¶ … Role of Women in African and Indian Society
Both Things Fall Apart and Nectar in a Sieve weave rather vivid imagery of the life of women in the traditional, patriarchal society of Africa and India during the colonial period. The vividness of the images of cultures where a great deal of importance was placed on women bearing sons and devoting their lives to the care of their families, leads the modern day reader to easily conclude that women in traditional African and Indian cultures were without any voice and far too oppressed. While there is ample evidence in both works to validate such a conclusion, there is a strong case to counter argue that women in both works are also shown as playing an important social role and depicted as possessing a great deal of strength of character. For one, women in African and Indian rural cultures seem to have contributed to both the domestic and economic well being of their families. Second, it is not as if the women in Achebe and Markandaya's works are seen to be completely devoid of any spunk, judging by the bravery and courage they demonstrate when sufficiently provoked into doing so. Third, and perhaps most important, both works highlight the fact that their traditional cultures did care for and respect their womenfolk.
The interpretation that women in Things Fall Apart are at the mercy of a male dominated, sexist society is largely due to the character of Okonkwo, its central protagonist. Right through...
But because Ezinma is female, she cannot function in this capacity. Moreover, even a woman, in a traditional reading of the text would support this notion" (Strong-Leek). The fact that society was patriarchal at the time was especially devastating for women. Moreover, women readers are probable to consider that it is perfectly natural for Ezinma to be unable to follow her father's footsteps because society as a whole has
Chinua Achebe / Buchi Emecheta In Buchi Emecheta's book, The Joys of Motherhood, colonialism is already instituted and through the main character, Nnu Ego, we are able to see what post-colonialism looks like from a woman's perspective. The reader has the knowledge of hindsight and what colonialism did in Africa, the major impact of it, however, the story that Emecheta creates completely avoids anachronism. The characters in Emecheta's book only know
Chinua Achebe's fifth novel, Anthills of the Savannah, was first published in 1987, some fifteen years after his fourth novel, A Man of the People. In Anthills of the Savannah, Achebe states his abhorrence of any theory of radical transformation of society. "Society is an extension of an individual," he says through Ikem Osodi, his protagonist. "The most we can hope to do with a problematic psyche is to re-form
It is this process of dehumanization of the colonial populations that justifies their own imperialistic behavior. In a similar manner, the human psyche may really be incapable of the kinds of structures and deeds necessary to subjugate a population. In order to do so, then, the colonial population slips into a sense of unreality and justification, accelerating dehumanization in order to allow for colonial subjugation (Fanon, 108, 171-4). Bibliography: Achebe, C.
These converts become zealots and actually kill the village's sacred python. We read no one believed "such a thing could happen" (158). The violence shocks some in the community but not in the way we might expect. Okonkwo wants to chase the missionaries away but the clan overrules his idea is overruled and ostracizes him. This is interesting human behavior. Some clansmen are opposed and others are not and
In the end, he cannot cope with what is happening to him and chooses to deal with things in his own way. Jonathon, too, is a man that is faced with challenges in his community. His outlook is more positive and he chooses to cope by adapting as best as he can. Adapting was something that Okonkwo simply could not do and would not do. These men represent the
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