Themes and Analysis

Purple hibiscus, by chimamanda ngozi adichie.

This coming-of-age novel is quite engaging. Its principal themes are thought-provoking as they are visible in post-colonial Nigerian society. The book enkindles emotional outbursts ranging from pity, sorrow, happiness, anger, and relief.

Fave

Article written by Fave

B.A. in History and International Studies from University of Ilorin, Kwara State.

The author whose imagination was first sparked by homesickness creates a beautiful story on liberation, family life, and the Igbo culture.

Purple Hibiscus Themes

Religion is a central theme in this novel. The settings include religious rallies, festivals, and Churches. The author denotes Christianity religion as an oppressive factor that was introduced by colonialists. Although Papa and Aunty Ifeoma are Catholics, Papa is more rigid and unyielding in his beliefs. His father, Papa-Nnukwu is prevented from visiting him because he is a traditional worshipper. Papa is so devout to his beliefs that he forbids Igbo songs from being sung in Church and at home. His strict doctrines are imposed on his family and they are punished when they falter. Even though Papa promises to improve the standard of living of Papa-Nnukwu if he converts to Christianity, the old man refuses.

Contrastingly, Aunty Ifeoma is a more liberal Catholic. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie portrays Aunty Ifeoma’s doctrines to be more accommodating and compassionate than Papa’s. Where Papa is extremely abusive, Aunty Ifeoma is kind. She prays with her family and sings Christian songs that have been translated into Igbo. She takes her children to traditional festivals.

Father Benedict and Father Amadi are also practicing Catholics with different methods of practicing. Father Benedict is a perfectionist who shares equal beliefs with Papa. With the character of Father Amadi, however, Adichie portrays the need for a balance in Christianity.

Another important theme in this book is family life. It is at the familial level that true behavior of Papa is exposed. To the public, he is a godly patron but privately, he is a violent dictator.

The structure of the Achike family is one built on fear and authoritarianism. The strict rules of Papa are followed to perfection and anything short of that leads to punishment. The family is also a very quiet one. Although the children are brilliant and talented, they have poor social skills and avoid interaction with others including their relatives.

On the other hand, Aunty Ifeoma’s family encourages conversations, arguments, and laughter. She creates a wholesome environment where the children are free to relate with their grandfather. Kambili and Jaja find freedom at Aunty Ifeoma’s house and they gladly welcome it. With this theme, Adichie aims to depict a flourishing family as one where every member is respected and comfortable.

Colonialism and Nigerian Politics

In this book, Adichie shows the different ways that Africans received colonialism. To Papa-Nnukwu, colonialism and its components had horrible impacts on Igbo society. He believes that Papa disregards him because Christianity preaches that the father and son are equal. Even when promised better life by Papa, he refuses to accept the religion.

In contrast, Papa is called a ‘colonial product’. He accepts the superiority of the Europeans and imitates them. He is grateful for colonialism because his education was sponsored by the missionaries. He abandons the traditions of his homeland and chooses to speak British English in public.

Father Amadi accepts that colonialism is the reason for his faith. He however believes that the new and old ways can co-occur. He advises Amaka to take an English name for confirmation because that’s how things are done in the Church, but he doesn’t insist that she uses it against her will. Aunty Ifeoma refuses the superiority of the Europeans and treats everyone equally.

In the book, a coup happens that leads to the beginning of military rule in Nigeria. Papa and Ade Coker use the Standard newspaper to criticize the corruption of the Head of state who is not democratically elected. The irony here is that while Papa criticizes the government’s dictatorial leadership, he is a dictator in his own home.

The novel takes place during a tumultuous period for the Nigerian government. The book depicts the effects of politics on the lives of citizens. Bribes are collected by police officers, workers’ strike, and students riot. Ade Coker is a character based on the real-life journalist Dele Giwa and is assassinated with a letter bomb. The author shows the horrible effects of corruption, colonialism, and oppression.

Kambili is the greatest victim of this theme. Even when she speaks, she says things that are expected of her, not what she wants to say. Her silence is a result of the abuse she endures at home. When talking becomes necessary, she stutters and whispers. Even Mama cannot freely talk in her home.

Jaja learns to use silence as a punishment. When Papa dies, the silence that envelopes the Achikes is different because it is not imposed by fear.

Silence is also depicted in the state of the country. People who are bold enough to criticize the government are arrested or killed. Aunty Ifeoma, Ade Coker, and Papa are victims of this.

Analysis of Key Moments in Purple Hibiscus

  • Mama announces that she is pregnant and she is pleased because she has had a few miscarriages after the birth of Kambili.
  • A coup is announced and a military leader comes into power.
  • Papa beats Mama because of her hesitation to greet Father Benedict after church and this leads to the miscarriage of her pregnancy.
  • Aunty Ifeoma takes Kambili, Jaja, Papa-Nnukwu, and her children to the traditional Aro festival.
  • Kambili and Jaja’s visit to Aunty Ifeoma’s house in Nsukka. It is here they learn to be independent.
  • Kambili’s meeting with Father Amadi. She is immediately taken by his melodious voice.
  • Papa-Nnukwu’s arrival at Aunty Ifeoma’s house.
  • The assassination of Ade Coker in his house. He receives a package from the Head of the state that turns out to be a letter bomb.
  • Papa walks in on Kambili and Jaja looking at a painting of Papa Nnukwu. He tears up the painting and when Kambili falls on it, he beats her till she passes out.
  • Mama’s visit to Aunty Ifeoma’s home after she has another miscarriage.
  • Jaja’s refusal to take communion. Papa flings his heavy missal and breaks Mama’s figurines.
  • The loss of Aunty Ifeoma’s job. She decides to apply for an American Visa. Father Amadi also decides to leave for missionary work in Germany.
  • Kambili sees the Virgin Mary during the pilgrimage at Aokpe. This strengthens her faith in Catholicism.
  • Papa’s death in his factory. The autopsy proves he was poisoned.
  • Jaja surrenders to the police as Papa’s murderer.
  • The news was that Jaja would be released after three years of imprisonment.

Style and Tone

The style of writing employed in ‘ Purple Hibiscus ‘ is the first-person narrative. The story is told through the lens of a fifteen-year-old who is raised in an abusive household. The tone used in the book is subdued and resigned. The constant whispers of the main characters point to the restrictions that they face. The language used is straightforward. Chimamanda Adichie uses the Igbo variety of the Nigerian English language. The book contains a choice of words and parables that point to this fact.

Analysis of Symbols

The purple hibiscus is a flower growing in Aunty Ifeoma’s garden. Jaja is drawn to the flower and in fact, takes some strands back to Enugu and asks the gardener to plant them there. The hibiscus is a symbol of courage and individuality. Jaja is so taken by the flowers that he tends to them in Aunty Ifeoma’s house. A chore he never had at Enugu. Jaja’s confidence and individuality grow as slowly and at the same pace as the purple hibiscus that he planted grows. The freedom that Jaja sought is represented by the purple hibiscus. When Aunty Ifeoma loses her job, Jaja does not ask for permission from Papa, he just informs him of his decision to go visit her.

The Figurines

The figurines of ballet dancers that Mama cleans after a domestic violence episode were a symbol of submissiveness, silence, and resignation. The cleaning of the figurines was Mama’s coping mechanism after violence. When Papa breaks the figurines on a Palm Sunday, Mama tells Kambili she would not need to replace them. Like Jaja, Mama is going to stop being a victim and fight back against violence. Her statement is better understood when she confesses to poisoning Papa. The presence of the figurines symbolized silence and subjugation. The breaking of the figurines signified freedom.

How did the political agitation and corruption in Nigeria affect the Achike family?

Kambili and Jaja may be protected children, still, the corruption ongoing in Nigeria affects them mostly negatively. They have a few experiences with bribery and murder. Ade Coker who is a friend to Papa and also a journalist that works for him is killed. His death affects Papa and makes him distraught. The political agitation however proves to also be useful when Papa dies and Jaja is imprisoned. Members of pro-democracy groups that Papa belonged to claim he was assassinated by the Head of state.

What is the core theme of Purple Hibiscus?

The core theme of this novel is freedom from oppression. Kambili, Jaja, and Mama endure toxicity, extremism, and violence until they experience a different and healthy environment. The children metamorphose into mature, capable teenagers. In the latter part of the novel, Kambili believes she does not need an explanation for the things she does. She just goes ahead to do them.

Why does Mama poison Papa?

Mama murders Papa to protect herself from violence. Also, she feels she is left with no other option. She tells Aunty Ifeoma that she cannot leave her marriage with Papa because she cannot care for two kids alone. After years of putting up with abuse and several miscarriages, she does not want to leave empty-handed, so she decides to poison him

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Purple Hibiscus

Chimamanda ngozi adichie.

thesis statement in purple hibiscus

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Theme Analysis

Colonialism and Nigerian Politics Theme Icon

Religion and belief are central to the novel, particularly in the contrasts between Papa , Papa-Nnukwu , and Aunty Ifeoma / Father Amadi . The plot begins with descriptions of Papa’s religious belief, which were molded by Catholic missionaries and are incredibly strict. He prefers that Igbo not be spoken (or sung) in church, and believes that priests should be very traditional. He befriends and admires the white, conservative Father Benedict . Papa imposes his strict rules on his family, and when they commit what he perceives as a sin, he punishes them with violence, as he himself was as a boy and which he sees as being for their own benefit. Kambili and Mama aren’t allowed to wear pants, prayers over meals are long-winded and formal, and non-Christians aren’t even allowed onto Papa’s land. These beliefs have led to a deep rift between Papa and his father, Papa-Nnukwu, who still follows traditional Igbo rituals. Papa-Nnukwu attends the festival of mmuo (spirits), offers food to the gods, and performs a morning declaration of innocence. This makes him a “Godless heathen” in Papa’s eyes, yet Adichie portrays his rituals as equally valid to Catholic ones. Aunty Ifeoma practices a sort of blend between the two extremes, as she is a Catholic who includes Igbo songs in her prayers and doesn’t judge her father for his traditional beliefs. Ifeoma’s priest is the open-minded, lighthearted Nigerian Father Amadi.

Adichie ultimately presents Ifeoma’s and Papa-Nnukwu’s religion in a much kinder light than Papa’s, as Adichie too rejects Western domination over Nigerian culture, and the suppression of joy and acceptance that comes with too strict a dogma. We see this stance through the character of Father Amadi—a young Nigerian priest embracing both the old ways and the new—and also in the positive changes to Jaja and Kambili as they are exposed to beliefs other than Papa’s. Jaja and Kambili have grown up seeing their father as a godlike figure, awe-inspiring but also terrifying, and changing their strict Catholic faith also means struggling with losing their faith in Papa. But once they are both freed of this blind belief (Jaja more so than Kambili), they have the freedom to choose their own faith. Kambili finds herself reaffirming her Catholicism with her visions of the Virgin Mary, while Jaja loses his faith altogether. Though they choose different paths, the important thing is that with Aunty Ifeoma and Father Amadi they find a place of religious acceptance, and so have the freedom to choose without risking punishment.

Religion and Belief ThemeTracker

Purple Hibiscus PDF

Religion and Belief Quotes in Purple Hibiscus

Papa changed his accent when he spoke, sounding British, just as he did when he spoke to Father Benedict. He was gracious, in the eager-to-please way that he always assumed with the religious, especially with the white religious.

Colonialism and Nigerian Politics Theme Icon

“Ifeoma could not afford it.” Papa-Nnukwu shook his head. “Since the father of her children died, she has seen hard times. But she will bring them this year. You will see them. It is not right that you don’t know them well, your cousins. It is not right.” Jaja and I said nothing. We did not know Aunty Ifeoma or her children very well because she and Papa had quarreled about Papa-Nnukwu. Mama told us. Aunty Ifeoma stopped speaking to Papa after he barred Papa-Nnukwu from coming to his house, and a few years passed before they finally started speaking to each other.

Family Theme Icon

“…But you know Eugene quarrels with the truths that he does not like. Our father is dying, do you hear me? Dying. He is an old man, how much longer does he have, gbo ? Yet Eugene will not let him into this house, will not even greet him… Eugene has to stop doing God’s job. God is big enough to do his own job. If God will judge our father for choosing to follow the way of our ancestors, then let God do the judging, not Eugene.”

Papa wanted Father Benedict to hear our confession. We had not gone in Abba because Papa did not like to make his confession in Igbo, and besides, Papa said that the parish priest in Abba was not spiritual enough. That was the problem with our people, Papa told us, our priorities were wrong; we cared too much about huge church buildings and mighty statues. You would never see white people doing that.

Father Amadi led the first decade, and at the end, he started an Igbo praise song. While they sang, I opened my eyes and stared at the wall… I pressed my lips together, biting my lower lip, so my mouth would not join in the singing on its own, so my mouth would not betray me.

Silence and Speech Theme Icon

“How can Our Lady intercede on behalf of a heathen, Aunty?” Aunty Ifeoma was silent as she ladled the thick cocoyam paste into the soup pot; then she looked up and said Papa-Nnukwu was not a heathen but a traditionalist, that sometimes what was different was just as good as what was familiar, that when Papa-Nnukwu did his itu-nzu, his declaration of innocence, in the morning, it was the same as our saying the rosary.

I laughed. It sounded strange, as if I were listening to the recorded laughter of a stranger being played back. I was not sure I had ever heard myself laugh. “Why did you become a priest?” I blurted out, then wished I had not asked, that the bubbles in my throat had not let that through. Of course he had gotten the call, the same call that all the Reverend Sisters in school talked about when they asked us to always listen for the call when we prayed. Sometimes I imagined God calling me, his rumbling voice British-accented. He would not say my name right; like Father Benedict, he would place the emphasis on the second syllable rather than the first.

“Ifeoma, did you call a priest?” Papa asked. “Is that all you can say, eh, Eugene? Have you nothing else to say, gbo ? Our father has died! Has your head turned upside down? Will you not help me to bury our father?” “I cannot participate in a pagan funeral, but we can discuss with the parish priest and arrange a Catholic funeral.” Aunty Ifeoma got up and started to shout. Her voice was unsteady. “I will put my dead husband’s grave up for sale, Eugene, before I give our father a Catholic funeral. Do you hear me? I said I will sell Ifediora’s grave first! Was our father a Catholic? I ask you, Eugene, was he a Catholic? Uchu gba gi !” Aunty Ifeoma snapped her fingers at Papa; she was throwing a curse at him. Tears rolled down her cheeks.

“Kambili, you are precious.” His voice quavered now, like someone speaking at a funeral, choked with emotion. “You should strive for perfection. You should not see sin and walk right into it.” He lowered the kettle into the tub, tilted it toward my feet. He poured the hot water on my feet, slowly, as if he were conducting an experiment and wanted to see what would happen. He was crying now, tears streaming down his face… I watched the water leave the kettle, flowing almost in slow motion in an arc to my feet. The pain of contact was so pure, so scalding, I felt nothing for a second. And then I screamed. “That is what you do to yourself when you walk into sin. You burn your feet,” he said.

Freedom vs. Tyranny Theme Icon

“When the missionaries first came, they didn’t think Igbo names were good enough. They insisted that people take English names to be baptized. Shouldn’t we be moving ahead?” “It’s different now, Amaka, don’t make this what it’s not,” Father Amadi said calmly… “But what’s the point, then?” Amaka said… “What the church is saying is that only an English name will make your confirmation valid. ‘Chiamaka’ says God is beautiful. ‘Chima’ says God knows best, ‘Chiebuka’ says God is the greatest. Don’t they all glorify God as much as ‘Paul’ and ‘Peter’ and ‘Simon’?”

The sun turned white, the color and shape of the host. And then I saw her, the Blessed Virgin: an image in the pale sun, a red glow on the back of my hand, a smile on the face of the rosary-bedecked man whose arm rubbed against mine. She was everywhere.

“It’s your father. They called me from the factory, they found him lying dead on his desk.” Mama sounded like a recording… Jaja grabbed the phone. Aunty Ifeoma led me to the bed. I sat down and stared at the bag of rice that leaned against the bedroom wall… I had never considered the possibility that Papa would die, that Papa could die. He was different from Ade Coker, from all the other people they had killed. He had seemed immortal.

“I should have taken care of Mama. Look how Obiora balances Aunty Ifeoma’s family on his head, and I am older that he is. I should have taken care of Mama.” “God knows best,” I said. “God works in mysterious ways.” And I thought how Papa would be proud that I had said that, how he would approve of my saying that. Jaja laughed. It sounded like a series of snorts strung together. “Of course God does. Look what He did to his faithful servant Job, even to His own son. But have you ever wondered why? Why did He have to murder his own son so we would be saved? Why didn’t He just go ahead and save us?”

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Purple Hibiscus

By chimamanda ngozi adichie, purple hibiscus essay questions.

What does the purple hibiscus represent?

Aunty Ifeoma grows the purple hibiscus, a rare hybrid created by a botanist friend of hers. Jaja is drawn to the flowers when he arrives in Nsukka. For Jaja, the flowers represent freedom. Instead of just following what must be, Aunty Ifeoma's purple hibiscus are both uniquely beautiful and a new creation. They are a symbol of an alternative to the rigid life that has been created for him and his sister. When he takes the stalks to his home, he brings with them a new sense of self and possibility.

Kambili describes in detail many different aspects of nature, including plants, insects and weather. How does the environment relate to the narrative?

The environment is used to reflect both inner turmoil and joy. When Ade Coker dies, a heavy rain falls. Likewise, sadness and pressure fall on Papa. After Papa throws the missal, a strong wind uproots the frangipani trees and the satellite dish. When Kambili begins to mature, her relationship with the natural world also changes. Instead of being frightened by earthworms in Aunty Ifeoma’s bath, she lets them be. Kambili’s comfort with nature is directly related to her ease of self.

Papa uses Igbo and English at different times. Discuss what this signifies about his character.

Though raised by an Igbo traditionalist, Papa rarely uses his native tongue at home and never in public. Papa was schooled by missionaries in Nigeria and in England and is educated in colonial ways. For him, his accent belies his prominence. He speaks with an English-inflected accent to both Father Benedict and Mother Lucy. Maintaining an image of an African who is comfortable with European ways helps to cement his standing in the community. He uses this stature to help his friend Ade. But Papa also carries a shame for his roots. His voice communicates both his education and also his separation from his ancestral traditions.

Compare the relationship between Amaka and Obiora to the relationship between Kambili and Jaja.

Amaka and Obiora are siblings who share passions but also don’t see eye to eye on important topics. Both children are intellectually curious and argumentative. They have been raised to question authority. However, Amaka is fiercely loyal to Nigeria and Obiora finds new hope in the dream of America. Unlike Kambili and Jaja, Amaka and Obiora are not scared to disagree. Kambili and Jaja are united by silence. When Jaja begins to spread his wings a bit, Kambili is dismayed that she can no longer communicate with him via the secret language of their eyes. Ultimately, both Amaka and Obiora and Kambili and Jaja allow each other to nurture separate identities but still love one another.

Kambili describes in detail several dreams. Why are they important?

Kambili’s dreams are clues to how she feels about certain people and events. Since Kambili only rarely speaks her mind, her mind speaks for her. She dreams that she has Aunty Ifeoma’s laugh because she wishes she could talk as freely and energetically like her aunt. When Amaka is deriding her, Kambili dreams her cousin is flushing her down the toilet. Kambili’s dreams are a gateway into her mind.

Purple Hibiscus charts the coming of age of both Kambili and Jaja. Discuss how each Achike sibling matures over the course of the novel.

Kambili is characterized by her lack of voice. She stutters and coughs and can barely rise above a whisper. Both she and Jaja are sheltered and intimidated by her father. Both children, as they mature into adults, must overcome their father. While Jaja’s rebellions are more overt – missing communion, asking for his room key, taking the blame for his mother’s crime – Kambili’s are more personal. She does not reject her faith and compassion, but rather adapts them to fit her new, more complex, worldview. Through all of their hardships, Jaja remains Kambili’s hero.

Religion is a crucial theme in Purple Hibiscus. Discuss how religion influences the characters.

There are two religions that are prominently featured in Purple Hibiscus: Catholicism and traditional Igbo practice Papa can be viewed as a symbol of fundamentalism in Nigeria. Influenced by his colonial education, Papa eradicates all traces of his traditional past and indoctrinates his children into religion as it was preached to him. God seeks perfection and Papa’s way to instill perfection is to punish failure. Papa does not let his children spend much time with his own father for he is a “heathen.” Papa’s prejudice severs his ties with his ancestry. However, as Kambili realizes, there are similarities between the faiths of Papa and Papa-Nnukwu. Aunty Ifeoma and, later, Kambili, honor both faiths in their more modernized take on devotion.

Why does Mama poison Papa?

Mama’s murder of Papa is first and foremost to protect herself and her children from his abuse. However, she poisons him because she feels she has no other option. She dismisses Aunty Ifeoma’s advice to leave her home as “university talk.” After losing another child at his hands, however, Mama realizes that something must be done. In an environment of repression and violence, she fights back using the only method available to her – poison.

Discuss how the political unrest in Nigeria affects the Achike family.

Though the political unrest is removed from Kambili’s day to day life, corruption touches her family. Papa’s friend and fellow pro-democracy activist Ade Coker is murdered in front of his family. Papa is distraught when this happens and remarks that Nigeria is in decline. The escalating violence and police presence echo the rising tensions inside the Achike home. Kambili and Jaja’s fight for independence echoes the fight of the pro-democracy activists.

Discuss the significance of Kambili’s crush on Father Amadi.

The comforting presence of Father Amadi causes two changes in Kambili’s life. Her physical attraction to Father Amadi expedites her steps towards womanhood. Father Amadi also greatly influences Kambili’s shifting paradigm of faith. He tells her he did not have a calling, but rather that the priesthood was able to answer the most questions. Father Amadi also incorporates Igbo song and prayer into his sermons. Kambili realizes that her faith and ancestral traditions do not have to be mutually exclusive. She is able to forge her identity as both a sexual woman and as more liberal Catholic.

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Purple Hibiscus Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Purple Hibiscus is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

feminism in purple hibiscus

feminisim in purple hibiscus

Comment on the effectiveness from when Jaja says his real name in chapter nine of the fourth edition till the end of purple hibiscus,showing how the methods and concerns evident are characteristic of the novel purple hibiscus as a whole

Although interesting, this answer will take quite a lot of detail. Thias is only a short answer space. Generally, Jaja strains under the tyranny of his father. After both his sister and mother are hospitalized from beatings, Jaja begins to rebel....

How has the writer structured the text to interest you as a reader?in the opening of the novel

Kambili narrates the book in the first person, but in the past tense. The book has a unique structure that begins with the events of Palm Sunday, as described in the first chapter. The next twelve chapters chronicle the events that culminate in...

Study Guide for Purple Hibiscus

The Purple Hibiscus study guide contains a biography of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

  • About Purple Hibiscus
  • Purple Hibiscus Summary
  • Purple Hibiscus Video
  • Character List

Essays for Purple Hibiscus

Purple Hibiscus essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

  • Contrasted Settings
  • The Power of Setting in "Purple Hibiscus" by Chimamanda Adichie
  • Fathers and Sons in Purple Hibiscus and Things Fall Apart
  • The Real Papa: Analyzing Purple Hibiscus
  • Misconception of the Generation Gap

Lesson Plan for Purple Hibiscus

  • About the Author
  • Study Objectives
  • Common Core Standards
  • Introduction to Purple Hibiscus
  • Relationship to Other Books
  • Bringing in Technology
  • Notes to the Teacher
  • Related Links
  • Purple Hibiscus Bibliography

Wikipedia Entries for Purple Hibiscus

  • Introduction

thesis statement in purple hibiscus

Purple Hibiscus

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A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Pages 19-51

Pages 52-109

Pages 110-205

Pages 206-253

Pages 257-291

Pages 295-307

Character Analysis

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Discussion Questions

Gender roles evolve considerably from one generation to the next in this novel. How are Papa and Jaja’s roles similar, and how are they dissimilar? 

Empowerment for women is exemplified in various ways in each of the main female characters: Mama, Ifeoma, Kambili, and Amaka . Discuss one way each of these women is empowered in the story, whether through their own actions or as a result of an outer force that creates that sense of confidence. 

Trace Papa’s abuse: what causes it, and how do the family members respond?

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“Purple Hibiscus” Novel by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Essay

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The book ‘Purple Hibiscus’ written by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie can be acclaimed as a strong piece of literature depicting the miseries of a prominent Nigerian man’s family’s life. Within the book, the audience will find a coherent and cohesive representation of all the hardships those people had to deal with along with their efforts to change their situation and their accomplishments in this area. In the following paper, this book will be addressed in terms of its valuable information which can be learnt from the way Eugene Achike, a rich and well-respected in the local community man, treated his family. Generally, the book can be evaluated as a fine piece on family values and despotism providing exotic details, thought-provoking ideas and an interesting layout.

First of all, speaking about the message of the book, it should be stated that it is related to the family hardships that the members of despotic man’s family can experience. The book keeps on focusing on the theme of silence prevailing among all Eugene Achike’s family members. It depicts the mother who is so silent that her speech can be compared to ‘the way a bird eats, in small amounts’; Kambili, the main protagonist of the book, and Jaja, her brother (Adichie 20). Kambili, a fifteen-year-old Nigerian girl shares her pain with the audience gradually revealing how terrible it is to be a daughter of a man who is known as an embodiment of all the excellent qualities among the people in the community, but in reality is a monster in his own family. The girl describes her father in the following way: ‘Papa liked order. He draws up meticulous schedules for his children, dictating how long they were able to study, sleep, pray or spend with the family’(Adichie 24). These words are only a modest description of the real despotism prevailing in the family; those who tried to object the father’s will (for example, Jaja) had to suffer physically. What is the most troublesome in the situation that this family is experiencing is their silence. They see no ways to speak about their anguish. Still, people around this family have no idea about all this pain as they know Eugene Achike as a skilled political, social and religious leader with an excellent reputation. All in all, despite the book’s exotic tincture, it speaks about a common problem spread all around the world including the western societies. Thus, it appears very involving for it’s the most diversified audience.

With regards to the author’s style, it should be said that it is rather interesting and easy for comprehension and perception. The strength of her style is in her ability to make every reader interested and involved into the process of reading. The book is developed in a way which helps to feel oneself a part of the events related in the book, to “listen” to the dialogues of its characters and to feel the real atmosphere existing during those days. Through the pages of the book, the audience is involved into the atmosphere of despotism existing in the family and is moved to feel for its characters, and be distressed for them. This excellent book is developed in a single narrative voice (Kambili’s one) which is so convenient for its understanding.

In conclusion, the book ‘Purple Hibiscus’ by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie can be evaluated as a fine piece on despotism in the family providing exotic details, thought-provoking ideas and an interesting layout.

Works Cited

Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi. Purple Hibiscus , The United States: Algonquin Books, 2003. Print.

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Womanism and Patriarchy in Chimamanda Adichie’s Purple Hibiscus.

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Language and Ideology in Chimamanda Adichie's Purple Hibiscus

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Related Papers

Journal of Language Teaching and Research

Isaiah Agbo

The concern of this paper is to examine how masculinity is represented and resisted in Ngozi Adichie’s Half of a Yellow Sun. In a patriarchal society, male dominance is more or less a law, while resistance by females becomes a duty. The female gender has been variously constructed and derogatorily represented in male writings, and Adichie in her novel, Half of a Yellow Sun, makes bold to challenge this status quo. She creates female characters who are embodiment of beauty, intelligence, industry and courage. On the contrary, the male characters and their roles in the novel cast aspersion on patriarchal hegemony. Therefore, the characters in the novel suggest that the superiority of one gender over the other is a figment of society. This paper has adopted critical discourse analysis, systemic functional linguistics, and feminist theory in the analysis of the text under study.

thesis statement in purple hibiscus

Master's Thesis

Adebesin Ibraheem

Oppression may be defined as an act of inhibiting someone else’s liberty. It is a recurrent motif in Chimamanda Adichie’s “Purple Hibiscus”. While existing studies on the text have spotlighted different issues connected to the text, not much has been done on the transitive interpretation of the thematized oppression and the communicative behaviour portrayed by Kambili. This study therefore investigates the causality between the thematized oppression and the consequent communicative disorder demonstrated by Kambili, in an attempt to show that when the instrument of language is retarded by oppression, functional living becomes threatened. The study applies Halliday’s transitivity system, which, through its concept of process and participants, accounts for the representational function of language; and (the study) also adopts Roger Fowler’s concept of minds style, which captures how world views are projected through systematic linguistic choices. Two sets of data were collected from the text. The first set comprises eleven randomly selected instances of narrative reports, capturing the oppressive behaviour of Kambili’s father. The second set comprises 1662 clauses making up Kambili’s self-narrating speeches, collected from the first three segments of the text. The speeches were in the forms of Free Direct Thought (FDT), and Indirect Thought (IT), as representations of Kambili’s mindset; Direct Speech (DS) and Free Direct Speech (FDS), which are her actually uttered words; Indirect Speech (IS) and Narrative Reports of Actions (NRA), which are the reports of her actions. Only Kambili’s self-narrating speeches were extracted, because she is the I-narrator through whom all the events in the story are recounted, and because her eccentric communicative behaviour is what the study investigated. The clauses were subjected to transitive interpretation, sorted into five process types, and counted, to ascertain their comparative frequency of use. The eleven reports, analyzed, reveal a preponderance of material process clauses depicting the series of violent acts exhibited by Kambili’s father. On the other hand, the 1662 clauses analyzed and classified into five process types, show mental processes – of perception, cognition, desideration, and emotion – (46.3%), behavioural processes (21.7%), verbal processes (15.5%), material processes (10.7%), and relational processes (5.8%). The findings reveal Kambili’s father’s oppression is induced by supposed affront, supposed profanity, warped parenting ideals, and fanatical belief; also reveal that Kambili’s communicative behaviour manifests in the forms of internal voicing, impeded interaction, and sparse verbalization, all variously portrayed through IT, NRTA, DS, FDS, and IS; and in the forms of silence, whisper and the use of peculiar language of the eye. The sustained repressive behaviour of Kambili’s father creates brick walls of fear in Kambili’s mind, causing her introversion, making her engage more in the mental activities of imagining, wondering, etc. than in the verbal activities of saying, asking, etc. In terms of her mind style, she saw, thought, and acted according to the rigid structures built in her mind by her despotic father. Adichie reveals the far-reaching impact of oppression on the communicative abilities of children. Domestic violence, a common form of oppression, will threaten the communicative development of children and endanger their functional living. Keywords: oppression, communicative disorder, transitivity system, process and participants, mind style.

Muchamad Sholakhuddin Al Fajri

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 sailent 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.

MOHD N A G E E N RATHER

The Purple Hibiscus (2013) is the debut novel by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, that was received with critical acclaim in literary circles all around the world. It is a bildungsroman novel set in the political context of a military coup in 1980's Nigeria. The present paper attempts to examines how the writer portrayed, through the medium of English, the destructive influences of post-colonialism to present to the world the awareness towards the traditions of Africa and its legacy that remained buried beneath the land of colonized Nigeria. For a thorough analysis of the selected text the qualitative research paradigm, guided by thematic textual analysis, has been used. The results show that Purple Hibiscus, as a post colonial text, critiques the associated violence of the colonial forces, religion, and patriarchal domination.

Occasional Papers

Sarah Hassan

Feminist movements took place at different stages across different cultures. These movements targeted at changing the sexist attitudes against women, gendered social practices still exist in distinct forms either directly or indirectly. Fiction is and will always be a means for female writers to portray the hegemonic practices in their societies. Through fiction, ideologies and writers' points of view can be revealed since language is a perfect tool employed to express latent beliefs. This study investigates some extracts from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Purple hibiscus which tackles female oppression in Nigeria. It intends to apply feminist CDA and cognitive stylistics. Therefore, text world theory is employed as a tool to depict the psychological states, emotions, and beliefs of characters. Thus, the sexist practices against the characters are discussed to show how they influence them. In addition, the different types of worlds are differently interpreted due to their significance.

The Journal of Pan African Studies

Ogaga okuyade

The Journal of Commonwealth Literature

Sandra Nwokocha

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 of this groundbreaking tenor.

International Journal of English Language and Literature Studies

Moffat Sebola

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s fiction, namely, Purple Hibiscus, Half of a Yellow Sun, Americanah and The Thing Around Your Neck generally reflects an intersection of black women’s experiences in a variety of contexts. In Adichie’s fiction, motifs that feature in the domain of identity politics and gender discourse are brought into critical focus. Among these motifs are appraisals of African names, stereotyping complexions, racialisations of hair and other themes such as the commodification of the female body. In Adichie’s fiction, these aspects are thematised as key features of black women’s identity and therefore worth considering in identity politics and gender discourse. In this article, Adichie’s Dear Ijeawele or A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions is relied upon as a summary of her authorial vision, ideology and feminist outlook. This article appreciates how Adichie seeks to reposition postcolonial hermeneutics on black women’s identity by bringing to light some challenges...

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Home — Essay Samples — Literature — Purple Hibiscus — Religion Issues in Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

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Religion Issues in Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

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Words: 904 |

Published: Jul 30, 2019

Words: 904 | Pages: 2 | 5 min read

Works Cited

  • Adichie, C. N. (2003). Purple Hibiscus: A Novel. Algonquin Books.
  • Adichie, C. N. (2012). "Religion and Myth in Purple Hibiscus." Research in African Literatures, 43(1), 157-174.
  • Adichie, C. N. (2016). "The Role of Color Symbolism in Purple Hibiscus." African Journal of Research in Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 20(1), 67-81.
  • Badawi, M. M. (2009). "Religion and Conflict in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Purple Hibiscus." CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture, 11(2), 1-8.
  • Adeoti, G. (2010). "Bridging Religious and Cultural Spaces: A Study of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Purple Hibiscus." Journal of the African Literature Association, 4(2), 71-83.
  • Ukaegbu, V. (2013). "Religion and Patriarchy in Purple Hibiscus." Journal of the African Literature Association, 7(2), 101-115.
  • Fakunle, O. (2017). "Violence and Religion in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Purple Hibiscus." Journal of Pan African Studies, 10(1), 226-242.
  • Odoemelam, C. (2014). "Symbolism in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Purple Hibiscus." Global Journal of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, 2(3), 157-168.
  • Njoku, C. N. (2015). "Postcolonial Feminism in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Purple Hibiscus and Half of a Yellow Sun." Gender & Behaviour, 13(2), 6909-6920.
  • Okwudishu, C. (2011). "The Unraveling of Patriarchal Authority in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Purple Hibiscus." Research in African Literatures, 42(4), 65-81.

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  1. Purple Hibiscus Themes and Analysis

    The purple hibiscus is a flower growing in Aunty Ifeoma's garden. Jaja is drawn to the flower and in fact, takes some strands back to Enugu and asks the gardener to plant them there. The hibiscus is a symbol of courage and individuality. Jaja is so taken by the flowers that he tends to them in Aunty Ifeoma's house.

  2. A Theme of Silence in Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

    Purple Hibiscus is a novel made by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie about a very religious Nigerian father who controls his families' lives. In Nigeria, a woman is not allowed to speak unless spoken too. ... There are certain ways to handle your children without abusing them. Papa does make a statement saying, "They are not like those loud children ...

  3. Purple Hibiscus Essay

    Purple Hibiscus is a novel published in 2003 by the Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. It focuses on the emotional transition characteristic to adolescence, on family bonds, and the taste and promise of freedom. ... with an introduction, main body, conclusion, and properly structured paragraphs, which connect with the thesis. 28 essay ...

  4. Purple Hibiscus Theme Analysis: [Essay Example], 624 words

    The purple hibiscus, a symbol of freedom and rebellion, blooms in Ifeoma's garden, contrasting with the strict order and silence of their own home. The Role of Religion. Religion is another significant theme explored in Purple Hibiscus. Eugene's extreme Catholicism dominates every aspect of his family's life, and he uses it as a tool to control ...

  5. Purple Hibiscus Themes

    Though the plot of Purple Hibiscus unfolds mostly on a personal level, its characters' lives are also affected by a larger political background. Nigeria has a long history of English colonialism and oppression—it was a colony of the British for over a hundred and fifty years, and its disparate groups only brought together as a single nation because of British control—and it only became ...

  6. Purple Hibiscus Study Guide

    Historical Context of Purple Hibiscus. Nigeria first gained its independence from British colonialism in 1960, but then faced a brutal civil war seven years later (described in Adichie's novel Half of a Yellow Sun). Purple Hibiscus takes place years after that, probably in the 1980s. The military leader in the novel is based on Ibrahim ...

  7. Purple Hibiscus Themes

    Silence and Speech. In Purple Hibiscus, a distinct line is often drawn between those who do and do not speak. Those living with Papa's abuse—Mama, Kambili, and Jaja—speak little. Early on ...

  8. Purple Hibiscus Themes

    Even democracy is hindered by the wide-spread corruption in the government. In Purple Hibiscus, there is a coup that culminates in military rule. Papa and his paper, the Standard, are critical of the corruption that is ushered in by a leader who is not elected by the people. Ironically, Papa is a self-righteous dictator in his own home.

  9. Religion and Belief Theme in Purple Hibiscus

    Religion and Belief Theme Analysis. LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Purple Hibiscus, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. Religion and belief are central to the novel, particularly in the contrasts between Papa, Papa-Nnukwu, and Aunty Ifeoma / Father Amadi. The plot begins with descriptions of Papa's ...

  10. Purple Hibiscus Essays

    Purple Hibiscus. The novel Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie describes the life of a teenage girl, Kambili, who is raised in Nigeria. In the novel, Adichie uses two main settings to effectively describe the themes of freedom, silence, and repression.

  11. Purple Hibiscus Essay Questions

    When Amaka is deriding her, Kambili dreams her cousin is flushing her down the toilet. Kambili's dreams are a gateway into her mind. 6. Purple Hibiscus charts the coming of age of both Kambili and Jaja. Discuss how each Achike sibling matures over the course of the novel. Kambili is characterized by her lack of voice.

  12. Purple Hibiscus Essay Topics

    Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Study Guide of "Purple Hibiscus" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt ...

  13. "Purple Hibiscus" Novel by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Essay

    Exclusively available on IvyPanda®. The book 'Purple Hibiscus' written by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie can be acclaimed as a strong piece of literature depicting the miseries of a prominent Nigerian man's family's life. Within the book, the audience will find a coherent and cohesive representation of all the hardships those people had to ...

  14. (PDF) Purple Hibiscus: A Literary Analysis

    Synopsis (plot summary) The text is about the life of the Achieke family. It's a family made up of the father, mother, and. two children, a boy and a girl. These are Eugene, Mama Beatrice ...

  15. Purple Hibiscus Setting and Its Significant Influence: Analysis Essay

    The novel Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Adichie, set in post-colonial Nigeria during the Civil War in the late 1960s, is a bildungsroman that focuses greatly on family relationships as well as religious and cultural ideals. The passage describing Kambili and Jaja's first meal at their Aunt's house in Nsukka provides a stark contrast to the ...

  16. The Impact of Family Environment and Religion in Purple Hibiscus and

    This thesis delves into the influence of family environment and religion on character development, focusing on the traumatic effects of domestic abuse and slavery in Purple Hibiscus and Beloved. Morrison and Adichie demonstrate how religion can be both traumatic and healing for their characters, and how the family context shapes an

  17. Feministic Perspective in Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

    Adichie's Purple Hibiscus is a women's activist work that challenges the dehumanizing propensities of the men society as obvious in the character of Mama (Beatrice Achike) who in the end uncovered the African origination of a perfect lady who keeps imbecilic even despite mortification, exploitation, and severity in order to be seen as a decent ...

  18. Womanism and Patriarchy in Chimamanda Adichie's Purple Hibiscus

    Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie echoes womanist longing as well. On the other side, the author tends toward the ultimate womanist ideal of union and survival for man, woman, and kid ...

  19. Language and Ideology in Chimamanda Adichie's Purple Hibiscus

    Master's Thesis. OPPRESSION AND COMMUNICATIVE DISORDER IN CHIMAMANDA ADICHIE'S "PURPLE HIBISCUS" ... The Purple Hibiscus (2013) is the debut novel by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, that was received with critical acclaim in literary circles all around the world. ... (Eugene) in the house, even when he does not utter any statements, brings in an over ...

  20. Analysis of Symbolism in Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

    The purple hibiscus is foreseen at the end of the novel once Papa is gone and the Achike finally has the freedom they have been waiting for. Keep in mind: This is only a sample. Get a custom paper now from our expert writers. Get custom essay. Conclusion. Within the novel, there were many symbols that help develop the ideas throughout the novel

  21. Purple Cloud Loungers + Hibiscus

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  22. Religion Issues in Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

    The uniqueness of a purple hibiscus is therefore symbolic of the particular suffering to which Jaja subjects himself. At another level, purple is used to describe Beatrices swollen eye [that] was still the black-purple color of an overripe avocado (10-11), symbolizing the needles of pain and suffering (211). Purple, in the Christian church, is ...