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The Image Of African Women In A Patriarchal Society
[A CASE STUDY OF BUCHI EMECHETA’S THE JOYS OF MOTHERHOOD AND AMMA DARKO’S BEYOND THE HORIZON]
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 5]
Page 4 of 5
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In contrast to how Nnaife and Abgadi show their love
towards their daughters, in Gwendolen, Uncle Johnny decides to abuse her
niece, Gwendolen sexually instead of negotiating for her bride price.
Winston, another male character in this novel capitalises on his
authority over Gwendolen and has sexual intercourse with her. The male
characters in this book thus appear to be oppressors who give female
characters psychological trauma. This act is done by Winston and Uncle
Johnny illustrates fact that in a patriarchal society the image of women
is that of a mere objects that can be used by men to satisfy their
sexual desires as and when they deem necessary.
The Joys of
Motherhood written by Buchi Emechetapresents a story line which centres
on patriarchy. Nnu Ego who is the daughter of Chief Agbadi decides to
live her life by adhering to the strict social convention of marrying,
giving birth to male children and enduring the pains that come with it.
In this sense, Palmer (1983) extols the novel as the first in African
literature to represent the female point of view in registering its
displeasure at the male chauvinism and how patriarchy has been unfair
and oppressive towards mothers.
This novel presents barrenness as a
curse and women who give birth to female children are perceived to be
unsuccessful because it is believed that the male children perpetuate
the family names. Nnu Ego, the central female character makes several
attempts in the line of the above to define her identity through
procreation but her dream of motherhood becomes a source of slavery to
her. The storyteller in this regard articulates “Her love and duty for
her children were like a chain of slavery†(p.186).
Despite Nnu Ego’s
tireless efforts at fulfilling her dream of motherhood, all her efforts
become a mirage; she becomes bitter ironically. In the end, it comes to
light that nurturing children does not necessarily bring joy as Nnu Ego
suffers an ignoble death at the early age of forty-five, becoming
lonely and abandoned by the very children she has slaved for in the name
meeting patriarchal expectations of a woman giving birth to male
children.However, what actually broke her down was that months after
months she is expecting to hear from her sons in America, and from Adim
too who later went to Canada, and failing to do so. It was from rumours
that she heard Oshie had married and that his bride was a white
woman.When she dies, her misery and dishonourable death is brought to
the limelight as:
After such wandering, on one night, Nnu Ego lay
down by the road-side thinking that she had arrived home. She died
quietly there, with no child to hold her hand and no friend to talk to
her. She had never really made many friends, so busy had she been
building up her joys as a mother (p.253).
Amma Darko, a Ghanaian
female writer, who has emerged as a worthy successor to the pioneer
Ghanaian women novelists like Efua T. Sutherland and Ama Ata Aidoo has
written Beyond the Horizon,The Housemaid and Faceless.Darko presents a
story in Beyond the Horizon about the way African women have been
maltreated in a male-dominated African society. This story presents an
uneducated African village girl, Mara who accepts her father’s decision
to marry Akobi, the son of the village undertaker. Mara experiences
neglect, sexual abuse and battery at the hands of Akobi. Akobi sends her
to the city of Accra and he has the opportunity of travelling abroad
but when he does he sends for her mistress, Comfort who earlier on has
rejected him.
Later, Akobi sends his friend and crony, Osey to bring
Mara abroad but she is later blackmailed into prostitution when Akobi
laces her drink, allows several men to sleep with her and films the act.
The last straw that brings the back of a camel is that the lion share
of the proceeds from Mara’s prostitution goes to Akobi who spends it
lavishly on Comfort, his Mistress. In the end, Mara becomes so
devastated that she forgets the idea of going back to Ghana.
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 5]
Page 4 of 5
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