Point of View

The narrator of this story is the African nun. Walker never provides the African nun with a name, but the reader knows her innermost thoughts, desires, and beliefs. The reader is privy to these private thoughts because the entirety of the story consists of excerpts from her diary. By the end of the story, the reader knows the nun's personal point of view regarding celibacy, barrenness, and procreation. In this way, the nun's life of self-sacrifice of her own desires for what she feels is her duty to her God and the church are deeply felt by the reader.

Setting

The Diary of an African Nun takes place in a township located at the foot of the Uganda mountains. The township has been "civilized" by American Catholic missionaries. The classroom where the nun lives and teaches becomes a hotel for travelers at night. It is within...