Textual Analysis of Faceless – SS1 Literature-in-English Lesson Note (Third Term)

Faceless is a novel by Amma Darko about Fofo, a young street girl in Sodom and Gomorrah, and the death of her sister Baby T.

Behavioural objectives

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. explain the themes of gender imbalance, and of neglect and poverty, in Faceless;
2. identify the literary techniques used in the novel: flashback, heroine, suspense, allusion and tragedy;
3. describe the main characters and their roles in the story;
4. explain why the setting is called Sodom and Gomorrah.

What is a textual analysis of Faceless?

A textual analysis of Faceless is a close study of what the novel says and how the writer says it.

• Themes: the main ideas of the story, such as gender imbalance, neglect and poverty.
• Style: the techniques the writer uses, such as flashback, heroine, suspense, allusion and tragedy.
• Characters: Fofo, Kabria, MaaTsuru, Poison, Odarley, Baby T, Kpakpo and Onko.
• Setting: Sodom and Gomorrah, the slum where Fofo and other street girls live.

What are the themes of Faceless?

The main themes of Faceless are gender imbalance, and neglect and poverty.

1. What is the theme of gender imbalance?

Gender imbalance is the unequal treatment of women and men, with women made victims.

• Society: the story presents a society ruled by men, so the victims and those treated as inferior are females.
• Adade’s family: Adade believes the woman must do all the home chores, whether or not it is convenient.
• Kabria’s burden: she alone cooks, helps the children with their assignments, answers their many questions and watches her girls.
• Kabria’s lateness: because of this load, she sometimes gets to work late.
• The cars: Adade refuses to change Kabria’s car. She drives an old Volkscar called Creamy, while he drives a brand new Toyota.
• Sodom and Gomorrah: there is no equality between males and females, and all live in fear of Poison or Macho.
• Gangs: these men keep gang members to subjugate the females, who live as prostitutes, hawkers or thieves on the road. Some females work for them.
• MaaTsuru: her ill fate comes from the actions of a man who should have been her husband.
• Kwei: he got her pregnant four times, neglected her four times and finally pushed her out of his life.
• Baby T: she is female and considered weak, so Kpakpo and Onko abuse her sexually, and Onko finally kills her.

2. What is the theme of neglect and poverty?

Neglect and poverty show how girls who are not cared for by their parents end up as street girls.

• Symbolism of the title: Faceless stands for the faceless and shameful life of poverty that comes from neglect.
• Fofo’s experience: many street girls are not there because they love it. Poverty in their homes put them there.
• Source of the poverty: it comes from neglect by their parents, particularly their fathers.
• MaaTsuru’s poverty: she is very poor and cannot provide for her children, so she begins to rely on her two sons, who work, to feed the family.
• The sons leave: they decide to leave home because of Kpakpo’s presence, and poverty takes over the home.
• Desperate choices: to survive, MaaTsuru gives Baby T to Mama Broni and sends Fofo away into the streets.
• Other examples: Sara acts the way she does because she is poor, and mas Deen is neglected by the men who came into her life.

What style does the writer use in Faceless?

The writer uses five main techniques: flashback, heroine, suspense, allusion and tragedy.

1. What is flashback?

Flashback is a technique that takes the reader back to events that happened earlier.

• Link: it connects the three books in the novel: the beginning, the middle and the end.
• Hidden history: the whole truth about MaaTsuru’s history, Kpakpo, Poison and Mama Broni is made known through flashbacks.
• Baby T: where she was and how she died are told by flashback.
• Naayomo: the history of his father is also given through flashbacks.

2. What is a heroine?

A heroine is the female main character around whom the story revolves.

• Choice of a female: given the nature of the story, a female protagonist is a fitting choice.
• Fofo: the story revolves around her.
• Exposure: through her, the rotten life of the residents of Sodom and Gomorrah is made known to people like Kabria and her colleagues.
• Her efforts: with help from MUTE, the secret and the people behind her sister’s death are revealed.
• Representation: Fofo stands for other helpless girls who share her problems.

3. What is suspense?

Suspense is a technique that keeps the reader eager to know what will happen next.

• Purpose: it holds readers to the story despite the fright and decay in Sodom and Gomorrah.
• Effect: interest increases in readers who might otherwise have dropped the work.
• Beginning: Fofo’s contact with Poison starts it, and it runs throughout the work.

4. What is allusion?

Allusion is a reference to a well-known person, place or event, often from the Bible or history.

• The name: the home of Fofo and the other girl-victims is called Sodom and Gomorrah.
• Biblical source: the Bible records that the sins of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah provoked God to destroy them.
• The link: similar atrocities and immoralities go on in the small community where Fofo lives.
• Example: young boys and girls engage in illicit sex without any form of protection.
• Writer’s aim: it helps readers appreciate the story of the gruesome life of some Africans in their own community.

5. What is tragedy?

Tragedy is a story element in which suffering and death overtake the characters.

• Cause: the unpleasant nature of life in Sodom and Gomorrah makes some people lose their lives.
• Lawlessness: the police rarely visit the area, which is known for a debased life.
• Kingpins: they sometimes take the law into their own hands, knowing the police will not look for criminals there.
• Baby T’s death: she was stabbed and left to die like a bird.
• Effect on Fofo: the death made her realise that something must be done to stop such killings, or all of Sodom and Gomorrah may be the next victims.

Summary table of the techniques

Who are the main characters in Faceless?

The main characters are Fofo, Kabria, MaaTsuru, Poison, Odarley, Baby T, Kpakpo and Onko.

1. Fofo

• Role: protagonist and heroine of the story.
• Background: a girl of about 14, daughter of MaaTsuru, forced by her mother to join the street girls.
• Family history: a very bad one, as many see the family as accursed. She is a child of circumstances.
• Danger: she faces terror in the night when Poison comes to rape her.
• Discontent: she is uncomfortable with her life and wishes to get a better job.
• Different ideas: her mother thinks she needs a man at all costs to survive. Fofo believes her mother is the architect of her suffering.
• Rash decisions: she tries to leave town with no money, and she attempted to steal from Kabria, which could have cost her her life.
• Loving: she tries to find out who is responsible for Baby T’s death.
• Likable: Kabria takes an interest in helping her unravel the secret behind Baby T’s death.

2. Kabria

• Family: Adade’s wife and mother of Obie, Essie and Ottu.
• Work: she works with MUTE, a non-government organisation. Dina is her boss, and Vickie and Aggie are her colleagues.
• Home duties: she does all the home chores and takes her three children to school in her car, Creamy.
• Character: a good wife, mother and woman, selfless and lively.
• Role in the plot: she is ready to take up Fofo’s case.

3. MaaTsuru

• Role: mother of Fofo, Baby T and others.
• First marriage: she married Kwei, whose mother was against the union and called MaaTsuru a cursed child.
• Kwei’s mother’s warning: marrying MaaTsuru meant taking the curse upon his head.
• Second man: after Kwei left her, she fell into the hands of Kpakpo, who destroyed her home.
• Traits: gullible, emotionally weak, timid and materialistic. Onko could dazzle her with a few notes of money.
• Blame: she can be seen as the source of the problems faced by her children.

4. Poison

• Role: a ruthless street lord who has grown into a big pimp.
• Fear: everyone is scared of him because he deals mercilessly with anyone he considers a threat.
• Opening of the book: he comes to rape Fofo.
• Link to Baby T: later we learn he is connected to her death and threatened MaaTsuru not to speak with anyone about it.

5. Odarley

• Role: Fofo’s friend on the streets, also pushed to the street to fend for herself.
• Loyalty: she disobeys all threats from Poison and his cohorts to help Fofo find the killers of Baby T.
• Trait: she is an intelligent girl and a very good friend.

6. Baby T

• Role: Fofo’s sister and a victim of several sexual abuses.
• Given away: her mother foolishly gave her to Mama Broni, and Baby T was introduced to professional prostitution.
• Onko’s abuse: he had already abused her sexually a second time.
• Her death: she refused to let Onko have her in bed as a client of Poison, so he stabbed her. Her body was taken to the marketplace.

7. Kpakpo

• Role: MaaTsuru’s second husband and the author of ill fates in her family.
• Deceit: he tells MaaTsuru he has a good job and is on vacation.
• The truth: he has no house over his head, because he has rented out his only room.
• Mama Broni: he introduces her to MaaTsuru, and Baby T is given away to work for her.
• Abuse: he was the first to abuse Baby T, when MaaTsuru was away.
• After the death: when he knew Baby T was dead, he ran away from the reach of anyone.

8. Onko

• Role: a betrayer to Fofo, who always took him as a confidant.
• Betrayal: Fofo told him about Baby T’s rape by Kpakpo, and he used her trust to abuse Baby T a second time.
• Trade: he was a mechanic, and his shop declined sharply after he abused Baby T.
• End: he failed to drive away the ghost of Baby T and killed himself.

Evaluation

1. Explain how the theme of gender imbalance is shown in Adade’s family.
2. How does poverty affect MaaTsuru’s family?
3. State two uses of flashback in Faceless.
4. Why is the setting of the novel called Sodom and Gomorrah?
5. Describe the character of Onko.

Assignment

Write a short essay on how the theme of neglect and poverty is shown in the lives of MaaTsuru and Fofo.