So Long a letter themes

Customs of Islam, progress, modernity are the main themes of the book. Ramatoulaye is a Muslim who is caught in its custom and she is mourning the death of a husband who deserted her to marry a young girl.

There is progress in the political scene. Senegal has come out from the colonial rule and that affects the characters in the book. Aissatou is also going through a bad marriage but being in America she walks out of it; this is the influence of modernity. Motherhood, friendship and marriage also are the other themes of the novel. Dialogue and address are also the themes of the novel So Long a Letter.