Barbarians

In the readings of J.M Coetzee Waiting for the Barbarians, I found myself back to square one of thinking the same thoughts I conveyed from Achebes analysis of " The Heart of Darkness" . Both stories to me have one of many things in common. One being the same level of ignorance when it comes to things they know nothing about. For example in both stories they Describe the people as aliens something other than being the human being they came into the world as.

In "Waiting for the barbarians" the Barbarians where thought to be savages and at any time they could attack you. For example, "There is no woman living along the frontier who has not dreamed of a dark Barbarian hand coming from under the bed to grip her ankle, no man who has not frightened himself with visions of the barbarians carousing in his home, breaking the plates, setting fire to the curtains , raping his daughters"( pg 9). The main idea I got just from reading this sentence was the very thing I said of people fearing something they don't know and instead of taking the time to know the person inside and out one rather make assumptions.

In the story of 'Heart of Darkness" the Africans where described as monsters with a numerous amount of other names they came up with. Just as, ' We are accustomed to look upon the shackled form of a conquered monster, but there you could look at a thing monstous and free" (pg 13). The Africans where treated like nothing as if only an object. In past times a fool was used as a form of entertainment and I believe that the Africans too are portrayed as the fool in the story.

A wise person always told me when you ASSume what you don't know you make an ASSume out of yourself.