"Binti" by Nnedi Okorafor:
A Story of Acceptance
[[Image 1]] In hindsight, it is a good thing that Binti did not feel fully accepted in the begining. Had she, there is the chance she would not have been so attached to her edan, which was like a safety blanket for her.
Had she felt accepted from the beginning, and carried her edan less, then she likely would have been killed by the Meduse.
Binti had acceptance from a few peers, but luckily she was not yet fully accepted. Therefore, she continued to carry the edan which saved her life in the end.
[[Khoush Friends]] The first glimpse of acceptance the reader gets from the story is Binti becoming the first Himba accepted to Oomza Uni.
What would have happened if Binti hadn't accepted the offer to attend the school?
She would have surely maintained her parent's acceptance, but likely never a Khoush's.
Nor would she have gotten those at Oomza Uni to accept the Meduse, which would have led hundreds of deaths.
[[The First Himba Accepted to Oomza Uni]] <img src=http://cafemfa.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/binti_top-1.png width="700" height="500" alt="Two foxes">
[[The First Himba Accepted to Oomza Uni]] "As I stood in line for boarding security, I felt a tug at my hair. I turned around and met the eyes of a group of Khoush women. They were all staring at me; everyone behind me was staring at me." (Okorafor 15)
Being the First Himba to attened Oomza Uni, Binti expected some prejudice. This prejudice began before even entering the ship.
Despite this prejudice, Binti does not react violently. She simply ignores the judgemental Khoush women until she finds those who do accept her.
[[What if Binti Did Not Accept Her Enrollment?]]
[[What if Binti Had Been Accepted From the Beginning?]]"We were the best and we pushed each other to get closer to 'God.'" (Okorafor 22)
Binti soon made friends with some Khoush girls. Despite being different culturally, these girls had a love for math and a thirst for knowledge as great as Binti's.
Their acceptance of Binti is important to her because it helped her go from feeling alone to feeling like part of a group.
The acceptance also demonstrates for the reader the importance of accepting those who seem different. It shows that by simply being kind to people from other cultures, we make them feel more included in our own.
[[What if Binti Did Not Make Friends?]]
[[Image 2]] <img src=https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/593f37611d00001900cc299f.jpg?ops=scalefit_720_noupscale width="700" height="500" alt="Two foxes">
[[Arrival of the Meduse]] Binti made enough friends to make her feel comfortable but not enough to make her feel fully accepted.
What if she hadn't made any friends, but instead was bullied?
She would have likely become angry and possibly resentful. Having these emotions, she would have been less likely to try to create peace between the Meduse and those at Oomza Uni.
This is evident when she thought "thankfully, they knew not to touch my hair again. I don’t like war either."(Okorafor 17) Though Binti doesn't like war, she informs the reader that when she is constantly provoked she will go to war.
Had this happened, many people at Oomza Uni and many Meduse would have died.
[[Khoush Friends]] Unforunately for Binti, her friendship did not last long. Not because they quit liking her, but because they were murdered by an alien species whom had stormed the ship.
This species was called Meduse. Not only did the Meduse kill Binti's friends, but they killed almost everybody on the ship. The only two survivors were Binti and the captain of the ship.
The Meduse's plan was to raid the university and retrieve the chief's stinger that was stolen by people from Oomza Uni.
[[Image 3]] <img src=https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YBe8bBdURqY/V6wDFlPAYwI/AAAAAAAAFr0/4TGfrQkzYvMPQpZsDUktKnKK2j7xvQ9hgCLcB/s400/meduse.jpg width="500" height="500" alt="Two foxes">
[[Speaking With Okwu]] Similarities between the characters are shown through sentence structure, word choice, and the use of memory and self-reflection.
The structure of the paragraph in which Binti acknowledges similarities between Okwu and her brother (Bena) is used to demonstrate how acceptance is developed. The paragraph is structured with Bena’s actions, followed by why that action is wrong. Binti describes how “he was always calling them evil, though he’d never traveled to a Khoush country or known a Khoush.” (Okorafor 54) This refelcts Okwu's feelings towards humans. Half the paragraph is structured like this, which further demonstrates similarities between Okwu and Bena.
Word choice is also used to demonstrate similarities between the characters. Words such as "hot head" and "anger" spoken by Binti to describe Bena leads the reader to the similarities because it is evident that Okwu has the same hot-headed anger towards humans. "Curiosity" and "young" are also used by Binti to describe herself and Okwu. Its curiosity reveals that it is young, as is Binti. Curiosity is what Binti cites as her key to greatness. It is clear, from its willingness to die for its people, that Okwu also desires eminence.
This passage takes place in the past as a memory, and in the present in the form of Binti's self-reflection. This movement through time effectively shows the similarities between Okwu and Bena, and Okwu and Binti. With the knowledge of these similarities it is much easier for Okwu and Binti to accept each other.
[[Image 4]] "Okwu moved forward and I held up the edan. 'Stay back! You know what it’ll do!' I said. However, it did not try to attack me again, though it didn’t start to shrivel up as it approached, either. It stopped feet away, beside the metal table jutting from the wall carrying my open suitcase and one of the containers of water. 'What do you need?' it flatly asked." (Okorafor 50)
This is when Binti's and Okwu's relationship begins to develop. Okwu brings her food in exchange for otjize. This eventually led to asking each other questions about their cultures. From this, similarities are revealed and acceptance is gained.
Not only is Binti beginning to accept Okwu, but Okwu is also beginning to accept Binti.
[[Okwu and Binti: Close Reading]] "'Let me be . . . let me speak for the Meduse. The people in Oomza Uni are academics, so they’ll understand honor and history and symbolism and matters of the body.'" (Okorafor 58).
When Binti does finally speak to the Chief, she tries to convince him to let her speak for his people. Binti has already began to accept the meduse; now she needs to get them to accept her.
Image is very prominent in this scene. The reader sees an image of the Meduse's ship; it is spongy and blue. An image of "the Meduse, some green, some blue, some pink" (Okorafor 59) is also created in the mind of the reader. The reader also develops an idea of Binti in this scene as being submissive as to not seem confrontational, but also as strong and honorable in order to relate to the Meduse.
At the end of this scene, in order to gain the Meduse's acceptance, Binti must give up her edan. This would leave her completely defenseless and vunerable to the Meduse's stingers.
She decides that she will give up the edan, which showed that she trusted them and gained her their acceptance.
[[What if Binti Had Not Dropped the Edan?]]
<img src=https://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/sci-fi-fantasy/wp-content/nas-uploads/sites/4/2017/01/bintihome.jpg width="700" height="500" alt="Two foxes">
[[Acceptance From the Meduse]]
If Binti hadn't dropped the edan, then the Meduse would have never accepted her. Without the Meduse's acceptance, she wouldn't be able to create harmony between the Meduse and those at Oomza Uni.
Though she is more likely to live by keeping the edan, many more are likely to die. Her gaining the Meduse's acceptance is vital.
This idea demonstrates the importance of acceptance in general. It reveals to the reader that without acceptance of those from other cultures, the world is left with only hatred and violence.
[[Untitled Passage 1]]
Binti's narration is very telling in this scene. She creates images for the reader. Binti says of her speech "As I spoke, I fell into a rhythm, a meditative state very much like my math-induced ones" (Okorafor 76).
This gives the reader a clear idea of how well Binti is doing with her speech. The reader knows she is doing well because she compared it to math, and the reader already knows how exceptional Binti is at math.
Word choice also gives the reader an idead of how the professors will react to Binti and the Meduse. Binti describes them as "Thoughtful. Insightful. United. Individual" (Okorafor 76). If the Professors are truly how Binti describes them, then they must be accepting of the Meduse.
[[What if the Meduse Weren't Accepted?]]
[[Acceptance of the Meduse by the Professors]]
<img src=http://brittlepaper.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/okorafor-jeyifous-e1473683227989.jpg width="700" height="500" alt="Two foxes">
[[Speaking to the Professors]] After Binti's speach, the professors deiliberate. When they return, they agree to give back the Chief's stinger. They also would like Okwu to attend the school. Due to Binti's speach, the Meduse had gained the acceptance of the professors.
A human, who the Meduse hate, was able to accept those who murdered her friends, make the Meduse accept her, and also make the professors accept the Meduse.
This is important for the reader to acknowledge because it demonstrates the true power of acceptance. Despite coming from different cultures, having pre-existing conflict, and looking different, these three groups of people were able to overcome all that and accept each other. This shows how just treating somebody from another culture as a peer can create harmony and peace.
[[Acceptance from Binti's Parents]] Had the Meduse not been accepted by the professors, there would have surely been a war. This is evident from their initial intent of storming the university.
Many Meduse would die. Many of those at Oomza Uni would die.
Binti would have most likely been seen as working with the Meduse and she would have likely been either jailed or executed.
Had this happened, it could have been avoided with just a little bit of acceptance.
[[Speaking to the Professors]] When Binti left to go to the school, she was under the impression that her family would never accept her back into their lives. She figured her family would never even speak to her again.
Binti was absolutely wrong. When she contacted her family with her astrolabe, "The first to answer was my mother." Clearly the family had not given up on her, otherwise they would have simply no answer.
This is important because it shows that despite not sticking to one's family's plan for themself, family is family, and they will forgive. Some parents may not accept their children's choices, but most accept that their children are individual people and must make their own choices.
Okorafor, Nnedi. Binti (p. 90). Tom Doherty Associates. Kindle Edition.
[[What if She Told her Family About Her Hair?]]
I belive that if Binti had informed her parents of her hair, they would have been very upset at first because of the cultural meaning.
However, I believe they would soon forgive Binti. I believe this because it appeared that they were never going to speak to her again after she left home. Obviously they didn't, and I believe this would be the same regarding her hair.
Her parents may be angry, but surely they'd forgive and accept who Binti is now.
[[Conclusion]] "Binti" by Nnedi Okorafor is packed with messages of acceptance.
From being accepted to Oomza Uni to her mother reaccepting her.
Binti also gained acceptance from some Khoush girls and from the Meduse.
Besides gaining acceptance for herself, Binti must also help others gain it. Using her harmonizing skills, Binti was able to make the Meduse and those at Oomza Uni accept each other.
This not only shows the reader what those who move somewhere with a different culture are experiencing, but also demonstrates the importance of accepting those people. Acceptance is important because without it, humanity is left with hatred and conflict.
[[The End]] THE END
WORK CITED
Okorafor, Nnedi. Binti. Tom Doherty Associates, LLC Okorafor, Nnedi. Binti (p. 96). Tom Doherty Associates. Kindle Edition. , 2015.