African Women, Motherhood, and Traditional Family Roles

Africa is a deeply steeped in oral traditions. Women are at the forefront of spreading knowledge and wisdom through oral traditions. These voices however go unnoticed in the territory of literary traditions. And there various reasons for which women are tortured in those groups. The exclusion of women from socio-economic and political fields was discussed by writers like Flora Nwapa. They have no role to play in the centre and they are moved to the fringes. The major themes considered in the female Nigerian writings is the presence or absence of motherhood, its joys and pains, the vagaries of the living in a polygamous marriage, the oppression of colonialism and white rule, the struggles for economic independence, the fickleness of husbands which in a way to control their existence in a traditionally polygamous marriage, the importance of having a support system particularly in urban environment, the mother daughter conflict or relationship and the definition of self but not separate from tradition or other man made restrictions. Analysis of these factors is crucial to understand the dynamics of African women’s writings. Emecheta's most powerful novel, The Joys of Motherhood, also shows all these issues but with a difference. The novel portrays the picture of traditional society, but given importance of the female point of view, which registers her disgust for manliness and unjust and oppressive system.

The Role of Oral Traditions in Women's Lives

Most of these themes can be found in Emecheta’s novels. As portrayed by Emecheta, an Igbo woman is looked upon with contempt if her marriage is not fruitful in the African society. Barrenness is the severest tussle a woman has to bear. Nnu Ego, the beautiful and proud daughter of a beautiful and proud mother who grew up under this all-encompassing tribal tradition, suffers from this severe heartburn when her marriage to a young and wealthy farmer who is in love with her does not make her a mother. She is declared juiceless and sterile because she has no child in the first twelve months of her married life, which disappoints everyone, including her husband, father and herself. In a woman's life motherhood is very significant, because it is a mark of gratification. Society prohibits a sterile woman who does not produce children for her husband to continue his lineage. Therefore, a woman tries her best to fulfil her traditional commitments to her husband and her community, and if she does not become a mother by any unfavourable fate, she suffers from incalculable suffering.

The Stigma Surrounding Infertility

An infertile woman received no pity even from her beloved husband. She is disparaged, abused and even driven out of her home when she is unproductive. Nnu ego was unlucky that her husband abandoned her for not giving him children in return for the commitments he showed for her. A woman is valued only for her potential to disseminate species and not for herself. Sterility is an insult to femininity and a defect in womanhood. In those days becoming a wife and mother is the highest ideal and hope of every African woman. The Ibo tribal community dictates that a woman's primary duty is to get children, a large number of them, especially male children, to continue her husband's line. The humiliation of sterility is unbearable, and an infertile woman is embarrassing to both her parents and in-laws. This is a tradition that is passed on to every daughter of the Ibo tribe.

Gender Roles Within Traditional Society

The novel presents a society in which the roles of men and women are clearly defined. A woman can be ugly and grow old, but a man is never ugly and he is never old. He matures with age. The heroine Nnu Ego and as well as Emecheta strongly reject this traditional concept, which puts women on the lowest pedestal, and only consider them suitable for bringing and carrying, cooking and feeding to become a farmer and bed-mate and a child carrier. A woman is asked to subordinate her interests to the collective will of her community. These strict social norms force them not to reveal their individuality and identity. Consequently, the incapability to conceive is not only seen as a shame, but also as a sign of evil. It is considered as easy for a woman to conceive when she is virtuous and if she couldn’t bear a child, then it was regarded as a great dishonour to the entire family. She has to find satisfaction for herself, her parents and her husband by having children.