Murambi The Book Of Bones Sparknotes

Murambi, The Book of Bones by Boubacar Boris Diop is a historical fiction that powerfully calls upon readers to fight their ignorance of the Rwandan genocide. Diop generates empathy using fictional characters’ experiences in the Rwandan genocide to show the nature of tragedy while also providing an accurate history of the genocide. The novel calls upon readers to resist their urge to be complacent and to bring light to a tragedy that is too often ignored or skewed, especially by Western nations. The chilling novel memorializes the Rwandan genocide through graphic portrayals of the types of horrors that the world allowed to occur and through personal narratives of victims, killers, and others affected by the genocide in Rwanda. Diop uses fiction
Africa has continuously been ignored, and many countries attribute any problems to deep-rooted tribal conflicts. Belgian colonial government in Rwanda, for example, took advantage of stereotypical physical features that separated the Hutu and the Tutsi to distinguish and separate the two groups despite their distinct congruities in culture. The attitude of much of the world during the genocide can be summarized by French President François Mitterrand’s statement in May 1994: “In such countries, genocide is not too important.” Western countries refused to aid Rwanda and continued to ignore the genocide as it happened. United States President Bill Clinton also defended his stance on not aiding Rwanda by saying that that it was a “tribal” conflict. The novel opens with Michel Serummundo saying that the world is unaware or disinterested in the genocide. Readers are forced to face their ignorance as Michel says, “The World Cup was about to start in the United States. The planet was interested in nothing else. And in any case, whatever happened in Rwanda, it would always be the same old story of blacks beating up on each other. Even Africans would say, during half-time of every match, ‘They’re embarrassing us, they should stop killing each other like that.’ Then they’ll go on to something else… What I’m saying is not a reproach. I’ve seen lots of scenes on television myself that were hard to take… I suffered from these things without really feeling involved. I didn’t realize that if the victims shouted loud enough, it was so I would hear them, myself and thousands of other people on earth, and so we would try to do everything we could so that their suffering would end. It always happened so far away, in countries on the other side of the world. But in these early days of April in 1994, the country on the other side of the world is mine.” After telling his wife that the world is watching and the