As a picture book, I found Sundiata: Lion King of Mali surprisingly powerful. The themes of looking past physicality and of returning home are still relevant to literature to today, and are not cliche.
Sundiata’s mother, Sogolon, is described as “hunchbacked and ill-favored.” This opposes the usual appearance of Queens in texts: they are conventionally very attractive and radiant. I also found it interesting that she is known to hold the spirit of a buffalo that destroyed a village. This is not at all classically feminine, “strong and courageous.” This once again opposes the conventions of women in storytelling, making this story variant from others.
Sogolon is not the only powerful woman in the story. Sassouma, Maghan’s first wife, controls the conflict in the story. She is responsible for Sundiata losing his place as king when Maghan dies, and she is seen as the one at fault for Mali being overtaken by invaders. Even though her son is the one who becomes king, he is never named and he is always referred to as her son. By doing this, the author gives her the power. The women in this story, both good and bad, appear to be extremely empowered, at least more than the men. They are the ones who control the plot.
It honestly seems a little unfair that Sundiata is heir given that he is the younger son, given that Sassouma’s son never actually did anything wrong. If I were Sassouma’s son, I would probably be pretty bitter about this and act out. I do understand where Sassouma’s spite stems from to a certain extent.
I’m curious as to what happened to the kingdom of Mema. Sundiata was granted heirship, but then he left to return to Mali. Perhaps he received control of both Mali and Mema.
I like how Sundiata started out as physically disadvantaged. This seems like a legitimate plot point because he instead develops mental strength: intelligence, kindness, and level-headedness. This is what allows him to survive Sassouma’s attack: he doesn’t get angry when the witches try to take his mother’s spices. Sundiata’s physical development is secondary; this doesn’t happen till the end of the story when he returns to Mali to take back his kingdom. By placing primary importance on his mentality over his physicality, the story has a message that is timeless.
Though I don’t think these are necessarily the themes that Disney used, they make for themes that would be ideal for a children’s film. The idea that inner mentality trumps physicality, and the theme of female empowerment serve as necessary messages in children’s media. Sundiata has messages ahead of its time; it felt modern in themes. I’m curious as to how much the story changed over time.
The illustrations in the story resemble paper cutouts. The layering and the dept creates the image of texture, which makes the story very visually engaging. I wonder what inspired David Wisniewski on the illustrations; was this modeled after a certain form of art? The illustrations serve well to work with the fluidity of the story.
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