisabduct edand
mur deredherneckwascutwi t
hakni fe,thebr eastbonebr okenandt he
heartpulledout ,
herprivatepartsalsor emov ed.Jenebar epresentshope
andanewor derforMendel and.Sher epresent shopef orYokot hateven
withoutachi l
dofherown, shewillfil
lthev acuum ofchi l
dlessnessinher
l
ife.Jenebar epresentsanewor derbecauseshei sthedar li
ngofev ery
one,
andherpresencei
nthenewpal
acei
nMay
ombabr
ingsl
i
fet
othe
atmosphere.

Rol
eoftheMessengeri nLetMeDi eAlone
Thi
sistheBlackr epresentativeoft heBr it
ishColonialGov ernment .He
worksdi
rectl
ywi thGov ernorRowe.I nteresti
ngly,
hei salsoaPor oman, t
he
powerbaseoft hetraditi
onal syst
em ofMendel and.Hei st hego-bet ween
bet
weent heGov ernorandt hechi ef.Itisonlyatcrit
icalmoment st hatthe
Govermormakesaper sonalappear ance.Ast hemout hpieceand
messengeroft heGov ernor,heenj oysunl i
mi t
edgener osityfrom thechief
andthechiefdom sot hathecanr epresentt hechiefwell.Bei ngamember
ofPoroSocietyulti
mat elymakesGov ernorRoweani ndirectmembert oo,
andther
eforepr i
vytot hesecr et
sofPor oandcanaf fordt otreatGbany a
andYokowi thignomi ny.
RoleofSandeDancer si nLetMeDi eAlone
TheSandedancer sar ethepr ojectorsoft hecul t
uralv i
ri
lityproj
ectof
Mende.Yokoi stheirchiefinstructor.Theyar ealway songr oundt o
entertai
nthechief'sdignitari
es, especiall
yt heGov ernor.Bey ond
entertai
nment ,t
heSandewomeni sanor gani zedsoci o-
pol i
ti
calforcethat
prov i
dessocialandpol i
ticalcont r
ol.Itisfrom thisbodyt hatYokoemer ged
ast heChiefofMende; whenshewaspor trayedashi gh-handedand
responsibl
eforsomeunexpl ainabledeat hsi ntheland, thewomen
disownedherandwant edherdet hroned.TheSandedancer saret her
efore
symbol i
cforthepowerequat i
onofMendel and.Ot hermi norcharactersare:
Lavalie,
Fanneh, Musu, andguar d.