Going Solo

“Nowadays you can fly to Mombasa in a few hours and you stop nowhere and nothing is fabulous any more, but in 1938 a journey like that was full of stepping-stones and East Africa was a long way from home, especially if your contract with the Shell Company said that you were to stay out there for three years at a stretch.”

Dahl invites the reader to put themselves in his shoes when he saw things with a sense of wonder. His use of the phrase “nothing is fabulous any more” conveys a sense of nostalgia for a time when travel was more of an expedition filled with unknowns and marvels. The word “fabulous” implies that the journey itself was once a source of excitement and amazement, filled with rich experiences and exotic encounters. The duration of “three years at a stretch” suggests a prolonged period of separation from the familiar, a daunting prospect that entails both personal and professional challenges. This quote encapsulates the essence of the colonial experience for Europeans, where individuals were often sent to remote locations, facing not only the physical distance but also the cultural and emotional distances from their homeland.

“But hang on a minute!…What was this?…There was someone with him!…There was another fellow scooting behind him this time!…As naked as the Major he was, too!…What on earth was going on aboard this ship?…Did all the male passengers get up at dawn and go tearing round the deck with no clothes on?…Was this some Empire-building body-building ritual I didn’t know about?…The two were coming closer now…My God, the second one looked like a woman!…It was a woman!…A naked woman as bare-bottomed as Venus de Milo…But there the resemblance ceased for I could see now that this scrawny white-skinned figure was none other than Mrs Major Griffiths herself.”

Dahl has a lively and humorous tone, using short, fragmented sentences and exclamatory punctuation to convey his surprise and amusement. The rapid-fire succession of thoughts and observations creates a sense of immediacy and spontaneity, as though the reader is experiencing the scene alongside Dahl. The use of ellipses and exclamation marks punctuates his internal monologue, emphasizing his incredulity and the absurdity of the situation.