A Bag of Sweets
A Bag of Sweets
A bag of
sweets
AGNES SAM
J Walstrand MTG2023
• Born in 1942
• Great-granddaughter of labourers from India
who were shipped to SA in 19th century
• Grew up in PE – Catholic education
• Left SA in 1960 (Separate Education Bill)
• Attended university in Lesotho (zoology and
pshycology)
• Qualified as a teacher in Zimbabwe.
• Taught in Zambia
• Exiled from SA in 1973 – moved to England and
Agnes Sam studied literature
J Walstrand MTG2023
Agnes Sam
today
The characters
Khadija
Abdul
J Walstrand MTG2023
Khadija
● She is principled because she marries a Christian man even though she knows it will
cause a rift between her and the family.
She, however, stays true to her Muslim religion and is motivated by love.
● She is unwavering in her pursuit of an improved relationship between her and her
family members.
● She is kind and always smiling.
● She is forthcoming because she expresses her emotions clearly and openly declares
that she misses their family traditions and especially her eldest sister.
● She is loving because she expresses her love for her Christian husband and her baby
J Walstrand MTG2023
Abdul
● He is the eldest brother.
● He follows the example set by Kaltoum and does not speak to Khadija.
J Walstrand MTG2023
The crisis has happened before the story
takes place.
Narrator
• Kaltoum (cannot forgive her Indian sister for marrying a
Christian)
• Resisting change
Crisis
Turning point Narrator’s sister
• Khadija (married to a Christian)
• Looking for change
And then
The story
Structure and
Setting Plot
Development
J Walstrand MTG2023
Setting
In the family shop of a Muslim family
Exposition
Structure and Rising Action
Plot
Development
Climax
Resolution
J Walstrand MTG2023 • The background information on the characters and setting
explained at the beginning of the story.
• It will often have information about events that happened
• At the beginning of the short story, the reader is exposed to two sisters,
• Kaltoum and Khadija.
Islam/muslem
• From the start the reader can see that there is tension between the them.
- Prays 5 times a day.
• P67 – first sentence of the story “ the past three years had never happened”
- but, goes to Mosque on a
• P67 – “stepping forward to embrace me. Without thinking, I side stepped”
Friday for prayer (Ṣalāt al-
• P67 – Kaltoum reads a magazine as if she is alone in the shop.
Jumuʿah)
• Kaltoum ignores her sister even though she carries on talking.
• Kaltoum, manages the family shop on Fridays when the brothers attend prayers at the Mosque
• Khadija only comes to the shop on Fridays when Kaltoum is alone.
J Walstrand MTG2023
Rising Action
• We realise that there are past events that influenced Kaltoum’s attitude.
• P68 “as if she still belonged to us”
• “as if she had done nothing to hurt us”
• “as if she had not destroyed our family”…
• Khadija leaves her Muslim family and marries a Christian with whom she has a baby.
• After the death of her parents, Khadija pays daily visits to her family home in the hope of
reconciliation, but she is turned away at the door.
• “waiting like a stranger for someone to answer”
• She then starts visiting the store when she knows she will find her sister, Kaltoum on her own
in the hope that her sister, to whom she used to be very close, will relent and welcome her
back in the family, but to no avail.
J Walstrand MTG2023
Climax
• Kltoum gives Khadija a bag of sweets (cheap sweets).
• Like you would give sweets to a child to get rid of it.
Resolution
• Khadija finally stops coming to the family shop.
• It seems that Kaltoum regrets her harsh treatment of her sister.
• Kaltoum waits for her sister – even past the shop’s closing time which shows
that she hopes for Khadija to visit again.
• *** “One Friday Khadija did not come to the shop, although I waited for her past
closing time” ***
J Walstrand MTG2023
Themes
Lack of Expectations
Forgiveness Pretence
tolerance vs reality
J Walstrand MTG2023
*** p69 “I had been closest to her and I was now the
obstacle to the rest of the family forgiving her.”
J Walstrand MTG2023
Tone: Mood:
The tone is gloomy because Kaltoum Angry and upset
only expresses negative thoughts.
J Walstrand MTG2023
Irony
• A bag of sweets is supposed to be a treat and bring joy to the receiver but in this
story, it is used as a form of insult to the one who receives it.
• Khadija is disrespected and she was treated like a child.
• Kaltoum never speaks to her sister and tells her brothers she wishes that she
would come calling at the shop. Yet when Khadija one day does not come,
Kaltoum waits for her until after closing time.