9

LOOKING FOR A RAIN GOD

Bessie Head—Botswana
PREPARING TO READ
Story Preview:
The village where Mokgobja lives with his family has been suffering from
drought for seven years. People there are so desperate that some have even Idioms & Expressions:
killed themselves. paid no attention: ignored
This year, when rains come in November, Mokgobja goes to the field with his breaking point: the stage at
family. At first, there is enough rain and they plough the fields and plant crops. which your control over yourself
or a situation is lost
But, then the rain stops and everything gets very dry.
whipped up to a frenzy:
The two small girls, Neo and Boseyong, are too young to worry about the caused to become upset in an
drought and they play with dolls. The two women, Tiro and Nesta, though, are uncontrolled or violent way
very worried. They wail and cry a lot. Then, Mokgobja remembers an old tradi- sentenced to death: given a
tional ceremony where children are given as sacrifices to a rain god. punishment of death for a crime
the statute books: When a law
Words to Know: is on or reaches the statute
Fill in the blanks with the underlined vocabulary from the Story Preview above. books, it has been formally ap-
1. In the past, people killed animals as _______________ in order to win favor proved and written down and can
with the gods. be used in a law court.
2. To prepare the fields for planting, it is necessary to _______________ them. death penalty: the legal punish-
ment of death for a crime
3. When it seems like a situation will not improve, people may get
quite _______________.
4. People sometimes _______________ and scream when they are
very sad or angry.
5. A _______________ happens when not enough rain falls and the
earth is very dry.
Making Predictions:
From the Story Preview, try to predict what will happen next in the story.
Which of the following predictions do you think is most probable?
 Mokgobja will try to sacrifice the two girls, but the women will
stop him and kill him instead.
 Mokgobja will sacrifice the two girls and the rain will come.
 Mokgobja will sacrifice the two girls but no rain will come.
 Mokgobja will steal a small child from another family and sacri-
fice that child.

WHILE READING
Comprehension Questions:
As you read the story, try to answer the following questions.
1. What problem has the community been facing when this story
takes place?
2. What two events lead Mokgobja and his family to leave for the
fields?
3. Who are the two young girls pretending to be when playing with their dolls? Key Vocabulary:
underground (adj): below the
4. Why do the two women “stamp their feet as though they had lost their
surface of the Earth
heads”? quench (v): to satisfy thirst by
5. Who remembers the rain-making ceremony? having a drink
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6. What do the men do to the little girls? Why? (shady (adj)) shade (n): slight
7. What happens to the men at the end of the story? darkness caused by something
blocking the light of the sun
Literary term: Theme lush (adj): a lush area has a lot of
A theme is a central idea or message in a work of literature. Sometimes a story green, healthy plants
has several themes. (tangled (adj)) tangle (n): an un-
tidy mass of things that are not in
Focus: One of the themes in “Looking for a Rain God” is superstition. As you a state of order
read, think about the superstitious actions that the people in the village, in figs (n): sweet, soft purple or
general, and Mokgobja, in particular, take in response to the drought. green fruit with many seeds
withered (adj): dry and decaying
UNDERSTANDING THE STORY (humorously (adv)) humorous
(adj): funny or making you laugh
Cultural Context: teaspoon (n): a small spoon
Religion has always been central to people's lives in Africa. anguish (n): extreme unhappi-
Although the majority of Africans are now Muslim or Chris- ness and physical/mental suffering
tian, traditional religions have endured and still play a big moisture (n): water in the form
role. of very small drops, either in the
air, in a substance, or on a surface
There are many different religious practices on the continent. tragedy (n): a very sad event or
They share some common features: belief in one God above a situation, espe-
host of lesser gods or semi-divine figures; belief in ancestral cially one involv-
spirits; the idea of sacrifice, often involving the death of a ing death or suf-
living thing, to ensure divine protection and generosity; the need to undergo fering
majority (n):
rites of passage to move from childhood to adulthood, from life to death.
the larger num-
In the history of the continent, religion has had a powerful effect on political ber or part of
change: spirit mediums have led revolts against European and African rulers, something
ancestral spirits have commanded acts of destruction and called for the over- utensils (n): tools with particular
throw of rulers and chiefs. People have sought the help of priests and medicine uses
charlatans (n): people who pre-
men to achieve power and wealth. tend to have skills or knowledge
Guessing Meaning from Context: that they do not have, especially
The sentences below are from the story. Try to understand the meaning of the bolded words in medicine
and circle the letter of the answer that gives the correct meaning for each word. (incanters (n)) incantation (n):
(the performance of) words that
1. These lands are vast clearings in the bush, and the wild bush is lonely too.
are believed to have a magical
a. extremely big c. extremely old effect when spoken or sung
b. extremely far d. extremely hot talismans (n): objects believed
2. A seven-year drought fell upon the land and even the watering places began to bring good luck
to look as dismal as the dry open thorn-bush country. herbs (n): a type of plants whose
a. exciting and new c. sad and without hope leaves are used in cooking to give
b. strange and interesting d. lush and full of life flavour to particular dishes
downpour (n): heavy rain
3. All their animals had been sold during the bad years to purchase food. scanty (adj): very little
a. eat c. give proclamation (n): an official
b. buy d. refuse announcement
4. He explained the ritual and as he talked, his memory became a conviction (hedged p. (v)) hedge (n): a line
and he began to talk with unshakeable authority. of bushes planted close together
a. a funny idea or thought c. a strong opinion or belief (rustling pr. part.) rustle (v): if
things rustle they move about and
b. a new feeling or sense d. a strange desire or need
make a soft, dry sound
5. But people noted their ashen, terror-stricken faces and a murmur arose. (dizzily (adv)) dizzy (adj): feeling
a. a loud pounding sound c. a soft continuous sound as if everything is turning around
b. a deep resonant sound d. a high piercing sound and being unable to balance
6. At this, the mother of the children broke down and told everything. haze (n): when the air is not very
a. became happier and more positive clear because of something like
heat or smoke
b. stopped trying to do something difficult
(chattered p.) chatter (v): to
c. accepted or approved officially talk for a long time about things
d. was unable to control her feelings that are not important
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Making Inferences: tone (n): the quality of a voice

Circle the letter of the answer that best completes each of the following statements. rags (n): torn pieces of old cloth
1. At the beginning of the story, “a number of men went out of their homes and herd (n): a large group of animals
that live and feed together
hung themselves to death from trees.” They probably did this because: weird (adj): strange and unusual,
a. they thought their deaths would bring rain unexpected or not natural
b. they preferred a quick death to slow starvation high-pitched (adj): describes a
c. they were tricked by the witch doctors noise that is high and sometimes
2. The two little girls are “quite happy” even when the rain doesn't fall. This is also loud and unpleasant
probably because: mournful (adj): very sad
maintain (v): to continue to
a. they are too young to realize how difficult the situation is
have; to keep in existence, or not
b. they are confident that the rain will come later allow to become less
c. they are small and don't need very much food (haunted p.) haunt (v): to cause
3. When the police ask to see the graves of the two little girls, Tiro tells the repeated suffering or anxiety
truth. She probably does this because: customs (n): ways of behaving
a. she wanted to punish Mokgobja and Ramadi or beliefs which have been estab-
b. she didn't think there would be any problem lished for a very long time
recall (v): to bring the memory
c. she was overcome with guilt and remorse of a past event into your mind
Suggested Answers for Comprehension Questions: (consulting pr. part.) consult (v):
1. There has been a drought for the past seven years. to discuss something with some-
2. The rainy season began and there was an announcement in the village about one before making a decision
ritual (n): a set of fixed actions
the beginning of ploughing season. and words performed regularly,
3. They are pretending to be their mother. especially as part of a ceremony
4. They knew that the drought was continuing into the current rainy season unshakeable (adj): if someone's
and they were going to suffer all year. trust/belief is unshakeable it can-
5. Mokgobja not be made weaker/destroyed
6. They kill them as sacrifices to a rain god. authority (n): an expert
nerves (n): bravery or confi-
7. They are arrested and sentenced to death. dence to do something difficult,
Analysing the Story: Theme unpleasant or rude
Look back at the explanation of theme. The left column in the chart below contains three (smashed p.) smash (v): to de-
themes from the story “Looking For a Rain God.” Try to find evidence for each one and write stroy something completely
it in the right column. The first one is done for you. Can you find one more theme? deathly (adj): extreme in a way
that is unpleasant
Superstition  At the start of the story, villagers are buying “talismans and devouring (adj): describes an
herbs to rub on the plough” emotion that is extremely strong
 Mokgobja and his family believe in a rain-making ceremony in- and unusually destructive
volving ritual sacrifice of children (overwhelmed p.) overwhelm
(v): to cause someone to feel
Desperation sudden strong emotion
(fled p.) flee (v): to escape by
running away
ashen (adj): without colour
terror-stricken (adj): extremely
Modern vs. frightened
Traditional sorrow (n): a feeling of sadness
values (assuaged p.) assuage (v): to
make bad feelings less strong
subtle (adj): not loud, bright,
noticeable or obvious in any way
starvation (n): the state of hav-
ing no food for a long period of
time, often causing death
Thinking Critically: inadmissible (adj): unable to be
accepted in a court of law
 Why were the “charlatans, incanters, and witch-doctors” successful during the
evidence (n): one or more rea-
drought? Was what they did honest or dishonest, in your opinion? sons for believing that something
is or is not true