Mark Bixler's The Lost Boys of Sudan

1027 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Essays on south sudan

Since 1983, the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) and the Sudanese government have been at war within the southern region of Sudan. This brutal conflict has ravaged the country claiming hundreds of lives and exiling a vast number of the southern Sudanese people. Most of these outcasts were young men aging between five and twelve years of age who returned home from tending cattle to see their village being attacked and their fellow villagers being killed by government militias . These boys fled, not knowing what they would encounter on the journey to escape the violence in their own country. Hungry, frightened, and weak from their long and hellish journey, the boys reached refugee camps outside of Sudan. Even though many young men were killed on their journeys to and from refugee camps in Kenya and Ethiopia, many remained at these camps for numerous years. While in the camps, they heard news of an opportunity to travel to the United States for hope and a promise of a better life. In Mark Bixler’s The Lost Boys of Sudan: An American Story of The Refugee Experience, Bixler depicts the story of these young men or Lost Boys’ and their determination to receive an education that would not only transform their lives but also the lives of their kinsmen.

Mark Bixler examines how The Lost Boys were tired of not having anything, and how they believe that education provided an opportunity to change the circumstances for them and their country. The Lost Boys strongly desired a formal education which they believe would help save themselves and their nation; this is illustrated through the narrative by both struggles in America, such as having to work and lacking the time they desired, as well as from the lack of supplies the refuge...

... middle of paper ...

...to believe anything was possible. Their journey was hard, but the Lost Boys felt their time in America reflected a better future and a chance to return learned American concepts back home.

Civil war in a country such as Sudan caused major damage within the borders. Death surrounded the nation as the northern Islamic and the southern Christians fought. This long lasting conflict finally ended and resulted in the creation of a new country, Southern Sudan. Clearly now is the time for the Lost Boys to return once again, as educated people, to rebuild their homeland. Bixler’s novel is a message of how education is a vital tool for those willing to enrich their lives and the lives of others less fortunate.

Works Cited

Bixler, Mark. The Lost Boys of Sudan: An American Story of the Refugee Experience.

Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press, 2006. Print.

Show More
Related

  • Mark Danner's The Massacre at El Mozote

    1433 Words  | 3 Pages

    Mark Danner, an editor for the New York Times magazine, recounts in The Massacre at El Mozote a horrific crime against humanity committed by a branch of the Salvadorian army. He gives multiple points of views and cites numerous eye witnesses to try and piece together something that has been tucked away by the government at the time. In December, of 1981, news reports were leaked to major newspapers in the united states about an atrocity committed and a total massacre of a hamlet in El Salvador, known as El Mozote, or the Thicket. At first, the account was of over a thousand civilians, women men and children with no guerrilla affiliation were massacred. Danner pieces together the testimonies of the survivors, and interviews with officers in the Salvadorian army.

    Read More

  • God Grew Tired Of Us Analysis

    603 Words  | 2 Pages

    The film God Grew Tired of Us is a documentary about the journey of a couple of Sudanese “lost boys” to their new lives in the United States. The film is divided in two parts. The first one gives the historical background of what led to the boys’ situation at the time the documentary was being filmed and what their lifestyle at Kakuma camp looks like. It starts by recounting the events that led up to the Second Sudanese Civil War of 1983. The conflict was fought along ethno religious lines between the Muslim North and the non-Muslim South. By 1983, 27,000 people, including the lost boys, from the South were forced to flee as the Sudanese government, held in the hands by northerners, announced that all men in south should be killed regardless of age. After a short stay in an Ethiopian refugee camp, the boys finally arrived to Kakuma refugee

    Read More

  • The Warmth of Other Suns, by Isabel Wilkerson

    1207 Words  | 3 Pages

    Similarly, the book’s three leading protagonists ultimately possess a common objective, escaping their unjust circumstances in pursuit of seeking the “warmth of other suns.” For this reason, they abandon the laws of Jim Crow and the familiarity of their hometowns as they flee to a better life. In the process, they all assume a level of risk in their decisions to rebel against the system. For example, Ida decides to embark on a precarious journey while in the beginning stages of a clandestine pregnancy. Any number of unpredictable events could have resulted from this judgment, including fatality. All of the migrants shared an unspoken agreement that the rewards would far outweigh the dangers involved.

    Read More

  • A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah

    1691 Words  | 4 Pages

    Ishmael Beah’s memoir, A Long Way Gone, narrates the story of Ishmael’s life as a child soldier in the Sierra Leonean civil war. Ishmael chronicles his journey from a scared, adrift child who lost his family in the war to a brutal child soldier who mercilessly killed many individuals to a guilt stricken rehabilitated teen who slowly learns to overcome his remorse from his past actions. Ishmael’s life as a child soldier first started when the Sierra Leonean army took him and his friends with them to the village, Yele, occupied by army officials and seemingly safe from the rebels. Unfortunately, within a few weeks of their stay, the rebels attacked Yele, and Ishmael and his friends decided to make the choice of becoming a child soldier in order to sustain their slim chances of staying alive. Ishmael’s interaction with violence was very different as a child soldier compared to as a civilian: while he witnessed violent actions before, as a child soldier he was committing them. As his life as a soldier demanded more violence from him, Ishmael sank deeper into the process of dehumanization with his main driving point being the revenge that he sought from the rebels for the deaths of his family and friends. After a few months as a child soldier, Ishmael was brought to the Benin home by UNICEF officials who hoped to rehabilitate the completely dehumanized child soldiers. With the help of Esther, a compassionate nurse, and other staff members in the center, Ishmael was able to ultimately reverse the effects of the war on him. By forgiving himself and the rebels who took away his close ones from him, Ishmael was able to restore his emotion of empathy and become rehabilitated.

    Read More

  • God Grew Tired Of Us Essay

    576 Words  | 2 Pages

    In 1992, the conflict of the Sudanese Civil War resulted in the mass migration of thousands of Sudanese boys. This huge group of children were without adult supervision and care, and they travelled a total of one thousand miles through the Sahara desert. Many of them died of starvation and exposure during their journey. They were given the name the Lost Boys.

    Read More

  • All The Shah’s Men by Stephen Kinzer

    2087 Words  | 5 Pages

    In the novel All The Shah’s Men we are introduced to Iran, and the many struggles and hardships associated with the history of this troubled country. The Iranian coup is discussed in depth throughout the novel, and whether the Untied States made the right decision to enter into Iran and provide assistance with the British. If I were to travel back to 1952 and take a position in the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) for the sole purpose of examining the American Foreign Intelligence, I would have to conclude that the United States should have examined their options more thoroughly, and decided not to intervene with Iran and Mossadegh. I have taken this position after great analysis, which is something that Eisenhower and his staff never did. By discussing the history of Iran, the Anglo-Iranian oil company, and Document NSC-68 I will try to prove once and for all that going through with the coup in Iran was a terrible mistake made by the United States.

    Read More

  • Finding Hope in The Grapes of Wrath

    624 Words  | 2 Pages

    The trip had proved to much for Grandpa Joad early on and he passed away. As depressing as that was for the remaining Joads, they pressed on. They knew they needed to make it to California to have a better life and that hope empowered them. Vehicle trouble, low food and not much support from people they passed was not enough to make them give up.

    Read More

  • War and Peace In the Middle East by Avi Shlaim

    1239 Words  | 3 Pages

    War and Peace in the Middle East by Avi Shlaim. In the novel War and Peace In the Middle East, author Avi Shlaim argues that Arab nations have been unable to escape the post-Ottoman syndrome. In particular, he describes how the various powers inside and outside the region have failed to produce peace. While some of Shlaim's arguments hinder the message, I agree with his overall thesis that the Middle East problems were caused and prolonged by the failure of both powers and superpowers to take into account the regional interests of the local states.

    Read More

  • The People of Darfur Migrating Out of Sudan

    967 Words  | 2 Pages

    Sudan, which is located in northeast Africa, is ranked number 190 based on the amount of migrants per thousand people with a total of -4.44 migrants per thousand people. For roughly 12 years (from 2001-2013), Sudan has faced many challenges that push it’s people out of the land and pull them towards other places. These factors are known as push and pull factors. Even though there are many challenges that come with immigration, the results are more rewarding than what they would have been in Sudan. After migrating out of Sudan, these Sudanese migrants also face long-term consequences because of their decision to move.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of A Long Way Gone By Ishmael Beah

    1020 Words  | 3 Pages

    An attention-grabbing story of a youngster’s voyage from end to end. In “A LONG WAY GONE,” Ishmael Beah, at present twenty six years old tells a fascinating story he had always kept from everyone. When he was twelve years of age, he escaped attacking the revolutionaries and roamed a land-living rendered distorted by violence. By thirteen, he’d been chosen up by the government military and Ishmael Beah at nature a gentle young boy, bring into being that he was accomplished of really dreadful deeds. Few days later on the rampage he is unrestricted by military and referred to a UNICEF rehabilitation centre, he wriggled to re-claim his humankind and to re-enter the biosphere of non-combatants, who seen him with terror and distrust . This is at preceding a story of revitalisation and hopefulness.

    Read More

  • The Crusades Through Arab Eyes, by Amin Maalouf

    1343 Words  | 3 Pages

    According to Amin Maalouf, “It seems clear that the Arab East still sees the West as a natural enemy. Against that enemy, any hostile action-be it political, military, or based on oil-is considered no more than legitimate vengeance. And there can be no doubt that the schism between these two worlds dates from the Crusades, deeply felt by the Arabs, even today, as an act of rape” (Amin Maalouf). When reflecting on The Crusades Through Arab Eyes, this quote always sticks out as the most powerful piece of Maalouf’s work. As a growing college student this quote brings harsh reality to the world I live in. I believe as you grow through life, you become more and more aware of the world around you through education. In order to be aware you must be educated; The Crusades Through Arab Eyes has done just that by opening my eyes to a world and viewpoint I have never before considered.

    Read More

  • The Effects Of Western Culture In Persepolis And A Long Way Gone

    917 Words  | 2 Pages

    Forced to become a child soldier, Beah experiences many horrific and life changing things. Among these, the drastic cultural changes that occurred as a result of the war. The increased western influence in the region only advanced the societal changes. In the memoir, Beah explains the significance of western culture and both the positive and negative effects it has on him and his peers. On one side, western values and items were beneficial to Beah and his peers in the sense that the cassettes Beah carried around with him saved his life on multiple occasions.

    Read More

  • Child Soldiers In The Civil War Essay

    782 Words  | 2 Pages

    The civil war of Sierra Leone lasted from 1991 to 2002. In this civil war approximately fifteen thousand kids were forced to become soldiers. Either by being kidnapped or by having their lives threatened. The situation was an extremely sad one. They had no choice weather they wanted to be soldiers or not. Like Ishmael said in A Long Way Gone, “It was either kill or be killed.” This situation is one where most people would not even be able to imagine themselves in. Ishmael Beah was a boy who suffered, because of the civil war. His family was killed and he was forced to become a soldier for the military. He eventually was rescued by UNICEF and eventually moved to the United States. For a decade, there has been a war between Mexican drug cartels and the Mexican government. There have been an unacceptable number of kids that have been used as soldiers in this war. Approximately, thirty thousand youngsters have been forced into becoming soldiers. In contrast to Sierra Leone, the soldiers here are only for the drug cartels, but in Sierra Leone even the government made the children become soldiers too. Just like the children of Sierra Leone, the children of Mexico are also kidnapped or threatened into becoming soldiers. Once captured, they are transformed into belligerent

    Read More

  • The Lost Boys And The Lost Boys

    1473 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Sudanese Civil War lasted approximately twenty years and destroyed whole villages along with the lives of entire families. “They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky” tells the true story of the Sudanese civil war and the Lost Boys swallowed up by gunfire and hatred. The Lost Boys was the ‘nickname’ given to the thousands of children that were orphaned or relocated during the bloody Sudanese civil war. The Lost Boys includes Benson Deng, Alepho Deng, and Benjamin Ajak who wrote the novel provides their opinions and understandings of several political concepts. These political concepts have multiple views by the Sudanese people. When brought to comparison by the American culture the perspectives are not that different.

    Read More

  • The Water is Wide and The Corridor of Shame

    855 Words  | 2 Pages

    Education is the most valuable possession a person can have. Everyone living in the United States is entitled to an equal opportunity to go to school and to be educated. However, in the novel The Water is Wide and the documentary Corridor of Shame, the opportunity of education is not fully there for those children. Luckily, Pat Conroy was eager to teach underprivileged kids on Yamacraw Island (Daufuskie Island), and parents and teachers are trying to help children living in the rural areas off I-95 known as the “Corridor of Shame”. The novel The Water is Wide and the documentary Corridor of Shame are very similar. Through both the novel and documentary, education is being sought after no matter what the financial circumstance of the child or location may be.

    Read More

More about Mark Bixler's The Lost Boys of Sudan

Open Document