Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Nigerian traditions essay
Essay on representation of gender and literature
Development of representations of gender in British literature
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Nigerian traditions essay
This essay will consist of a brief background of both the story and the authors and I will compare and contrast both Indian and Nigerian culture and tradition, specifically looking at the woman’s role and duty within their family and community. The short story ‘A stench of kerosene’ retells the story of a young woman called Gulleri, who lives with her husband Manak and his family. Gulleri is unable to bear a child and therefore unable to produce a son, because of this, Manak’s mother arranges him to marry another woman whilst Gulleri is at the yearly harvest fair in her home town of Chamba. When Gulleri hears of manak’s new wife she soaks her clothes in kerosene and sets herself on fire. Author of, a stench of kerosene, Amrita Pritam who was a citizen of India in 1947, was famously known to write about personal experiences and events that occurred in India, therefore it is quite possible she would have been an eyewitness to horrific scenes like the story of Gulleri, So It is quite fitting that she would write a story of this nature. The story Veronica is also about a young woman, who lives with her family in a small village in Nigeria and her friend Okeke who leaves Nigeria to gain an education in England, ten years later he returned to find Veronica was married, with a child and living in acute poverty. Okeke left Nigeria and returned three years later after the destruction of the civil war, where he met Veronica for the very last time, Veronica died in Okeke’s arms. The author Adewale Maja-Pearce was a citizen of Nigeria; in fact his personal life is reflected greatly in this story as he actually grew up in Lagos and attended universities in England.
The saying “A women’s place is in the kitchen”, comes to mind when reading...
... middle of paper ...
...for Guleri's death and this is why he cannot bear to hold the child and why the baby metaphorically smells of kerosene.
In every culture there are differences and similarities between them. The two young women are from poverty stricken rural communities, one an Indian and the other an African village, the culture and traditions in both countries have moulded the expectations of the male and female roles which dominate the women in these countries. I found these stories extremely interesting to read, especially because I hear stories like these on the news, I find it incredible that even though these stories were written many years ago, they still reflect many women’s lives in India and Africa. The fact that these traditions and cultural ways have not changed shows a lack of outside influences, and how much the people of Africa and India respect these traditions.
The book Monique and the Mango Rains is written on the backdrop of one of the poorest countries in the world where people are uneducated but they have their own culture and customs which they follow ardently. However the practices somehow match with the current world of hypocrite people but unknowingly they are present in the small village Nampossela of Mali where author interacted with Monique the central character of the
In “Monique and the Mango Rains”, Holloway describes her encounters with the difficulties of the women in the village of Nampossela and childbirth practices of midwifes in Mali. As a young white woman from Ohio, Holloway uses her unique perspective to write a description of her experiences of the rural midwifery practices of Monique and the hardships of the women she meets in Mali. Holloway uses her knowledge of the later events to enhance her description of her time as a Peace Corp volunteer and her observations of the village she lived in.
How sad can that be for these women to feel that they have no other option out of their marriage? In conclusion, both short stories were great at allowing the reader to see the way that women were repressed in their society in the 1900s. We don't hate the men; we just wish women did not have to be so subservient. Freedom is achieved in very unconventional ways in both of these stories, but the kind of freedom these narrators achieve is not available to most women of this time era. Works Cited Kennedy, X. J., and Dana Gioia.
In both of these stories there are certain characteristics of females that are the same, they are inner strength, obedience, honor and respect, the good of the family is better than the good of the individual.
The setting of both stories reinforces the notion of women's dependence on men. The late 1800's were a turbulent time for women's roles. The turn of the century brought about revolution, fueled by the energy and freedom of a new horizon…but it was still just around the bend. In this era, during which both short stories were published, members of the weaker sex were blatantly disregarded as individuals, who had minds that could think, and reason, and form valid opinions.
Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart explores the struggle between old traditions within the Igbo community as well as Christianity and "the second coming" it brings forth. While on the surface, it appears the novel narrows its focus to a single character, Okonkno and his inner battles, one can read deeper into the text and find an array of assorted conflicts in the realm on human vs. human, human vs. nature, human vs. society, and society vs. society. For the purposes of this paper I shall focus on the labyrinth of human vs. human and human vs. society in the framework of the role of women in Igbo society and how men assign and dictate these roles. I will also briefly explain the importance of women in terms of motherhood and wifedom.
The only glory and satisfaction enjoyed by the women portrayed in Things Fall Apart was being a mother. They receive respect and love from their children. They are strong for their children. The women are viewed as very gentle and caring. They are expected to take care of their children with the best of their ability and are trusted totally by their children. This honorable presentation of women is used by Achebe to identify women's role in the Ibo society. This presentation is necessary to show that women indeed play an important role in society.
Adichie portrays the persisting existence of traditional African culture through Odenigbo’s mother – who symbolizes the extreme end of traditional beliefs. When Odenigbo’s mother visits Odenigbo and Olanna at their apartment in Nsukka, she is immediately personified as the traditional Nigerian village woman. Unaccepting of modern attitudes and advancements, she “peered suspiciously at the stove, knocked on the pressure cooker and tapped the pots...
As we compare the traditional women versus modern women, we perceive differences and similarities. Prachi fights for a belief system that controls her meanwhile Ruhi struggles with self-identity and depends on the beauty pageant to empower her as an Indian woman. Prachi defends Hinduism but at the same time, is Hinduism that restrains her from becoming “modern.” Ruhi on the other hand considers herself a very modern girl and she values freedom therefor the pageant is a road to liberation for her. Both girls struggle in distinct ways but their goal is similar, to shape their countries future.
Both stories show feminism of the woman trying to become free of the male dominance. Unfortunately, the woman are not successful at becoming free. In the end, the two women’s lives are drastically
Throughout the centuries, the roles of Nigerian women have continuously evolved. During the pre- colonial era, women in Nigerian tribes were not only child bearers and wives, but also free adults. They played critical roles in food preparation, weaving, pottery, and the economy. However, the impact of British rule in Nigeria made a significant shift from the pre-colonial to the post- colonial era. The influence of the Catholic Church, Western style education, patriarchal government and modern ways of making money took a major toll in a woman’s role in society. As demonstrated in the history and literature of Nigeria, society can clearly witness the setbacks and growths of Nigerian women experienced. This literary paper’s purpose is to analyze how these women came to be, what exactly caused to evolve, and where they stand in today’s society.
Over time, there have been several aspects that have influenced these cultures and made them unique in their own ways. I believe the traditions and values that each culture holds is important when trying to learn and understand each. The cultures in Kenya and India share similarities and differences among families in context, marital relationships, and families and aging. These are all equally important to understand because this is the underlying beliefs and values these cultures have toward these life events the families may
Things Fall Apart, a novel by Nigerian author Chinua Achebe is a story about an Igbo village in Nigeria and a man that once was a powerful influence in the tribe, but begins to lose his influence as Nigeria is colonized and Christian missionaries come to evangelize. A deeper look at the novel, with a feminist critics point of view, tells a lot about the Igbo people as well as the author’s thoughts about women in the novel. Feminist critics look at female authors, and female characters and their treatment as well as women’s issues in society. Since Achebe is a male, the main focus of feminist literary criticism for Things Fall Apart is the women in the novel and their issues as well as the Igbo view of gender identity. Many issues that women
Buchi Emecheta's The Joys of Motherhood as an African Feminist Text. Upon my first reading of Buchi Emecheta's The Joys of Motherhood, I immediately rejoiced--in this novel, I had finally encountered an account of a female protagonist in colonial and postcolonial African life. In my hands rested a work that gave names and voices to the silent, forgotten mothers and co-wives of novels by male African writers such as Chinua Achebe. Emecheta, I felt, provided a much-needed glimpse into the world of the African woman, a world harsher than that of the African male because women are doubly marginalized.
“The Joys of Motherhood” by Buchi Emecheta reveals an interesting struggle between one’s own core values and the core values of others. The protagonist Nnu Ego begins her journey of self-discovery alone and barren. It is not until later that she sees being barren as a gift and being fertile as a burden. This drastic shift is brought on by her move from Ibuza to Lagos and the difference in culture she is exposed to as time progresses. In the novel, Nnu Ego faces obstacles that relate to changing gender roles in the community of Lagos, resulting in the shift of her beliefs from those established by her upbringing in Ibuza.