![]() Whether intentional or not, Yaa Gyasi seems to use names as a way of labeling characters with personality identification. ![]() ![]() Altogether, the meaning behind the name Richard in this novel so far seems to entail “bad” and/or unacceptability. In good fun, Cudjo frivolously named his snail Richard simply because “it’s a British name and he was bad like the British are bad” (Gyasi 57). At the conclusion of the race, Quay’s snail won easily while Cudjo’s snail lost terribly. In the Quay chapter, the name Richard comes up when young Quay and his friend Cudjo decide to race some snails for fun. However, the mention of James’ middle name, “Richard”, does have profound significance in regard to who he becomes later in his chapter. Other than depicting Nana Yaa’s anger and anguish, the simple dialogue structure and overall word choice used above does not really entail much connotation. ![]() In all, Nana Yaa hated the notion of having a son with an all-White name almost as much as she hated the forced marriage she had with Quay. The furious tone present in Nana Yaa’s voice above resulted from an argument brought up between her and her husband Quay. “James Richard Collins! What kind of Akan are you that you give your son three white names?” (Gyasi 90) ![]()
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