What Is Akunna's Relationship In America
Adichie’s illustration of Akunna’s first meaningful relationship in America as marked by a traumatic imbalance of gendered power highlights her particular vulnerability to patriarchal exploitation as an immigrant woman. Akunna’s uncle is her bridge between Nigeria and America: he places her family members’ names in the visa lottery, and offers to let her stay at his house while she adjusts to the new country. At first, Akunna is comfortable in his household, where she is called “Aunty” and eats “garri for lunch.” She enjoys listening to her uncle’s friendly advice, laughing in solidarity at his anecdotes about his racist neighbors. The familiarity of Nigerian relatives and cuisine, as well as a developing kinship with her uncle, allows for …show more content…
“America was give-and-take. You gave up a lot but you gained a lot, too,” the uncle claims. When Akunna pushes him away after he grabs her, the uncle attempts to rationalize the sexual assault by reminding her of the “give-and-take” of America, claiming that “smart women did it all the time” in order to secure high-paying jobs. He does not explain what “it” is that smart women “do,” but his actions clearly indicate that he expects sexual favors from Akunna in exchange for housing. Despite American values of white supremacy that oppress him, such as the racist neighbors who suspect he eats the neighborhood squirrels, the uncle takes advantage of his relative gendered power over Akunna. Yet in immediately locking herself in the bathroom and leaving his house the next morning, Akunna forfeits the refuge of familiarity that he has “given” her so that her sexual autonomy cannot be “taken” from her, intervening in the oppressive “give-and-take” paradigm that exploits her vulnerability as a newly-arrived immigrant by refusing to participate in the exchange. Through her relationship with her uncle, Adichie shows how Akunna fights the “give-and-take” paradigm that invests power in her patriarchal uncle through her sexual marginalization, in an example of postcolonial feminist
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