Cutting for Stone

“Tizita” is a popular Ethiopian song that appears as a motif, coming to represent Ethiopia to Marion. Tizita, according to Ghosh’s translation, means “‘memory tinged with regret’” (152). Once Marion leaves Ethiopia, this song connects him back to his homeland and will forever represent it to him. As he says, “Tizita is the heart’s anthem, the lament of the diaspora” (228). This song also connects to Marion’s complicated identity as an Ethiopian and his Feeling Like a Foreigner in different contexts.

Since he was a baby, “Tizita” has been woven through Marion’s life: “It is ‘Tizita’ which Almaz sang when I held her breast” (227). Because of the song’s massive popularity, there are different versions of it. When Marion is running for his life, he makes sure to pack “a cassette which I knew had both the slow and fast ‘Tizita’ on it” (444); despite being in danger, he is not willing to give up his identity and love for his home. When he moves to America, “Tizita” helps him find other Ethiopians, who likewise cling to the song. Marion finds that Ethiopians remain attached to it because it remains a touchstone, “a reminder of home, of better times, and of when they had control of their lives, before moving to America” (227).

When he goes to the Ethiopian restaurant in New York, “Tizita” plays, and although the song does not mean anything to Thomas, it takes Marion home: “Tilahoun singing ‘Tizita,’ the cocoon like atmosphere, and the frankincense brought memories bubbling to the surface” (562). Here, Verghese shows the reader that Marion is a true Ethiopian, despite his ethnicity sometimes making him feel like a foreigner. Marion’s connection to “Tizita” is deep, tinged with nostalgia and regret, much like the word’s translation. This is illustrated when he says, “That first line […] I hear it now. Tizitash zeweter wode ene eye metah. I can’t help thinking about you” (228). When Marion says this, he is quoting the song, but he is also expressing his feelings for his homeland.