Journal 4 from Kayla

In chapter fourteen, Beah dramatized his first killing. It shows that Beah is no longer an innocent child. I feel that he takes a step from childhood into adulthood by murdering a defenseless man. He only able to reconcile this with his conscience by first conjuring up the image of his murdered friends, and attributing their deaths to the rebel in front of him. For example Beah writes, “Every time I stopped shooting to change magazines and saw my two lifeless friends, I angrily point my gun into the swap and killed more people”(119). The power of memory thus utilized is clear: by turning pain into hatred, Beah is able to kill more people. Beah uses this anger as a loss of childhood. I feel that Beah is in pain, and he is only trying to suppress it by taking it out on other people. 


Soldiers returning from combat often face a multitude of challenges. One challenge is adjusting to a civilian life with no violence.  In chapter fifteen of A Long Way Gone, there were riots at the UNICEF compound demonstrate how deeply-rooted the boys’ military “brainwashing” as Beah terms it truly is. When offered a second chance at a civilian life after two years of combat, with new clothes, a safe place to sleep, and people who care for them, the boys turn the situation into a military endeavor. Strange boys, no matter their affiliation, are a threat until their motives and loyalties can be determined. The fight with the RUF boys accentuates how deep the ideological chasm is between boys who have suffered similar traumas, but been indoctrinated by opposite political factions. Although the camp may not look helpful to the boys it actually is a new beginning. It is a gentle re-introduction to a world without constant violence and fear. It is the first step into a new life. It might take a long time to be rehabilitated in society, but I think that Beah will do it.