The presence of foreign schools in the region is an internal battle for many of the characters. There is a duality within the characters, who see both positives and negatives to the situation (and to any response to it). The motif of meditation is crucial, as it is when many of these characters wrestle with their own feelings concerning the foreign school.

This set of chapters focuses on the tension between religion and science/secularization. In Paul and Samba’s father’s philosophical discussion, they discuss the importance of science and truth. While Paul believes that science and truth are synonymous, Samba’s father sees truth as too vast for humans to grasp in the course of an individual life. Paul’s opinion represents much of the “Western” opinion on the role of science in society; although his last name means “the cross”—a reference to Christianity—he sees no need for spirituality in the modern world. By contrast, Samba’s father represents the traditional as well as religious perspective on science. For Samba’s father, truth is largely synonymous with God and will only reveal itself in its totality at the end of the world (or the end of a person’s life). The narrative style provides insight into both characters’ inner monologues, revealing what they want to say as well as what they leave unsaid.

Many episodes involving Samba’s father also focus on theme of tradition and modernity. For example, Samba’s father’s monologue at the end of Chapter 7 contrasts with his inner monologue on learning about the school his son would be attending. While he previously echoed concerns about losing traditions, his new perspective aligns with the arguments of the Most Royal Lady: that Samba must learn from the inside why the Diallobé failed to stop their colonization. The reference to the citadel is important medieval imagery that once again places the discussion of westernization and modernization within the context of battle. For Samba father’s, this citadel—a reconciliation of modernity and tradition—is the only hope of saving the world from the deadening and dehumanizing forces of westernization.

The discussion between Samba and his father at the end of Chapter 9 offers important insight into how Samba is navigating the dual worlds he straddles. His automatic thought about living and praying being contradictory alarms him, and he analyzes its roots. After his discussion with his father, he takes comfort in the thought that working and living can both be forms of worship. However, secular education has planted the seeds of doubt in Samba’s reasoning, and the last lines of Chapter 9 foreshadow that Samba’s faith will face further challenges.

The fool who speaks to Thierno provides a simplistic explanation of a modern, Western way of life. In explaining the modern cities he sees; the fool does not refer to objects with their common names (“shoes,” “cars,” etc.) but rather describes them visually, framing these familiar objects through a new lens to denaturalize them.