Story Of Nnu Egofs Mother example essay topic

Motherhood is Womanhood: The Identity of Woman in Buchi Emechetafs The Joys of Motherhood Danielle Grant Let it be known that Buchi Emecheta, the author of The Joys of Motherhood, does not consider herself a feminist. She has said herself that she identifies much more with the term gwomanist. h Whatever you call it, Emecheta clearly identifies with the plight of the Nigerian Woman in her novel The Joys of Motherhood. The story, set in colonial Nigeria around the time of the Second World War, paints a picture of life in the port-city of Lagos and an Ibo village. Nnu Ego is the character who traverses these two existences and whose life presents the framework in which the book unfolds. Emecheta explores the dualities and complexities of the Colonialist shift through the dualities and complexities of Nnu Egofs life, which is desperately devoted to the pursuit of successful womanhood in two cultures at the same time. By tying womanhood and motherhood together, the inextricable link is made.

Nnu Ego cannot be a real woman unless she is a mother, if she is not a successful mother she has no value as woman. With the exception of the first chapter of the book, Joys of Motherhood is propelled by a linear narrative that begins with the story of Nnu Egofs mother and finishes with the death of Nnu Ego herself. The scenario that begins Emechetafs tale is a quick account of Nnu Egofs reaction to the death of her firstborn child. for how would she be able to face the world after what had happened? No, it was better not to try. It was best to end it all this way, the only good way. h (8) Nnu Ego would rather die by her own hand than face her family and friends as a failed mother. By isolating Nnu Egofs suicide attempt from the rest of the narrative, Emecheta begins her story by turning her readers attention to the focus of Nnu Egofs life and where her priorities are.

To many western readers, it would appear that although a newborns death is a tragic event, one that might even drive a mother to suicide over the death of her child, Nnu Egofs grief is not only over the loss of her child, but the loss of what the child inherently grants her. Motherhood, and in turn, a solid female identity. her baby cher baby! Nnu Egofs arms involuntarily went to hold her aching breasts, more for assurance of her motherhood, than to ease their weight. h (8) Thus, Emechetafs story purposefully opens with a scenario that, in the most drastic way, notes a woman who only identifies a life worth living, as one that is spent being a mother. Later on in the narrative, the events that surround Nnu Egofs suicide attempt are elaborated upon. Nnu Ego has been saved by the people who witness her as she tries to hurl herself into a lagoon.

Upon making sure that she is safely on the ground, these people surround her as they give her their advice once her situation becomes apparent. The crowd, comes to a general consensus, and because of this can be read as a metaphor for the society that Nnu Ego belongs to. eShe is not mad after all, f the woman took it upon herself to inform the crowd in her imperfect Your uba. eShe has only just lost the child that told the world that she is not barren. f And they all agreed that a woman without a child for her husband was a failed woman. (62) Emecheta deliberately uses a crowd that agrees that Nnu Egofs situation is a desperate one. Like a Greek chorus, these people echo a strong theme that runs throughout the story, one that is repeated over and over, that it is no surprise when the reader encounters it page after page. It is important for the reader to understand how common it is for women to be judged by a standard that says motherhood is what gives their lives worth. All of these conclusions raise an important question about what it means to be a woman in these Nigerian cultures.

If being a real woman is reliant upon being a mother, it means that real woman ess will always be tied to a man. This idea dawns on Nnu Ego one day in the midst of a fight with her husband. gf Yes, without what he has, you could never become a mother. fh (51) Nnu Ego realizes that motherhood inherently ties a woman to a man. If a woman is to become a mother, naturally the first order of business is to find the man that will lead to fulfilling her identity as a woman. Similarly, Nnaife recognizes that fathering a child makes him a man, just as Nnu Ego feels that mothering a child makes her a woman. gf Of course I am happy to know that I am a man, yes, that I can make a woman pregnant. But any man can do that. fh (50, 51) There is a difference in attitudes here.

In this passage Nnaife implies that impregnating a woman is as far as his duty as a father goes. Nnaife states that many man can be a father. This is a marked contrast to the attitudes of Nigerian people towards motherhood. It is made very clear in the story that not every woman can be a mother, Nnu Ego thought it would never even happen to her. These passages are here to show that Nnu Egofs womanhood is contingent upon forces that are beyond her control.

But once a woman crosses over the line into motherhood, they can be sure that the rest of their life, until they die must be devoted to everyone in their family but themselves. gIt was not fair, she felt, the way men cleverly used a woman fs sense of responsibility to actually enslave her. h (137) Finally Nnu Ego has become a mother, but it is not what she ever dreamed of. She feels like a slave to the cause of motherhood, and of course when can slavery permit a slave to have an identity autonomously of their work? Nnu Ego is expected to have a satisfied life as long as her children and husband are fed. After all, what more can a woman want? This is the question that everyone in Nnu Egofs life poses including herself.

Nnu Ego is not expected by anyone to have her own desires that may transcend the boundaries of motherhood. Buchi Emecheta exposes the injustices of being a woman in Nigerian culture whether it is traditional or Colonial. No matter where Nnu Ego is, she will always be identified as a real woman so long as she also has children. Even when she has too many children and she is without means to keep them fed, she is not even expected to grieve her situation or quality of life. A large part of this novel presents a social critique of what it means to be female in Nigerian society. Emecheta challenges the conditions of Nigerian life that her mother and grandmothers lived through before her.

It is this reassessment of the female history that parallels the feminist agenda. Buchi Emecheta has written a book that deconstructs what it means to be a woman in Nigeria, though the theme resounds throughout the history of women cand mothers.