Ambiguous Adventure

Some years later, Samba is attending a dinner party at the home of a classmate, Lucienne. Her parents remark on his ethnic background but otherwise seek to make him feel welcome in their home. As he almost accepts a drink from Lucienne, he stops halfway and informs her that he does not drink alcohol. Lucienne’s cousin, Pierre, is intrigued, questioning Samba’s decision since he personally knows of Muslims who drink. Lucienne’s father, Paul, is impressed with Samba’s response, remarking to himself that “He made his chahâda wave like a banner in the wind!” (99).

The discussion move on to Samba’s study of philosophy. He shares that his future, like that of many Black African students, is undecided because those who leave home experience a metamorphosis along the way. After being asked his opinion of Western philosophy, Samba replies that “this history has undergone an accident which has shifted it and, finally, drawn it away from its plan” (101), citing philosophers such as Descartes, Pascal, St. Augustine, and Socrates; he says that while the core questions of philosophy have remained the same, the approaches to answering them have changed. Paul is pleased with Samba’s answer and says he should keep this opinion.