Nigeria, a barren wasteland, now an uprising land of civilization enters an era of ferocity, dominance, depravity. From the ashes of Nigeria, emerges Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the author of Purple Hibiscus. She intertwines Purple Hibiscus with her personal memories; she wrote her tale based on her experience-religion, history, and politics. Purple Hibiscus is a novel in which expresses the complexity of the human nature. From tragedies to happiness, life is a pendulum of occasions. Life consists of abrupt changes, it may benefit or harm people, particularly Nigeria’s government in which a government is the core of its people. However, when a government is corrupt, two primary courses are presented: to submit or rebel. The corruption within …show more content…
Those who believed in the identical religion as the government would benefit, while those who did not would receive a punishment. Adichie unveils the government’s influence over religion through her father (Eugene Achike). Eugene Achike, a corrupt Catholic man who is obsessed with perfection. With his obsession, he disciplines his family when they are unable to fulfill his absurd standards. When Eugene feels a lack of perfection; he executes operant condition in which he shapes his family through violence. To demonstrate, Kambili, one of Eugene’s children, endures the punishment of scorching water poured on her feet as an act of repentance (194). His guidance solely ravages the family’s relationship as he punishes his children in which he essentially silences his children and embeds fear. With religion in Eugene’s mind, he believed that white people were far superior compared to Nigerians. He desired his lifestyle to become everything Western and modern. Thus, his thoughts are merely biased as he enacts as an embodiment of god. Furthermore, Adichie asserts, “Papa-Nnukwu had never set foot in [the house], because when Papa had decreed that heathens were not allowed in his compound, he had not made an exception for his father” (62, 63). Eugene’s religion is his pinnacle of life; his mind treasures his religion over family, especially since he attempted to lure his father and sister to exchange their religion for wealth. Since Nnukwu refused to stop worshipping his ancestors/idols in exchange for luxuries, he amassed a vociferous hatred against Papa-Nnukwu and classified him as a heathen. Clearly, corruption is evident in Eugene’s supremacy since the church is associated with the government. After all, the British government uses missionaries (priests) to disperse trade network among other countries who share the same religion. Eugene criticizes the government for their corruption, yet he
In Purple Hibiscus written by Chimamanda Adichie, the story of Kambili and her experiences throughout Nsukka and Enugu fit with the Hero’s Journey, a model of narrative that describes “the hero,” an archetype that ultimately reaches a great achievement through the stages of the Hero’s Journey. Although played in a realistic setting, unlike many of the examples portrayed in magical worlds such as Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings, Kambili experiences the same stages of the journey and by definition, is considered a hero. The stages that contribute the most significantly to modeling the Hero’s Journey of Kambili is The Ordinary World, Crossing the Threshold, and The Ordeal.
Nathan Price is the epitome of opposition in regard to cultural ignorance and global injustice. When Anatole is first introduced, he is invited to dinner with the Price family. At dinner Anatole tries to explain to Reverend Price that “Tata Ndu is concerned about the moral decline of his village”(127) because of the introduction of Christianity that is causing many Congolese to disregard their traditional religious duties. Anatole also tells Nathan that the villagers are carefully watching to see whether the Price’s god is capable of bringing them better luck than their local gods. In trying to explain this situation to Nathan, Anatole explains that most, if not all, of the congregation present in the Reverend’s church are known as “the lenzuka”(128). These are the people who have either shamed themselves or have had very bad luck. Such bad luck in fact, that many of the peo...
During the late nineteenth century Christianity is introduced to Africa, which brings conflict and unrest. In Chinua Achebe’s novel, Things Fall Apart, he portrays a cultural and religious struggle between the native Igbo people and the Christians. When the Christians become involved in the Igbo community things change. The Igbo and Christians have different beliefs about the spiritual world and this causes tension between the cultures. The differing spiritual customs of the two religions break them apart even further. Finally the destruction of the Igbo culture happens as a result of contradictory beliefs based on kinship ties within the religions. The differences between the religions are the ultimate downfall of the Igbo culture and both religions contribute to this demise equally. Understanding the dissimilarity between the Igbo religion and Christianity allows the reader to fully apprehend the reason for the eradication of the Igbo culture.
In fact, in Purple Hibiscus, as the result of Europeans enforcing the religious ideology on Nigerian people, Eugene misinterprets the ideology of Christianity, devaluing and abusing the concepts. Although Eugene grew in a traditionalist family, after going through missionary schools, he has grown to be profound of western cultures, including Christianity and the English as main language. Throughout the book, Eugene prefers to speak in English, rather than Igbo, but the first time he speak in Igbo, Kambili immediately thinks, “A bad sign. He hardly spoke Igbo … he did not like us to speak it in public.
Okonkwo has murdered, beaten, and cast off those he loved throughout his life. He remained stubborn and violent until his last days, and yet through his internal struggle, and sparse, yet endearing loves Okonkwo is still perceived to be morally indefinite. Okonkwo may not be considered by western culture to be a good person, but viewing his life in its entirety, it is almost impossible for one to attach a completely negative label to him. By telling the story of Okonkwo's life, Chinua Achebe, creates a dynamic and morally ambiguous protagonist while addressing the moral issue of Christian evangelism in Africa.
In the novel “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe, the protagonist Okonkwo struggles between tribal tradition, his internal conflicts with his own beliefs, and the arrival of European missionaries to Africa. Okonkwo’s own perspective is limited to a heavily masculine praising mindset, driving him to be rash and violent at times, but his own tribe has a variety of traditions and personalities. Immediately, Okonkwo sees these missionaries as a threat to his place in society, their beliefs are frowned upon by most of the tribes and people of power. Missionaries see African tribes as animalistic and primitive. Okonkwo’s perspective was valid considering all the damage missionaries would eventually cause in the long run. A loss of culture and the
In the middle of “Purple Hibiscus”, Kambili’s adversities elicit talents she never knew she had, such as bravery and courageousness, which proves Horace’s argument that adversity leads to positive change. Proceeding the death Papa Nnukwu, Papa (Eugene) comes to visit Ifeoma, view the body of his father, consult funeral expenses, and take his children home. While visiting, He finds out that Papa Nnukwu was living with Ifeoma, her children, Kambili, and Jaja before he died. On page 194 of “Purple Hibiscus” it is stated, “I watched the water leave the kettle. Flowing almost in slow motion in an arc to my feet.
By utilizing an unbiased stance in his novel, Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe promotes cultural relativity without forcibly steering his audience to a particular mindset. He presents the flaws of the Ibo tribe the same way he presents the assets—without either condescension or pride; he presents the cruelties of the colonizers the same way he presents their open mindedness—without either resentment or sympathy. Because of this balance, readers are able to view the characters as multifaceted human beings instead of simply heroes and victims. Achebe writes with such subtle impartiality that American audiences do not feel guilty for the cruel actions of the colonizers or disgusted by the shocking traditions of the tribesmen. The readers stop differentiating the characters as either “tribesmen” or “colonizers”. They see them simply as people, much like themselves. With this mindset, the audience starts to reflect upon their own cultural weaknesses. Conversely, the colonizers forcefully declare their religion onto the tribesmen instead of neutrally presenting their beliefs. Achebe prevails over his anger to present his opinion without forcefulness and with open-minded consideration. Yes, the colonizers succeed in converting many tribesmen into Christians; however, their success is subjective because they destroy African culture in the process. Ultimately, Achebe is successful in delivering his political views, but he does so by encouraging open-mindedness and cultural relativity instead of forcing his individual ideals upon his readers.
Though, Kambili was aware that she was deceitful to Ezinne, her father, Eugene, instills Kambili fear within her, as she desires in avoiding physical pain brought upon by him if she were to delay after school. Although, during Kambili’s visit to Nsukka, within her Aunt Ifeoma’s home, the individuals who surround her enable her to
Her first role model is Aunty Ifeoma, a liberal and genuine character who is a devout Catholic, but unlike Kambili’s father she is accepting of her father’s traditions. Aunty Ifeoma constantly encourages Kambili to defend herself, and for the first time she gives Kambili freedom that would have been a major privilege for her back home. Aunty Ifeoma also urges Kambili to reconsider her judgment, built from her father, on Papa-Nnukwu. Her father constantly states that Papa-Nnukwu is a heathen however after witnessing his innocent ritual where he prayed for all his family members, Kambili starts to question the absolute authority of her father and realizes that what he says is not always right: “I was surprised that he prayed for Papa with the same earnestness that he prayed for himself and Aunty Ifeoma” (168). Her children Amaka and Obiora are allowed to question authority and have the liberty to choose their own paths.
...rd but in the sense of Nigeria the corruption is amongst the elites and found at the highest level of federal power.
The pocketing of profits by corrupt government officials shows characteristics of patrimonialism, which not only hinders the economy because these profits are the sole source of revenue for the nation, but also harms the democratic stability of the nation and can to some extent cause the regime changes of the nation. The civic conflicts of the nation are not handled by the government and not only do these conflicts drain revenue from the government, but shows the lack of mobilization in the government, possibly due to a lack of taxation, due to the resource curse. These claims show that the resource curse has affected the government and economy of Nigeria greatly as it leads to an ineffective and corrupt government with a hindered chance of democratization, with civic conflict that cannot be controlled by the civic government.
In the novel Purple Hibiscus, culture is paramount to the development of both Kambili and Jaja while being a source of personal conflict or pride for other characters in the novel. There is a clear juxtaposition presented between cultural rejection and cultural acceptance of Nigerian culture by Nigerians which is depicted by contrasting characters like Papa Eugene, a product of colonialism, and Papa Nnukwu, a traditionalist. Adichie manipulates culture throughout the novel in order to emphasize its importance to personal identity and one’s authenticity, highlight the dangers of cultural intolerance and ignorance, and expose the implicit misconception of the superiority of Western civilization.
There are many themes evident throughout Things Fall Apart, but one of the most prominent is the struggle between change and tradition, in the sense that some people change, but others don’t. Nwoye’s callow mind was greatly puzzled” (Achebe 89). Nwoye finds the missionaries hymn soothing, but it leaves him more confused about what he believes. Nwoye finally finds the courage to convert after a violent encounter with Okonkwo, “He went back to the church and told Mr. Kiaga that he had decided to go to Umuofia where the white missionary had set up a school to teach young Christians to read and write” (Achebe 93).
PREVIEW STATEMENT: I would like to show you today, how corruption could cripple the progress in South African societies by empowering criminal organizations and keeping the lower classes poor, and then I shall provide judicial solutions that revolve around empowering the public financially and legislatively to overthrow the tools of corruption. BODY I. First of all, one ought to recognize corruption as a real threat to political and economic structures in society in South Africa. A. “Transparency International's (TI) 2013 global Corruption Perception Index (CPI) shows that South Africa has dropped 34 places since 2001, with half the decline of 17 places occurring since 2009” (Newham, 2014). B. Corruption in forms of criminal organizations is often perceived as an illegal approach to gaining financial power which is intentionally committed to procuring services and benefits. C. The problem with South Africa is that its constitutional principles of accountability and its rule of the law are not firmly implemented, which allows the flow of illegal practices.