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Mrs. Griffin
HIST 1111-92
6 March 2017
Sundiata A Hero
Sundiata An Epic of Old Mali was written by D.T. Niane. The epic of Old Mali was retold by griots. First, the book talked about Sundiata’s ancestors. His father, Maghan Kon Fatta, was a good king who had beauty in every land. One day a hunter from Sangaran came to the king and brought a message about how his successor was going to be born from an ugly woman. She was brought by two hunters after they defeated a buffalo. Sundiata was born, but as a child faced obstacles. Many people started to talk about him especially about how he could not walk at the age of three (Niane, 15). Sundiata and his family became exiled after his father died. While they traveled from asylum to asylum after his exile, he learned new customs and the ways of war. Sundiata returned to Mali and fought the sorcerer king. He turned to magic for help and made a magical arrow that caused the king to lose his power. Sundiata was victorious and was praised.
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Niane argued that Sundiata was a strong hero. The first piece of evidence was when Sundiata finally walked. At the age of seven, he used an iron rod that he grabbed on with both hands and helped himself stand up because Sogolon, his mother, was embarrassed by the queen mother’s gossip of him. Sundiata told his mother “I am going to walk today” (Niane, 19). He walked from that day on. When Sundiata did this, he proved he could do anything he set his mind to and to never give up. The second piece of evidence that proved he was a strong hero was when he returned and gave the king of Sibi his kingdom back. Sundiata pulled the spear of Kamandjan out of the ground and he said, “I give you back your kingdom, king of Sibi, for you have deserved it by your bravery…” (Niane, 77). This showed great courage and heroism because Sundiata restored the alliance between the Kamaras of Sibi and the Keitas of