Dethroning The Infallible Father: Religion, Patriarchy and Politics In Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Purple Hibiscus

Stobie, Cheryl

doi:10.1093/litthe/frq051

Cited by 20 publications

(13 citation statements)

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“…The full extract can be found in the appendix. The novel Purple Hibiscus largely portrays issues of Catholic faith in private and public spheres, and emphasizes the detrimental effects of patriarchy and intolerance in the family, the church and the state, postcolonial Nigeria (Stobie, 2010). The novel's main protagonist is Kambili, a fifteen-year old Nigerian girl.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Stylistic Analysis of Linguistic Patterns in Chichamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus

Fajri

2017

ALLS

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This study aims to carry out a detailed and systematic stylistic analysis of linguistic patterns in Purple Hibiscus Novel by Chichamanda Ngozi Adichie. It particularly analyses a specific extract of the novel in terms of narration and point of view, conversational analysis, speech and thought presentations and mind style, and how these linguistic devices and patterns are employed by the author to shape characters’ personalities and relationships between them in the reader’s mind. The result appears to suggest that the author successfully represents the protagonist, Kambili as an obedient and a salient daughter who respects deeply his father, while her father, Eugene, is constructed as a strict father and religious who imposes an absolute control on his daughter.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Stylistic Analysis of Linguistic Patterns in Chichamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus

Fajri

2017

ALLS

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“…A perhaps more hopeful account is offered by Adichie in Purble Hibiscus (2004) which, in the words of Cheryl Stobie (2010), is concerned with 'dethroning the infallible father'. The protagonist's father is the authoritative patriarch of the family, a staunch Catholic cum Nigerian Big Man, and in the novel he can be seen as representing the patriarchy of the Church as well as of Nigerian society.…”

Section: Literary Critique Of Religionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although Adichie clearly presents a narrative critique of the religiously and culturally infused patriarchal system of power in the family, the church, society and politics, she does not simply advocate a repudiation of Christianity, or of Igbo culture for that matter, but rather engages in a ‘dynamic process of critique and embrace’ (Wallace, 2012, p. 467). Identifying as Catholic herself, Adichie in Purble Hibiscus ‘implicitly criticises dogmas such as the infallibility of the pope and the celibacy of the priesthood, and offers an alternative to patriarchal and religious absolutism, shame and body‐hatred’ (Stobie, 2010, p. 422).…”

Section: Literary Critique Of Religionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Two of the leading journals in this field, Literature and Theology and Religion and Literature , have published incidental articles on African literature. Again, this mostly focuses on texts from South Africa (see the special issue of Literature and Theology , Levey, 1999), although some articles in these journals have engaged texts from other parts of the continent such as by Chinua Achebe, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Uwem Akpan, Tsitsi Dangarembga and Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o (Bongmba, 2001; Purcell, 2013; Searle, 2007; Stobie, 2010; Vander Weele, 2015). The journal Christianity and Literature had a special issue dedicated to African literature (VanZanten, 2012), with articles focussing on texts by writers such as Thomas Mofolo, Ayi Kwei Armah, Dominic Mulaisho, Uwem Akpan and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Guendouzi, 2012; Lilford, 2012; Purcell, 2012; Szolosi, 2012; Wallace, 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Religion in African literature: Representation, critique and imagination

Klinken

2020

Religion Compass

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The study of religion and literature has emerged as a field of considerable academic interest. Although some work has been done on religion and African literature, research in this area tends to be fragmented and dispersed over various fields and disciplines. Reviewing available scholarship in this area, this article explores what engaging with African literary writing brings to the table of the study of religion in Africa. Focussing on postcolonial and contemporary African literature, it identifies a threefold contribution: first, the creative representation of religious traditions and dynamics; second, the critique of religious beliefs and institutions, and third, the imagination of alternative religious possibilities. It illustrates these contributions by specifically focussing on issues of (neo) colonialism, gender and sexuality. Hence the article foregrounds the importance of engaging with religion for interpreting African literary texts, and the significance of literary writing for understanding religion as part of African social and cultural life. 1 | INTRODUCTION The study of religion and literature is a field that has witnessed growing academic interest of scholars working across disciplines such as theology, religious studies, English and literary studies (Felch, 2016; Knight, 2016; Mason, 2015). It is most firmly established in the American and European academy and concerned with literary traditions in these regions. Although some work has been conducted on African literature and its engagement with African religions (indigenous religions, Christianity and Islam), scholarship in this field is not systematically developed. This may be surprising, given Afe Adogame's (2010, p. 3) observation that 'the prose, poetry and drama genres produced by pioneering figures in African literature are overtly suffused with religious and cultural symbolism, meaning,

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“…While Beatrice’s action might not be viewed as revolutionary at this stage, it somewhat demonstrates her quest for autonomy, albeit in a formative stage. Because Beatrice’s gestation period of resistance takes quite a while, and perhaps because she is not as outspoken as Aunty Ifeoma, critics have seen her as “passive and silly” (Andrade, 2011: 97), “physically and emotionally blind” (Nadaswaran, 2011: 27), a “battered woman [that] turns into a husband-murderer” (Stobie, 2010: 432), who obviously “enjoys the [ill] treatment meted out on her” (Ibeku, 2015: 434) and whose ultimate deed is depicted not as an achievement but as a miserable requisite. Such dismissive readings notably downplay the revolutionary inferences of the text.…”

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confidence: 99%

Subversive responses to oppression in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus

Nwokocha

2017

The Journal of Commonwealth Literature

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Focusing on Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s critically acclaimed Purple Hibiscus (2003), this article argues that subversion, an aggressive performance that aimed at overthrowing and displacing patriarchal institutions which initially impact on the choices and activities of the oppressed, is the hallmark of the fictional figures’ responses to oppression. The essay contends that such forceful reactions to repression expand our understanding of twenty-first century Nigerian female-authored narratives. This argument I contrast with earlier critical readings, observing that while critics are eager to expose and endorse a female presence in the text, the readings often undermine its revolutionary suggestions. Through a radical feminist approach, my analysis of the novel highlights the heroines in order to demonstrate subversive behaviours in their drive to establish female agency, and notes such defiance to be necessary considering their repressive milieu. In doing so, I conclude with the notion that dissidence is a remarkable feature of the novel, and that the radical feminist paradigm is useful in widening awareness to this groundbreaking tenor.

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Dethroning The Infallible Father: Religion, Patriarchy and Politics In Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Purple Hibiscus

Cited by 20 publications

References 0 publications

A Stylistic Analysis of Linguistic Patterns in Chichamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus

A Stylistic Analysis of Linguistic Patterns in Chichamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus

Religion in African literature: Representation, critique and imagination

Subversive responses to oppression in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus

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