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No Harvest But a Thorn
By: Shahnon Ahmad
Shahnon Ahmad
• 1933- Born in the remotevillage of Banggul Derdap, inKedah, Malaysia
• 1947 to 1953- attendedEnglish secondary school
• Graduated with an AsianStudies degree in an Australianuniversity and M.A. from theUniversity of Science inPenang, Malaysia
• Member of the oppositionparty PAS (Pan-MalaysianIslamic Party—a parliamentparty) and won in Sik in theparliamentary election of 1999
Shahnon Ahmad
• Writing Career– Most important
contemporary prose writerin the Malay language• novelist, satirist, and short
story writer
– Won the highest literaryawards in his country• 1976 - PejuangSastera (Champion ofLiterature)
• 1982 - Anugerah SasteraNegara (Writer LaureateAward)
BACKGROUND ON ISLAMIC VIEWS
• Widows carry fewer rightsthan other women.
• Older people acts as thespine and anchor in theinstitutions and society.
• Men need to take care ofwomen because each wascreated mutually.
• Mothers are moreimportant, but fatherswill always be the head ofthe family.
No Harvest but a Thorn (Ranjau Sepanjang Jalan)
• literal translation: Trapsalong the Way
• a textbook forsecondary schoolchildren
• made into a movie in1983 entitled, “RicePeople”
No Harvest but a Thorn (Ranjau Sepanjang Jalan)
• Setting:
– Time: postcolonial (1960s)
–Banggul Derdap =a poor village
• rice field
• Lahuma’s house
• Farming – people’smeans of living
No Harvest but a Thorn (Ranjau Sepanjang Jalan)
• Characters:
– Lahuma
• father of sevenchildren; husband ofJeha
• a responsible andhardworking farmerand head of thefamily
– Jeha• wife of Lahuma
No Harvest but a Thorn (Ranjau Sepanjang Jalan)
• Characters:
– The Seven Children
• Sanah- eldest; will be married soon
• Milah
• Jenab
• Semek
• Liah
• Lebar
• Kiah- youngest
No Harvest but a Thorn (Ranjau Sepanjang Jalan)
• Other Characters:– Tok Penghulu
• head of the village; owns large parcels of land; has a tractor
– Ali Ketopi and Mat Diah
• neighbors of Lahumaand his family
No Harvest but a Thorn
• Chapter 1– Introduction of the Characters and Setting;
Beginning of the Planting Season
• Chapter 2– Lahuma examined his land showing his love for his
work and family
• Chapter 3– While working, Jeha encountered a snake.
No Harvest but a Thorn
• Chapter 4– Jeha kept remembering the incident with the
snake.
– Jeha was still unable to work with Lahuma.
• Chapter 5– Sanah and Milah began to work on the fields.
No Harvest but a Thorn
• Chapter 6– Nibong thorn pierced Lahuma’s foot.
– Lahuma tried to remove the thorn but he failed.
– Lahuma wasn’t able to work.
• Chapter 7– Lahuma dies because the pus has spread
throughout his body.
No Harvest but a Thorn
• Chapter 8– Lahuma was buried.
– Jeha and her children worked the fields.
– Tok Penghulu brought the tractor to Lahuma’sfields.
• Chapter 9– Rice was planted in the fields.
No Harvest but a Thorn
• Chapter 10– Crabs attacked the rice fields.
– Jeha and the children picked the crabs up andkilled them.
– Jeha kept having dreams and hallucinations ofLahuma.
• Chapter 11– Jeha lost her sanity. She went to the Tok Penghulu
and showed him her breasts.
No Harvest but a Thorn
• Chapter 12– Jeha ran amok in the middle of the night. She was
then placed in the cage leaving Sanah in charge ofthe fields.
• Chapter 13– Floods came to Banggul Derdap. Sanah, Milah,
and Jenab cleared the rice plots.
– Jeha was taken to a mental asylum.
No Harvest but a Thorn
• Chapter 14– Rice has ripened ready for the harvest.
• Chapter 15– The tiaks has appeared.
– The sisters fought the tiaks.
– Sanah, Milah, Jenab, and Semek harvested therice.
No Harvest but a Thorn
• Chapter 16– Rice production turned out to be very poor.
– The sisters waited for Jeha.
– Jeha returned. She ran wild to see the harvestedrice.
– Jeha would be returned the following day to themental asylum.
No Harvest but a Thorn (Analysis)
• The Young and theOld
• The Role of Menand Women
The Young and the Old
• The novel shows thatbeing young isn’t ahindrance.
• Sanah and her sisterseventually came outtriumphant in spite of thedownfall of the supposed“spine” of their family.
The Role of Men and Women
• Farming has always beenknown to be a man’s job,but Ahmad showed thatwomen can alsocontribute to farming.
• Lahuma died in the story,but the rice fields borefruits because of thewomen in his family.