Men and women eat in separate corners, with the men eating in silence and in contrast, the women loud, gossiping amongst themselves. The funeral rituals continue into the third day, with Modou’s many friends continuing to come to the deceased’s house.
Overshadowing these events, however, is not just Modou’s death, but also the awareness Ramatoulaye has that she and her co-wife will be forced to give up all of their possessions to their husband’s family, becoming, in effect, possessions themselves. The men, who are Modou's family, friends, and other associates, wash their hands at the entrance of the house and file in to offer verbal condolences. Meanwhile, Ramatoulaye and her co-wife, who irritates her, submit to their relatives’ preparation rituals, which includes getting their hair done and celebrating their children. Her close female relatives begin to prepare for the burial, by choosing both the clothing and the covering for Modou.
Ramatoulaye continues the letter, telling Assiatou about the beginning of the funeral proceedings, where men and women begin to call on her to convey their condolences. She is comforted by the doctor Mawdo, Modou’s old friend, but muses on how that friendship still could not save Modou’s life, how all of his medical knowledge was useless against what she refers to as a “divine will.” She describes being called from her house by his secretary, grabbing a cab, and rushing to the hospital, only to be too late.
It opens with Ramatoulaye addressing her friend Assiatou and letting her know that her husband, Modou, has passed away suddenly from a heart attack, making her a widow. So Long A Letter is an epistolary novel, meaning it is composed entirely of letters.
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