Chapter One of Ways of Dying: What is a "Nurse," and how is this person chosen?

Chapter One of Ways of Dying:

1) What is a "Nurse," and how is this person chosen?
The nurse is responsible for the deceased's death. The nurse is the most revered member of the funeral party and must be present at all funerals. To be chosen as a nurse, a person must feel every aspect of the human condition. This person should inform each individual about death, separating what has become a continuous line of death into individuality.
2) Why is Toloki denied access to the mother of the deceased child by the "street committee"?
The street committee forbids Toloki from seeing the deceased's mother shield her from further abuse. They turn down the professional mourning services because they don’t have money to pay for the service fee. Besides this they are also determined to protect her from those who want to know more about her son’s death.
3) How does Toloki get to meet with Noria and how is she described by the narrator?
Toloki managed to have the weeding procession give way for the funeral procession to pass. This is where Noria notices Toloki and calls for him. This is when they get to recognize each other. Noria invites Toloki to the squatter camp to see her once they are done with the funeral According to the narrator, Noria has grown old now, and she had become a little haggard. Even though she is old, the narrator still sees her being beautiful.
4) Who is the narrator and what does it mean that “The community is the owner of the story, and it can tell it the way it deems it fit”?
The narrator is form the city. The way he perceives things in the city is not different from what is happening in the village. So many things happen back there in the village and people don’t get to talk about them. No member of the community claim responsibly for whatever happens.it is all assumed to be a mutual responsibility of the community to justify what might have happened to Toloki and Noria.
5) What is Toloki’s “profession,” how common is this, and how might people describe him in light of his living arrangements?
Toloki is a professional mourner, the first of his kind. He has earned his reputation in this and some people hire him to go the funerals of their relatives. He makes an impression with his dapper mourning outfit as it is seen in standard funerals.
6) Toloki attends the funeral of a man whose body was mistakenly released by the mortuary to the wrong family.
a) How is this situation resolved?
Both groups agreed that the coffin should be opened and prove that it is the right body they are burying. This idea was supported by some members of the crowd. When it was opened it was then realized that the funeral was being conducted and they had the wrong corpse.
a. How did the man die?
The man was discovered by the watchmen of a garage near the migrant hostels. He had bullet wound on his legs, his head had been hacked and the brain was hanging out.
b. Who was responsible for his death?
The man was killed by migrant workers form the hostels. It was supposedly alleged that the migrant workers owed allegiance to the distant tribal chief who ruled with an iron fist.

Chapter Two:

7) How does Toloki obtain his professional “costume”?
He had seen it in a shop but couldn’t afford the prices. He could go back to the shop every day and longingly looking at the costume. This went on until one day the restaurant owners decide to buy it for him and promised to never go back there ever.
8) Toloki’s father’s name is Jwara. What was his occupation and what did Noria have to do with this?
Toloki’s father was a sculptor, the village black smith. Jwara was always inspired by the school girl Noria when she sang for him. Noria was a bewitching and Jwara was under her spell. Without her, Jwara was sullen and could not create.
9) What talent did Toloki express as a child and how was this talent recognized?
Toloki expressed an artistic talent as a child. This was expressed through his first flight of fancy, expressed in childlike drawings. He further developed with his innovative and creative decoration of his and Noria’s communal shack in form of pictures.
10) What does Jwara say in response to Toloki’s achievement?
Jwara hated his onw son for his ugly looks. He showed little or no appreciation for whatever great achievement Toloki made. It is only in school where Toloki was being appreciated.
11) Who is “That Mountain Woman,” and why is it said of her that, “she had no shame”?
Mountain woman asserts an independent woman who asserts her equal right s with man and demand recognition.is an attempt to make a society aware about injustice and oppression.
12) Describe the way of dying which led to Toloki’s first time at a funeral.
The first funeral he attended was when he was thirteen.it was the death of a girl who had been Noria’s friend. She was the first person in the village to have been shit dead.
13) How does the “crazed multi killer” murder his victims and why is it believed he does this?
The craze killer preyed on defenseless children, enticed them into lonely spots and butchered them. He castrated them, cut open their stomachs and mutilated their fresh.

Chapter Three:

14) What has happened to Noria after her son’s funeral?
She went on staying with her friends until when she would have built her own hack. This is because after the death of her son, some unknown people attacked her and petrol bombed her home.
15) Who is Shadrack and how did his son die?
Shadrack is Noria’s friend, who is famously known by friends as Bhut’Shaddy. He is the wealthiest member I the squatter camp.
His son was killed by migrants form the hostel. He was abducted randomly from the streets by the migrants. Later they were fired at as the migrants tested their guns.
16) Who are the “tribal chief” and what is he trying to do?
He was a chief from a distant village who ruled with an iron fist. He had create non existing threat , lying to his people that they were at risk form all other ethnic groups in the country. He exploited ethnicity and incited people to engage in violence.
17) Why did Toloki leave his parents’ home and what is he forced to do on his journey?
Toloki had fought with his father. His father beat him and he ran away from the village. Since then he vowed that he never return as long as his father was alive.
18) What “scam” ends in a “simple laborer” losing his manhood?
The man was reporting to his duty one morning when he was arrested by the police. He was tortured so that he can confess stealing bags of maize and selling them to one farmer whom they know very well. After all the torture, they weren’t successful getting a confession from Toloki. This incident ended with simple laborer losing his manhood.
19) Describe a way of dying which takes the life of one of Toloki’s friends.
Toloki’s friend was burnt to death in a game which they were playing with a white colleague. It was lunch time and the white fellow sent Toloki’s friend to fetch petrol form the depot. When he got back, the white colleague was holding another black colleague on the floor. The container was kicked and the man toppled with the petrol on the floor. As he was trying to clean himself, the white colleague lit him with a flame.

Chapter Four:

20) What does Noria remember about Toloki’s past?
Noria remembers how Toloki was good in creating beautiful things with his own hands. She also reminded him of the April calendar with a picture he had made then.
21) What does Shadrack propose to Noria and how does she explain to Toloki why she refused?
Shadrack wants to marry Noria. He tells her how he has fallen in love with her and thinks she is his soul mate and wants to spend his money with her.
Noria refuses shad rack’s proposal and she tell Toloki that she doesn’t want things from men. She promises to pay Toloki his money back once she becomes stable.
22) Who is Napu and how does he know Noria?
Napu was a scrawny young man; he was a laborer in a brickmaking yard. He was Noria friend whom they used to disappear together behind the aloes.
23) Why does Noria run away? Her mother didn’t want to see her with Napu anymore. She wanted her to be married to a teacher or a clerk and not a laborer in brickmaking yard. It was discovered that Noria had run away because she was heavy with a child.
24) How does Napu’s grandmother treat Noria?
Napu’s grandmother was vicious woman whom Noria suspected to be a witch. She treats Noria like an outcast when she refuses to participate in their vicious rituals. She curses her and calls her a bitch from lowlands.
25) What do Napu and Noria names their son and what does this mean?
Napu named his son Vutha, the name meant burning fire. The mountain woman on the other hand called her grandson jealous down. This meant that neighbors who were laughing at Noria were now jealous. Xesibe thought the best name would be a mistake.
26) How do things “end” between Noria and Napu?
They started having a conflict when Noria discovered that her husband was having an affair with a neighbor. They fought over the issue and Noria left him and went back to her home to the mountain woman. They resolved issues and went back living together. Then one day Napu came home with a woman and chased Noria away.
27) After Noria returns to her parents’ home, what has happened to That Mountain Woman?
The mountain woman had been struck by illness and she had been admitted to the hospital. The doctor said that she would be there for a long time.
28) How does Noria learn “the art of entertaining white men who came from across the seas” and why does she do this?
She met a woman in the bible society she had joined; the lady introduced her to the trade. She started working there because she was making more money than she earned in a month of drudgery either in the government offices.
29) What event in her father’s home leads Noria to return to her husband and how is their new life together?
Xesibe tried to rape the woman who was taking care of Vutha. When Noria confronted him bout the issues, Xesibe told her to pack her things and leave his house. Napu tried to be cruel on her but she had hardened. There was no direct communication between them, everything was communicated through Vutha.
30) What does Noria find when she returns home after her mother’s funeral?
She found the house empty, even her clothes weren’t there. Napu had kidnapped Vutha and run away to a place where Noria would never find them.
31) Describe a way of dying which Toloki explains happened on the trains.
People die because they want to earn a living for their children. People cannot afford an alternative means of transport. Criminal gangsters and migrants board the train rape and kill the innocent people. He describes that the ways of dying are the ways in which people live.

Chapter Five:

32) What effect does Noria have on Jwara and what leads to his downfall?
As she grew older she developed other interest and could not go and see Jwara. Instead she would go to charm with taxi boys. Jwara was unable to create, he go depressed and sank. He became more morose and irritable.
33) How does Toloki impress the Church-goers and what spirits have “seized” him?
Toloki’s voice was heard above all others when they sang. Then he began to preach about Christ on the cross. This impressed the church goers.
34) Explain the “war between Toloki and the Archbishop” and how does Jwara react to this?
Toloki often spotted throwing rocks and mud at the worshippers, he laughed at them and mocked the old mans flock. This annoyed the archbishop, who then cursed him with everlasting misfortune in life and fire after death.
When Jwara heard about this, he added his heavy words and said how unfortunate the incident was.
35) What leads to the death of five people Toloki mourns for?
They had died in an orgy of violence. Tension had mounted, hostel dwellers and supporters of the tribal chief which resulted to killing of the students and burning down of several houses belonging to community leaders.
36) What happens to Jwara after Noria stops singing for him?
Jwara stopped venturing into his creativity. He just sat in his workshop and even refused to eat. When the policemen wanted their shoes to be mended, he would still turn then down
37) What arrangement does Noria propose to Toloki and how does he respond?
Noria proposed they stay together as a homeboy and home girl. Toloki protest to this request claiming that his life is complicated and cannot manage to live with her.as a professional mourner, his life is a monk.

Chapter Six:

38) What does Toloki do to avoid begging upon his arrival in the city?
He got a temporary job at a mill where he was employed as a malayiisha. This implies that he was tasked with loading and unloading of maize bags and mealie-meal.
39) What successful endeavor does Toloki pursue?
He joined the settler and allocated himself a plot where he made his own shack.it was the first time he owned something of his own. He did a part time job and saved enough to set himself a business.
40) What happens to Toloki’s business?
The business collapsed because the city council employee squashed his cart and demolished it. He was left with nothing to run business. The little money he had saved was recklessly spent and later own his money ran out and he was e nothing worth doing.
41) Who is Nefolovhodwe and how does he become wealthy in the city?
He was friend to Jwara back in the village.in the city he was furniture maker. He started a coffin making business which grew at very high rate. Deaths were high in the city and he was able to make a lot of money and expand his business.
42) How does Nefolovhodwe react to Toloki and what job does he offer him?
He was happy to hear that Toloki was determined to find himself a job. Tough it seemed ridiculous to imagine that Toloki would become wealth money one day. Toloki was happy and he accepted the job offer oof guarding cemeteries. It was a great excitement because he has been unemployed directly by a great man.
43) What happens when Toloki “catches” a gang of thieves and what does Nefolovhodwe do when he learns about this event?
He confronted them and threatened to report the m to Nefolovhodwe. He was hit by one man and fell to the ground. When he went to report this to the boss, he was fired on the ground that he was unable to catch the thieves. He learns that wealth was obtained through death.
44) What does Noria find when she gets to the city?
She finds out that Napu and Vutha had come to the city when she had gone to the mountain woman’s funeral back in the village. They had no job and all they did was begging at some corner in the city.
45) Describe Vutha and Napu’s ways of dying?
Vutha died on the bridge and dogs were scavenging on him. Napu couldn’t take this pain anymore, he drown himself in the big storage dam.

Chapter Seven:

46) What has happened to Shadrack and is this a random incident?
Shadrack was attacked by three men who came out of a police van that had pulled over and packed in front of him. He was on his way to the railway station with his tax to pick a passenger. They loaded him into the van and fled away with him. Later they tortured him and threw him by the roadside.
47) What happens to Toloki when he refuses to pay the “protection fee”?
He was summoned by the mayor to explain neither why he was nor paying the protection fee. After being advised by the mayor the importance of paying the fee, the next morning he woke up to find his shack on fire. The fire destroyed most of his valuable and he was only able to save his vulnerable costume.

Chapter Eight:

48) What is a “normal death”?
This is type of death that people have come accustomed to. They happen every day like gun, torture, illness and old age.
49) Describe the way of dying which occurs as a result of a “squabble” over the cutting of hair?
This happened when two brothers complained that children of the deceased were shaved before their children. They felt that this was improper thing to do. They bit up the woman
50) Why does Toloki return to Nofolovhodwe’s home?
He wanted to pay back Nofolovhodwe’s money. He wanted to pay back for all the food he had eaten in his house
51) What does Toloki learn during this visit?
52) Who is Madimbhaza and what is the “dumping ground”?
She is an old woman friend to Noria. She used to work as domestic servant in the city. This is the place where those children that have been abandoned by their parents are left. They are either physically handicapped or crippled by other diseases. There biological parents abandon them here at the dumping site.

Chapter Nine:

53) What is Noria teased about?
Noria is teasing about her moving in with Toloki. They make remarks on how good things are these days that homeboys are moving in with home girls.
54) Who arrives in the black Mercedes Benz and who are the “most active in the affairs of the settlement”?
They are national executive members of the national political movement. Toloki notices that the most active members in the affairs of settlement are women.
55) What fills Noria with anger?
The local committee had promised Noria to make an apology to her concerning her son’s death in public. Instead the apology was made in private meeting. This is what angered Noria.
56) What difference does Toloki observe between men and women on the local and national levels?
Men blame women for disgracing the whole settlement community. Men tend to their clouds with pettiness and vain pride, while on the other hand women are working hard to provide for their families.
57) What is Battalion 77 and how have they earned their reputation in the community?
They are supported by migrants from nearby hostel .they would attack randomly, burning shocks and raped women and their daughters.
58) Describe Volta’s second way of dying. Who kills him and why?
Vutha was an active participant in the freedom fighting movement. He was actively involved in political movements. One time while Vutha and his comrades were demonstrating, they were confronted by armored vehicles

Chapter Ten:

59) Why is it “dangerous” to sleep naked?
Because you may never know when the next invasion will be, one should be able to run away with full clothes in case of an attack.
60) What surprises Toloki and what happens when Noria begins to sing for him?
Toloki finds himself drawing pictures the moment Noria begins to sing. He becomes possessed with the new ability to create human figures.
61) Who visits Toloki and Noria and how does Toloki respond?
Shadrack visits Toloki and Noria. Toloki doesn’t respond to shack’s comments. He only tries to apologies but Noria stops him from making the apology.
62) What news do Noria and Toloki learn about their parents?
Xesibe inherited ware’s wife. They also learnt that their parents miss as them so much.
63) Why does Nefolovhodwe bring Toloki his father’s figurines?
Jwara wanted Toloki to have the figures that he used to make in his workshop.
64) What does Toloki decide to do with the figurines?
Toloki and Noria decide to keep them and decide later on how to proceed.