Brent has a Ph.D. in American culture, specializing in film studies, from the University of Michigan. She is a freelance writer and teaches courses in the history of American cinema. In the following essay, Brent discusses the role of the narrator and the theme of cultural tradition in "No Sweetness Here."

A central concern of Aidoo's fiction is the dilemma of the African woman who has received a Western education and returned to her native village and culture. Aidoo's story "No Sweetness Here" focuses on such a character. The story's narrator, referred to only as Chicha, is a Fanti woman who has been educated by the standards of Western culture, then returns to the Fanti village of Bamso as the area's only schoolteacher. Chicha's story merges with that of Maami Ama, whose son Kwesi is Chicha's favorite pupil. As Chicha learns more about Maami Ama's ill-fated...