A Long Way Gone, Memoirs of a Boy Soldier, by Ishmael Beah, is the story of a boy’s long and difficult struggle trying to survive a world enveloped in turmoil, death, and destruction. The novel follows Ishmael Beah, a twelve year old boy, as he experiences the civil war in Sierra Leone. The civil war descends upon Beah as he and his friends are on their way to Mattru Jong to perform as a rap group in a local talent show. Unfortunately, while they are away Beah’s village is attacked by the rebel group known as RUF, or Revolutionary United Front. The rebels then descend upon Mattru Jong with destruction and death as their only goal. Beah, his brother Junior, and their four friends escaped into the forest during the attack and become refugees, wandering from village to village as they struggled to survive. During that time in the jungle, the boys wander from village to village, trying to find a place of safety. In some villages they are accepted and given food while in others that food must be stolen. There were many moments where the possibility of another day hung by the thinnest strand as Beah and his companions faced life or death through rebel encounters, starvation, and villager violence. The extreme conditions of running from war pushed the boys to commit acts they would never have believed themselves to be capable of doing. Throughout the journey endured in the forest, Ishmael must deal with the struggles of finding food and shelter, avoiding capture by the RUF, and dealing with being separated from his family. At one point his group finds refuge in a village called Kamator, but while they are there the village is attacked and Ishmael becomes separated from his group. As he wanders through the forest completely alone, he joins a new group of boys and they headed towards a village called Yele that is occupied by armed forces and considered one of the few safe havens left. On their way there the group heard news that their families are close by in a neighboring village, and the hopes of the boys are lifted higher than ever before. Unfortunately the boys never get to see their families, because as they approach the area, it is attacked by the rebels, and no one in the village survives the destruction and decimation the RUF causes. The boys feel the destruction and continue on towards Yele. Originally Yele is the safe haven the boys had been searching for, but as the rebel groups continue to push back the government troops protecting the
Mrs. Jacobs World Lit P4 11 December 2013 A Long Way Gone Everyone is like the moon, has two sides, dark and bright, and despite the atrocious acts of darkness the child soldiers has shown, but everyone shall get another chance to change. In Ishmeal Beah’s memoir, A Long Way Gone, Ishmeal finds a way to reconcile with his community. As he has participated in the war, Beah faces the challenges of being an innocent child after being a child solider successfully with the help of UNICEF staff…
say. His dreams became reality and reality became a part of his dreams. “These days I live in three worlds: my dreams, and the experiences of my new life, which triggered memories from the past” (Page 20). Running away from the past won’t help as long as a person still has the memories. The government caused Ishmael to change from young, innocent boy to mindless child solider to a proper adult, but is still haunted by the memories of his past. Ishmael was introduced to a horrifying life at a young…
A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier is a memoir written by Ishmael Beah. Published in 2007, this book provides a firsthand account of the decade-long civil war in Sierra Leone and the ongoing plight of child soldiers in conflicts worldwide.[1] Beah was forced to run away from attacking rebels in Sierra Leone at the young age of 12; he was then forever separated from his direct family. He wandered his war-filled country and was then forced to join an army unit, which brainwashed him into believing…
Leone was not a desirable place for a young man to be in the 90’s. Both sides of the civil war recruited and abused boys by forcing them to fight and getting them addicted to drugs. Most villages and families were forced to flee their homes and spend a long time on the run, moving from place to place to avoid the war. Families were separated and people were forced to either live on their own or seek others who they could find comfort in spending time with. Ishmael Beah and his brother Junior were separated…
GUNS ISHMAEL KILL REBELS WAR Tyler Johnson 11/16/12 Editorial Civil War/Revolution is Dangerous In A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah describes a lot of controversial situations or problems like for example during the story it’s like a civil war/revolution going on. There’s rebels going around villages terrorizing the families that lives there. The rebels are…
Mikall Tran Ishmael Beah describes the horror of his life by expressing the setting in the most realistic way. It made me feel like I was a bystander within the war itself. Beah loved his village life. He was a performer and danced and imitated rap music of the 1930s. But ever since the war, he has gotten through many troubles just to get to the city. Beah wanted to live a peaceful life. So he chose the United States. On page 19, it was the after effects of the first rebel attack. " I am pushing…
no other choice because they had no one else to turn to or nowhere else to go. Sometimes people steal just because they don't want to pay for something even though they're capable of paying for it. Some people steal to help other people and in some way it's good and some it's bad. In the novel The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck there's many poor families moving west to California. The store owners and gas station attendant worry that these people will steal. "Wonder where they all…
McKenzie English 11: B1 9/27/13 A Long Way Lost ; A Deeper Look Into A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah War has no mercy, it takes all in its way, it does not stop for children, it does not stop for anyone. A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah is a true story of Ishmael's life as a young boy durning the civil war in Sierra Leone, Africa, he tells of his time as boy solider, the times before the war, and all that happened in the 3 year time span from 12 years old15. Throughout his…
and Freedom U6A3-‐ A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Soldier Boy Ishmael Beah Many people interpret oppression and freedom in different ways, but it can be expressed in everyday activities, such as television and books. Ishmael Beah demonstrates these two subjects in the novel A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier…
The Style of a Child Solider When you were twelve could you write a detailed plot that depicts death and sorrow around every corner and the only thing keeping you alive is hope for a better tomorrow? Well young Ishmael Beah did in his book, A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier which is nonfiction as it is told from the his experiences. When Beah is writing he uses the 1st & 3rd person perspectives. When he is in fist person his style is simple and casual because he seems care free. In third…