On Ryszard Kapuscinski, The Shadow of the Sun

On Teju Cole’s recommendation, I am currently reading Kapuscinski’s The Shadow of the Sun – stories from his 40 years of journalism on Africa. The book begins with tales from the late 1950’s in Ghana on the cusp of Independence, then follows independence movements in Tanganyika, Zanzibar, Nigeria and elsewhere. The latter parts of the book delve into the Rwandan genocide, and troubles in Ethiopia and Eritrea. It’s interesting to note his analysis of what went wrong during Independence in various African countries: there was no deep structural or legal reform. A new African elite merely took over the mantle of power, occupied the former Government Residential Areas, carried on the plunder. This led in the mid to late 1960’s to simmering resentment against the new oppressors, coup after coup and finally long term military dictatorship as in the case of Nigeria.

Apart from his live-in-mid-scene reminiscences, what is remarkable about the book are his fresh and vivid descriptions of African daily life. My favourite is this portrayal of the African greeting ritual:

“The course and temperature of the first greeting are of utmost significance to the ultimate fate of a relationship, which is why people here set much store by the way they salute each other. It is essential to exhibit from the very beginning, from the very first second, enormous, primal joy and geniality. So, for starters, one extends one’s hand. But not in a formal manner, reticently, limply: just the opposite – a large, vigorous gesture, as if one’s intention were not so much to offer one’s hand as to tear the other’s off. If, however, the other manages to keep his hand, whole and in its proper place, it is because, understanding the ritual rules of the greeting, he has likewise executed the same broad, forceful gesture. Both of these extremities, bursting with tremendous energy, now meet halfway and, with a terrifying impact of collision, cancel out the two opposing forces. Simultaneously, as the hands are rushing toward each other, the two individuals share a prolonged cascade of loud laughter. It is meant to signify that each is happy to be meeting and warmly disposed to the other.

There ensues a long list of questions and answers, such as “How are you? Are you feeling well? How is your family? Are they all healthy? And your grandfather? And your grandmother? And your aunt? And your uncle? – and so forth and so on, for families here are large and with many branches. Custom dictates that each positive answer be offered with yet another torrent of loud and vigilant laughter, which in turn should elicit a similar or perhaps an even more Homeric cascade from the one posing the questions.

You often see two (or more) people standing in the street and dissolving with laughter. It does not mean that they are telling each other jokes. They are simply saying hello. And if the laughter dies down, then either the act of greeting has come to an end and they will now move on to the substance of the conversation, or, simply, the newly met have fallen silent to allow their tired vocal cords a moment’s respite.”