The Bite of the Mango

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Animals appear in several scenes in the early chapters of The Bite of the Mango.

• What role do animals play in the memoir? (topic sentence)
• Give 3 examples of animals and explain the role each one plays in telling a specific part of Mariatu’s story.
• In your concluding sentences, explain why you think Mariatu included these animals and why they are important to the memoir.

2. Childhood is ideally a time of innocence, but Mariatu experiences sexual violence and mutilation when she is still a child.

• How did Mariatu’s experiences of sexual violence and mutilation steal her innocence? (topic sentence)
• Give 3 examples of how Mariatu’s experiences with sex stole her childhood innocence. Also describe how her mutilation by the rebel soldiers affects her at the time.
• In your concluding statements, explain what Mariatu did to reclaim her childhood innocence.

3. Mariatu has several maternal figures in her life over the course of the memoir.

• How do Mariatu’s maternal figures help her cope with her trauma and move forward in life? (topic sentence)
• Explain how Kadi, Yabom, and Fatmata each play a role as a mother figure and help Mariatu cope with an aspect of her trauma.
• In your concluding sentences, explain how each woman’s influence helped Mariatu move forward in life.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. How does the story about the injured weaver bird relate to the way Mariatu’s attitudes toward her disability change throughout the book? How does Mariatu feel about the bird when she first sees it is injured? What does the bird do after that? What important events in Mariatu’s life does she relate to the weaver bird?

2. Mariatu is introduced to new cultural experiences when she travels to England and Canada. How does this shape the way she interacts with her family and other Sierra Leoneans? How has Western culture changed her perspective on Sierra Leone? How has her experience in the West motivated her to create change in her home country?

3. Why is Mariatu’s involvement in the theater troupe significant to her culture? How does the theater troupe help in Mariatu’s healing? What do the members of the troupe offer Mariatu? How does the healing she experiences in the troupe shape her future decisions?