Chapters 4-6 Summary

Binti joins her assigned group of prospective Oomza Uni students. The group leader singles Binti out and makes derogatory comments about her anklets and otjize. Despite this, Binti makes friends with the other members of her group and develops a crush on a boy named Heru, who notices that her hair is braided in 21 triangles. Binti confirms his guess that the braids are a code—one that represents her people’s history. She discovers she is not the only student who does “treeing” (a term meaning splitting math equations into halves over and over) to reach a meditative state.

On the 18th day of the journey, while the students eat dinner, the Meduse, a jellyfish-like species, invade and begin murdering everyone in the dining hall. Binti clutches her edan and prays to it for protection. As she closes her eyes, Binti recalls how her family disapproved of her acceptance into the university.

Chapters 4-6 Analysis

Patterns are significant in Binti. Binti’s hair is braided in “tessellating triangles,” which Heru recognizes as a code. “Tessellating triangles,” an example of Okorafor’s vivid imagery, are repeating patterns of triangles that together make up bigger triangles. This code—and Binti’s hair—reveals Binti’s cultural heritage. Her hair represents her inherited mathematical abilities, an important part of her family’s lineage. Though Binti breaks tradition by leaving her family, she carries her Himba cultural identity with her. Otjize is also a symbol of Binti carrying her cultural heritage with her.

Binit’s use of mathematical equations and “treeing” trains her to see patterns. Binti uses these patterns to achieve a state where she is unaffected by emotion and can function in a purely rational manner. This ability will be a critical part of Binti’s emotional journey in the course of the plot. Being a master at seeing patterns will help Binti draw the connections that lead to empathy.