Homegoing Quey Summary & Analysis

Quey

Summary: Quey

Quey, James and Effia’s son, has been stationed in his mother’s village to remind the villagers of their trade agreement with the British. Quey meets with his uncle Fiifi to discuss the trade agreement, which Fiifi has put off since Quey arrived. Fiifi encourages Quey to listen to the birds, who are singing louder and louder until the female bird decides whose song she prefers. Fiifi explains that the village is like the bird and must see how the prices of British and their competitors for the village’s slave trade play out before deciding on a trading partner. Quey is dismayed, as he wants to leave the village as soon as possible. He notes that in London, there were no such birds or color anywhere.

Quey had a lonely childhood at the castle. One day, Quey’s father met with Abeeku Badu’s largest competitor, who brought his son Cudjo to the castle. Cudjo and Quey became fast friends, and Quey began visiting Cudjo in his village. As they grew older, Cudjo became a skilled wrestler and would tease Quey about being too scared to wrestle him. After a match that Cudjo easily won, Quey offered to challenge him when they were alone. Once Cudjo had pinned Quey to the ground, neither made any move to get up, and Quey felt his face drawn to Cudjo’s. They then heard Quey’s father ordering them to get up. The following week, James had Quey sent to England.

In Effia’s village, Quey receives a message from Cudjo, who is now the chief of his old village, asking to see him. Quey tries to distract himself from thoughts of Cudjo, but Cudjo comes to the village to help Fiifi with a mission. Quey is rattled by seeing Cudjo, who tells Quey he is welcome to visit Cudjo’s village before leaving with Fiifi and the other warriors. Fiifi does not return until a few weeks later, injured and having captured Asante people as slaves, including the Asante king’s daughter, Nana Yaa. Fiifi explains that he plans to leave what he has built to Quey, as the sons of sisters are the most important to the Fante people, and although Effia is not biologically his sister, Fiifi loved her as one. Fiifi tells Quey he will become a powerful man, marry Nana Yaa, and be safe from the Asante people.

Analysis: Quey

As someone who has a Black mother and a white father, Quey feels conflicted about both where his home is and his identity. Having grown up among mostly white people in the castle and then London, Quey does not fully identify as British or African. He only ever seemed to feel at home in the castle with either his mother or Cudjo. Quey certainly does not feel at home in his mother’s village, as he is eager to finish his work with Fiifi as soon as possible. Also, while Quey seems to miss London, he mentions the lack of color, showing perhaps that London lacked the vibrancy of a home he wanted.

This lack of a clear home also extends to Quey’s inability to express his true identity. In addition to being biracial, which Quey finds complicated enough, Quey also acknowledges his romantic feelings for Cudjo as a boy, which he knows makes him even more of an outsider. Perhaps because Quey never feels completely at ease with himself, he is more susceptible to becoming part of the slave trade. Although he knows it is wrong, he has been made to feel that everything about himself is wrong, from the color of his skin to his parentage to his romantic preferences. This shows how evil institutions like the slave trade prey on dismantling a person’s identity, whether the people who are compelled to become complicit in the slave trade or the enslaved people themselves.

In the end, Quey feels he has no choice but to return to his mother’s village, marry the woman Fiifi has kidnapped for him, and continue his mother’s family’s role in the slave trade. This shows how difficult it is to escape the cycle of generational trauma, as Quey will both inflict and experience trauma for his role in the slave trade. If Quey could not be with Cudjo, his choice would be to return to London. However, the powerful bond between Fiifi and Effia means he knows he cannot shirk the duty that has been given to him without punishment. In accepting this role, Quey is also guaranteeing his family safety from the Asante people by marrying Nana Yaa. By making Quey’s life choices about his family instead of him as an individual, Fiifi is able to manipulate Quey into continuing their family line and increasing their family wealth.

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