Roots: The Saga of an American Family Women and Femininity Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #4

A wife's most serious charge [...] was to claim that her husband was not a man, meaning that he was inadequate with her in bed. (31.12)

On an even more amazing note, the spouses' families are invited to watch one of these lovemaking sessions and review whether the man's skills are indeed inadequate. For real. Again, this shows us that though Mandinka society is male-dominated, it's not the strict patriarchy you might expect it to be.

Quote #5

Was Omoro considering taking a second wife? Kunta was so startled at the thought that he sat up straight. And how would his mother feel about it? (32.7)

This is a big moment in Kunta's life, as it's the first time he looks at the world through the eyes of a woman, many of whom probably aren't enthused that their husbands can marry new wives. Frankly, Kunta would be pretty disappointed if that happened too.

Quote #6

Furthermore, she was just generally argumentative and bossy. And she talked too much. (63.10)

We can easily imagine a teenage Kunta brooding about Binta and thinking these very same thoughts. Not to get ahead of ourselves, but we think Bell has this thing in the bag.