 |
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is the author of three award-winning novels, Purple Hibiscus (2003), Half of a Yellow Sun (2006), and Americanah (2013), and a short story collection, The Thing around Your Neck (2009).She has received numerous awards and distinctions, including the Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction (2007) and a MacArthur Decisions, and a play, For Love of Biafra, a year later. Adichie’ short story “You in America”; and in 2003, her story “That Harmattan Morning” was selected as joint winner of the BBC Short Story Awards, and she won the O. Henry Prize for “The American Embassy”. |
However this international superstar and story teller recently granted an interview to Sun Newspaper where she declared that irrespective of what culture or society feels or say, No body can force her to change her name to her husband
Read the revealing Interview below
You started by telling me that you’re not “Mrs.”…
(cuts in) My name is Chimamada Adichie. If you want to put label for me, put Ms.
But people know that you’re married. As an Igbo girl, you know our culture…
(Cuts in again) What does our culture do? Let me tell you about our culture. This thing that you are calling our culture –that when you marry somebody, you’ll start call-ing her Mrs. Somebody –is not our culture; it is Western culture. If you want to talk about our culture, you need to go to people in real Igbo land. But it is true. My grandfather’s name is David. His name is also Nwoye. They call him Nwoye Omeni. Omeni was his mother. You know why? It is to help distinguish him, because there are often many wives. So, it was his mother that they used to identify him. They know that all of these people came from the same compound, but whose child is this one. You may go and ask people who is Nwoye Omeni, and they’ll tell you it is my grandfather. So, conversation about culture is a long one. I don’t even want to have it.
But, at what point would you change your name?
Yes; because it’s all fused. You cannot then come and impose something on somebody. Nobody should come and impose something on somebody, because, if you come and tell me it is our culture, I’ll tell you it is not our culture. Where do you want to start counting? Do you want to start counting in 1920, or do you want us to start counting from 1870?
But culture is dynamic…
Exactly my point, which is why this is new. If culture is dynamic, you cannot use it as conservative tool. We can-not then say it has to be this because it is our culture. My point is that it is a new thing. Things are changing. We live in a world now where women have a right to bear the name they want. So, we cannot say this is how we do it. If some women want to do it that way, that’s fine! God bless them. Some women won’t do it. I am one of those women, and nobody will come to use culture to tell me that I should do what I don’t want to do
Do You agree with Chimamanda?
well, its her choice. the world is changing and couple with the fact that her name have echoed around the world, is not easy for anyone in her shoes to lay it down cos of marriage or rather way of life(culture) of some people. but if there is an understanding between she and her said husband, let she stick to her believe but can still add her husband's name to differentiate her from when she was single?
ReplyDeleteI don't think it's important as to whether a lady changes her name after marriage or not. Change of name does not guarantee a successful marriage.
ReplyDeleteI don't think Chimamanda granted this interview, or maybe some of her words were twisted.
ReplyDeleteWhy was this the only part that was copied out of the whole interview that she did with Sun Newspaper? What was the intent behind?
ReplyDeletewell Patrick you said it all. Theres no legal requirement for a woman to change her name upon marriage. It's just a thing women do to give themselves some form of protection. i for one dont think i will change my name after marriage, and even if i will do i will add my husband's name to my surname and thats it.
ReplyDeleteWhen I paid bride price, I also paid for the right to have the woman change her surname to my surname. Anytime women start paying dowry, or whatever it may be called, to the family of the man they would like to be married into, then they can start dictating whether or not they would like to have their surname changed after marriage.
ReplyDeleteEkwen-nti, the village gong, has spoken!!!
I remember that one of the greatest female writers that has come out of Igboland so far-Mrs FLORA NWAPA- bore her husband's name ,and it did not derogate from her stardom or womanness or even Igbonness.
ReplyDeleteThe chick is delusional at best. And she is an Igbo woman. If I were her I'll keep my arrogant rant low profile and stop this newfound but foolish women liberation nonsense. No wonder there are so, so many divorces everywhere. This Chimamanger chick will soon join the ranking of the ever present coat hangers of men, until of course time passes her by and she becomes old and whittled, as most of her types later in life.
ReplyDelete