Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Women in Africa

Women in the African tribes were very disrespected. Okonkwo even wishes his daughters were sons because males are more valuable. It was common practice for wives to be beat. A man's wife ran away to avoid being beaten, so he brought his case in front of the egwugwu. He thought it was totally unreasonable for her to run away. He didn't even want her back; he just wanted the bride price. The egwugwu said the woman must go back to her husband, but that he cannot beat her. The townspeople were shocked that such an "insignificant" matter came in front of the egwugwu.

1 comment:

Joseph Martin said...

Women certainly did not have equal rights to men in Igbo culture, and they were often objectified. I still think that the Igbo placed great values on women, just not in the ways that we would think. Yes, husbands were allowed to beat their wives without much consequence, but during the trial, the egwugwu say that it is not just to fight a woman. I think the bride price was a way of valuing women similar to how in Europe, marriages would be arranged for alliances and to enhance one's material and social status. We see the importance of women in the word Nneka, which means "Mother is Supreme." The mother figure is not sought out in times of prosperity, but it is in dark times that the mother plays a comforting and consistent role.