Little Bee Postcolonialism

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Recommended: Elements of postcolonialism

The difference between black and white is far more than just two colors on different ends of the spectrum of life. In Chris Cleave’s novel Little Bee, the theory of Postcolonialism between the two races, black and white, is especially present. Throughout this gripping story of rebellion and acceptance, there is a clear mark between the two worlds that each narrator perceives. Sarah is a young mother and widow who is the editor of a popular British gossip magazine. The other narrator is a teenage refugee who has named herself Little Bee. Since she has been running and hiding from the oil wars in her home country, she decided to ask the unfamiliar home of a couple she had met only once, if she could stay with them. The comparisons that Cleave When Little Bee was deported back to Nigeria, she believed it was the end of her journey towards a better future. However, to her surprise, Little Bee had simply “turned from the window and saw Sarah. She was standing in the aisle and she was smiling. Charlie was holding her hand and he was smiling too” (Cleave 250). Once Little Bee had realized that Sarah and Charlie boarded the flight to Nigeria with her, she is overcome with joy and relief. Knowing that Sarah, a white journalist, is there to protect her, Little Bee becomes aware that there is hope for her and the rest of the world. While in Nigeria, Sarah will be able to learn and document more stories from first-hand survivors of the oil wars. Having the connections to a nation-read magazine, Sarah believes that working with Little Bee and other refugees could help exploit the brutal events that take place in this poor community. In the hopes of raising awareness of the negligence that postcolonial governments like Britain have towards suffering countries like Nigeria, Sarah and Little Bee attempt to collect as many stories as they possibly can. (Cleave 252). Although the story ends in Little Bee being recaptured by soldiers, the two women were able to gather many stories that could be published

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