ANALYSIS,SUMMARY AND REVIEW OF SONS AND DAUGHTERS BY JOE DE GRAFT

Characters in order of appearance:
1. Aaron Ofosu ---- Son of James Ofosu
2. Awere          ----  Aaron's friend
3. Hannah         ----  Aaron's mother
4. Adwao         ----  Maidservant
5. Maanan        ----  Sister to Aaron
6. Fosuwa        ----  Paternal aunt to Aaron & Maanan
7. Lawyer Bonu ---  Friend of Ofosu family
8. James Ofosu ---- Businessman & head of Ofosu family
9. George         ---- brother to Aaron & Maanan
10. Mrs Bonu   ---- Wife to Lawyer Bonu.

Plot Summary:
The desire of James Ofosu to always choose a course of study for each of all his children and his success (or coincidence) in the cases of George and Kofi kick-started the chain of events.Unfortunately the refusal of Aaron and Maanan to follow the dictates of their father did not stop him (James) from employing the services of Lawyer Bonu to assist towards securing admissions for them. Having succeeded in getting a place in Manchester University for Aaron to study Engineering, he was also supposed to secure one in London for Maanan where she would study law.
Instead, he started love overtures towards Maanan, which climaxed when he forcefully tried to kiss her inside her father's living room and in the struggle that erupted between them, the entire (open) secret was revealed. James the realised that all that glitters are not gold. The emotional support by Awere to Hannah and her children was not useless after all as Awere who was rejected by James and his sister Fosuwa (the rejection instigated by Lawyer Bonu) became the toast of Ofosu family due the unfolded event. More so the news of his successful paintings sale to an American collector at 220 pounds further increased his credibility.This further proves to James and his sister that painting (just like Music as desired by Maanan) can be a lucrative source of income. Awere was congratulated and received a glass of water which is meant to give him good luck for the future.Denouement is played out as James gave in to the freedom of allowing each of them choose their desired course of study.

Theme:
The theme of Inter-generational clash between the old constituted by James and the young represented by both Aaron and Maanan. It was indeed a conflict between choosing career for a living and choosing career  for its passion sake. With the erroneous assumption that his children were not yet capable of making wise decisions about their future careers, he insisted in doing it for them, via the assistance of Lawyer Bonu. However the young ones believed otherwise because their concern and motivation are the courses that satisfy their passion and not just reading to make money.

The second subject matter is the contradiction or misplacement of trust which played out when the  person(s) that deserve respect and trust were treated with disregard and suspicion while the one that was trusted was very unfaithful to his friend and wife. Hannah, her children and Awere that deserved a better treatment from James were neglected and were even accused of conspiracy at one point while Lawyer Bonu that was morally bankrupt was given the delicate responsibility of securing admissions and grooming Maanan in his law chambers.

Setting:
The description of the interior decorations reveals an urbanised setting.Also the action of George in going for tennis practise and the description of James Ofosu's haulage (or transportation) business are further examples of events that normally happens in a metropolitan environment.The time setting can be described as modern period when parents would want to dominate their children's calling.

Dramatic Irony:
The actions of Lawyer Bonu  while he was alone with Maanan at her Father's living room runs counter to the tensed mood and suspicion spread out throughout the house before he entered.