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No Sweetness Here | Introduction

Ama Ata Aidoo's short story "No Sweetness Here" first appeared in 1970 as the title piece in No Sweetness Here, Aidoo's first collection of stories.

The story is narrated by a character known as Chicha, which is the local pronunciation of "teacher." Chicha is a Westernized woman who is the schoolteacher in the small Fanti village of Bamso. As the story opens, she is visiting Maami Ama, whose beautiful ten-year-old son Kwesi is Chicha's favorite pupil. Maami Ama tells Chicha of her seven-year-long marriage to Kodjo Fi; although she is his first wife, her husband has neglected her and shut her away from the rest of his family. The divorce proceedings between Maami Ama and Kodjo Fi take place the following day. As a result, Kwesi is to be taken away from his mother and placed in the custody of his father, who has taken no interest in him up to this point. Shortly after this decision is made, Kwesi is found bitten by a snake, and dies that night. After Kwesi's funeral, Chicha finds Maami Ama alone in her hut, clutching Kwesi's schoolbooks and uniform in agonized mourning.

This story concerns several themes central to Aidoo's works of fiction. It places an educated, Westernized African woman in the context of traditional village life. From this "outsider" perspective, the narrator is able to observe the unfair treatment of women in traditional marriage customs.

No Sweetness Here Summary

The narrator of this story is a Westernized woman working as the schoolteacher in the Fanti village of Bamso. She is known only as Chicha, the Fanti pronunciation of "teacher." As the story opens, she
is visiting the hut of Maami Ama, whose ten-year-old son Kwesi is Chicha's favorite pupil. Chicha commends Maami Ama on Kwesi's physical beauty, teasing that she is going to kidnap Kwesi and take him away with her; Maami Ama appreciates the compliment, but also expresses her fear of losing her only child. Maami Ama explains that, although she is his first wife, she has been completely neglected by her husband of seven years, Kodjo Fi. She has been given his worst piece of land to farm, been personally ignored by him, and been shut out of the rest of his family; both his two sisters and his mother treat her badly. He has also taken no interest in their son Kwesi, who lives with Maami Ama. Maami Ama says to Chicha, "Our people say a... » Complete No Sweetness Here Summary

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1. No Sweetness Here: Introduction
2. No Sweetness Here: Summary
3. No Sweetness Here: Ama Ata Aidoo Biography
4. No Sweetness Here: Characters
5. No Sweetness Here: Themes
6. No Sweetness Here: Style
7. No Sweetness Here: Historical Context
8. No Sweetness Here: Critical Overview
9. No Sweetness Here: Essays and Criticism
   1. Discussion of the Role of the Narrator and Theme of Cultural Tradition
   2. The Defense of Culture in Ama Ata Aidoo's "No Sweetness Here": The Use of Orality as a Textual Strategy
   3. Ama Ata Aidoo: The Art of the Short Story and Sexual Roles in Africa
10. No Sweetness Here: Compare and Contrast
11. No Sweetness Here: Topics for Further Study
12. No Sweetness Here: What Do I Read Next?
13. No Sweetness Here: Bibliography and Further Reading
14. No Sweetness Here: Pictures
15. Copyright

Related Topics

1. African Literature

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