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We Need New Names: A Critical Look at Decolonization in Zimbabwe
NoViolet Bulawayo’s debut novel titled We Need New Names follows the fictional main
character Darling who narrates loose yet chronologically tied stories of her life in Zimbabwe and
her transition to America. Her narration is notable for its constant descriptive language that
exemplifies her child mind and curiosity that retains an innocent voice in the midst of a
decolonizing country and civil unrest. The tenth chapter titled “How They Left” breaks this form
of narration and is poetically spoken from an outside perspective, as there is only mention of
‘them’ or ‘those’, no longer ‘we’. Therefore, the decolonizing setting and the underlying theme
of loss that criticizes the social/cultural impacts of departing from home, such as cultural erasure,
are utilized to explore the devastating effects of postcolonialism, specifically the challenges of
decolonizing in Zimbabwe. Thus, “How They Left” is Bulawayo’s intimate look at how
Zimbabwe’s failure to decolonize has resulted in the destruction of Zimbabwean culture.
“How They Left” serves as a transitional point in the novel, as it’s positioned between the
last story in Zimbabwe and first of America. However, there’s no direct mention of Darling or
America. Instead, the short chapter focuses on mass migration. This is evident in the choice to
switch narration, which emphasizes that in this chapter and moment, the story no longer relates
to only Darling, but to Zimbabweans as a whole. The consistent use of the phrase “Look at them
leaving in droves” (Bulawayo 67) adds a much wider perspective on the reality of the situation,
which is citizens being forced to leave their homeland due to the desperate state that Zimbabwe
is in. For context on when this is occurring, the previous chapter “For Real” details the events
surrounding a funeral for a controversial figure Darling calls Bornfree, a man dubbed a hero who
“[died for change]” (64) in 2008. Moreover, Bornfree symbolizes the ‘Born Free’ generation,
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which spawned after Zimbabwe gained independence in 1980. Therefore, his death reflects on
those who grew up during a time of decolonization, and the failure to do so. While “How They
Left” does not explicitly explain why people are “leaving their own land with bleeding wounds”
(67), its suffice to say that the process of decolonization was a key factor. In addition, the
chapter’s compassionate tone effectively portrays the mass migrants as victims. Lines such as
“their tears wiped away in strange lands, the wounds of their despair bandaged in faraway lands”
(67) reinforce the notion that Zimbabweans were not able to overcome being colonized. Thus,
the transitional chapter “How They Left” uses its setting to portray Zimbabwe’s decolonization
period as a failure and distinctly labels them victims that lost to postcolonialism.
The failure that led to Zimbabwe’s mass migration from the country stems from their
attempt at decolonization. However, it’s not the people who failed, it’s the postcolonial system in
which they were left with. More specifically, Zimbabwe did not fail; Zimbabwe was failed. For
example, the narrator states that, “When things fall apart, the children of the land scurry and
scatter like birds escaping a burning sky.” (67) This line refers to the state of Zimbabwe falling
apart which is aided by the imagery of a burning sky to amplify the helplessness of the situation.
Moreover, it’s evidence that “How They Left” claims that the mass migration problem is out of
their control, as they are in survival mode, hence the bird simile. This is further evidenced by the
reason for leaving, which is “because it is no longer possible to stay.” (67) This is representative
of the postcolonial impacts on Zimbabwe, specifically its deterioration over time, leading to the
loss of its people and culture. Further, postcolonialism and loss tie together to create the
underlying theme embedded into the narrative of this chapter. An example for this connection is
present with the line “leaving everything that makes them who and what they are […] They will
never be the same again because you just cannot be the same once you leave behind who and
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what you are.” (67) The notion of losing one's identity by leaving home implies a metaphorical
death of self or personality, which is on par with the underlying theme of loss. A closer look at
this implication reveals the narrator, while speaking about the droves of people leaving, grieves
for those who are losing themselves and thus, losing their culture. Therefore, the postcolonial
period of Zimbabwe led to a failed attempt at decolonizing which has only worsened the country
over time causing mass migration and effectively the loss of cultural identity.
Another example of the postcolonial effects explored in “How They Left” is the cultural
and psychological damage it causes. Moreover, the chapter explores how that pain influences a
search for healing and therefore leads to mass migration. For example, Zimbabweans are leaving
damaged; the narrator states that “leaving […] with bleeding wounds on their bodies […] hunger
in their stomachs and grief in their footsteps.” (67) However, since the narrator is talking about
the droves of migrants, the pain described here also applies to the collective Zimbabwean
culture. Further, the wounded culture disperses by “crossing borders, moving, running,
emigrating, […] quitting” (67) because they are in search of healing. Modes of healing are in the
lines, “Their tears wiped away in strange lands, the wounds of despair bandaged.” (67) Yet, as
previously stated, because the narrator implies a death of culture due to migration, the search for
healing in ‘faraway lands’ is effectively the cause for why “you cannot be the same” (67);
Cultural erasure occurs when assimilating in a new country/culture. With the same themes of
departing from home and assimilating elsewhere, Warsan Shire’s short story “Conversations
About Home (at the Deportation Centre)” in The Penguin Book of Migration Literature also
highlights cultural erasure in foreign countries. Shire states that “I spent days and nights in the
stomach of the truck, I did not come out the same. Sometimes it feels like someone else is
wearing my body.” (Shire 98) Again, assimilation is similarly connected to losing one's former
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self, essentially removing the culture they came in with. Therefore, assimilation is used as a form
of healing from previous cultural wounds, which then causes cultural erasure.
To conclude, Bulawayo’s narrative switch in “How They Left” shifts the story's
perspective away from Darling and focuses on the broader Zimbabwean people/culture. The
chapter’s placement and purpose is to define the failed decolonization as the cause for the mass
migration out of the country. To reiterate, Zimbabwe did not fail, Zimbabwe was failed. The
postcolonial structure that Zimbabwe attempted to decolonize from caused cultural and
psychological damage, forcing Zimbabweans to seek refuge in foreign countries, where
assimilation meant the destruction of their former culture. Thus, the failure to decolonize the
postcolonial structures in Zimbabwe resulted in the destruction of Zimbabwean culture.
WORKS CITED
Bulawayo, NoViolet. We Need New Names. Reagan Arthur, 2013.
Shire, Warsan, “Conversations About Home (at the Deportation Centre).” The Penguin Book of
Migration Literature: Departures, Arrivals, Generations, Returns, edited by Dohra
Ahmed, Penguin Books, 2019, pp.98-9.
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