Victims
...there was not only one of textbooks and essays, but also an unveiling of the awful truths about the male-female and settler-native relationship that existed in her society. Her cousin Nyasha was already aware of the intricacies of these relationships and eventually had an emotional breakdown because of them. Through Tsitsi Dangarembga's skillful writing of Nervous Conditions, one can see the core of the conflict between Nyasha and her parents when they examine her sudden breakdown. The dynamics of their relationship stem from the colonization of Babamukuru and Maiguru's past and parallel the relationship of African men and women.
Nyasha's outburst hits the core of the problems that exist between her and her controlling parents. Dangarembga carefully chooses Nyasha's words when she says, "They've done it to me,' she accused, whispering still. Really, they have" (200). "They" refers to Babamukuru and Maiguru and the role that they have played in Nyasha's despair. She feels that her parents have tried to suppress the person that she is and wants to be. Instead of allowing their daughter to grow into a self-assured, intelligent, sexually free young woman, they have attempted to make her an inferior, well-behaved, subordinate little girl. Babamukuru and Maiguru have taken away books that they felt Nyasha should not be reading, forced their daughter to eat when she said that she was not hungry, and even used violence to reprimand her for staying out too late with a boy. Nyasha has felt animosity towards her father and mother since these things have occurred. Her disdain is quite apparent from the words that she uses to address Tambu. Nyasha is very angry with her parents because she "accuses" them of oppressing her, while she also seems to be timid in letting the world know this, as she "whispers" to her cousin. This has been a continuing struggle for Nyasha as she...
View Full Essay
