The Bitter Side of Sweet

Sullivan skillfully weaves the truth about the cacao industry into these final chapters. She educates the reader on the complexity of the child labor problem, showing the reader that although things need to change, the solution is not simple. Sullivan uses plot events, such as Mrs. Kablan’s role as a journalist, to include facts about cacao farms, the process of making chocolate, and the reasons behind the use of slave labor. It becomes clear that although the bosses are cruel, they are also victims of this industry. They hardly get any money for the harvested cacao seeds, so they use children as slaves. Learning the truth about the cacao industry ruins the taste of chocolate for Amadou. No delicious taste is worth the cruelty that he and so many other children have endured. As Sullivan educates the reader on the cacao industry through the plot, she simultaneously asks the reader to consider whether the taste of chocolate is worth the cruelty behind it.

Along with Sullivan’s use of the plot to explain the cacao industry’s vicious cycle, she also highlights the importance of Amadou, Seydou, and Khadija’s decision to tell their story. Even though they are still not safe, they see the importance of taking the time to tell Mrs. Kablan the details of what they went through, in hopes that the newspaper article will help the thousands of children who are still enslaved. Sullivan draws a parallel between Seydou’s desire to rescue the other boys at the farm and the children’s collective decision to help the kids at all the farms by telling their story. Amadou thinks, “If we’re going to escape, we need to take everyone with us” (287). Even though it puts them at greater risk, they cannot turn a blind eye now that they know how many children are being forced to harvest cacao. In the same way, Sullivan challenges to the reader to acknowledge the evil present within the cacao industry and to not simply turn a blind eye to it.

These chapters also mark advancement in the children’s process of healing from the physical and emotional wounds of their time on the farm. When Amadou sees Seydou’s scars now, they don’t bring him so much guilt. Instead, they remind him that he kept his promise and got Seydou away from the farm. When Amadou and Seydou shower, they wash off the physical and symbolic dirt from the farm, along with the fear and mistreatment they endured. Even so, Amadou realizes that some aspects of their enslavement can never be washed away. Khadija is no longer the same girl she was when she was taken from her home. Seydou has seen pain and cruelty and grew up too quickly as a result. Amadou worries he will never truly feel safe. Sullivan shows how escaping the planation led to partial emotional healing for the children, but it also realistically highlights the deep wounds their enslavement caused and how those wounds may never fully heal.

Sullivan again makes use of the counting motif, this time to show how Amadou and Seydou’s lives have changed for the better. At first, at Mrs. Kablan’s house, Amadou is still afraid and focused on survival. He counts the coins they have left and the amount of hours remaining until Mrs. Kablan takes Khadija to France. However, by the novel’s resolution, the “things that matter” (298) have changed. Amadou counts the amount of days and weeks that mark new milestones in his and Seydou’s lives, such as Seydou’s fitting for his prosthetic arm, learning to read and write, getting paid, and saving enough money to visit their home village. Sullivan uses the counting motif to show the reader how Amadou’s life has improved and how he no longer needs to count the pods he harvests. He no longer has to live in fear and can instead count the positive events in life.