"Americanah" is a novel written by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. The narrative centers in the experience of Ifemelu, a Nigerian woman who migrated to the USA, and her childhood sweetheart Obinze, a Nigerian man who migrated to the UK, during their adolescence and adult life. Each of their identities is altered by the experiences they face in the Western world.
In my term paper, I will analyze the processes of migration through the lens of Intersectionality. I want to show that it is not sufficient to analyze the obstacles they face based merely on race or nationality. Each of them faces different obstacles due to the Intersectionality of factors like race, gender, class, and political views.
In the paper, I will focus on the Intersectionality of race and gender as Ifemelu and Obinze migrate away from and back to Nigeria. I will start my analysis by explaining the term Intersectionality. Then, I will elaborate on the stereotypical gender roles in Nigeria to overview the expectations regarding their gender Ifemelu and Obinze grew up with and eventually have to change once they move to the western world. In my main part, I will first analyze Ifemelu's migration story in terms of her gender and race. In this analysis, I will focus on the topics perception of beauty, mainly regarding hair, romantic relationships, and her experiences with finding a job in the USA. Secondly, I will analyze Obinze's migration story as a Black man by considering his relationship with women and their roles in society and his experiences with jobs in the UK. Lastly, I will compare their experiences with migration based on their different genders.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Theoretical Framework
2.1. Intersectionality
2.2. Gender Roles in Nigeria
3. Intersectionality of Gender and Race while Migrating
3.1. Ifemelu Migrating
3.2. Obinze Migrating
4. Conclusion
5. Work Cited
Research Objectives and Themes
The primary objective of this paper is to examine the migration experiences of the protagonists Ifemelu and Obinze from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's novel "Americanah" through the analytical lens of intersectionality, highlighting how race, gender, and class create unique forms of marginalization and power dynamics in Western societies.
- The theoretical application of intersectionality to migrant identity.
- Traditional gender roles in Nigerian society and their evolution.
- The impact of race and gender on Ifemelu’s professional and personal life in the US.
- The challenges faced by Obinze as a Black man migrating to the UK.
- A comparative analysis of how gender dictates different paths of discrimination.
Excerpt from the Book
Ifemelu Migrating
Ifemelu's migrant story is told in flashbacks, accompanied by her getting her hair braided in a salon, shortly after she decided to shut down her blog and move back to Lagos. Although she only started blogging after finishing University, blog posts appear earlier, exploring both Nigerian and American culture and her double consciousness. They provide a flash-forward to when Ifemelu processed her experienced through writing. The unchronological order and the run-in blogpost allow the reader to compare the characters' development: the young, wild Ifemelu with the older, more self-aware Ifemelu who understands experiences from the past differently in the future and is now able to analyze her own past experience from the view of an outsider. The blogposts are anonymous storytellings of a 3rd person point of view, adding personal information like her emotions (cp. Guarracino, 13-14). This fits to what Jodi Dean said in Blog Theory: "blogs offer exposure and anonymity at the same time. As bloggers we expose ourselves, our feelings and experiences, loves and hates, desires and aversions" (Dean 64). The blog posts in Americanah are mostly anecdotes, including social commentary. Ifemelu focuses mainly on racism issues in the USA, but she also demonstrates the obstacles a woman has to face in a patriarchal society (cp. Selbe, 93). The blog posts are set off in a sans serif font, which seems plain and straightforward compared to the rest of the text. (cp. Lavine, The Strange Famliar 594).
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: This chapter outlines the scope of the study, introducing Adichie's novel and defining the goal of analyzing migration processes through the intersectional lens.
2. Theoretical Framework: This section establishes the definition of intersectionality as proposed by Kimberlé Crenshaw and describes the traditional gender hierarchies prevalent in Nigeria.
3. Intersectionality of Gender and Race while Migrating: This main part analyzes the specific migrant trajectories of the two protagonists, contrasting their gender-specific experiences and struggles.
4. Conclusion: The author synthesizes the findings, confirming that gender and race are entangled factors that significantly shape the disparate migrant experiences of men and women.
5. Work Cited: A comprehensive list of primary and secondary sources used in the paper.
Keywords
Americanah, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Intersectionality, Migration, Gender Roles, Race, Nigeria, Black Feminism, Discrimination, Identity, Marginalization, Patriarchy, Kimberlé Crenshaw, Transcultural Literatures, Migrant Experiences.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research paper?
The paper focuses on the migration stories of the two main characters, Ifemelu and Obinze, from Adichie's novel "Americanah" to understand how they navigate issues of identity and discrimination.
Which theoretical framework is applied?
The work primarily uses the theory of intersectionality, as coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw, to analyze how race, gender, and social status overlap to create different forms of injustice.
What is the primary research goal?
The goal is to demonstrate that analyzing migration challenges based solely on race or nationality is insufficient and that gender must be considered to understand the protagonists' full experiences.
What methodology is employed?
The author uses a literary analysis approach, examining the narrative structure—specifically the use of flashbacks and blog posts—alongside sociological theories to interpret the characters' development.
What does the main body of the work cover?
The main body examines Ifemelu's struggle with beauty standards and professional discrimination in the US, and Obinze's experience as an undocumented immigrant in the UK facing social demotion.
Which central topics define the text?
The text is defined by the intersection of race and gender, the influence of cultural backgrounds on gender roles, and the psychological impact of migration.
How does the author analyze Ifemelu’s blog posts?
The author argues that the blog posts serve as a narrative tool that allows for a "double consciousness," enabling the older Ifemelu to reflect critically on her younger self and American society.
In what way does the author contrast the experiences of Ifemelu and Obinze?
The author contrasts them by showing that while Ifemelu faces hyper-sexualization and racialized beauty standards as a woman, Obinze faces a loss of social privilege and an identity crisis tied to his status as a Black male laborer.
- Quote paper
- Lina Gildenstern (Author), 2020, Intersectionality in "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/1157769
