Sponono Edited

Great Books

Mason Unthank

Friday, April 18^th, 2014

Mrs. Stephanie Berry    

         The Short Story "Sponono," by Alan Paton, does not only have a weird name, it has a good story too. Sponono is a boy in a reformatory school in Africa for some reason or other. Sponono is not a Christian; yet, he frequently quotes the Bible over and over again when he gets in trouble. Sponono frequently talks about forgiveness to the principle of the reformatory school that he considers somewhat of a father figure. "Why would I make trouble in my own father's house?" Sponono gets in trouble over and over again for things that make him start over in the reformatory. He lies to talk to the principle, steals, threatens people with rocks, gets in fights, goes to prisons, and more. Over and over again, he asks for forgiveness from the principle. When the principle doesn't forgive him for the hundredth odd time, Sponono writes him an angry letter saying: "are you then like other people, who, when a man has done wrong turn treat him badly?" Sponono may have different tribal cultures than the other people at the reformatory, because he is a Xhosa. It seems like Sponono sometimes tries to reform, most of the time though, he just doesn't try very hard.

     I think Sponono wants to reform his life; he just isn't trying very hard. Sponono is a Xhosa tribesman, so he probably takes whatever he hears in English literally. This is portrayed in the way he takes the Bible. Forgiving people seventy times seven is probably an example that we should forgive often. Sponono probably thinks he can mess up four hundred and ninety times before he gets punished. Some examples that Sponono isn't trying very hard are quite easy to find. Such as the time he threatens the couple with the rock, and then steals their money. To make him admit it, the principle has to make it easy for him to acknowledge he did it.  He also lies frequently, though sometimes it is for good. "Do you think it is wrong to tell a lie?" "Not to save a person." Sponono has good morals, but he needs to practice what he preaches more. When he does though, he seems like a decent person. "I forgave him." He said. " He did not mean to hurt my eye. I might have hurt his if he did not hurt mine first. It was his bad luck, meneer." Sponono usually means well, but when a so-called, "great temptation" is put in his way; he strays from his path of goodness.