Death in Igbo-African Traditional Culture and Its Feminist Portrayal in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus

Abstract

Although a mystery, death is a universal reality that has been interpreted in various ways by various peoples and cultures. The article shows, in the first place, how its interpretations and categorization in Igbo-African traditional culture are represented in the novel, Purple Hibiscus, published in 2003 by the Nigerian writer, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. I then argue that Adichie’s representation of death in the novel such that only male and not female characters die, is pregnant with meaning. I show how it enables her to: a) critique and call for the “death” and dismantling of patriarchal structures in traditional Igbo-African culture b) underscore the fact that women are often strong survivours and remnants of the old order and agents and propagators of a new one that does not, however, exclude men with compassion, love, empathy and understanding. This way, she subtly extends a conversation already started on the issue of gender in Igbo-African culture by many Igbo-African writers, especially, in this case, Chinua Achebe, in his novel, Anthills of the Savannah.