Long Way Gone Geography

How to Read A Long Way Gone Like a Professor

The book A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah has a setting, which coincides with “Geography Matters” (Chapter 19 of How to Read Literature like a Professor). This chapter explains how geographical location can explain how a novel will turn out to be. Geography also sets circumstances and limitations in a novel. Themes, symbols, plot, and most important character development can all be introduced from geographical location.

The geographic location, or setting, in A Long Way Gone takes place in Sierra Leone, the area where Ishmael lives. However, this area is heavily influenced by warfare, crimes, and poverty. These elements contribute to building up Ishmael’s character in the book. Wilderness also helps building up Ishmael’s character. As Foster says “Geography can also define or even develop character” (175).Ishmael plays a significant role in his family and takes a considerable amount of responsibility for taking care of his younger siblings and dealing with his divorced parents. Also there is a lack of resources in the region, therefore, Ishmael has to travel long distances to collect daily resources. Every day, even

then, Ishmael carries a risk of losing his life because he could be attacked by a wild animal. He does all this to support his family, which also makes him a stronger character. Meanings of literature also change depending on the altitude of the area.
Foster explains that when you are above ground (high places, like a hill) it means snow, ice, thin air, death, and life.

When you are at ground level (low places) it could also mean life or death just like a high place. However, it also means unpleasantness and people (181-182). One great example of this in A Long Way Gone is the scene in where just as Ishmael walks down the hill to the village where his family might be, gunshots ring out from the village, and people begin to scream. Now, Foster explained that high places means death and so do low places. Ishmael was at a high place (top of a hill) when the deaths of his family took place in the low place (the village). From then on forward, Ishmael’s hatred for the rebels intensifies and that is what encourages him to join the army and kill the

rebels.
Geography, setting, landscape, weather, and architecture can all convey and foreshadow the mood and tone of the text. When Ishmael sees the bombed and burnt down village where his parents were, this portrays to the reader how solemn the mood is and how sad Ishmael is. Throughout the book, many villages end up like the one Ishmael’s parents’ were in. They show how horrible a place can become in a time of war.
In conclusion, Ishmael Beah uses a variety of literary techniques for his memoir, A Long Way Gone. He incorporates the use of geography and setting, which Foster explains in Chapter 19. He builds the character of Ishmael (as a child) and also foreshadows death when Ishmael is on top of the hill.