The elite of Mali, kings and griots, view Sundiata as a great leader who stood out and also a valiant warrior who was able to command the loyalties of his generals and army. The elite of Mali use Sundiata to reinforce their status and their importance to Mali. The Kings of Mali use Sundiata to show that they have descended from greatness and they are not to be questioned. The griots use Sundiata to show that they are the keepers of all history and without them history will be lost. For example, Djeli Mamoudou Kouyate says "we are vessels of speech, we are the repositories which harbour secrets many centuries old. The art of eloquence has no secrets for us: without us the names of kings would vanish into oblivion, we are the memory of mankind; by the spoken word we bring to life the deeds and exploits of kings for younger generations" (pg.1). The kings and griots' views of Sundiata have shaped the views of present-day Malians on the history of Sundiata. Present-day Malians use this tale to have a sense of pride in their culture, history, and country.
While majority of the perspectives of Sundiata are positive, they are also one sided. Most of the viewpoints that people are exposed to of Sundiata are the viewpoints of the griots than another person's perspective on Sundiata. For example, a slave's point of view could have been he was a terrible tyrant who mistreated his people. Perhaps, if we heard from someone in a lower caste stating that he was unfair because he paid most of his attention to the higher caste of people in Mali, or if we heard the perspective of a king from one of the other lands, he might view Sundiata as ruthless conquer trying to control every kingdom in sight. A women's perspective of Sundiata could have been that he was a male chauvinist. "'Kings will tremble before us as a woman trembles before a man.' The son of Sogolon had spoken thus" (pg.