payment page
Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work.
Control as an Aspect of Domestic Violence
Papa exerts control over his family through religious demands, restriction of movement, and nearly unattainable educational standards, enforcing that control with violent punishments. A fervently religious person since his conversion to Christianity in childhood, Papa demands absolute adherence to religious rules, fearful that any misstep will damn his children to hell. When Kambili breaks the Eucharist fast to help ease the discomfort of her menstrual period, Papa beats the entire family with a belt, hopeful that his act will prevent the devil from causing disobedience in his home. Papa also enforces strict schedules that determine each moment of the family’s day, and any detected deviance from the schedule results in punishment. Family members must gain Papa’s permission to leave the house, and when they are allowed to leave, they are supervised by their driver, Kevin. Papa also uses Father Benedict as a tool for controlling his children. When Kambili and Jaja stay at Papa-Nnukwu’s house for slightly longer than the prescribed fifteen minutes Papa has allotted, Kambili is later compelled to confess this sin to Father Benedict out of the fear that her father already knows and will be informed if she doesn’t choose to repent. Even at school, Papa extends his controlling reach, insisting his children always place first in their classes. Coming in second is considered a failure and a direct choice to disobey him. Kambili describes the worry of making sure she comes in first in school as similar to balancing a sack of gravel on her head and not being allowed to steady it with her hand. When she comes in second after her first-term exams – an outcome many families would celebrate – Kambili is so frightened of the punishment to come that she can’t speak or eat. As Kambili tries hard to please Papa, his control over her has serious negative effects on her mental health and development. Even in the times when he is not physically harming his wife and children, Papa abuses them through his complete control over their lives.
The Juxtaposition Between Pain and Affection
Interactions in the Achike home highlight the forced juxtaposition between pain and affection that abusers inflict on their family members. This concept is first introduced when Papa offers Kambili and Jaja a “love sip” of tea. The tea is always too hot and burns their tongues, but the children don’t mind because they are happy to receive Papa’s affection, even if it hurts. When Papa beats Mama badly and carries her bleeding body from the house, he later rubs Kambili’s shoulders and hugs her close. Kambili feels the pain of knowing that her mother is seriously injured, but she feels the love of her father at the same time. Later Papa humiliates Kambili and tears her down for coming in second in her class, but he explains that he is only insisting on perfection because he wants the best for her. He follows this talk by hugging her. Kambili feels the pain of humiliation alongside the feeling that her father loves and cares about her. As Papa pours scalding water on Kambili’s feet, he tells her that she is precious, and he does it again after attacking her with such violence that she nearly dies in the hospital. As he keeps vigil at her bedside, he promises that nothing will happen to her and behaves as if he isn’t the cause of her hospitalization. When Papa hurts his children and wife, he often weeps, as if expressing his own pain at having to hurt his family is a form of affection for them. Papa cultivates an abusive dynamic in which he presents pain as both a path to love and also a necessary product of it.
The Tension Between Traditional Ways and Colonialism
The theme of tension between traditional Nigerian ways and colonialism first emerges in Papa’s round rejection of the Nigerian language, religion, and even objects in favor of their European parallels. His dismissive attitude toward anything traditionally African echoes the tendency of colonialism to assert superiority over the culture of the colonized under the guise of civilization. Much as he dominates his family with his religious zealotry, Papa campaigns for the obliteration of traditional African culture in large and small ways, such as his affirmation that church services be conducted in English and Latin, and his use of a traditional European china tea set in his home. Though many in his community follow his lead out of a desire to please him, others such as Papa-Nnukwu hold fast to African traditions and to the pantheistic religion of their ancestors. Papa-Nnukwu’s beliefs in traditional ways are so strong that he is willing to compromise his relationship with his grandchildren in order to exercise traditional freedoms of worship and expression. Likewise, Papa is so deferent to colonialism that he has forsaken his own father. Though the community attempts to quell the tension and heal the familial rift, the division in the Achike family remains until both men have died, creating space for their successors to make personal decisions about how to live.
