Bitter Side Of Sweet Tara Sulliv A Literary Analysis

Throughout the whole book, Tara Sullivan uses a different element in The Bitter Side of Sweet then other authors use for their books. In The Bitter Side of Sweet Tara uses multiple languages as a different element in her book. For example on page 149 it says, “ “Awo. I say. “Now keep quiet until i get you out.” ” This is just one singular example of the author using a different language as an element in her book. I haven't read many books that switch languages spontaneously and i still understand what is happening and what's being said. The author uses the language- Bambara- to make the book seem more realistic to the readers. Since the book's setting is in Africa, it's only fitting for the character to speak an African language. They use
little phrases like that to show their fluency in the language. Not only does she use Bambara in her book, but she also uses French in her book. Near the end when Amadou returns Khadija to her home back in the city, her mother, doctor, and housekeepers all use French. On page 248 it states, “Khadija! Pourquoi tu ne parles pas francais?” It not only shows us the setting change, but it also tells us that Khadija isn't like Amadou and Seydou after all and she actually grew up on the nice part of town. It also gives us a more descriptive and personal meaning of the character. For example, not only does Khadija know Bambara, English(Since the book is in English), but she also knows French. At the beginning, we know that only boys who are African are chosen for this work so we automatically assume that Khadija is 100% only from African descent. Not only that, but at the beginning she only speaks Bambara. By the end of the book when she uses her French skills back at home, we learn that she is also part French which she inherits from her father's side, and her Bambara side is from her mother.