Ghostroots
“Ghostroots” by ‘Pemi Aguda is a debut short story collection set in Lagos, Nigeria, blending the mundane with the supernatural. The twelve stories explore themes of inheritance, maternal lineage, and haunting legacies, often focusing on women grappling with familial and societal burdens. Aguda’s prose weaves unsettling yet deeply human narratives, where everyday life intersects with spectral presences. Notable stories include “Breastmilk,” which delves into generational trauma. The collection has been praised for its elegant voice and was a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction, marking Aguda as a significant new voice in contemporary literature.
The Dusk Market
by Aguda, ‘PemiThe chapter introduces the enigmatic Dusk Market, a hidden marketplace that emerges at twilight, filled with sensory richness—smoky stockfish, buzzing flies, sizzling agbara pans, and the cacophony of bartering voices. The market is preceded by flickering kerosene lanterns, guiding the way for those who belong. Ordinary pedestrians and drivers avoid the intersection instinctively, though children occasionally glimpse surreal sights like head-hopping men or winking birds, which adults dismiss or ignore. The market women, though unfamiliar, bear uncanny resemblances to people one might know, their mannerisms and appearances eerily familiar yet otherworldly.
Salewa, a lonely ogogoro seller, stumbles upon the market after dulling her inhibitions with alcohol. Her slow, meandering walk leads her to the intersection where the Dusk Market materializes before her eyes—lanterns, vibrant stalls, and bustling women in colorful ankara. The warmth and camaraderie of the market stir a deep longing in her, but the vision vanishes as suddenly as it appears, leaving her disoriented. The experience lingers in her mind, blurring the line between dream and reality, and she becomes distracted the next day, unable to shake the memory of the market’s fleeting embrace.
The Dusk Market exists in a liminal space, visible only to those invited or those who, like Salewa, slip through “slippery moments” of perception. Children’s innocent observations and adults’ peripheral glimpses hint at its supernatural nature, but most dismiss these signs. Salewa’s encounter, however, is transformative—the market’s warmth contrasts starkly with her isolated life, hinting at a deeper yearning for connection. Her vulnerability and intoxication allow her to see what others cannot, but the market’s ephemeral nature leaves her questioning its reality.
The chapter blends magical realism with poignant social commentary, contrasting the vibrancy of the Dusk Market with Salewa’s grim existence. The market symbolizes community and belonging, a stark contrast to the alienation of urban life. Salewa’s fleeting glimpse of this hidden world underscores the human desire for connection, even as it remains tantalizingly out of reach. The narrative leaves readers questioning the boundaries between reality and illusion, much like Salewa herself.
FAQs
1. How does the author establish the supernatural nature of the dusk market through sensory details in the opening paragraphs?
Answer:
The author uses vivid sensory imagery to create an otherworldly atmosphere. Visual descriptions like “flicker of flames within rusting kerosene lanterns” and “bokeh of yellow light” establish an eerie glow, while auditory details (“ringing of tiny bells,” “thrum of voices”) suggest a space out of time. Olfactory cues like “smoky smell of dried stockfish” and tactile elements like “singeing heat from the agbada” create hyper-reality that contrasts with the market’s elusive nature. Most tellingly, the text notes pedestrians instinctively avoid the area and children see impossible things like “hopping heads” or “winking herons,” signaling supernatural phenomena that ordinary perception filters out.2. Analyze how Salewa’s character and personal history make her particularly susceptible to perceiving the dusk market.
Answer:
Salewa’s loneliness and alcohol use lower her psychological defenses, making her receptive to the market’s magic. As a 36-year-old woman with “sagging breasts” living in poor conditions, her marginalized status mirrors the market’s hidden nature. Her twenty-one years of hardship since arriving Lagos “on the back of a ram-transporting truck” have forged resilience but also deep isolation - the market’s warmth and communal energy (“women embracing”) directly appeal to her unmet needs. The ogogoro (local gin) dulls her survival instincts that would normally make her avoid the supernatural, allowing her to “see more than is otherwise available.” Her vulnerability becomes a conduit for perception.3. What symbolic significance might the dusk market hold in relation to Lagosian urban experience?
Answer:
The dusk market functions as a liminal space representing both the hidden magic and harsh realities of Lagos. Like the city itself, it’s vibrant yet unsettling - full of commerce (“sung invitations by sellers”) but requiring survival instincts (“drivers speed past”). The market women’s resemblance to ordinary people (“not women you know, but they could be”) suggests an alternative reality coexisting with daily struggles. For Salewa, it represents fleeting connection in an isolating city, appearing when daylight “thins out” like hope diminishing. The market’s ephemeral nature (“blinks and the empty street returns”) mirrors how urban opportunities vanish before the marginalized can grasp them.4. How does the chapter use contrast to heighten the supernatural elements of the story?
Answer:
The text employs stark contrasts between mundane and magical to amplify the uncanny. Ordinary market elements (yam frying, bartering) appear alongside impossible visions (dogs dancing like humans). The women seem familiar (“same smile as your landlord’s wife”) yet manifest supernaturally (“come out of nowhere”). Daylight’s rationality (“pedestrians stall at this intersection”) opposes dusk’s permeability (“when the light of the day thins out”). Salewa’s gritty reality (“dirt-crusted slippers”) clashes with her transcendent experience (“goo in her heart”). These juxtapositions make the supernatural feel both startling and inevitable - a hidden layer of reality that briefly surfaces when conditions align.5. What narrative purpose does the market’s selective visibility serve in developing the story’s themes?
Answer:
The market’s elusive visibility underscores themes of perception and belonging. Only certain people (children, the intoxicated, the desperately lonely) can perceive it, suggesting reality is filtered by circumstance and consciousness. This selectivity comments on urban invisibility - how society overlooks both magical possibilities and marginalized people like Salewa. The requirement for invitation (“you don’t see the dusk market if you are not invited”) mirrors social exclusion, while its warm communal energy contrasts with Salewa’s isolation. By making the market vanish when directly acknowledged, the narrative suggests that magic and connection are fragile, requiring both openness and luck to perceive in an indifferent city.
Quotes
1. “But before all of this, it is the flicker of flames within rusting kerosene lanterns that will show you the way to the dusk market.”
This opening line establishes the mystical atmosphere of the dusk market, introducing its otherworldly nature through sensory details. It sets the tone for the chapter by hinting at the market’s elusive quality that will later become central to Salewa’s experience.
2. “No, these market women are not women you know, but they could be.”
This pivotal statement captures the uncanny duality of the market women - simultaneously familiar and strange. It represents the chapter’s exploration of how the supernatural intersects with the mundane, preparing readers for the market’s liminal nature.
3. “You don’t see the dusk market if you are not invited to the dusk market, but there are slippery moments, slits, frissons.”
This quote explains the fundamental rule governing visibility of the supernatural market. It introduces the concept of threshold moments when the veil between worlds thins, which becomes crucial when Salewa later glimpses the market.
4. “Salewa is a lonely woman, an alone woman who knows her survival is based on hiding this fact.”
This insight into Salewa’s character explains why she might be particularly susceptible to the market’s allure. The poignant description of her isolation foreshadows why the vision of community in the dusk market affects her so deeply.
5. “She sees the dusk market appear around her, and she hears its sounds next. Her face flushes, her basket slips from her fingers, and just when she acknowledges the warmth in her belly, this goo in her heart, this desire to stay in this strange, dimly lit market forever, she blinks and the empty street is once more laid before her, its barrenness taunting her.”
This climactic moment captures both the market’s enchanting power and its ephemeral nature. The visceral description of Salewa’s emotional response highlights the market’s symbolic meaning as a fleeting vision of belonging and warmth that contrasts with her harsh reality.
Quotes
1. “But before all of this, it is the flicker of flames within rusting kerosene lanterns that will show you the way to the dusk market.”
This opening line establishes the mystical atmosphere of the dusk market, introducing its otherworldly nature through sensory details. It sets the tone for the chapter by hinting at the market’s elusive quality that will later become central to Salewa’s experience.
2. “No, these market women are not women you know, but they could be.”
This pivotal statement captures the uncanny duality of the market women - simultaneously familiar and strange. It represents the chapter’s exploration of how the supernatural intersects with the mundane, preparing readers for the market’s liminal nature.
3. “You don’t see the dusk market if you are not invited to the dusk market, but there are slippery moments, slits, frissons.”
This quote explains the fundamental rule governing visibility of the supernatural market. It introduces the concept of threshold moments when the veil between worlds thins, which becomes crucial when Salewa later glimpses the market.
4. “Salewa is a lonely woman, an alone woman who knows her survival is based on hiding this fact.”
This insight into Salewa’s character explains why she might be particularly susceptible to the market’s allure. The poignant description of her isolation foreshadows why the vision of community in the dusk market affects her so deeply.
5. “She sees the dusk market appear around her, and she hears its sounds next. Her face flushes, her basket slips from her fingers, and just when she acknowledges the warmth in her belly, this goo in her heart, this desire to stay in this strange, dimly lit market forever, she blinks and the empty street is once more laid before her, its barrenness taunting her.”
This climactic moment captures both the market’s enchanting power and its ephemeral nature. The visceral description of Salewa’s emotional response highlights the market’s symbolic meaning as a fleeting vision of belonging and warmth that contrasts with her harsh reality.
— Unknown
FAQs
1. How does the author establish the supernatural nature of the dusk market through sensory details in the opening paragraphs?
Answer:
The author uses vivid sensory imagery to create an otherworldly atmosphere. Visual descriptions like “flicker of flames within rusting kerosene lanterns” and “bokeh of yellow light” establish an eerie glow, while auditory details (“ringing of tiny bells,” “thrum of voices”) suggest a space out of time. Olfactory cues like “smoky smell of dried stockfish” and tactile elements like “singeing heat from the agbada” create hyper-reality that contrasts with the market’s elusive nature. Most tellingly, the text notes pedestrians instinctively avoid the area and children see impossible things like “hopping heads” or “winking herons,” signaling supernatural phenomena that ordinary perception filters out.
2. Analyze how Salewa’s character and personal history make her particularly susceptible to perceiving the dusk market.
Answer:
Salewa’s loneliness and alcohol use lower her psychological defenses, making her receptive to the market’s magic. As a 36-year-old woman with “sagging breasts” living in poor conditions, her marginalized status mirrors the market’s hidden nature. Her twenty-one years of hardship since arriving Lagos “on the back of a ram-transporting truck” have forged resilience but also deep isolation - the market’s warmth and communal energy (“women embracing”) directly appeal to her unmet needs. The ogogoro (local gin) dulls her survival instincts that would normally make her avoid the supernatural, allowing her to “see more than is otherwise available.” Her vulnerability becomes a conduit for perception.
3. What symbolic significance might the dusk market hold in relation to Lagosian urban experience?
Answer:
The dusk market functions as a liminal space representing both the hidden magic and harsh realities of Lagos. Like the city itself, it’s vibrant yet unsettling - full of commerce (“sung invitations by sellers”) but requiring survival instincts (“drivers speed past”). The market women’s resemblance to ordinary people (“not women you know, but they could be”) suggests an alternative reality coexisting with daily struggles. For Salewa, it represents fleeting connection in an isolating city, appearing when daylight “thins out” like hope diminishing. The market’s ephemeral nature (“blinks and the empty street returns”) mirrors how urban opportunities vanish before the marginalized can grasp them.
4. How does the chapter use contrast to heighten the supernatural elements of the story?
Answer:
The text employs stark contrasts between mundane and magical to amplify the uncanny. Ordinary market elements (yam frying, bartering) appear alongside impossible visions (dogs dancing like humans). The women seem familiar (“same smile as your landlord’s wife”) yet manifest supernaturally (“come out of nowhere”). Daylight’s rationality (“pedestrians stall at this intersection”) opposes dusk’s permeability (“when the light of the day thins out”). Salewa’s gritty reality (“dirt-crusted slippers”) clashes with her transcendent experience (“goo in her heart”). These juxtapositions make the supernatural feel both startling and inevitable - a hidden layer of reality that briefly surfaces when conditions align.
5. What narrative purpose does the market’s selective visibility serve in developing the story’s themes?
Answer:
The market’s elusive visibility underscores themes of perception and belonging. Only certain people (children, the intoxicated, the desperately lonely) can perceive it, suggesting reality is filtered by circumstance and consciousness. This selectivity comments on urban invisibility - how society overlooks both magical possibilities and marginalized people like Salewa. The requirement for invitation (“you don’t see the dusk market if you are not invited”) mirrors social exclusion, while its warm communal energy contrasts with Salewa’s isolation. By making the market vanish when directly acknowledged, the narrative suggests that magic and connection are fragile, requiring both openness and luck to perceive in an indifferent city.
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