The Other Side of Truth

“The bully only gets away with it because others let him. They’ll have to lock me up before they shut me up.”

These words spoken by Folarin to Sade’s mother demonstrate two key facets about his character. First, they show that he understands that people will try to stop him from exposing injustice. Second, they demonstrate that he understands how bullies work and that abusive governments are bullies with political power.

“Well, air power has sure helped make the world a smaller place. Just one big global village, ma’am.”

These words are spoken by a Black American man who went to visit Africa so that he could find his heritage. They are important to Sade, however, because they represent her biggest fear and the motivator for many of her actions: The English police may be corrupt like the Nigerian police, and anything she says in London could end up hurting her father in Nigeria. This is one of the biggest conflicts she faces throughout the novel.

“With Uncle Dele missing, they were now completely and utterly alone. If anyone asked where they came from and what they were doing, whatever should they say?”

Because of the distinct ways in which Femi and Sade approach their situation, she is forced to make all the decisions by herself. Her difficulty with this reveals that she internalized many of the lessons her parents taught her. Her desire to constantly seek her parents’ advice shows that she still wants to rely on them to help her make decisions.