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Patriarchal Oppression In Dangarembga's Nervous Conditions

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Patriarchal oppression is one of the major themes in Dangarembga’s Nervous conditions. According to Dambe 2014, patriarchy refers to a system of practices and structures in which men have more power than women and are able to use their power to dominate and oppress women. It is this patriarchal distribution of power that put women in all kinds of dilemmas in the novel. One of weapon men use to oppress women is “silence and obedience’. Silence and obedience are considered as important values in Shona culture and colonial Rhodesia. This essay will therefore, explore the kinds of dilemmas nyasha, Tambu, Lucia, Mainini and Maiguru go through in the hands of patriarchal system and how they comes to terms with it.

Being raised in a male dominated …show more content…

Having experienced a western culture in England for five years, Nyasha finds it difficult to fulfil the expectations of her Shona tradition and that of her father Babamukuru. Nyasha cannot conform to the norm of female silence and obedience which puts her and Babamukuru in constant fights. Babamukuru is heavily offended by Nyasha’s inability to dress appropriately and her inability to be silent. According to Babamukuru her ways of dressing comprises her “decency”. After the Christmas dance at the Beit Hall, which Tambu and chido also attends, Nyasha stays with Andy Baker for few minutes outside which makes her father angry and condemn her to a “whoredom “…I am respected at this mission. I cannot have a daughter who behaves like a whore (Dangarembga, 1988: 116).Nyasha’s inability to conform to her social expectations and that of her father causes her to alienate herself. She starts refusing to eat which Babamukuru sees it as a challenge to his patriarchal authority “She must eat her food, all of it. She is always doing this, challenging me. I am her father. If she doesn’t want to what I say I shall stop providing for her –fees, clothes, food, everything (Dangarembga, 1988:193). Babamukurus threat to stop catering for Nyasha shows how powerless she is. She cannot rebel against the patriarchal system which survives on. Her inability to rebel against her father’s patriarchal authority …show more content…

Her views as a woman regarding her children is ignored by her husband Jeremiah and Babamukuru. Throughout the novel, Mainini denounce colonial Education and the “Englishness” it represent. At first Mainini is happy that her son Nhamo is going to be educated at the mission school. However, after Nhamo’s return from the mission school, she feels alienated from her son because he has lost his Shona tongue. Mainini blames colonial Education for separating her from her son both physically and linguistically. After Nhamo’s death, Mainini vents at Maiguru and Babamukuru “…you and your education have killed my son (Dangarembga, 1988:54) In Mainini’s eyes, colonial Education is the only reason her son is dead. Later, Babamukuru suggests that Tambu should be taken to mission school so that she can study. Mainini objects to this decision. She tells her husband “…she will not go. Unless you want me to die too. The anxiety will kill me. I will not let her go (Dangarembga, 1988:56). However, her pleas as a mother are ignored. Babamukuru and Jeremiah ignore the pain of a mother who has just lost her child and is yet to be separated from the other. Mainini feels powerless as she cannot save her daughter from becoming anglicised. This situation contributes to her

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