40 pages • 1 hour read
G. D. Pickett, Djibril Tamsir Niane, Djibril Tamsir Niane (D.T. Niane), Transl. G. D. PickettSundiata: An Epic of Old Mali (Sunjata)
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1200A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 7-9Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 7 Summary: “Exile”
Sogolon realizes her family must leave Mali. Meanwhile, Sassouma hatches a plot to take away Sundiata’s griot: Touman places Fasséké at the head of an embassy he sends to the kingdom of Sosso.
Sundiata, Sogolon, Kolonkan, and Manding Bory, Sundiata’s half-brother by Naré Maghan’s third wife, depart. As they leave, Sundiata vows to return and retrieve his griot. They first go to the kingdom of Djedeba, ruled by Mansa Konkon. One night the king calls Sundiata to his palace and challenges him to a game of wori for Sundiata’s life. Over the game, the king recites a poem expressing his unbeatable prowess at the game, and Sundiata retorts with a poem revealing that he knows Sassouma paid Mansan Konkon to kill him. Sundiata then beats the king at the game. Flabbergasted by Sundiata’s clairvoyance, the king expels him from the kingdom.
The family goes to Tabon, the kingdom of Prince Fran Kamara, a childhood friend of Sundiata. Sundiata vows to pass through Tabon again on his return to Mali, making Kamara a general in his army and sharing in conquering with him. The family then heads to Ghana with a merchant’s caravan. From the merchants, Sundiata learns of King 
