To be Determined - Essay Example

For the purpose of comparison, (ii) and (iii) are taken into account. Such stories are transmitted by generations of griots—the guardians of African culture, through oral tradition. This torch of knowledge was handed down from the thirteenth century. It explains everything relating to the grandeur of the medieval African kingship. It is the combination of history plus legend. It can also be termed as an adventurous story. It has exaggerated narrations and they paint Sundiata as a supernatural personality, with supernatural powers.

The author has succeeded in blending out of the ordinary events cleverly and the story appears to be bordering truth. Everything about Sundiata was sensational-- his childhood, his mother, the strange birth, the struggle, confrontation with a supernatural power, his personal qualities of head and heart etc. This exaggeration has made the story stand the test of time and for centuries it has captured the imagination of the people and its popularity is ever increasing. The author, Djibril Tamsir Niane is a descendent of griots and as such the authenticity of the writings gets the additional credentials.

He was born in Guinea. The epic explains the creation of the Malian Empire of Timbuktu fame. The strong sense of oral tradition can be visualized by the reader from chapter to chapter. The presentation of Sundiata’s rise to power seems episodic at times. The role of destiny in the rise of Sundiata is clearly emphasized in the story. "If it is foretold that your destiny should be fulfilled in such and such a land, men can do nothing against it. Neither the jealousy of a cruel stepmother, nor her wickedness, could alter for a moment the course of great destiny." (47)A strong defense of oral tradition is seen in the book and at the same times those have been criticized who use writing to record the events of the past.

To render justice to the oral tradition, the importance of the poet to celebrate the