Hope For Elizabeth

           There are those things in life that keep us sane, that when everything is going wrong, and it seems like the world is coming to an end there are those things that pull you back to reality. Things like family, friends that help you realize that life is not all that bad and that everything will be okay. In “A Question of Power” by Bessie Head has a character named Elizabeth who constantly drifts in and out of reality because of her life experiences and her lack of boundaries she often has mental breakdowns. Throughout the novel Elizabeth experiences horrible nightmares and dreams of her death, and other evil things, she goes days without waking up and getting out of bed and during these days is unaware of what is going on in the world around her. However, things start to look up for Elizabeth. People and opportunities come into her life and change it around, they help her come out of her darkness, and save her from death.

            Elizabeth has had a hard life, she has been rejected because of her race, and she has been living in a town where she does not relate to anyone. She is constantly looked at as an outsider, and misplaced. Her mental breakdowns control her life, and eventually get her fired from her teaching job. It looks as if Elizabeth is doomed until she runs into the founder of the Motabeng Secondary school. He had also started a farming project and offered Elizabeth a job in working in the gardens with other students and volunteers. Elizabeth getting this job opportunity is what starts to giver her some comfort and stability. Before Elizabeth was alone, once starting this job she gets to interact with others, and she learns things that she enjoys. At the garden where Elizabeth works there are of lot of jobs being done including pottery, weaving, wool spinning, irrigation and fertilizing schemes. While working Elizabeth is able to interact with people, and create relationships, and friendships, where before she had none. The garden then became a big part of her life and gave her a since of stability. When strolling the garden it gives her a since of comfort. “That morning as she walked down the rough, shady road to the vegetable gardens seemed to Elizabeth the greatest adventure she was ever to undertake. It is impossible to become a vegetable gardener without at the same time coming into contact with the wonderful strangeness of human nature” (Head 72).  Not only did this job give Elizabeth comfort and stability it also introduced her to the Cape Gooseberry plant. This became her main job and purpose when working in the garden.

            The Cape Gooseberry is used to make jam, and because of the new irrigation and gardening methods the plant grew very well. This became Elizabeth’s main job. She took pride in playing a part of the project and having a specific purpose in the village.  Elizabeth even took the plant and planted it in her own garden at home. She also found similarities between her and the plant. Just like the Gooseberry Elizabeth is a transplant.  “The work had a melody like that – a complete stranger like the Cape Gooseberry settled down and became a part of the village life of Motabang. It loved the hot, dry Botswana summers as they were a replica of the Mediterranean summers of its home in the Cape” (Head 153).  Elizabeth also made a friend through working with the Cape Gooseberry plant Kenosi. Elizabeth and Kenosi worked every day together in the gardens with the plant. This also leads into another factor that leads Elizabeth to have stability in her life is that she actually had interaction with real people.

            Whenever Elizabeth had mental breakdown she has nightmares and interaction with fictional people that only exist in her mind. Having working on the gardening projects and having interactions with people that have become close friends has helped pull her out of these nightmares. For example Kenosi had come to visit Elizabeth after she had one of her melt downs and helps pull her out of her daze. Kenosi reminds her of the garden and that work cannot be done without Elizabeth. Kenosi told Elizabeth “You must never leave the garden, I cannot work without you” (Head 142). “The way this woman brought her back to life and reality! Her head did not seem to be so full of splintered bone” (Head 142). Her friendship with Kenosi helped pull Elizabeth out of this daze and back to reality. With having real people in her life it helped pull her away from her nightmares. Another big person that would help Elizabeth have hope is Tom.

            Tom is a volunteer from the United States that has come over to help with the project. He is very energetic and is always trying to help everyone in the village, including Elizabeth. Elizabeth connected to him immediately when she met him and felt like she has met him before  She felt that he is an old soul and that hse has known him in lifetimes before. In the end of the novel she is able to discuss her soul journey with Tom and has a moment of “ordinary” compassion with him. Tom is the main real person that comes into Elizabeth’s life that helps pull her out of her depression.

            In conclusion, Elizabeth getting a job with the irrigation and farming project was the start to giving her stability. Once having a job and interacting with real people she not only had a purpose and perfected with the Cape Gosseberry plant she made friends. These friends helped pull her out of the hell she had been living on. These factors gave her help and hope.