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Representation of African Female Identity Beyond Border in Buchi Emecheta's Second Class Citizen
Conference Paper · June 2020
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ECLSS Online 2020b
2nd ECLSS International Online Conference on Economics and Social Sciences
Istanbul / TURKEY June 28- 29, 2020
ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
Farhod AHROROV, Ph.D., UZBEKISTAN
Artur BORCUCH, Ph.D., POLAND
Hasan KARACAN, Ph.D., TURKEY [Co-Chair]
Kalbike Omirbaikyzy ESENOVA, Ph. D, KAZAKHSTAN [Chair]
Eva EPPLER, Ph. D., UK
Maija BURIMA, Ph. D., LATVIA
Giedrė KVIESKIENE, Ph.D., LITHUANIA
Rustam KHALMURADOV, Ph.D., UZBEKISTAN
Nadejda AÇAN, Ph. D., RUSSIA
Altynshash KURMANALI, Ph. D, KAZAKHSTAN
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ECLSS Online 2020b
2nd ECLSS International Online Conference on Economics and Social Sciences
Istanbul / TURKEY June 28- 29, 2020
SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE
Prof. Dr. Mark SZYMANSKI Pacific University, USA
Prof. Dr. Maija BURIMA Daugavpils University, LATVIA
Prof. Dr. Giedrė KVIESKIENE Vytautas Magnus University, LITHUANIA
Prof. Dr. Rustam KHALMURADOV, UZBEKISTAN Samarkand State University, UZBEKISTAN
Prof. Dr. Giuli ALASANIA University of Georgia, GEORGIA
Prof. Dr. Shavkat KHASANOV Samarkand Branch of Tashkent University of Economics, UZBEKISTAN
Prof. Dr. Baltabay ABDIGAZIEV Kazakh National Pedagogical University named after Abai Kunanbayev, KAZAKHSTAN
Prof. Dr. Janalik BALTABAEVA Kazakh National Pedagogical University named after Abai Kunanbayev, KAZAKHSTAN
Prof. Dr. Farhod AHROROV Samarkand Branch of Tashkent University of Economics, UZBEKISTAN
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Prof. Dr. Georgi GAGANIDZE Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, GEORGIA
Prof. Dr. Vadim KUZMIN Ural Federal University, RUSSIA
Prof. Dr. Sema ETIKAN Ahi Evran University, TURKEY
Prof. Dr. Mehmet DEMIREZEN Ufuk University, TURKEY
Prof. Dr. Kalbike Omirbaikyzy ESSENOVA Kazakh National Pedagogical University named after Abai Kunanbayev, KAZAKHSTAN
Prof. Dr. Olga Nosova VALENTYNOVNA Kharkiv National University, UKRAINE
Prof. Dr. Abdullah KIZILCIK Istanbul University, TURKEY
Prof. Dr. Ramazan ERTURGUT Akdeniz University, TURKEY
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nadejda AÇAN Ural Federal University, RUSSIA
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Eva EPPLER University of Roehampton, UK
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Semiha ŞAHİN Dokuz Eylul University, TURKEY
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Sholpan Myrzakasymovna SHUINSHINA Institute of Secondary Education Altynsarin National Academy, KAZAKHSTAN
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Giovanni BORRIELLO Università degli Studi della Tuscia / ITALY
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Zaharah HUSSIN University of Malaya, MALAYSIA
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Assoc. Prof. Dr. Rıza SAM Uludag University, TURKEY
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nagima Abzelbekovna ILIYASOVA Kazakh National Pedagogical University named after Abai Kunanbayev, KAZAKHSTAN
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Raygul RAHMETOVA Kazakh National Pedagogical University named after Abai Kunanbayev, KAZAKHSTAN
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Gulnur SMAGULOVA Kazakh National Pedagogical University named after Abai Kunanbayev, KAZAKHSTAN
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Beata BOROWSKA-BESZTA Nicolaus Copernicus University, Toruń, POLAND
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Hajjah Jariah Mohd JAN University of Malaya, MALAYSIA
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tornike SHURGULAIA Georgian National University, GEORGIA
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mashitoh MAHAMOOD University of Malaya, MALAYSIA
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Izabela A. DAHL Örebro University, SWEDEN
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Raihanah Binti Hj AZAHARI University of Malaya, MALAYSIA
Assist. Prof. Dr. Rouslan JALIL University of Kentucky, USA
Assist. Prof. Dr. Muhammet ÖZDEMİR Katip Celebi University, TURKEY
Assist. Prof. Dr. Nurhodja Akbulaev Azerbaycan Devlet İktisat Üniversitesi, AZERBAIJAN
Assist. Prof. Dr. Serkan TÜRKOĞLU Artvin Çoruh University, TURKEY
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Assist. Prof. Dr. Ercüment YILDIRIM Kahramanmaras Sutcu Imam University, TURKEY
Asst. Prof. Dr. Tahira KALSOOM Lahore College for Women University, PAKISTAN
Assist. Prof. Dr. Nino CHIABRISHVILI Ilia State University, GEORGIA
Assist. Prof. Dr. Yusuf Ziyaettin TURAN Uşak University, TURKEY
Assist. Prof. Dr. Ekin KAYNAK ILTAR Akdeniz University, TURKEY
Dr. Katya DUNAJEVA Eotvos Lorand University, HUNGARY
Dr. Marta R. JABŁOŃSKA University of Lodz, POLAND
Dr. Mani Man Singh RAJBHANDARI University of Johannesburg, Republic of SOUTH AFRICA
Dr. Alessandro PORROVECCHIO Université du littoral Côte d’Opale, FRANCE
Dr. Rina Manuela CONTINI Università degli Studi G. d’Annunzio Chieti e Pescara, ITALY
Dr. Paige WILLIAMS University of Melbourne, AUSTRALIA
Dr. Wilkinson Daniel Wong GONZALES National University of Singapore, SINGAPORE
Dr. Marek LUKÁČ University of Presov, SLOVAKIA
Dr. Ljiljana Kaliterna LIPOVČAN Institute of Social Sciences Ivo Pilar, CROATIA
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Dr. Bruno SURDEL Renmin University, Beijing, CHINA
Dr. Salma HALIOUI Brandenburgische Technische Universität Cottbus, GERMANY
Dr. Anantha Raj A. AROKIASAMY Quest International University Perak (QIUP), MALAYSIA
Dr. Lazlo MARACZ Universiteit van Amsterdam, The NETHERLANDS
Dr. Faizal AYOB Victoria University, AUSTRALIA
Dr. Cosmin Tudor CIOCAN Ovidius University Constanta, ROMANIA
Dr. Almaz Rafisovich GAPSALAMOV Kazan Federal University, RUSSIA
Dr. Aizan Binti Ali Mat ZIN Universiti Malaya, MALAYSIA
Dr. Tahir ISLAM The University of Science and Technology, CHINA
Kardo Karim Rached MOHAMMAD University of Human Development, IRAQ
Adesanya Ibiyinka OLUSOLA Ekiti State University, NIGERIA
Prof. Dr. Hossein Khoshbaten Sarab University, IRAN
Prof. Dr. Kondratyuk Oksana Ivanivna Kiev National University of Trade and Economics, UKRAINE
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CONTENTS
Fuzûlî’nin Bir Gazeliyle Namık Kemal’in Bir Gazelini Metinlerarasılık Bağlamında Okumak ...... 2 Сирожиддин Саййид Бугунги Ўзбек Шеъриятининг Ёрқин Намояндаси ...... 9 Фарзанд Тарбиясида Миллий Ва Диний Қадриятларнинг Ўрни Ва Аҳамияти ...... 16 Arif Nihat Asya’nın Yastığımın Ruyası Üzerine Bir Okuma ...... 20 Boshlang‘ich Sinflarda Innovatsion Metodlarning Ahamiyati ...... 27 Xorij Tajribasida Davlat Qimmatli Qog`Ozlari Bo’yicha Daromadlilik Egri Chizig`Ini Tahlil Etishning Zamonaviy Modellari ...... 34 Boshlang'ich Sinf O'quvchilarining Matematik Tafakkurini Shakllantirishda Pedagogik Texnologiyalarning O'rni ...... 40 Some philosophical scientific aspects of life during and after an Pandemic ...... 43 Opera va balet janrining vujudga kelishi. O‘zbek bastakorlari ijodida opera va baletning paydo bo‘lishi ...... 55 Organization of Production of Walnuts in an Industrial Volume ...... 59 Abdurahmon Jomiyning “Tuhfat ul-ahror” va Alisher Navoiyning “Hayrat ul-abror” dostonlari tarkibida ešγ] – “’Išq” konsepti ishtirok etgan frazemalarning chog‘ishtirma tahlili ...... 68‘] ”عشق“ Ўзбекистон Дунганлари Ва Дунган Тилининг Бугунги Холати ...... 74 Абдулкарим Шаҳристонийнинг ҳаёти ва илмий мероси ...... 81 Подбор Солнечного Вакуумного Колектора Для Горячее Водоснабжение И Отопление Жилых И Общественных Зданий ...... 86 Representations of African Female Identity beyond Border in Buchi Emecheta’s Second-Class Citizen ...... 90 Фердоусидің «Шаһнамасы» Және Түркі Халықтары Туындылары Арасындағы Әдеби Байланыстар ...... 98 The Role of Cultural Awareness in Learning English ...... 103 Tijorat Banklarida Islomiy Bank Xizmatlarining Zarurligi va Iqtisodiy O‘sishdagi Ahamiyati ...... 106 Олий таълим муассасалари рейтингини оширишда кадрлар тайёрлашни бошқариш бўйича тавсиялар ...... 110 The First Factor of the Disease is Stress ...... 116 Milenyum Raporu Yaşam Felsefesi ve 2020 Gerçekleri ...... 120 Тўқималарни Бадиий Безашда Креп Ўрилишларидан Фойдаланиш ...... 129 Цифровая Экономика и Её Роль в Социальноэкономическом Развитии Узбекистана...... 134
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Turmush Qurish Arafasidagi Yoshlarga Tibbiy Ko’rikning Ahamiyatini Tushuntirishning Dolzarbligi ...... 138 Muhammad Yusuf She’rlarınıng Badııy Talqını ...... 143 Формирование Языковой и Коммуникативной Компетенции Учащихся При Работе Над Текстом ...... 148 Andizhan Residents Respect Eternal Values ...... 155 Сут Заводининг Оқова Сувларини Коагулянтлар Ёрдамида Тозалаш ...... 158 Обеспечение Конфиденциальности Информационных Ресурсов Электронного Правительство ...... 162 Меҳнат ресурслари: иқтисодий моҳияти ва мазмуни ...... 168 Сухие Строительные Смеси с Применением Ультрадисперсных Активных Минеральных Добавок На Основе Золы Рисовой Лузги ...... 172 Узбек миллий ракс санъатида устоз-шогирд анъаналарига эътибор ...... 176 Strategies of Teaching Vocabulary to Children ...... 179 Транскультурная парадигма в произведении Ч. Айтматова И дольше века длится день ...... 182 Writing the Same Differently ...... 186 Обучение школьников изучающему чтению в аспекте требований международной системы PIRLS ...... 189 Ялпиз Ўсимлигидан Эфир Мойлари Олиш Технологик Жараёнини Автоматлаштириш...... 194 Подготовка Населения К Действиям Во Время Землетрясения ...... 200 How a Future Pedagogue Educator Should Be ...... 205 Digital Economy Concept and Its Essence ...... 209 Афғонистон Ўзбекларининг Сони Қанча...? ...... 213 Формирование учетно – аналитической информации о расчетах с персоналом по оплате труда ...... 225 Frederiko Soddi Teoremasi Haqida ...... 233 Аччиқ қалампирнинг дала шароитида фузариоз касаллигига қарши фунгицидларнинг биологик самарадорлиги ...... 238 Олий Таълимда Педагогнинг Инновацион Фаолиятини Шакллантириш ...... 241 O’qituvchi mеhnatini ilmiy tashkil etish ...... 245 Some Aspects of Taxation in the Digital Economy: Tax on Google in Uzbekistan ...... 249 Ta’lim Tizmida Yangi Pedagogik Texnologiya ...... 253 Иссиқхона Шароитида Бодрингда Ўсимлигида Учровчи Сўрувчи Зараркунандаларига Қарши Самарали Курашиш...... 257
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Иқтисодиётни ривожлантиришда доривор ўсимликларни етиштиришнинг аҳамияти ...... 262 Глубокая Очистка Промышленных Сточных Вод Вспомогательными Фильтрующими Материалами ...... 267 Insoniyatni madaniy rivojlanishida tilning o’rni ...... 273 Социокультурные Аспекты Фразеологии В Разносистемных Языках ...... 276 Қашқадарё Вилоятида Ҳунармандчиликни Янада Ривожлантиришнинг Минтақавий Хусусиятлари ...... 279 Yosh Avlodni Jismoniy Tarbiya va Sportga Jalb Qilish Orqali Sog`Lom Turmush Tarzini Shakllantirish ...... 283 Защита национальных интересов движение Алаш-Орда ...... 287 Bmt Boshchiligida Dunyo Mamlakatlarining Barqaror Taraqqiyot va Rivojlanishni Ta’minlaydigan Taraqqiyot Maqsadlari va Faoliyat Yo’nalishlari Tahlili ...... 292 Bilim Samaradorligini Oshirishda Vaqtdan Unumli Foydalanishning Ahamiyati, Axborot Kommunikatsiya Texnologiyalarining O’rni va Takrorlash Darslarining Muhimligi ...... 297 The Improvement of Sales Accounting in Agricultural Enterprises ...... 300 Umumiy pedagogika - ta’lim - tarbiya nazariyasi. Umumiy pedagogikaning ilmiy tadqiqot metodlari. Umumiy pedagogika- ta’lim-tarbiya nazariyasi ...... 307 Отражение Национальных Ценностей В Национальных Играх ...... 313 Фразеологизмы И Фрезеологические Единицы: Использование Их В Речи ...... 317 Global Koronavirus Pandemiyasi Sharoitida Janubiy Koreya Iqtisodiyoti va Undagi Raqamli Iqtisodiyotning O’rni ...... 321 Innovative Technologies In Economic Development ...... 332 Оилада Бола Тарбиясининг Йўл Ва Воситалари ...... 336 Oqchopsoy Soyligi Tabiati va U Yerda Ichki Turizmni Rivojlantirsh Imkoniyatlari ...... 341 Суғориладиган Ерлардан Самарали Фойдаланишда Нўхат Экинининг Аҳамияти ...... 346 Элементар Зарралар Физикасини Ўқитишда Инновацион Таълим Технологияларидан Фойдаланиш ...... 350 Адронлар Таркибининг Кварк Назарияси ...... 358 Description of Methodological Support to Increase Speaking Competence ...... 363 Baburnâme’de Kullanılan Paremaların Anlamsal Analizi ve Onların Türkçe Tercümedeki İfadesi .. 367 Mütercim Tercümanlık Öğrencilerinin Uzaktan Eğitime Yönelik Algılarının Ölçülmesi: Bartın Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Çeviribilim Bölümü 1. Sınıf İngilizce Mütercim Tercümanlık Öğrencileri Bağlamında ...... 377 Xorijiy Investisiyalarni Jalb Qilish Mamlakat Eksport– Import Imkoniyatlarini Oshirish Garovi ... 388
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Kirkuk Between Being a Kurdish City and Demographic Change and Arabisation Process in Twentieth Century ...... 391 Health Education ...... 401 Directions for the Development of E-Commerce in Uzbekistan ...... 402 Economic Use of Land Resources Features ...... 406 Geri Dönüşümü Özendirmede Toplum Tabanlı Pazarlama Yaklaşımı: Türkiye İçin Yeni Bir Model Önerisi ...... 409 Ideological Immunity against Spiritual Threats: Problems and Solutions ...... 411 Aholini “Hayot Faoliyati Xavfsizligi” Bo'yicha O'qitishda Yangicha Pedagogik Texnologiya ...... 415 Формирование Пешеходных Улиц Города Самарканда ...... 421 Йўл Қурилиш Машиналари Ишлаш Самарадорлигида Сифат Кўрсаткичларини Роли ...... 425 Pandemiya Sharoitida Auditorlik Faoliyatida Tashkiliy-Huquqiy O’zgarishlar ...... 429 Matematikani o‘qitishning innovatsion vositalari ...... 436 Fizika Darslarida Zamonaviy Keys Texnologiyasi ...... 439 Rauf Parfi Lirikasida Tarixiy Shaxs Talqini ...... 443 External Labor Migration Of The Population Of Central Asian Countries...... 447 Yapon va O‘zbek Tilidagi Frazeologik Birliklar Tarkibida Inkor Shakllarining Shakliy Va Mazmuniy Munosabati ...... 450 A Variety of Mains Power Supplies ...... 455 Dramada Ahmad Farg‘oniy Siymosi Talqini ...... 460 Orol va Orol Bo’yi Hududidagi O’zgarishlar ...... 464 What Do English Teachers Keep in Their Notes for the Students? The profits of Field Notes for the Development of Language Skills ...... 469 Высоконадежный Кузов Автомобиля ...... 474 Инновацион, Замонавий Технологиялар Ва “Covid-19” Пандемиясининг Жаҳон Молия Бозорига Таъсири ...... 479 Бизнес Режа Тузишда Математиканинг Аҳамияти ...... 484 Антиокислительной Защиты При Переработки Винограда ...... 491 Does Keeping a Diary Really Influence Writing Skills of English Learners of Elementary Level? A Case of Five English Learners ...... 499 Тенденции В Проектировании Учреждений Молодёжного Досуга ...... 508 Breadth of Vocabulary Knowledge ...... 512 Оила Ва Фарзанд Тарбиясида Миллий Қадриятларнинг Ўрни...... 515
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Получение гидротехнических цементов на основе туффитов обоженных при 6000 С золошлаковых смесей ...... 520 Support for small business and private entrepreneurship in Uzbekistan ...... 525 Баркамол авлод тарбиясининг ижтимоий асослари ...... 529 Ta’lim -Ijtimoiy Taraqqiyotning Muhim Omili ...... 534 Tutoring For Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders ...... 538 Тема Природы В Творчестве Русских Поэтов ...... 542 Ресторан хизматлари бозори рақобатбардошлигини баҳолаш ва моделлаштиришни такомиллаштириш масалалари ...... 545 Immobilization of Bacillus Subtilis Cells Bs-26: On Complex Mineral Fertilizers and Production of Bacterial Biomineral Fertilizers ...... 558 Об Использовании Инновационных Технологий В Вузах Узбекистана В Обучении Иностранного Языка ...... 563 Zamonaviy metodlardan samarali foydalanish ta’lim sifatini oshirishning eng muhim omili ...... 566 Ўзбекистон Республикасида 1991-2012-Йилларда Таълим Соҳасида Олиб Борилган Ислоҳотлар ...... 569 Chıngız Aytmatov Asarlarıda Davr Va Inson Muammosı ...... 571 Hozirgi zamon o’zbek tili va ingliz tillarida onomotopik so’zlarni o’rganishning nazariy asoslari . 575 Maktabgacha ta'limda xoreografiya ...... 579 Chet Tilini O’rganishda Inavatsion Metodlar ...... 583 Bir Jinsli Bo’lmagan Sterjenda Issiqlik Almashish Jarayonini Boshqarish Masalasi ...... 587 About English language and methods of teaching English in schools ...... 595 Quduqlarni ta’mirlashda qo’llaniladigan qurilmalar va mexanizmalar ...... 598 Активизация Методов Обучения На Современном Уроке Русского Языка ...... 601 Mavzu:Orol Dengizining Ekologik Ahvoli ...... 607 Новейшие Лабораторные Данные При Метаболическом Синдроме ...... 612 Модификацияланган асфальтобетон қопламалар дефформациясига автомобиль таъсирининг тадқиқоти ...... 616 Коррупцияга Қарши Курашишнинг Ижтимоий-Сиёсий Томонлари ...... 621 Коррупциянинг Келиб Чиқиши, Тарихий Илдизлари ...... 624 She’riyatda shamol va u bilan bo’gliq tushunchalar talqini ...... 627
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Representations of African Female Identity beyond Border in Buchi Emecheta’s Second-Class Citizen
Emrah IŞIK1
Abstract Buchi Emecheta is considered to be one of the most renowned African female writers and she, throughout her writing career, has been a literary pioneer of African women’s struggle in the face of both the colonization by African men and the discrimination based on racial and gender issues. In her second novel, Second-Class Citizen, along with such subject matters as gender, colonialism, patriarchal oppression, Emecheta focuses on cross-bordering, transnational and trans-cultural mobility and female identity formation of Adah setting foot in the centre of the Empire. In this respect, this study intends to examine the transnational movement of Adah from Nigeria to London with regards to gender, migration and conflict between the identity formation of a woman migrant beyond national border and the patriarchal codes, which is symbolized by her husband, Francis. Moreover, the paper discusses the oppression to which the black immigrants get exposed and aims to lead readers throughout the world to gain insight into that problem beyond border. Keywords: Buchi Emecheta, transnationalism, discrimination, gender, immigration.
Considered to be one of the most renowned African female writers, Buchi Emecheta, throughout her writing career, “had to struggle against colonization by their own men and by those traditional attitudes that reserved formal educations for males” (Busby, xiii). In her second novel, Second-Class Citizen (1974), which is regarded as “semi-autobiographical (Stratton, 108), Emecheta “connects postcolonial feminine identity to the institutionalized nature of traditional, patriarchal oppression and silence of women of all classes”. (Uraizee, 19). Along with such subject matters as gender, colonialism, patriarchal oppression, the novel also centers on cross-bordering, transnational and trans-cultural mobility and female identity formation of Adah setting foot in the centre of the Empire. In this respect, this study intends to examine the transnational movement of Adah from Nigeria to London with regards to gender, migration and conflict between the identity formation of a woman migrant beyond national border and the patriarchal codes, which is symbolized by her husband, Francis.
1 Research Assistant, Department of English Language and Literature, Batman University, TURKEY
June 28 – 29, 2020 90 İstanbul, Turkey
To begin with, Steven Vertovec describes transnationalism as “sustained cross-border relationships, patterns of exchange affiliations and social formations spanning nation states” (2). Concordantly, while exploring transculturalism, Wolfgang Berg and Aoileann Ni Eigeartaigh argue that “transcending the limitations of traditional static and binary conceptions of identity and nationality, contemporary theories of culture tend to focus instead on the modern state as a multicultural rather than monolithic society, which accommodates a range of different cultural groups within its own borders, while reaching out to its diaspora” (10). Regarding the definitions of Vertovec, Wolfgang Berg and Aoileann Ni Eigeartaigh, the transnational and transcultural mobilities refer to multi-cultural, cross-border activities pertaining to issues of migrancy, diaspora, and nomadism. It is revealed that the cross-border movement is concerned with the relations between the societies who lead their lives in accordance with the norms of different cultures. However, in the process of adapting, integrating into a new culture, a migrant subject is exposed to some kinds of discriminating o stigmatizing attitudes that also includes the Western segregation of the Eastern peoples due to the prejudicial outlook on the Orient.
At this point, Buchi Emecheta’s Second-Class Citizen comes to the fore as a work of migrant literature that foregrounds the biased and discriminative attitudes of the British society towards the immigrant Nigerian protagonist, Adah, and her husband, Francis. The novel provides the readers with observing the reflections of the central character’s oppression in the English society in different experiences in her new life in the host society. Emecheta actually unveils Adah’s disappointment with Britain and British culture due to her gender and skin colour. These considerations play a key role in her exclusion and discrimination in the daily life. Thereby, in the first part of the novel, the writer emphasizes the attitude towards the Europeans by the Igbo society to which the main figure also belongs:
The Ibuza women who lived in Lagos were preparing for the arrival of the town’s first lawyer from the United Kingdom. The title ‘United Kingdom’ when pronounced by Adah’s father sounded so heavy, like the type of noise one associated with bombs. It was so deep, so mysterious, that Adah’s father always voiced it hushed tones, wearing such a respectful expression, as if it were speaking of God’s Holiest of Holies. Going to the United Kingdom must surely be like paying God a visit. The United Kingdom, then, must be like heaven. (2)
As seen, the narrator shows the surrounding in which Adah is born. Her family members, particularly her father, attribute a divine meaning to Britain. This is understood from his tone when he talks about that land. Since she observes these attitudes of her father, Adah hopes that England must be a country which meets all her needs. Therefore, as a consequence of his approach, she starts to idealise the United Kingdom and dreams about the circumstances there. The reflections of this glorification are also observed in her education in that she does not choose to attend a local school. Instead, she starts to participate in the lessons in the Methodist Girls’ High School. The author elaborates on the issue as follows:
When she grew up, and was attending the Methodist Girls’ High School in Lagos, where she came into contact with European missionaries, her name was one of the first ones they learned and pronounced correctly. This usually gave her a start against the other girls with long names like Adebisi Gbamgbose, or Oluwafunmilayo Olorunshogo! (8)
June 28 – 29, 2020 91 İstanbul, Turkey
The school which Adah attends is depicted by the author. It is shown that the missionaries from Europe instruct the African children. She chooses a Christian school since she observes the glorification of the Western societies in her family as well. Thus, she gets accustomed to the school easily. The importance of the quotation is related to the teaching staff because of their colonialist ideals. As Ngugi wa Thiong’o argues, colonialism involves “the destruction or deliberate undervaluing of a people’s culture, their art, dances, religions, history, geography, education, orature, and literature, and the conscious elevation of the language of the coloniser” (16). In this regard, it is not wrong to claim that, considering the missionaries as colonisers, their aim is to subvert the local culture and impose their Eurocentric ideals on the minds of the African citizens. Homi K. Bhabha also emphasises that “the objective of colonial discourse is to construe the colonised as a population of degenerate types on the basis of racial origin, in order to justify the conquest and to establish systems of administration and instruction” (101). Furthermore, it is clearly depicted that the European missionaries who instruct Adah and her friends aim to shape their minds in accordance with the civilised Western worldview. As a consequence of this education, Adah considers Britain as an ideal country to lead her life in the future.
By the end of the second chapter of the work, the main character shares her hopes with her mother for leading a prosperous life with Francis, her husband, in England. The author handles the subject as follows:
‘Think of it, Ma – Francis in his big American car and I in my small one, coming to visit you and Pa when you retire. You’ll be the envy of all your friends. Mind you, in England, I’ll work and still send you money. All you have to do is to ask, and then you’ll get whatever you want. All the girls will go to secondary school. I’ve almost finished reading for librarianship. All I have to do is to work, look after Francis and attend classes in the evening. And when I come back, I shall earn more than double what I’m earning now.’ […]. It’s nice to be treated like an élite, a status they were achieving. Had not Francis passed his first examination in Cost and Works accountancy, were not she and her children on their way to England? She knew she was determined that they would go to English schools and, if possible, English universities. (29-31)
It is shown that Adah is hopeful for her future life in the United Kingdom. Her hopes are mainly based on her financial well-being, her children’s education and the social status she hopes they can get. Her expectations in materialist sense derives from her promise for earning more money than she does here and her struggle for making her mother the envy of the neighbours. Her dream in the field of education is her children’s attendance to the English universities, which she finds prestigious. As a result, she expects to be considered an élite woman who is wealthy and who sends her children to the British colleges. She thinks of these matters for her life there due to her surroundings in the early phases of her life. However, she does not take the oppression against her into consideration at all. Therefore, she experiences disappointment to a large extent.
The discrimination against her is observed in terms of her gender as well as skin colour. Accordingly, her first negative experience there is related to the new attitudes of her husband. From her point of view, he does not behave in the same way as he did before going to England. The narrator reflects the matter in the following manner:
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The Francis that came to meet them was a new Francis. There was something very, very different about him. Adah was stunned when he kissed her in the public, with everybody looking. Oh, my God, she thought; if her mother-in-law could see them, she would go and make sacrifices to Oboshi for forgiveness. […]. ‘These people do not look as if they know how to joke. You’re lying, Francis. You’re making it all up. English people don’t joke about death.’ ‘This separation of ours has made you bold. You’ve never in your life told me that I was lying before,’ Francis accused. Adah was quietened by the sharpness in his voice. The sharpness seemed to say to her: ‘It is allowed for African males to come and get civilised in England. But that privilege has not been extended to the females yet.’ (33-4)
As shown, Adah gets surprised by her husband’s act of kissing her in the public. She evaluates his deed in accordance with the African cultural values. Therefore, she finds her husband’s performance of such a practice unethical. Hence, while she accuses him of being a liar, the author approaches to Francis’s response to her by suggesting that males from Africa can get civilised; however, the women from there are inferior because of their gender and complexion. In Femi Ojo-Ade’s words, “the African woman is a slave, has always been a slave. An inferior being. A sexual object. A bedmate. A beast of burden. A victim of male viciousness” (177). While the critic reflects the Western bias about the black women as represented by Adah in the work, the novelist also approaches to this issue in relation to the discrimination against the central figure, based on gender and blackness. Although it is the aspect concerning Adah, the second significant point about the quotation is concerned with Francis. His reaction to his wife is not only the signifier of his adherence to the patriarchal ideals in his native country, but it also indicates the assimilation of his identity in Britain. In other words, he turns out to be a character showing signs of mimicry. For this reason, he tends to detest his native culture and favours the English way of life. Kissing his wife in the public when he meets Adah and her children is reflected as the consequence of his support for the British worldview.
Adah does not only experience disappointment about her husband’s treatment to her, but she also witnesses discrimination in the house in which she lives. The issue is depicted in the work as follows:
‘Are we going to live here?’ she managed to ask. ‘Well, I know you will not like it, but this is the best I can do. You see, accommodation is very short in London, especially for black people with children. Everybody is coming to London, the West Indians, the Pakistanis and even the Indians, so that African students are usually grouped together with them. We are all blacks, all coloureds, and the only houses we can get are horrors like these.’ (35)
Here, although Adah does not like the house in which she will inhabit in Britain, Francis explains the reason for their obligation to live there. From his perspective, the white and the black citizens in the United Kingdom live in different settings. Since they are coloured people, they have to reside in the houses which he depicts as horrors. At this point, it is not wrong to argue that he does not struggle for his individual identity in the transnational British society. Instead, in Frantz Fanon’s words, “when the Negro makes contact with the white world, a certain sensitising action takes place. […]. The black man stops behaving as an actional
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person. The goal of his behaviour will be The Other (in the guise of the white man) for The Other alone can give him worth” (119). Considering the critic’s assertions, it is possible to claim that Francis does not try to be a character of action; because, he takes his position as the other for granted. Thus, although he views his house horrible, he finds himself obliged to inhabit there due to his national identity and complexion. Accordingly, he detests his native cultural values; however, he is also aware that he is not treated as a first- class privileged citizen in England. This trait of the character indicates that he has the characteristics of mimicry, which Homi K. Bhabha defines as “the sign of a double articulation; a complex strategy of reform, regulation and discipline, which ‘appropriates’ the Other as it visualises power” (122). Hence, Francis justifies their residence in the house which he finds horrific. His answer to the main character indicates that he appropriates his and his wife’s positions as the other. Therefore, the quotation is important; since, it provides another example for the discriminationary attitude against Adah in the social space and it also shows the mimicry of her husband.
Despite Francis’s succumbing to his role in the society, she still aims to realise her dreams. However, she encounters discriminatory attitudes in the library in which she works as well. The matter is handled as follows:
The other girls were assistants, very young with long, skinny legs; most of them seemed to be all legs to Adah. Unlike their superior, they were all fashion-conscious. They made Adah feel out of place, so she never really became too familiar with them. They made her feel inferior somehow, always talking of boyfriends and clothes. Adah would have liked to join in, for she was the same age, but she knew that if she opened her mouth she would sound bitter. She would have told them marriage was not a bed of roses but a tunnel of thorns, fire and hot nails. Oh, yes, she would have told them all sorts of things. But why, she asked herself, must she spoil other people’s dreams? So she preferred to listen and smile noncommittally. (42)
It is seen that Adah works in the library with the white girls, who are the same age as her. However, she cannot share her views with them about fashion, marriage, which are the subject matters the young girls are interested in; because, she is black and African. This discriminatory attitude towards her is understood from the narrator’s sentence which says that the white girls made Adah feel out of place. The main cause of the consideration of the Eastern people by the white European individuals is explained in Orientalism by Edward Said, who argues that “the Orient […] appeared lamentably underhumanised, antidemocratic, backward, barbaric, and so forth” (150). Similarly, Ania Loomba maintains that “laziness, aggression, violence, greed, sexual promiscuity, bestiality, primitivism, innocence and irrationality are attributed […] by the English, French, Dutch, Spanish and Portuguese colonists to Turks, Africans, Native Americans, Jews, Indians, Irish, and others” (93). The assertions of the critics indicate that the main character is excluded by the white girls in the library because of the biased perception about Adah’s native land and culture as well as skin colour.
Another example of the protagonist’s discrimination in the British society is observed in the restaurants she goes with her husband. The author reflects it in the following quotation:
Even if Francis did qualify, he would never have the courage to bring her to a restaurant to eat, not in London anyway, because he firmly believed that such places were not for blacks. Adah
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knew that his blackness, his feeling of blackness, was firmly established in his mind. […]. Personally, if she had had money, she would have walked straight into such places and was sure she would have been served. But what was the point of dreaming about it; she had no money! So she feasted her eyes on the well-displayed food. One particular item attracted her that afternoon. It was a fishcake in a fish shop. The cake was yellowish brown all round and very appetising. Her mouth started to water like that of a starving dog, so she turned away. (57)
The author deals with the oppression against the black immigrants in a public place. Adah cannot eat the fishcake, which she wants, and her mouth waters. It is Francis who explains the cause of this situation against them in restaurants. He suggests that these places are not for people like them due to their complexion. In this sense, they are excluded in the various dimensions of the public life. The biased Western attitude against the immigrant blacks is also handled in the field of health. Adah’s daughter, Vicky, comes down with viral meningitis. She takes her daughter to a hospital to treat her child in the Christmas. However, she encounters problems in this matter as well:
Fancy getting somebody out in this weather and on this day, just because a child was ill. She guessed it was their right, but maybe this was a right that could be easily explained away, because they were blacks and because Vicky was only a baby and because it was Christmas Day. If anything should happen to Vicky now, Society would forgive the doctor, because he was a black child and had been taken ill on Christmas Day. Why then should Adah expect a doctor to call? She started to panic. She did not know what she was doing any more. Vicky was dying now. (143)
In the quotation, it is Christmas time and Adah’s child is taken ill that day, which is a holiday in Britain. Although she expects Vicky’s treatment by the doctors, this demand is not put into practice and the British social values that prioritise the ideals of the white population disregard the central character’s hope. She justifies this situation in terms of her and her child’s complexion and their cultural origin. Therefore, in the issue of health, the colonialist social norms discriminate Adah and Vicky, who is ill. However, the point that needs to be emphasised is that Adah struggles hard for sustaining her existence within the traditions of the English society. She tries to maintain her cultural identity and continue performing her practices in daily life by working in the library, earning money in this way and taking her child to the hospital in the case of illness. Therefore, it is not wrong to consider her as a figure that aims to lead the white population to gain insight into her problems although they develop a biased attitude towards her and the other black citizens.
Francis is different from Adah in that even if he takes his blackness and hence discrimination in the social life for granted, he still favours the lifestyle and values in the United Kingdom. Kissing his wife in the public is considered as an example of his mimicry. Another example for this tendency is indicated in relation to the changes in his beliefs. The author focuses on the matter as follows:
He would have declared himself a Moslem, for he was once a Moslem when he was younger. Francis was like the Vicar of Bray. He changed his religion to suit his whims. When he realised that equipping Adah with birth-control gear would release her from the bondage of child-
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bearing, Francis went Catholic. When he started failing his examinations and was feeling very inferior to his fellow Nigerians, he became Jehovah’s Witness. (116-7)
It is seen that Francis changes his religious beliefs in accordance with his real-life experiences. It is indicated that he is formerly a Muslim. As a response to his wife’s use of birth-control gear, he gets converted to Catholicism. As a reaction to his failures, he turns into a Jehovah’s Witness. This shows that he does not have a steady identity. From the author’s perspective, its cause is his determination to follow his personal ambitions to gain an acceptance in the social space. Although he is aware of his blackness as a factor leading to the position as a second-class citizen, he still favours their way of life and worldviews. Therefore, this example also proves his mimicry in the work. Even if he also experiences many discriminations in the United Kingdom, he does not struggle for maintaining his bonds with the local African culture and its values. Therefore, his in-between condition is important in transnational sense.
In the novel, Adah is a black woman. Therefore, she gets exposed to discrimination in two aspects, viz. gender and skin colour, in different areas of the social life, such as restaurants, hospitals and the library in which she works. However, her difference from her husband is her decisiveness to protect her identity within the society dominated by the white. So, she makes up her mind to produce a book. The case is decribed in the following quotation:
It was in that happy mood that she went to the small branch of Woolworth’s off the Crescent and bought four school exercise books, and started to scribble down The Bride Price. The more she wrote, the more she knew she could write and the more she enjoyed writing. She was feeling this urge: Write; go on and do it, you can write. When she finished it and read it all through, she knew she had no message with a capital ‘M’ to tell the world, because it was full of scenes with sickly, adolescent love sentiment. […]. It mattered little to her whether it was published or not, all that mattered was that she had written a book. […] She could not write in any African language, so it must be English although English was not her mother tongue. Yes, it was the English language she was going to use. (174-7)
As shown, Adah aims to raise the voice of the black women by writing her work entitled The Bride Price. By means of this, she tries to maintain her identity as a black woman within the dominant white population. The production of a novel is an alternative that she finds to achieve this purpose. For this reason, “the postcolonial woman becomes a figure that is constantly displaced or a voice that constantly resists, within a discourse that is evolving and shifting. She is at once elite and powerless, at once subversive and exploitative” (Uraizee 199). Throughout the novel, Adah, as a typical postcolonial woman, is displaced in the public space and by the white girls in the same age as her. Nevertheless, she subverts the biased attitude of the British society against the black by writing her book. Therefore, she acts differently from her husband, Francis.
All in all, Second-Class Citizen focuses largely on the discriminatory attitudes towards the black people in Britain. The protagonist and her husband, Adah and Francis, represent the oppressed, excluded black immigrants and those others from the Third World in the United Kingdom which they choose to live in. Adah experiences segregation in different phases of the social life there. However, she aims to protect her cultural identity and expects to be considered as a first-class citizen despite her complexion. Although she gives birth
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to five children, she still makes an effort to raise her voice in the society. It is for this reason that she writes her novel. Whereas she tries to maintain her individuality and her bonds with the African culture, her husband, Francis, develops an attitude completely different from her. He favours the British way of life and their ideals. This is understood from his conversion to Catholicism as well as his act of kissing his wife in the public. Despite his struggles, he cannot get favoured by the English society; because the white have biased outlook on him as well. Therefore, he is also viewed as an “Other”, like his wife. The in-between nature of this character by getting excluded by the country whose ideals he supports leads to his mimicry. Hence, it is not wrong to put forward the idea that he is in contrast to his wife. Buchi Emecheta does not reflect a specific family and the problems of its members in the novel. As she puts it simply in her interview with Reed Dasenbrock and Feroza Jussawalla, “the themes are universal. That’s so for Second-Class Citizen, too” (85). In this regard, the author discusses the oppression to which the black immigrants get exposed and aim to lead readers throughout the world to gain insight into that problem. This makes her a celebrated and transnational figure in the literature in English.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Berg, Wolfgang and Aoileann Ni Eigeartaigh. (2010). Exploring Trasculturalism: A Biographical Approach. Heidelberg: VS Research. Bhabha, Homi K. (2004). The Location of Culture. London: Routledge. Busby, Margaret. (1996) “Foreword” in Marie Umeh (Ed.), Emerging Perspectives on Buchi Emecheta (xiii- xx). New Jersey, Eritrea: Africa World Press, Inc. Emecheta, Buchi. (1974). Second-Class Citizen. Oxford: Heinemann. Fanon, Frantz. (1967). Black Skin, White Masks. trans. Charles Lam Markmann. Foreword by Ziauddin Sardar and Homi K. Bhabha. Sidmouth: Pluto. James, Adeola. (1990). In Their Own Voices. Ed. Adeola James. London: Heinemann. Jussawalla, Feroza and Reed Way Dasenbrock. (1992). Interviews with Writers of the Post-Colonial World. cond. and ed. Feroza Jussawalla and Reed Way Dasenbrock. London: UP of Mississippi. Loomba, Ania. Colonialism/Postcolonialism. 2nd ed. London: Routledge, 2005. Print. Ojo-Ade, Femi. (1989). On Black Culture. Ile-Ife: Obafemi Awolowo UP. Said, Edward. (2003). Orientalism. London: Penguin. Stratton, Florence. (1994). Contemporary African Literature and the Politics of Gender. London: Routledge. Taiwo, Oladele. (1984). Female Novelists of Modern Africa. London: Macmillan. Uraizee, Joya. (2000). “Buchi Emecheta and the Politics of Gender”. Black Women Writers Across Cultures: An Analysis of Their Contributions. Eds. Valentine Udoh James et.al. Lanham: International Scholars. Uraizee, Joya. (2000). This is no Place for a Woman: Nadine Gordimer, Buchi Emecheta, Nayantara Saghal, and the Politics of Gender. New Jersey, Eritrea: Africa World Press, Inc. Vertovec, Steven. (2009). Transnationalism. New York and London: Routledge. wa Thiong’o, Ngugi. (2006). Decolonising the Mind. Portsmouth: Heinemann.
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