SUMMARY OF “LEGAL ALIEN”

The short story “Legal Alien” by Rutangye Crystal Butungi focuses on the protagonist (whose
name is not mentioned) trying to get her medical form filled out at a small town clinic. This
scene of her waiting for the doctor as the receptionist tries to hold a conversation with her
in their language is complemented by the memory of her first day of school in Uganda. The
themes of identity, alienation (as alluded to in the title), and education are intertwined in this
story. The first line of the story: “I can’t believe the receptionist is not going to take my
consultation fee just because I’m from her tribe!” jumped out at me mostly because I wondered
why someone would not want something that costs less. As I continued reading, I realized that
she was a little upset at the notion of not paying the fee due to having a certain identifying factor
because she herself was not sure if she belonged, and she has always had this identity crisis that
others have been confused about (not knowing one’s native tongue). Education is also deemed
important, not only in school, but also in adjusting to one’s environment and teaching others
about assumptions.

“Legal Alien” Short Story Analysis:

In Rutangye Crystal Butungi's short story, Legal Alien, in the first person the author shares her
struggle with barriers. She starts by talking about a situation in present day that confronted her
with a barrier, a language barrier, the main theme of this short story. She goes on to tell her
tricky situation. Going to the doctor she is faced with a receptionist who gives her a discount on
the doctor's fee because they are from the same village in Uganda and assumes that the author
speaks and understands their native language. She does not because after she was born in Uganda
she then moved to Australia and was raised there, only learning their language, English. The
author then goes into telling her memory of when she moved back to Uganda, having to go to a
school in which all of the kids spoke the native language. The main theme and truth of how
many barriers she faced in her own country.

Other literary elements the author uses are, dialect and imagery. The author uses dialect to show
how she is feeling and to actually make you feel how she felt. She does this by sharing the dialog
of her teacher's speaking to each other, who spoke words in their native language which the
author of course could not understand, just like when we read them, we cannot understand,
“Eh bambi, the girl is from outside countries but she is still well-mannered,” said one of the
teachers.
“ 'You mean people from bulaaya have bad manners?' Mr. Muhangazima always seemed kind
and
supportive when he spoke.
'Nanti they are always proud and spoilt when they come back, but this one bambi even thanks us
for teaching?'
'Wamma go and have your break before the bell rings.' ”

She uses imagery to help the reader understand what the classrooms in Uganda looked like
compared to what her classroom in Australia looked like. She gives the reader details of the
seating, the supplies to help learning, and how the teachers treated the kids in the classrooms.
Her class in Uganda was very dated and different from her class in Australia,

"The room was so big! There were over a hundred children in there; at least seven pupils on each
of the fifteen or so benches. The walls were dirty, and you could see where the blue paint had
been chipped at by enthusiastic kids. There were no cupboards, no teacher’s desk, no carpet, no
sleeping corner, no tiles. The room held only children, benches, a cemented floor and a huge, old
blackboard positioned at the front. Everything was so dated. It was as if the décor had
been inspired by an Adams Family episode. At the back of the classroom, bags were sprawled all
over the floor, since there were not enough hooks on the wall to carry them all."

"I couldn’t understand my new surroundings. Back in Australia, my Grade 2 class – with just
thirty-two pupils - was the biggest in the whole school. Each class had a fridge to keep snacks
until break time and a microwave to warm them if necessary. My Australian class had a carpet
for story time and tables for writing at and red and blue building blocks for doing algebra. We
also had a painting corner, an ‘imaginary’ corner, and a sleeping corner for taking afternoon
naps. And we could wear anything we wanted. Not like this school, where I had to wear white
socks pulled up to my knees and a green and white checked dress that looked exactly like the
ones mummy used to wear when she was pregnant with my younger brother - except mine had a
belt. Such a strange uniform!"

This use of imagery also helps convey the author's struggle with the barrier of a new
environment and reinforces the true theme. The truth of the short story being that barriers make
you feel like an outsider in your own country or home and to overcome those barriers you must
make a change in some way, by either learning the language that separates you or move to find
somewhere you can understand your surroundings and thrive to become something you couldn't
with barriers in the way.