A long way gone: Memoirs of a boy
soldier
By Ishmael Beah
By Jansen Sears
Ishmael Beah
- Ishmael Beah was born in Sierra Leone in 1980.
- He moved to the United States in 1998 and finished
his last two years of high school at the United Nations
International School in New York.
- In 2004 he graduated from Oberlin College with a
B.A. in political science.
- He has spoken before the United Nations.
- He lives in New York City.
The Protagonist:
Ishmael Beah
Naturally Ishmael Beah is the protagonist because this is a biography. This
book takes us through his life growing up in Sierra Leone during a time of great
conflict. Sierra Leone entered into a civil war in 1991. From then on there were
constant treaties being signed and broken. Also, political upheavals. Ishmael
and his friends tried to stay away from the war until it caught up with them and
they became involved in it. Ishmael had two parents and an older brother. His
passion was rap music, especially Run DMC.
The Antagonist:
The rebels & himself
The antagonists at first are the rebels who bring
horror and death to civilians for reasons Ishmael
can never discern. Later, the antagonist becomes
Ishmael himself when he very nearly cannot find
the strength within himself to recover from begin a
bloodthirsty soldier to a child once more.
Favorite Character:
Ishmael Beah
Choosing my favorite character was pretty easy since
the book is centered around Ishmael and his
experiences. I like him because I can relate to him. He
was just a teenager like me when the conflict reached
him and forced him to join the army and fight. Also, I
like him because in the book he talks about his love of
hip hop and rap which I can relate to.
Least favorite character:
Lieutenant Jabati
My least favorite character is Lieutenant Jabati. Ishmael was an innocent boy until he
was under the command of Mr. Jabati. Ishmael was 15 years old when he was
trained to use an ak-47. At night with his fellow soldier he would smoke marijuana,
sniff brown brown (Cocaine and Gunpowder), and watch war movies. He turned
Ishmael into a cold blooded killer.
Exposition
• Ishmael and his family had not yet been affected by the
civil war.
• His first experience with war is when refugees wander into
town. Conflict had driven them out of their villages.
• Ishmael, his brother Junior, and their friend Talloi leave for
a talent show in the nearby village of Mattru Jong.
• While away, Ishmael’s hometown of Mogbwembo had been
attacked by the rebels and school was cancelled
indefinitely.
Exposition (Cont.)
• Ishmael and his buddies decide to go back to Mogbwembo
to try to find their families.
• On the way they encounter his Grandmother’s village.
• The rebels had clearly been there because it was deserted.
• While resting in the village a van pulls up and all the boys
jump into hiding places.
• They watch a man get out of the van and vomit.
• The van had two dead girls and a boy in the back. All three
bodies were mutilated and their blood covered the whole
interior of the car.
• The rebels had slaughtered them in front of the children’s
father. He brought the bodies back to give them a proper
burial.
Rising Action
• Ishmael and his friends stay in Mattru Jong for a while to wait for news of
their families.
• Word reaches the village that the rebel soldiers were on the way.
• The rebel soldiers wanted a welcome from the village. They sent ahead a
boy who had been branded with the letters RUF (Revolutionary United
Front) and had all but his thumbs amputated.
• Once the rebels arrived all hell broke loose.
• Everyone ran for their lives leaving loved ones to save themselves. Ishmael
and his friends ran while people were getting mowed down by AK-47’s and
RPG’s.
• Ishmael comments that this is the first of many encounters like this. He
says they never stop, they must never be caught because that is certain
death.
• About a week later they are starving and in need of substantial food. They
decide they must return to Mattru Jong to get the money Ishmael left
behind. Ishmael and the others barely escape in a flurry of gunfire.
Exposition
• The book begins with Ishmael attending high
school. He’s talking to his buddies. They ask
him about his homeland and his past there.
• They think its cool that he was in the country
when the war was happening.
• He laughs and says that he will tell them about
it another time, they have no idea.
Climax
• The climax of the story is when he is involved
in the civil war.
• He becomes a skilled shooter and becomes a
cold blooded killer
• He’s not himself anymore. He’s turned into a
killing machine
Falling Action
• The falling action starts when the U.N. van
shows up at his army base.
• The people in the car have come to take away
him and all the other young boys for their own
protection.
• He fights this as hard as he can until he arrives
at the holding facility for all the boys.
• As he finally becomes human again the story
winds down.
Resolution
• The story resolves itself when Ishmael arrives
in New York City to give his speech.
• When he finally gets back to normal life and
schooling the rebels over-throw the
government and chaos erupts.
• He then moves to the U.S. and goes to college
and goes on to be a motivational speaker on
issues he has seen first hand.
Setting
• Sierra Leone
- Mattru Jong, Mobgwembo, all over Sierra
Leone, and the correctional facility.
• New York City
• Civil war from 1991 to 1999
• The U.N. intervenes in 1999 until 2004
• In 2004 the war crime trials begin
Themes: A Long Way Gone
War is Hell – This book illustrates how terrible war
is explicitly.
There is always hope – Ishmael shows how
optimistic he is and gives us all hope.
When everything else is gone, there is always love
– Throughout the book he finds someone to get
through his trials with, especially his family.
I belive this book is a 10. This is probably the best
book I’ve ever read. Its very easy to get hooked
into and it’s a definite page turner. Ishmael is also
a loveable character.
My Social Issue:
Children Soldiers
• The use of children as soldiers has been universally condemned as
abhorrent and unacceptable. Over the last ten years hundreds of
thousands of children have fought and died in conflicts around the world.
• Children involved in armed conflict are frequently killed or injured during
combat or while carrying out other tasks.
• They are forced to engage in hazardous activities such as laying mines or
explosives, as well as using weapons.
• Child soldiers are usually forced to live under harsh conditions with
insufficient food and little or no access to healthcare.
• They are almost always treated brutally, subjected to beatings and
humiliating treatment.
• Punishments for mistakes or desertion are often very severe.
• Girl soldiers are particularly at risk of rape, sexual harassment and abuse
as well as being involved in combat and other tasks.
My song: Little Weapon – Lupe Fiasco
Video
Why you should care:
• Thousands of children
across the world
participate in dangerous
war activities.
• Children die every day
fighting in wars.
• They aren’t getting the
help they need to get
out of armed conflict.
What you can do:
• A good way to help out is through the
Coalition to stop the use of Child Soldiers.
(http://www.childsoldiers.org/get_involved/get_involved)
Child Soldiers around the world
•
Colombia (P,O)
Mexico (P,O)
Peru (O)
Russian Federation (O)
Turkey (O)
Yugoslavia (former Rep. of) (P,O)
Algeria (P,O)
Angola (G,O)
Burundi (G,O)
Chad (G)
Republic of Congo (G,O)
Dem. Rep. of the Congo (G,O)
Eritrea (G)
Ethiopia (G)
Rwanda (G,O)
Sierra Leone (G,P,O)
Somalia (all groups)
Sudan (G,P,O)
Uganda (G,O)
Iran (G,O)
Iraq (G,O)
Israel and Occupied Territories (G,O)
Lebanon (O)
G= Government Armed Forces
P= Paramilitaries
O= Armed Opposition Groups
Afghanistan (all groups)
India (P,O)
Indonesia (P,O)
Myanmar (G,O)
Nepal (O)
Pakistan (O)
Philippines (O)
Solomon Islands (O)
Sri Lanka (O)
East Timor (P,O)
Tajikistan (O)
Papua New Guinea (O)
Uzbekistan (O)
Uses of Children during Wartime
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Soldiers
Porters
Spies
Messengers
Lookouts
Sexual Slaves
Human Shields
Propaganda
Poem: Children At War
Little girl, hidden in the bush,
Why aren’t you with your mother today?
Little boy, so far from home,
Who put that gun in your hand?
Child soldiers, what do you understand
Of rebels’ causes and governments,
Broken cease-fires and armaments?
You only know you are a slave
For sex, or killing, or running away.
You are here to fight and die
For adults who never tell you why
As they steal your childhood away.
Your uniform should be some school’s;
You should sleep safe in a fresh, clean bed,
No horrors to torment or numb you,
As Mother’s song sings in your head.
Oh, children! May you find a home,
Where you remember how to play!
May you recall times before it all
Came undone on an evil day
When soldiers carried you away.
Dr. Carole R. Fontaine
The Geneva Convention
• “The Parties to the conflict shall take all feasible measures in order that
children who have not attained the age of fifteen years do not take a
direct part in hostilities and, in particular, they shall refrain from recruiting
them into their armed forces. In recruiting among those persons who have
attained the age of fifteen years but who have not attained the age of
eighteen years, the Parties to the conflict shall Endeavour to give priority
to those who are oldest.”
The Lubanga Trial
• This is the trial of Thomas Lubanga, former rebel
leader from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
(DRC)
• Rebels under his command have been accused of
massive human rights violations, including ethnic
massacres, murder, torture, rape, mutilation, and
forcibly conscripting child soldiers.
• On 17 March 2006, Lubanga became the first
person ever arrested under a warrant issued by the
International Criminal Court. His trial, for the war
crime of "conscripting and enlisting children under
the age of fifteen years and using them to
participate actively in hostilities", began on 26
January 2009.
• This trial is going on right now.
THE END