Out of Africa By: Isak Dinesen book summary & response
...k place on the farm, although these events are not described in chronological order. One time there is an accidental shooting in which one native boy shot two others, killing one and seriously injuring the other. Eventually, the elders of the Kikuyu tribe determine that the father of the boy who shot the gun must pay the other families for what they suffered for and are paid in head of livestock. As the narrator weaves through her memories of Africa, she shapes a landscape that resembles a type of paradise. On her own farm, she lives in unity with the natives and even some of the animals. As the narrator weaves through her memories of Africa, she shapes a landscape that resembles a type of paradise. On her own farm, she lives in unity with the natives and even some of the animals. The coffee farm goes bankrupt because of the difficulties of growing at such a high altitude. When the bills cannot be paid, the narrator sells the farm to a foreign firm who plan to divide it up for residential development. Soon after the farm is sold, another tragedy strikes. Denys Finch-Hatton is killed when his airplane crashes south of Nairobi. The narrator has him buried on the Ngong Hills at a location that looks over the plains. Before she leaves Africa, the narrator also works to relocate the natives who live on her farm, since the new owners want them to leave. After much effort, the colonial government agrees that they can all move to a portion of the Kikuyu Reserve. With her affairs settled, the narrator herself leaves Africa after selling her furniture, giving away her animals, and telling all of her friend’s good-bye. The basic point the narrator tries to make throughout this book is one of natural superiority, superiority in the respect that sometimes those who stick to the natural ways of life come out with a better understanding of the subtle things that make life great. Throughout this book the term of aristocracy is mentioned. The narrator believes that an inherent aristocracy exists in certain people, which means that they possess an elevated sense of dignity and knowledge of how to act nobly. I believe this book relates to us history because the United States is often defined as the pinnacle of civilization, or at least one of the top ten. This book looks at the things in life that can’t be measured in dollars and cents and relates them to being a substitute if not an improvement to European and now the American ways of life. The author of this book wrote this book because it is a recount of her own life living in the setting in Africa that she describes. I think this type of book is important because it gives a particular view on an often overlooked subject, and when ...