Racism And Sexism In Ifemelu By Adichie

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Recommended: Racial Discrimination in Literature

Racism and sexism thinly veiled by xenophobia in America, Adichie portrays these two factors in society. Generally by putting her main character through a consistent stream of seemingly routine events involving one or even both of the factors. Often times she deals with micro-aggressions about her hair, which does not fit the American standard of beauty and elegance. Often showing how people are quick to assume that she is unintelligent simply by her skin and her accent. Often times Adichie portrays Ifemelu as the object of criticism and envy. Ifemelu is merely struggling to survive in a new environment. An environment that by all accounts constantly attempts to tear her down, her psyche and emotional stability constantly suffering damage. …show more content…

Ifemelu’s first encounters with America’s twisted sense of race appear extremely foreign to Ifemelu. When Ifemelu was at the store and noticed that the clerk was refusing to mention the race of the salesperson who helped her find her clothes, she was informed that many Americans are very uncomfortable discussing and mentioning race when it comes to people of color due to the country’s rough history especially with Black Americans. Ifemelu realized that the concept of race appears to be sociological. As the novel progresses Ifemelu begins to understand that even amongst Black American, she will stand out, as she has not experienced the typical “Black American” experience. With Blaine she felt slighted when he stated that she does not “live her blog”, despite her position as a critic and an observer.
According to an article titled Racism, Sexism and a Million Men written by Robert L. Allen, “Historically, black men and women in America have been victims of brutal and systematic violence.” This statement provides backup for why Ifemelu is treated a little differently by the Black community, because of the historical “brutal and systemic violence” that American Blacks have suffered they do not exactly like when someone who has not experienced the same thing becomes successful discussing that …show more content…

Allen, “The ideology of male supremacy is the enemy of all of us, for it beguiles us into accepting white supremacist notions of domination, and the "normalization" of violence as the means to maintain control over others” it supports the notion that black men and women are both affected by white supremacy. White supremacy affects all black individuals regardless of background. Its omnipresence is greatly understated and affects the black community to this day. Ifemelu is essentially used as a highlighter to distinguish and point out the specific instances that affect people in her position and the position of those around her. As well as Dike, he symbolizes the effect and toxicity of an individual Black man, without a sense of identity, in a predominantly white space. Dike suffers with identity issues and simply blatant racism, which negatively affects his mental health as it does on many other black people in the same

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